Hi, sweetheart. You turned nine months old a few days ago. I’m a bit late with your letter because we had to say goodbye to your "furry brother". Boo got very sick and we needed to say goodbye to him. I know you won’t remember him, so I’ll tell you a bit about him.
He was very good to you. He never took a swipe at you or bit you, even when you grabbed his fur. He liked being near you, unless you were screeching. He occasionally gave you headbutts of love, or marked your feet with his cheeks. If you cried from distress (as opposed to crying from hunger) he would meow at us until we fixed the problem. He would come into your room at bedtime, and leave as soon as you were settled in my arms. I’m glad we have some photos of both of you together.
It’s been a busy month, my sweet pea. You have really found your voice - you make all kinds of great sounds. You can do g-g-g, d-d-d, r-r-r and b-b-b. You love to yell and screech, especially in a place where it echoes. Sometimes it sounds like you’re trying to echolocate. You also like to make clicking sounds. Lately you are also making a sound that is kind of like a roar - you do it in your high chair. We call it "hulk smash". And in the evenings, you frequently make wookie noises. So we say, "Hulk by day, wookie by night." You’re awesome, no matter what noise you make. Even the bat chat.
You are scooting around at great speeds, turning yourself about and shuffling backwards. Still no forward crawling, but it will come. It’s actually really nice that I can put you down on the floor and you can amuse yourself without moving too far. But I know it won’t last! You enjoy standing at your exersaucer or in your room at your crib.
You love playing with your train and your beads. Your absolutely favourite toy is your turtle, though. Granny bought it for you as a bath toy, but you take it everywhere. I won’t let you keep it in your crib, though, because you won’t sleep! You love that turtle - you smile when we pull it out for you. You enjoy teething on it, sticking his head in your mouth, and chatting to it.
You love to be cuddled, which is just fine with me. Usually by 4pm, you’re getting a bit weary. So we watch Ellen together on the couch, and you let me snuggle you while you play with your remote. (We call it the Moemote - it’s small and doesn’t work anything.) I love the smell of your hair, and the feeling of your hands on my arm. You love Ellen. You smile when you see her, and you love to dance with her.
You love to dance with anyone, in fact. We still try and dance at least once a day with you - you laugh and smile and shriek with delight. And it’s good exercise for us! We dance to our music, but also to a classic Sesame Street CD and some tunes by John Ligthgow. You’re also a fan of the Pixar soundtrack album. We all dance together to “If I Didn’t Have You”. And I’ve been introducing you to Edith Piaf.
You had your first Halloween, and you were a total trooper. We went to a few houses on our street to show you off, then we headed to Aunt Janine and Uncle Mark’s where you hung out with your buddy Zaphod. You had a great time.
We brought you to an allergist this month, too. It turns out that you’re allergic to eggs. Once we eliminated any food with noodles in it (as they contain eggs) as well as poultry, your skin cleared up quite a bit. We were also told that with your eczema, you have an increased risk of asthma. So we’re trying to stay aware of that. You charmed all the people in the waiting room at the allergist, and distracted them from their itchy arms. And when you cried a very little bit when the doctor pricked you, they were all very sad for you. But you got over it quickly and were back to your sunny self again right away. I was so proud.
We’ve done a few nice outings with you, despite poor weather. We hit the Agriculture Museum together, where you saw the animals. And I brought you to Mer Bleue Boardwalk where Jeannie and her girls showed you how to feed the chickadees. You love observing the world around you. You sit quietly and watch and take everything in.
I brought you to see Reg on Remembrance Day, and you were amazing. You sat on his lap quietly and thoughtfully while we watched the ceremony on TV. I think he really enjoyed having you there.
You are sleeping pretty darn well these days. You went through a growth spurt for a week where you took 3-hour naps and did 8-hour stretches at night. It was bliss. You’re back to your old self now, but you average 6-hour stretches at night, and I can live with that. You also go to bed a lot easier than you used to.
You make us laugh and smile all the time. We call you the "make everything better machine". It’s so gratifying that you really seem to enjoy spending time with us! We love spending time with you. Keep growing into the thoughtful, sweet, smiley little boy you are.
