Back Together Again

Dear Vinny,

I was gone for a long time and I'm glad to be back home with you and Daddy. I missed you both lots and lots. While I was gone, Daddy took you to see Granny and Granddad, who really enjoyed getting the chance to see you. You went to the park to watch birds with Granny, and you got to play with Granddad and his trains.

Daddy said that you really started speaking in sentences regularly while you were at Granny and Granddad's. I was surprised when I saw you how much more you were saying. At dinner last night, you said to me, "Mama, I missed you all day!" I tell you that same thing when I come home from work every day, but I hadn't said that yesterday so I was really impressed when you said it!

I missed you all day, every day, too.

Love,
Mama

Travel Time

Dear Vinny,

Tomorrow morning, I leave for a long trip. First I'm going to Vancouver to see your cousin Byron, Aunt Rachel, and Uncle Scott for a few days. Then I will go to a conference in Seattle. I'll be gone for a total of ten days.

While I'm gone, Daddy will take you to see Granny and Granddad for a few days. I know they are looking forward to seeing you, almost as much as I will miss you every day that I am gone.

I can't wait to see you again.

Love,
Mama

Your First Flu

Dear Vinny,

For the first time ever, you came down with some sort of stomach bug yesterday. I knew something was wrong when I brought you into our bedroom and all you wanted to do was lie down and snuggle. You didn't seem feverish, just miserable. You lay there and moaned, until it happened -- you puked all over the bed and yourself. You felt somewhat better after that.

We gave you Pedialyte to drink, and you watched four episodes of your favorite show, Jack's Big Music Show. Then, when I was out shopping for more Pedialyte, you vomited again. But that was the last of it. We fed you chicken noodle soup and plain crackers. We also tried to give you some 7-Up, but you thought it was the most vile thing you'd ever tasted. That's fine -- I don't mind you disliking a beverage that is nothing more than empty calories!

You woke up this morning feeling fine. After it had been 24 hours since the last time you vomited, we let you have some pizza -- the food you'd been clamoring for since yesterday. You didn't seem to have any more stomach trouble after that, so all was well.

Love,
Mama

Vocabulary Development

Dear Vinny,

You are fast learning more and more words. Sometimes your pronunciation is not quite right, however. For example, when it's time for a siesta, you tend to say, "Map!" And when you've found something very precious that you want, you say "Nine!"

Daddy bought you a very nice toy setup with a fridge, microwave, stove, and oven, which you refer to as "Chicken!"

Love,
Mama

Dentist Follow-up

Dear Vinny,

Daddy took you for your follow-up appointment with the dentist on Monday. The dentist said your tooth was fine but that we needed to take away your binky because it was damaging your bite. So we did, but it has been very hard on all of us. You've had trouble sleeping through the night because that's when you've had it for the past several months.

I've noticed you cramming your hand in your mouth a lot more, which must be because you're missing that binky sensation. I'm so sorry that we have to do this, but it's for the best, my sweet boy.

Love,
Mama

Mommy or Mama

Dear Vinny,

When you first started talking about us, you called your parents "Mama" and "Dada." I thought that "Mama" was so cute that I decided I preferred it over "Mommy." Daddy likes being called Daddy, though. So he encouraged you to change to saying "Daddy."

But I'm keeping "Mama," so I guess it would be more consistent if I signed these letters with that name. So from here on out, I will.

Love,
Mama

Grandpa's Retirement Party

Dear Vinny,

On Thursday, we got in the car and drove to Kentucky. Grandpa was having a big party the next day, celebrating his retirement.

You got to see a lot of relatives: Aunt Laura arrived soon after we did. The next day, you, Aunt Laura, and I went and saw Mommy's grandma, your great-Grandma Laura, at her home. She was really pleased to see you -- she brightens up at the sight of young children. That afternoon, your cousin Maya and Aunt Vaughan attended Grandpa's party, as did his mother (your great-Grandma Mary) and several of Grandpa's siblings: Uncle Grant, Uncle Paul and Aunt Ann, Aunt Sally, Uncle Glen, Aunt Barb, and Mommy's cousin Glenna.

Your Grandma got a chance to dote over you, and had several brand-new outfits waiting for you when we got there. (She'd told us not to bring very many clothes for you.) When Grandpa was being honored at his retirement party, he was holding you very proudly by his side!

On Saturday, we celebrated Father's Day with Grandpa. We went out for pizza (your latest favorite food) and gave him a card signed by you and a picture of you. Afterwards we went to play in the park. You had a great time playing and were disappointed when we had to leave.

We came home on Sunday, and I know Grandma and Grandpa were sad to see you go. I'm glad you got the chance to spend some time with them.

Love,
Mommy

Your Antics

Dear Vinny,

Despite your sore mouth, you continue to be cheerful. You seem to have come down with a bit of a cold, but it hasn't dampened your mood.

This afternoon, instead of napping, you were singing. Here's a transcription (courtesy of your father):
blug-bo-blug-bo-goobar-goo.... dug-do-dug-do- hi-hi-hiyea yo yo hiyea yo yo hieyeah dooo gooo blug goobar goo

You have a wonderful sense of humor and you tell me what's particularly humorous by declaring it "Fuuunny!"

One of the most hilarious things is to peer through the handle and bench of your toolbench. "Ahsee-ooo!" you announce. "Fuuunny!"

Another hilarious activity is when we touch our feet and wiggle our toes. "Giggle giggle giggle," you say. You also love to smack my belly and watch it jiggle, beep my nose, or pinch it and hear me say "Ga-HOO-ga!", and point out my eyebrows (which you pronounce more like "eyeball," but you're definitely talking about eyebrows).

You're extremely ticklish in the armpits, so it's easy to get you to laugh that deep, belly laugh of yours. I love hearing it!

You love the book Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb. I have read it to you many, many times. You bring it to me and say, "Wead? Hand?" It is impossible to say no to you, even though I don't like it nearly as much as you do.

You have an amazing vocabulary, and know the word for just about everything you encounter. I enjoy watching your development!

Love,
Mommy

Dentist Visit

Dear Vinny,

Yesterday morning I took you to the dentist. This dentist was recommended to me by my dental hygienist, who saw him when she was a child. He seemed very nice.

It took me and the nurse to hold you down so that Dr. Bob could look at your tooth. You were pretty upset with the whole deal. Your tooth is probably going to be okay.

When he was poking around at your tooth, some off-white ooze came out of it. He didn't think it was pus, but gave you a prescription for antibiotics nonetheless. You and I went to Kroger to fill your prescription and stock up on other things that we needed. While there, we bought some Father's Day cards for your Daddy and your grandfathers. We also bought some peroxyl and gauze, to clean your mouth with as the dentist ordered. You don't like it when we do that; it must sting quite a bit.

You're sleeping through the night again and much more cheerful than you have been for the past few days. I am glad that you're healing up and my negligence didn't cause permanent damage.

Love,
Mommy

Pain in the Tooth

Dear Vinny,

I feel like the worst mother ever.

We were having a pleasant morning, horsing around on the bed, you and I. Daddy was in the other room starting his breakfast.

You were tumbling on the bed and I was trying to keep you from tumbling off. But I misjudged the distance and you fell right off the bed. You tumbled a full rotation and landed on your face!

You were screaming! I grabbed you and held you to my chest, trying to calm you down. At that point I saw the blood coming from your mouth. I thought you'd bit your lip or something so I tried to get a better look, but you were screaming bloody murder. I finally got a glimpse and saw that your left front tooth was jammed halfway back up into your gum. I called to Daddy and told him that we'd better take you to the doctor. He called the doctor's office and they told us to take you to the emergency room. So we decided to take you to Children's Hospital.

I tried to hold ice to your mouth but the pressure really made you hurt. We finally got to the hospital and saw a doctor, who said that your tooth would eventually descend on its own. He also told us to follow up with a dentist to make sure your growing permanent tooth bud hadn't been damaged. We were to take you home and put you on a diet of soft foods for the next week.

I am so sorry that this horrible thing happened to you. If I had the power, I would gladly have suffered that injury rather than you. I love you so much I can't bear to see you hurt!

Love,
Mommy

Your Latest Obsession

Dear Vinny,

Lately, you have discovered the moon. You are now officially obsessed with it.

After you first became aware of it, you looked up one evening, saw a streetlight, and shouted with delight, "MOON!!!"

Even now, you are very fascinated with the moon. You want to go outside and look for it, even when it's daytime or when the moon is not up.

Anything moon-shaped, whether a crescent or a circle, immediately elicits the exclamation, "Moon!"

The other night, when you were getting sick, you were absolutely inconsolable. Then Daddy looked up the object of your infatuation on Google images. You stopped crying and looked at the pictures.

I wonder whether your fascination with the moon will continue into adulthood. It will be interesting to watch!

Love,
Mommy

Updates

Dear Vinny,

This past weekend, we went on a hike in the Smokies. Daddy carried you in the backpack carrier. The weather was just beautiful and so was the scenery. After the hike we drove on a scenic loop before returning home in the late evening.

Then this week, we went out to dinner with Mommy's friend Bruce. You enjoyed meeting him, despite the fact that he has a beard. Maybe you're getting over your fear of bearded men.

Lately, a ten-year-old girl from down the street has come over to play with you a lot. You two play in the front yard together. You love it when she picks you up and twirls you round and round, and when you chase her. A lot of times she has a dog or two with her, and you absolutely adore the "oofs."

On Thursday night, you were whiny and cranky and we didn't know why. We thought it could be your two-year-old molars, which are coming in. But the next day you spiked a fever and Daddy took you to the doctor. You had a very sore throat, and you were moaning in pain for most of the day, which probably explained how you felt the night before. But this morning, you seemed fine, just in time for Mommy to come down with it. If Daddy's lucky, he won't catch it. I bought him some orange juice when I picked up some ibuprofen for you on the way home from work yesterday. Hopefully that will help him.

I'm glad you're feeling better and hopefully I will feel better enough to celebrate Mother's Day tomorrow.

Love,
Mommy

Nineteen Months!

Dear Vinny,

Today you are nineteen months old! In the past month, your vocabulary has expanded a lot and you have gotten much more skilled at walking.

Something amazing is that you know the word "triangle" (when you say it, it's more like "nangle") and can successfully identify triangles when you see them. You are also learning your color words, although you haven't connected the words with the matching pigments. Likewise, you know a lot of numbers but I don't think you've yet made the connection to quantification.

Over the past month you've developed a fascination with the moon. You're always wanting to go outside and see the moon, even when it's not in the sky or it's a new moon. Lots of times, you've been overheard to say, "Mama, Dada, moon!" -- the three most important entities in your life.

Love,
Mommy

Vinny's Ever-Expanding Vocabulary

Dear Vinny,

This seems to be the month of vocabulary explosion. You already knew a lot of words (your doctor said you had the vocabulary of a two-year-old), but you are learning so many new words that we've lost track of how many you know. Another thing is that you are pronouncing words much more clearly. You used to just say "k" for milk, but now you say "mmmmilk." It is so cute when you say it, but I have to admit I did enjoy "k."

Another cute thing that you do is the following. Sometimes, you say "no" when you actually mean "yes." When that happens, you append a short, high-pitched "okay" after the very vehement "NO." For example, "Do you want some milk?" "NO. Okay!"

You are an amazing little talker and I really enjoy hearing all your words!

Love,
Mommy

Eighteen Months!

Dear Vinny,

Today you are eighteen months old! It is hard to believe that you have been in our lives for only a year and a half. In some ways, it seems like you have always been with us, yet of course you haven't.

A few days ago, you finally made the big breakthrough realization that walking was the best way to go. You had been crawling and then standing when you got to your destination, but now you have decided to just walk. You're still a little slow and easily unbalanced, but you are catching on. Daddy and I are very pleased that you're walking.

Love,
Mommy

Vinny's Vocabulary

Dear Vinny,

Your vocabulary is expanding all the time. Daddy has worked with you to teach you to say "down" when you want down, rather than "up" -- a word which, to you, indicated bidirectional motion. You are also beginning to differentiate between milk and juice. (Previously, milk meant all liquids, whereas now, milk means milk, and juice means juice, but also soup.) You think that all round fruit that's not citrus is probably an apple. I've tried to teach you the word "pear" but I don't think you've differentiated those fruits just yet. You've learned the difference between a cat and a dog, although it's not clear which word you will choose for animals that are neither cats nor dogs. You still call dogs "oofs," and you also call cats by the sound they make, which sounds kind of like "mnow."

You say the numbers one through five, although not in any particular order so I don't think you really understand what they mean. You've strung some words together into sentences -- the first one was a couple of weeks ago when you said "Milk all gone. More milk?" (phonetically, it was more like "k gagang. Mo k?") I got you some more milk after that accomplishment!

Daddy has always joked around about your "cheesy feet." He says that your feet smell like cheese. He has (inadvertently?) trained you to lift your foot to his nose when he says the words "cheesy feet." Daddy likes to horse around with you a lot. He has found that you are very ticklish in your armpit and on your chest. You laugh that deep belly laugh when he tickles you, and I know that you enjoy it very much.

You are becoming more dramatic in your use of the word "no." Now, you sometimes scream it in agony when cruel Mommy and Daddy are wiping your face with a wet washcloth or changing your diaper. It's kind of hard to keep from chuckling when you do that!

Love,
Mommy

Travel to Virginia

Dear Vinny,

This past weekend we traveled to Virginia for Aunt Laura's dissertation defense. We left on Thursday, arriving at Aunt Laura's in time for dinner. You were a little bit fussy in the car, but not too bad. It can't be much fun to be all cooped up in that seat for six hours.

Aunt Anne's mother graciously let us stay at her house. She has a dog called Daisy, a young golden retriever, whom you really enjoyed. Daisy would lick your fingers and you would laugh and laugh that belly laugh of yours. It was so fun to watch you!

On Friday, Aunt Laura held an informal colloquium about her research. You lasted for about 10-15 minutes of it, which is pretty good, but Daddy took you out after that because you were fast becoming the center of attention. You're far more interesting than an esoteric discussion of ethics, no offense to Aunt Laura!

On Saturday, we went to a park and cooked out for breakfast. It was a little cold, but I think you enjoyed your first-ever taste of pancakes with maple syrup. That afternoon, Aunt Laura held a party to celebrate her successful defense. You attended the party and charmed everyone who saw you. That evening, you stayed with Aunt Anne's mother while Daddy, Aunt Rachel, Aunt Laura, Aunt Anne, and I went to a play.

On Sunday, we had a nice Easter dinner with Aunt Anne's family. You woke up from your nap at the very end of it and got a chance to enjoy some delicious corn pudding, spinach, and turkey breast. For breakfast, you'd had a biscuit with jam for the first time. You found that to be incredibly delicious, and gave me a look that seemed to ask why I had hidden this delicacy from you for so long.

You won the hearts of everybody who saw you. Aunt Rachel and Aunt Laura hadn't seen you since the summer, so they were very happy to see you again. You'd never met Aunt Anne before, but you both seemed to be happy to be together. Aunt Anne's mother enjoyed you so much that she said we had to bring you back to visit her again. Maybe we will!

Love,
Mommy

Trip to Atlanta

Dear Vinny,

This past week, we took a trip to Atlanta. Mommy had a conference there, and you and Daddy came along so that you could explore the city.

You and Daddy got a chance to go to the Children's Museum and the Olympic Park. Daddy said you had a good time at the museum, although you did eat some sand while you were there! He told me that you really enjoyed the park, too.

We had planned to stay in Atlanta and do some fun stuff on Saturday, such as go the aquarium or the zoo, but unfortunately there were some tornadoes there so we wisely decided to come home early. That park you had so enjoyed was heavily damaged by the tornadoes! So it was good that we left. I'm sure there will be another time that you'll get a chance to go to Atlanta.

Love,
Mommy

Seventeen Months!

Dear Vinny,

You turned seventeen months old on Wednesday! It is hard to believe that you are getting to be such a big boy but I guess time has a way of passing without us noticing.

You're still not walking regularly but you did take eight steps or so last night when we were at Tia's house. It seems that the trick is for there to be something so fascinating at eye level that you can't take your eyes off it while you're heading towards it.

We've started seating you at the table for meals, in a booster seat attached to a chair. You enjoy being part of the action like that. We have a laminated Sesame Street placemat for you, which we place on top of the tablecloth. We feed you the same food that we eat, and you enjoy it a lot. You've learned the word "hot" and when we put your food on the table, you often ask whether it's hot.

You've learned a lot more body parts: you know your teeth and you actually say the word teeth fairly often. You've begun to use the word "no" even more -- even sometimes when I don't think you mean it. You've started to say it very dramatically.

I'm looking forward to seeing what else you learn in the next month!

Love,
Mommy

Visiting Family

Dear Vinny,

This past weekend Daddy took you to visit Granny and Granddad. I think you all really had a good time.

You're becoming more and more verbal, and it's really exciting. You've learned that words get you somewhere. Over the weekend, you and Daddy were sleeping in the same room (Daddy in the bed, you in the Pack-n-Play). Daddy told me that he was awakened on Saturday morning by you, standing in your crib, staring at him, and reciting all the words you know for food. Daddy got the hint, fed you, and all was well.

You've also learned to say the word "no." Your first negative word was "Ning-ning," which meant that you were unhappy. That morphed into "nay-nay," and it's now "no-no."

You're learning even more body parts: you can identify your tongue, arm, and knee in addition to your mouth, nose, eyes, and ears.

I missed you a lot while you were gone, but I was glad that Granny and Granddad got a chance to see their wonderful grandson!

Love,
Mommy