A Girl Named PJ

Dear Levi,

You are ten months old! I can’t believe how quickly you are growing up–and growing out. You officially have a pudgy baby belly! You’re now in size 3 diapers and are already starting to outgrow the size 6-9 clothing you only starting wearing last month. Gosh, I love your chunky little rolls.

You’re a super fast crawler and have figured out how to get into a sitting position from your tummy and from all fours. It was such a surprise to find you sitting up in your crib one morning! You aren’t standing yet, but I can tell that in the last week or so you’ve starting to consider it. In your crib, you kneel while holding onto the railing and have been trying to do the same in your Pack-N-Play. Since you can’t reach the top, though, you usually end up falling against its mesh sides.

As you scurry across the room, you pause to look under and inside of things. You’ll lift up your new play mat and area rugs and investigate all sides of your toys. Being in constant motion has made it quite challenging for me to dress you and change your diapers. You flip yourself over before I can secure your Pampers and won’t bend your elbows when I try to put on your shirts. (By the way, this happens in your crib or on the floor; you would roll right off the changing pad if I were to use it.) I am literally sweating and out of breath after wrestling you into your clothing.

Mealtime can also be difficult. I have never seen a baby eat as slowly as you do! On more than one occasion this month, it has taken you almost 45 minutes to finish your dinner. You’re not always into the chunks in your stage 3 baby food, so to make some of the new textures more appetizing, I have to add a squeeze of puréed fruit or veggies to each bite. However, you have totally mastered the sippy cup and sometimes nonchalantly drink from it with a one-handed hold.

Several times this month I was convinced you must be teething because you were cranky and cried for no apparent reason. Whiny and irritable, you would scream randomly throughout the day and starting waking up before 6am. Just this past week, the day before you turned 10 months old, you skipped your afternoon nap all together and batted the spoon away as I tried to feed you dinner. You frequently put your fingers in your mouth now, but I have yet to feel or see any baby teeth poking their way through!

For the most part you continue to be a smiley, happy baby. Swinging at the playground and games of peek-a-boo make you laugh, and you have started showing preferences for certain books. Your favorites include Goodnight Moon, The Going to Bed Book and Kiss Good Night, and you will sit on my lap and pay attention to the stories as I read them to you. Bath time is still one of your favorite activities, but I can tell you are beginning to feel confined in your blow up rubber ducky tub. It’s also time to swap out some of your baby toys for more interactive ones to engage your curiosity and perhaps motivate you to stand up and start cruising (even though I’m not mentally prepared for that yet!). But maybe toys are overrated because one of your most favorite things to do is pull your books out of their basket!

The most exciting development this month, though, may be that I made the decision to significantly cut back my working hours so that I can care for you at home full time. I never thought I wanted to be a stay at home mom, but it was so difficult to see and hear you playing with the nanny during the day. I decided that I couldn’t miss out on all of the little moments. After all, you will only be my little baby for a short time!

This month’s stats: On a good day you wake up between 6:30-7am (by the way, I took out your crib bumper this month!). I nurse you and wait about 30-45 minutes before feeding you solid breakfast. Your first nap happens around 9-9:30am, and you’re pretty good about falling asleep quickly and can snooze for approximately two hours in the morning. Lunch takes place between 11:30-12, and I’ll either nurse you before you eat or before your afternoon nap. I try to put you back down around 2-2:30pm, but you tend not to fall asleep until almost 3:30pm. You wake an hour or 1.5 hours later, so dinner is around 5:30pm. Finally, you nurse before going to bed at 7-7:30pm. Worth noting: You have significantly cut back on how long you nurse during each breasts ending session to about 3 minutes at a time.

Whew! So many developments! I love you so much, buddy bear!

xoxo

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I’ll be photographing Levi on the 12th of every month to document his growth this first year. He’ll be wearing a numbered white onesie corresponding to his age in months, sitting in a chair next to his blabla doll for continuity. See all of Levi’s monthly photos here.