Dear Moses - 18 months

Dear Moses,

Guess what Mommy's thinking about today? Ya-da-da-da! Yo-oo-oo-oo-oou. Yeah, you! You're a year and a half today! It seems to be a parent's general nature to say Wow, whoa, I can't believe it, it's unbelievable, how did that happen, how did we get here... but for me, right now, it seems right. You seem one and a half, you act one and a half, in fact somedays I think "Is that all? only 18 months? I feel like I've known this kid forever." And that's a good thing. I love you so much. Just saying that doesn't seem to explain well enough how much love I have for you. Everyday as I watch you grow and learn I'm amazed at your little person and personality and your little quirks and opinions (and believe me, you have them).

If when you turned 17 months you were kind of walking. Like, you would take five or six steps, but usually to someone and when I helped you get started. At 17 months and one day, during a trip to Ridge Road park, you were a true and bona fide walker. It just happened. You still crawled a little, because you were still figuring out how to stand up on your own, but you were going between the slides and swings and everything else and loving every minute of it. And now you're just the cutest little thing toddling around, and you're getting super good at it, too! One of the first weeks you started walking I was in the kitchen and you were playing in the living room and suddenly you were in the kitchen, you had walked in! It was so sweet and surprising to me. Maybe this will seem like a funny thing to say, but in some ways seeing you walk makes you seem littler to me (not to be confused with younger). You're just such a teeny little man stompin' around. I know someday soon the fact that you can walk won't be too big of a deal, but for now it's still awesome.

Now that you're walking it's much easier to spend time with you outside. I love watching you explore your world. We take Linus outside on walks (a term I have to use lightly because it's much more stopping than it it walking, poor doggy) and you examine leaves and acorns and crabapples and sticks and rocks and anything else you come across. You'll often pick a favorite something for the walk and carry it around and won't let it go until we go back in. You love the "duckduck!" (ducks) and "gaa-GAA!" (geese) we see when we take you on walks around the lake behind our condo. And you also love the park. You have fun going down the slide backwards over and over and over again, but you're also happy to dig around in the wood chips. The idea of those little bouncy toys that are shaped like cars or animals is fun to you, but when you're actually put on one you're automatically "ah neeahn" (all done).

Since you were about 7 months old I have been teaching you sign language. It was a gamble, I read mixed reviews: about children that talk late because of it, and of course, all the advocates for sign language say kids will talk early, it's the best, blah blah... well anyway, I went for it. And for a while you were doing lots of signs and really not talking at all. But we worked with you a little harder on the verbal stuff and now you do a good mix. Some of the words you've learned to say and just dropped the sign (banana), some you say and sign together (please, up, down, all done), sometimes you say one word and sign another (like, you'll sign "please" and say "cookie") to tell what you want, and then some you say and when I can't understand you, you sign it too. Here are all the signs you know (I'm writing these down for "someday" because I know I'll wish I had): please, help, more, up, down, ketchup, cookie, bath, hat, hairbrush, toothbrush, baby, cheese, book, all done, elephant, turtle, drink, fruit, toys, airplane, banana, crying, sleeping/tired, outside, fish, children, ball, bread (or toast), cereal. Here are the words, or I guess the approximations of the words, you say: "deez" (please), "ah neeahn" (all done), "bup" (up), "bow" - like wow (down), "ide" (outside), "teez" (toys), "ba" (ball), "mama" (mommy), "nana" (daddy - yep, still. haha.), "nana" (Grandma Hackenberg), "bapba" (Grandpa Hackenberg and Wright), "gigi" (Grandma Wright), "cookie" (cookie - but it sometimes is "googie"), "cookie/cookiemon" (Cookie Monster), "Ehmo" (Elmo), "bippo" (hippo), "guck/duck" (duck), "gaa-GAA" (geese or goose), "boo" (book). You also do a whole slew of animals noises: elephant, monkey, dog, cat, bear, lion, and bird, which is mostly the way you prefer to identify them. But your most favorite new word is "Noooooo!" coupled with an adamant head shake. Ah yes, you are making sure you fulfill your most important of toddler duties. You have become very good at expressing your opinion about something you most certainly do not want to do.

Since you've starting walking you've really grown interested and attached to Linus. Mostly, this is a good thing. You chase him around and he obliges by doing "silly circles" through the house and this makes you crack up. You hand him his toys and try to engage him in play by patting the floor when he's up on the couch or yelling at him in a playful way if he's already on the floor. Sometimes, you don't know how to be gentle and Linus gets tired of you. Luckily, he has an escape place up on the couch where your grabby little fingers can't get him.

Your most favorite playmate, though, is Daddy. When he gets home from work that's your wrasslin' time. You play a game which involves a "secret pillow," the blankets on our bed and a lot of guttural laughter. He also loves to take you and Linus out around the lake or to the tennis courts to throw a ball. Any project Daddy is working on you are right there in the action helping out.

The last thing I have to mention is how much you love (love, love) Elmo. I don't know what is about that scrappy little monster, but you adore him. (I put a little ode to Elmo at the beginning of this letter). Right now I'm finishing this letter during your nap time, and when you wake up, you'll get to watch Elmo with a sippy cup of milk and Linus by your side.

I love you, mister.

Mom