Double Digits

I'm having a little bit of trouble wrapping my mind around the fact that today Lauren is 10 months old. It's not so much the 10 months that have already passed, although they seem to have gone by in the blink of an eye. But it's more the proximity we are to her first birthday that makes my head spin. I'm not sure that makes any sense, unless of course you're a mom who has witnessed this warp speed thing that seems to go on with the small people who have stolen our hearts. Somehow they go from this bundle of blankets that you hold in the hospital to a moving, babbling, amazing little person.

At 10 months, Lauren is amazing me with the things she's trying to do. Here are a few highlights:

• She has strung together between 2-4 steps on enough occasions that I would say is a developing pattern. You can almost see her gaining in confidence and control as the days have rolled by, even just this week.
• She is learning quite quickly how to handle table foods. And the more she realizes what is on our plates, the less interested she is in baby foods. She loves Yo Baby yogurt and actually cries each evening when the container is empty. Interestingly enough, we've seen a resurgence in Joshua's interest in the yogurt as well, so he's been having some after his dinner is done. I knew I should have bought stock in that company when Joshua started eating it! Her other favorites are Puffs and muti-grain Cheerios along with fruit cups of diced peaches and mandarin oranges. She's not loving veggies as much, but we'll keep working on them.
• Sleeping is a disaster. Let me be clear about the emphasis here.....a DISASTER. We'll just leave it at that because of the pain it causes me to even think about it.
• She is trying to mimic sounds now. When asked what a duck says, she uses a low raspy voice and says "whaa whaa". She's starting to pick up on the cow and sheep sounds too. She gets so proud of herself when she's done it, and flashes you this grin.....eyes squinted shut, wide open mouth smile with her one little tooth showing on the bottom. Jason calls her "Tooth" when she does it. I can't get enough.
• Anything her brother is doing, building, drawing, eating, drinking or playing with is automatically what she NEEDS to be doing. It makes Joshua absolutely crazy. We hear a lot of "Lauren, cut it out!" I know that eventually they'll learn to play nicely, but I would not summarize it that way now.
• From a personality standpoint, I would use these adjectives to describe Lauren: Determined. Strong willed. Perseverant. Instigator. Snuggler. Silly. Cautious. Independent. (I'm now wishing I had done this at each month so that I could see how the list has changed. Hindsight.)
  

I had no clue what it was going to mean to have a daughter when Lauren was born. Truth be told, I had actually been praying for another little boy because of the amazing experience that mothering a son had been to that point with Joshua. God truly knows how to bless us best, though, doesn't He? The way I feel about this beautiful little girl is almost too much to describe. So, happy 10 month birthday Lauren!!

And I can't leave you without sharing the picture I took of Joshua the other day. I am embarrassed to tell you that I can't for the life of me remember what it was he was trying to be. But consider it a safe bet that you'd never guess it either by looking at the get up he concocted. There are a million reasons why I love him to the ends of the earth...

We're headed off on an adventure this weekend to Lake Tobias. Something tells me there could be stories to tell before it's all said and done. See...something to look forward to on Monday, right?