Babies Bug and Bento: Dear Moss: Four months

Dear Moss,

Time flies like an arrow, little boy, I swear I just wrote your three month letter last week. I'm glad we relished the sweet spot we were in a few weeks ago, because now your teeth are being total jerks as they slice into your gummy smile with no regard for your quality of life. This, plus a growth spurt, plus your "world of events" wonder week (which came a little early), PLUS figuring out how to roll from front to back *PLUS* then pretty much immediately (two days later) figuring out how to roll from back to side is just so much for your poor little self. You're okay-ish during the daytime, but the witching (6) hour(s) is definitely back. Around 5 or 6 it's just TIME TO FREAK OUT. You seem to be experiencing a complete identity crisis:

"I once was a boy who just liked to smile and suck on my two fingers, but now I have to GRAB ALL THE THINGS and frantically desperately put them all in my mouth because everything's all itchy and burny in there. And I really need sleep so I can grow (which hurts too, by the by), but I just figured out that my body has sagittal symmetry and is kind of cylinder-shaped, and that I can exploit these properties and actually move around on purpose -- did you know I could do that? why didn't you tell me? -- so obviously I need to practice that kind of all the time, you know? So I try to make time for it all, but there just aren't enough hours in the day, so then it all catches up to me and I just completely decompensate because frankly, I have no idea how to do everything I want to at the same time. That comes with adulthood right? Oops, no time to listen to your answer, I must roll over toward whatever that thing is over there that isn't currently in my mouth..."

On top of this (or possibly partly because of it), you're a few days deep into a crazy sleep regression. You used to sleep so well, we used to have a routine, we used to all be so rested and refreshed, but now you wake up every 45-60 minutes to nurse and play and fuss. So fun! :-/ Plus we have *still* not quite figured out a sleeping arrangement that works well for everyone. Maybe if you and your daddy weren't so Princess+Pea-y about things, we'd have an easier time. But no. You need a firm surface, Daddy needs a soft one. You need the humidifier, Daddy needs the fan. You need warm air, Daddy needs the window open. But alas, you both want to sleep next to Mama, who can (luckily) sleep anywhere. I'll let you know when I figure this one out.

But this new skill of yours, the intentional grab, it's so effing cool. It's different from the haphazard swiping you started last month. I hand you your dragonfly/ball/toothbrush/GooGoo Bun/chain link/book and you reach out gingerly and take it (and putitinyourmouthasfastasyoucan, of course). You can even turn the pages of your board books! You're obviously thrilled by the simple pleasure of being able to manipulate things. You take something and (when you're done seeing if it fits in your mouth), you turn it over and over and inspect it from every angle. If someone holds his hand in front of you, you try to pluck the fingers off one by one. ("Does this one come off? Nope. Does this one come off? Nope. Does this one...") Then you try to pry the fingers apart as if hands worked like banana peels. Then of course you just try to jam it in your mouth. And often when you reach for something, you stick your tongue out the side of your mouth in a perfect portrayal of cartoon concentration. Haven't managed to grab a picture of that yet, but I really hope I do before you change again.

You are a strong little one. You can stand on your own two feet with just a little bit of help for balance, and you can do this for a long long time. The "sit up, stand up, sit down, lie down" game is pretty much your favorite thing ever, especially when it happens 89 times in a row. You're really not a big fan of being on your back any more, I can tell you yearn for self-propulsion. You can push yourself up all the way into cobra pose and look around the room. And you can roll over, which is just so cool. You can't quite do it every time, and you need to be pretty awake to have the strength and presence of mind for it, but you very much enjoy doing it when the time is right. I think it startles you a little at first though, when you find yourself on your back after hanging out on your tummy for a while.

You are so talkative. If a Moss talks in a forest and there's no one around to hear, Moss is still very much chattering away to no one but the trees. You figured out how to roll your Rs in the back of your throat, and how to yell without crying (you sound like a screech owl).

You're experimenting with volume, crescendoing all over the place. You mix vowels and consonants together into some creepy baby language that only Mosses know. And your laugh. Aaaaaaaaah! Your laugh is the best contagious thing I encounter all day.

I hope you never outgrow this cheerful, easy-going sense of humor you have right now -- such a pleasant demeanor would serve you well in life. Although when we really get you going laughing, you get the hiccups every. time. I do hope you outgrow that.

Many loves, Moss. Keep thriving this well for a long time, please. <3