Did I Blink or Something?

-Seriously, I think that I must have blinked or something, because all of the sudden, when I am looking at Molly, all I can think is, “Where did my new, little baby go?!!!”

-Don’t get me wrong, she’s still plenty young…our days of nursing, sling-wearing, cuddling, bite-size food-feeding, staying in one spot on the floor-playing, and generally being a well-attached baby and mama are still going strong. It’s just that, all of the sudden, I realized that, while she is still a “baby”, she has turned a developmental corner. She has left “infant” behind in the dust, and has “toddler” in her sights in the distance.

Here are some observations:
-She doesn’t mind having her clothes changed. As a newborn, every time there is a clothes or diaper change, it was full on water-works. The change in temperature and comfort were SUCH an insult to little Miss Molly Moose Mouse. Now, she thinks it’s no big deal. It’s like she’s thinking, “Alright…clothes change…no biggie…I can roll with it, Mama!”

-She WANTS to be mobile. She’s not quite ready to crawl yet, but she is very aware that there are things out of her reach, and if she stretches VERY far, she can get some of them when she is sitting. And on her tummy, she is finally starting to reach for things and play on her tummy, rather than just fuss that I insulted her by laying her on her tummy on the floor instead of sitting her down.

-She is SO good with her hands and has such good dexterity. I remember Ben being good with his hands at this stage, but I think Molly might have him passed. She tries to put rings on a stick, and is so good at picking up small objects, and putting small things into rather small containers and holes. She can also pull things out of really teeny spaces, as well.

-She has gotten so patient. Ben went through this stage, as well. Although there are times that she wants/needs more attention, there are also lots of times that I can just sit her on the floor with some interesting toys or objects (ex: a whisk from the kitchen), and she will just quietly play and explore for such a long time. I love to watch her be so thoughtful in her play (and I love keeping her busy for a quick break sometimes, I’ll admit it!) And if I am in the middle of a chore, such as dishes, I can just keep encouraging her and keep giving her new things, and she will just keep going without much of a fuss, usually. *Actually, BOTH my kids are really good at this. Ben has been great lately at trying new things and really engaging in his own play for long periods of time.

-Molly has really started to enjoy the swing in the back yard. Thanks to our wonderful families, we have gotten the back yard cleaned up and useable, and my dad even built a swing set for the kids. We now have 2 swings out there, and it is so fun to go out and put both kids in swings and see them laugh and interact with each other while they are swinging.

-She loves to laugh. She's not cracking up all the time or anything, but it is much easier to make her laugh than it was to make Ben laugh. Part of that is because she has such a great older brother around, always eager to try to make his little sis laugh!