"Talent" Update

1) Josephine's "ank-oos" (the "thank you" I had/have been drilling into her and sometimes getting out of her, much to my EXTREME delight) have fallen waaaaay off her agenda (much to my EXTREME disappointment). I still, every now and then, can catch her in a moment of focus and inspiration and get a garbled one out of her. But even then it's usually while she's sucking on her fingers and only giving her vocabulary lessons partial effort. While it does still seem like a clear mimic during those times, on whole, she's been entirely ungrateful lately. I'm blaming it on her mouth hurting-- which is what I blame most of her recent disposition on. She's just not in as good of humor as she used to be. She still smiles and talks a lot, but her laughs have grown sparse. She's a lot less taken with the songs I make up for her. Generally if she's in any one position for more than 5 seconds, she becomes fretful and starts chewing and sucking on her fingers. Nursing seems to irritate her mouth also, so even that isn't a very enjoyable experience. So I guess she just doesn't feel like she owes me many thank yous lately...

2) Rolling. You might remember me reporting her first roll from tummy to back. That was a while ago. There was a large hiatus in her execution of this ability as well, with virtually no interest in practicing. It didn't take too long before I realized that first roll was pure luck. Only NOW (like in the last week) are we showing true signs of UNDERSTANDING how to do this. She actually moves intentionally and achieves her goal with struggle, but achieves it nonetheless. This talent is highly contingent on her feeling energetic, however. If you catch her when she's tired, she flattens out, screaming into the blanket, seemingly preferring death by asphyxiation over exercise. (She is her mother's daughter).

3) The bumbo sitting has improved. She's much sturdier.

4) Grabbing. She's great at grabbing what she wants, including faces, toys, her toes, my dinner plate, things on my desk, hair, necklaces, etc. She frequently grabs something with a ferocious growl and stuffs it in her mouth, not unlike a lion attacking it's prey. And apparently, she doesn't feel safe being carried unless she's clutching a handful of my hair. This was irritating, so I had my hair cut. Now when that slips out of her grasp, she simply takes all five fingers and pinches my neck until she's hanging onto a fold of skin. I keep expecting to find hickeys on my neck from this, but so far, I've been spared.

5) Reaching. In some ways this is just an extension of grabbing, because she's essentially trying to grab that which is too far away to touch. But it is somewhat new, whereas she's been grabbing for a long time. She now clearly opens up her arms and reaches out for someone she wants. Then when you pick her up, she'll hug your neck with one arm, and put her head down on your shoulder while sucking her fingers. This cuddling motion is her method of keeping my heart soft towards her, even during her fussiest times. Lucky for her, it's quite effective.

6) Houdini. She's even breaking out of the Miracle Blanket. Short of industrial Velcro or duct tape, I'm not being able to keep her swaddled overnight. It seems that if she really wants out, she can get out, 90% of the time (a huge factor is how cooperative she's being when I wrap her up). Anyway, once that blanket gets all loose around her, it's not safe, since she could pull it up over her head. So we're next up to bat when it comes to seeing if your kid can sleep through the night without a swaddle...

7) Un-Kisses. I thought she was giving big wide-mouthed baby kisses, but I've since figured out that she finds jaw bones to be incredibly satisfying teething rings. She will chew vigorously on your chin for as long as you let her. Sometimes she misses the jaw bone and just licks your cheek, which is sweet and kiss-like... but I know what's really going on... she's just a lion on the prowl.

8) Last, but not least, we've been trying a new toy: