Month 8
And changing.
My Dearest Lido,
What a world you are opening up to us. You are and absolutely incredible child – if my opinion counts for anything. I have been amazed yet again at the ease you seem to have for anything that we throw at you. A 5 hour car trip that turned into 8 hours but ended up well worth the trip to visit the Redwood Forest with your Nanna B and Yaya. We stayed in a cabin for 4 days and a Yurt for 1 night and the entire time we were there it rained. We bundled you up – strapped you in your carrier or in the stroller and we were off to be explorers. The trees were magnificent as they always will be (hopefully) and you were magnificent and looked at everything and were a very happy baby the whole time. We even drove past the cabin your Daddy and I stayed in a couple of Christmas’ ago…and not long after we found out we were having you. I decided that I would probably do more harm that good by getting you out of the car seat and taking a picture of you in front of the cabin – so I held back. I figured I could keep that embarrassing item (for you) off of the “mom’s embarrassing item list that she tells everyone”. Just don’t go and read this post when you are older….
It was a fun trip ad interesting trip and a hard trip. I’ve never had to travel with 2 small children and have to remember to pack everything and boy – do you have a lot of stuff! I’m lucky I’m not one of those parents that like a ton of kids crap…the car wouldn’t fit everything!
I was completely amazed at how you looked at everything. We took a hike through Lady Bird Johnson Grove and you were mainly interested in the O’s you were eating but every once in a while you took it all in. The main thing you loved was the small aquarium we went to at Crescent City and being able to pet the sharks…although you barely got to because I would have had to dunk you half way in in order to get you down to their level…but we made up for it at the Oregon Aquarium in Newport. You got to touch some star fish and rock things of some kind but we stayed away from the anemones this time…they may not hurt us but for you…it could have left a bit of a welt. But you were fascinated by all of it and I don’t think you really wanted to move on to the next thing. You were so great petting the star fish and would stick your litttle fingers in the water and touch it and turn around and look at me with the biggest smile. I think that the volunteers were turning blue because they thought that you would just poke and grab at them but you didn’t. You were very gentle and very enthralled with the whole thing – It was so surprising to me. At 8 months.
Your other favorite were the jelly fish and the starfish that was as big as you! I so hope that you continue the enthusiasm and daringness that you have now (well, maybe not the daringness). I want you to explore and learn and it was so utterly cool that you were really enjoying yourself.
It has been a couple of months since you became “officially mobile”…and you haven’t stopped. You climbed the stairs – not just one step but the entire staircase Saturday morning. Your Daddy and I figured that if you were going to do it we might as well teach you the right way – you started with the first and on to the second with no problem. Then you tried the third but then kept looking back not sure if you really wanted to go that much further from ‘home base’ but after a little coaxing and reassurance you managed the rest of the steps beautifully. Now we are just teach you how to go down the steps…I think that will take a bit longer. Your Dad and I have to figure it out first!
Seeing you thinking about taking that next “step” made me start to think about how I want you to always feel, no matter what choice you make, that you have us both on that staircase with you at all times. I’m sure life will bring you many things – and you will make decisions that I don’t agree with but I want you to always feel that even though I may not agree with your decision, that I will always be there beside you whether you go up a step or whether you must come down a step. I know the one thing that I appreciated most about my parents (looking back on life of course) was that they always were there to support me or catch me. I think that is one of the greatest gifts a parent can give their child. All of that along with knowing that even though they not always agreed with my choices – they were my choices to make and no matter what – they would be there. I hope that life finds you thinking the same thing about us – even though it may take some time to realize.
I was looking at you a few days ago while you were sleeping in my arms and told myself that one day I would wake up and you would be this grown man. I stared at your face and imagined what you would look like, be like. I wondered how much grief you would give us…and couldn’t imagine such a sweet child giving us any grief at all.
Month 8 has brought you to a world of crawling, standing and attempting to walk, two bottom teeth that are just too adorable and as of a couple of days ago…2 top teeth making their way out. You once again are growing too fast.
I love you my dearest little boy.
Your Mom
Always.
Javagirl 
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