A Mom's letters of love to her baby daughter.

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Baby Bookworm

Dear Princess,
Since you were two and half months old, your favorite toy by far has been your set of Sassy Baby Books. I love how your eyes light up when I pull out these books, and you reach for them with outstretched arms and eager hands that clearly say, "Give me!" 
The colorful pictures have kept you entertained for extended periods during Church, as you carefully study the pages. Sometimes, though, you do fuss a bit at your books because you can't quite turn the pages yet! One time, you managed to remedy this page-turning problem yourself by holding the book vertically and turning the pages down (rather than side-to-side). Quite a clever trick, though you haven't remembered it since!
The book with the black and white handle is the best because of the strong pattern contrast and ease of handling.  I assumed it was your favorite, but last Saturday over supper, Daddy held up two of your books and asked you which one you wanted. You looked at each one, and then reached for the fabric "sensations" book that Daddy was holding a little bit further away from you. 
Dear little baby, I hope this is just the start of a lifetime of book-reading for you!
Love, 
Mom



Friday, October 23, 2009

As Your Great-Grandma Would Say...

My Dear Little Princess,
When I was younger, I didn't live close to my grandma, so when our family went to visit her she would exclaim in joy, "Your face is my heart!" It was her way of saying how much she loved to us, and how much she loved to see us in person. (You won't remember this, baby, but before Skype video calling existed, it was a lot more difficult to instantly see someone!)
Every day that I am with you, I understand more and more what my grandma meant when she said, "Your face is my heart!" Seeing your picture on my desk at work brings instant pleasure to my day. Coming home to your toothless grin almost overwhelms me with happiness.
And much to my delight, you seem to enjoy my face too! When I hold you up to eye level, you smile and reach for my visage with both hands, usually going for my lips or eyeglasses. While daddy was holding you yesterday, you rubbed your small hands over the stubble on his chin, as if you were curious about that new feature.
I love your sweet face!
Love,
Mom

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Milestones

Dear Princess,
These past few days have had amazing milestones for you! On October 17 (Saturday), we were sitting in Church. I gave you a set of plastic keys to play with, and you purposefully shook them, grinning proudly that you could make the keys rattle!
That same night, you finally accomplished something you have been working on for weeks...you pulled your toes into your mouth! The look on your face said that you weren't expecting your feet to taste quite so much like your hands, so you dropped the foot and just sucked on your thumb instead.
In other milestone news, tonight I was holding you on my lap while sitting in front of the computer. You really wanted to crunch up the papers on the desk, so I gave you some plain papers to crinkle and crease in your small hands. (You are very fascinated by different textures.) After a few minutes you tired of the paper, so to reinvigorate your interest I put a marker in your hand and showed you how to draw a scribble on the paper. You were hooked! You held that marker in your hand and studied it carefully, then you held it with both hands, then you passed the marker to your left hand, and so forth. I kept expecting you to put the marker in your mouth but you never did bring it to your lips. Finally you dropped the marker to the floor.
Daddy insists that your first drawing should have a special permanent spot on the refrigerator.
Love,
Mom

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

No Hobbits Here

My dearest baby daughter,
As I carry you around the house, joy bubbles in my heart, prompting me to softly whisper in your ear, "Princess, I love you so much! You are so precious!"
And then I stop, worried, because this reminds me of the character Gollum, from The Hobbit by JRR Tolkein. Gollum is protrayed as a very degenerative character, constantly hissing "precious, precious" to his magic ring. I have no desire to be a Gollum, and yet my dear, I can't help but say it. You are...most precious!!
Love & Kisses,
Mom

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Sock Wars

Dear Princess,
As perfect as your little toes are, you understandably like to show them off. You are constantly rubbing your ankles together to get those socks off. However, unbeknownst to you, parents have a quiet league of sock watchers. For example, we were walking through Sam's Club the other day, and I could not directly see anything but your face and arms because I was carrying you in your Baby Bjorn. Fortunately, a stranger passing by gave me the nod and annouced, "Baby. Right Foot." I reached down and there it was - a sock barely dangling by a toe on your right foot, like an ornament hanging onto a Christmas tree by the most tenuous hook. Thanks to that stranger (and many others of the Sock Watching League!) we have not yet permanently lost a sock. Heaven forbid those perfect feet get cold. :-)
Love,
Mom

Thursday, October 8, 2009

The Inspiration

Little Daughter,
There is nothing in the world I love to do so much as hold you in my arms. There is an amazing number of things I have learned to do with one left hand, while carrying you around wrapped tightly in my right hand (using my right hip for your chair, of course).
But it is most wonderful when I get to hold you in my arms while you are nursing or sleeping. After bringing you home from the hospital, I spent hours rocking you, spell-bound by your sweet face. There are many things your father and I want for you that we talk about constantly (Let's teach her to play piano! Let's save for her college education!). But since the first moments when I was sitting in the rocking chair with you in my arms, Princess, please know that my deepest desire is for you to grow up feeling good about yourself.
Love,
Mom

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

This Little Piggy...

My Dear Baby,
You have the most precious little feet, and you seem to know this! Whenever I lay you on your back, you raise your legs and grasp your toes, like you are just as fascinated with them as I am. Yesterday, you almost succeeded in bringing those tiny toes to your mouth!
A thousand kissies for your little piggies,
Mom

Old MacDonald

ducks we saw on a farm during baby first visit to the farm
Dearest Baby Daughter,
Almost every day I sing to you "Old MacDonald Had a Farm."  I grab your little arms and shake them to the left and then to the right to the beat of "a moo moo here and a moo there..." going through the cow, sheep, horse, duck, dog, cat, and mouse.  (What sound does a mouse make? Squeek!)
This past weekend, we had a sunny Sunday and nothing to do, so your father and I decided to take you a farm!  There were dwarf horse, cows, goats, chickens, rabbits, and ducks. I couldn't wait to show you the animals from the song! But you slept in my arms during the entire tour. Ah well, there will be more trips to Old MacDonald's.

Thursday, October 1, 2009

The Swan

My dear baby daughter,
We were driving to the store yesterday, listening to your Baby's First Classical CD, when a song that I particularly enjoy came on.  I was just smiling with pleasure when you gave a contented sigh, as if you were also relaxing into the soothing music.
It was a magical moment, so after we came home, I found the song on YouTube: It is The Swan, by Saint-Saens. This version is performed by Yo-Yo Ma. I held you in arms, and we both watched the video intently. Yo-Yo Ma is quite a performer. His whole body vibrates to the music, like he is a soundboard for the cello.
How wonderful it is to enjoy music with my little princess!
Love,
Mom