Letters to Sylvie: 10 Months

Dear Sylvie,

This month has been a pretty big one for you. Everyday you're getting more advanced and less baby-like. You're almost a bonafide kid!

While you're still mainly getting around by scootching army-crawl style on your belly, you have managed a couple real crawls. You are constantly up on your hands and knees, rocking back and forth, but usually chicken out at the last minute and flop back down to your belly before moving forward. You're surprisingly fast at your army-crawling though and love to explore everything. Which works out pretty good now that we've got the baby gate up in front of the stairs. Now you can slide around on all the wood floors and follow Mommy and Daddy around the house!

Speaking of Daddy... you can now say "Dada"! You were jabbering pretty good for a while there and finally realized that Dada was a word. Now it's all you say. "Dadadada.... Dada...Dadadadadada." Your Daddy's favorite is when you say it very quietly to yourself in a whisper. My favorite thing is to listen to you talk to yourself when we're driving in the car. You just jabber away and squeal and generally make adorable noises.

Excuse the video quality, holding a baby while using a cell phone camera is hard!

This morning you woke up a bit early so I hung out with you for a couple minutes before I had to leave for work. When it was time for me to leave, I carried you into the bedroom and put you down on the bed. You wiggled your way over to your dad, put your little hand on his back and said in your cute baby voice, "Dada!"

I'd been wondering if you were ever going to get teeth, but this month they finally arrived. Your two bottom teeth poked through first and they didn't seem to bother you at all. But, a third tooth right next to them followed closely behind and has made you a bit cranky. I'd say you're doing pretty good though and are pretty close to normal if we can keep you doctored up with a little Tylenol and stuff to chew on. Your new smile is so adorable with those little teeth and I get to see it often as you're always so happy.

The only times you aren't happy are when you're getting your diaper changed or we're putting you in your high chair to eat. You refuse to hold still and arch your back and twist and cry as if it were the worst torture known to man. I know, we're pretty mean. Luckily, at least with the high chair, once you're in, you settle right down. You're a pretty good eater and will try most things, although you gag quite frequently while tasting even the most benign of foods. Oddly enough, you don't make a face while eating things that should induce one. Namely lemons, limes, and pickles. You love them and your face never so much as twitches when you eat them. I'm never going to figure you out!

You've got a few other random things here and there that you like. Namely the cat. You squeal with delight whenever you see Gracie and if you're on the floor, you immediately begin chasing after her. Sometimes she'll let you get close enough to touch her, but other times she scurries away and leaves you feeling hurt. You are very offended when she doesn't want to stay and play with you.

You also love to try and eat my shoes. It doesn't matter what kind of shoes I'm wearing, you chase my feet around and try to eat the toes of my shoes. For some reason you've decided Mommy's shoes are surely delicious but Daddy says you never touch his. Crazy kid. I'm never going to figure you out.

Sylvie you are surely the light of my life. Your sweet spunky personality always makes me so happy. I'll never get tired of kissing your little chubby cheeks and giving you hugs and seeing your beautiful smile. I love you so so much.

Love, Mama