My Dearest Belle,
You are TEN months old today!
TEN MONTHS!
It’s incredible how fast time is flying by… how has it already been TEN months since you’ve come into this world?
You are so much more energetic and mobile than ever before, and now, it’s impossible to take these monthly photos without Papa’s help:
This past month, you said “아빠” (or a close enough version of it), and Papa is over the moon for it. You’re also getting better and better at standing on your own (record is 17 seconds), and everyone’s convinced that you’ll take your first step soon. There have been a couple times when you actually stood at the couch or play table, turned, then took a step in the direction you wanted to go in…
Does that count as your first step???
I don’t know…
Anywho, the weather is finally changing, and it’s starting to actually feel like winter (or at least as close to winter as you can get in Southern California), so I got to put the bear hat on you!!!
This month also brought Christmas, and we were blessed by so many people showering you with some wonderful gifts. 이모 할머니 wanted to get you a “thinking chair”. Apparently, it’s the chair you sit on to think about what you did when you get in trouble. Personally, I would love for it to be your favorite reading chair.
Uncle James and Auntie Sandra spent the last 5-6 months scouring Pottery Barn to get you a rocking unicorn - with your name engraved in it! It’s so soft and fuzzy… I wish I had one when I was little…
숙모 할머니 personally knit you a beanie. It’s a little big for you now, but you still rocked the look:
And during this month, I was finally brave enough to drop you off at the baby room at church. Of course, you cried… and screamed… and I was anxious and uneasy like no other. And since it was the week before Christmas Sunday, they took a picture of you to commemorate the holidays. It was very clear that you had JUST finished crying.
Unfortunately, COVID-19’s second strain, omnicron, started spreading more rapidly since your first week there because people were all gathering for the holidays, so we don’t know when we’ll feel safe enough to go back to in-person service, but Papa is determined to get you accustomed to staying in the baby room so that you can get some social interaction time with other babies and adults.
I’m still feeling a bit anxious about it, but I do agree that it will be helpful for you in the long run… I’m just not looking forward to the next time I have to hand you over then walk away while you cry for me.
So it seems like as you grow older, Papa and I are being forced to grow with along with you.
And whatever else Month Eleven brings, I’m looking forward to each and every, single day.
Love always,
Mama