month 2: reflections

Mason,

Another month has passed. What a whirlwind you are and life is, but we're having a blast!

Although our hearts ache at how fast you are growing up, we love watching you develop as a little person. Even at two months, you have ideas and preferences and ways, and BOY do you make them clear! Your communication skills have taken off this month, and you're beginning to discover the world around you.

You've fallen in love with overhead lights, brightly colored artwork, and ceiling fans. When we lay you on the couch, this is what we see.

And then your look of wonder turns to one of joy.

Now why won't you smile at us like that?!

You do smile at us sometimes, but your joy for inanimate objects far surpasses your delight for us. We'll forgive you for now. Lord willing, that will change one day.

You talk to us more than you used to.

But you talk to your best friends, the fan and the light, much more often. Oh well.

Most people say you look like Daddy. It must be a boy thing.

But you definitely have a few of Mommy's features.

We think you're a perfect combination of both of us. You have Daddy's nose, forehead, hairline, eyelashes, and feet. You have Mommy's blue eyes, blondish/brownish hair, ears, and cheeks. Your looks have changed in two months. We barely recognize the baby in the pictures we took at the hospital.

You learned how to take a bottle this month, and Daddy enjoys feeding you several times a week, preparing you for when Mommy returns to work. Bottle or not, you don't miss a meal, which is why you're still in the 90th percentile for weight. Thanks for being such a great eater, Sweetie!

There are benefits to being in the 90th percentile. You have a big tummy and Mommy stuffs you full at night, which helps you sleep longer. Shortly after you turned five weeks old, you seemed ready to sleep longer at night, so sleep training started in earnest. After a couple weeks, you began consistently sleeping 10-11 hours at night just before you turned eight weeks old. Great job, Honey! We are forever grateful for your good eating and sleeping habits.

Your little personality is really developing. You have a temper, which erupts about once a day. We've already had a preview of your teenage years. Now, we catch glimpses of what you'll be like at age two. You can go from happy and cooing to red in the face and angry in about 30 seconds. You're the only baby we know who hates being snuggled and cuddled. You arch your back and squawk if we hold you for more than a minute, and then grin and coo as soon as we lay you down. We're trying not to take this personally.

You've had a number of visitors this past month, most of whom you've run off when you were ready for them to leave. Do you know that screaming babies put people on edge, Pumpkin? Perhaps you do, and that's why you let loose when you get sick of people fussing over you. You're a smart cookie!

We joke and call you our little grump, but know that we find your personality both hilarious and endearing. We're your parents--how could we not? We love you, grouchiness and all. Perhaps we should have named you Oscar. Now there's an idea for a future Halloween costume!

Mason, even on your grumpiest of days, you fill us with a joy that we never knew existed. You're the perfect baby for us, Sweetheart, and we can't imagine life without you.

We love you!

Mommy and Daddy