Letters to Tory: 22 Months

Hey Tory Girl,

You're 22 months old now!

And, yes, you are our little monkey. This is a picture of you after you climbed on top of the patio table and happily proclaimed "oo oo oo" like your favorite animal friend. In the mornings, you run out into the kitchen for breakfast and scramble as fast as your can into your high chair. I'm still not sure how you scale the side of it so quickly. Breakfast is your favorite meal, so perhaps that's some of your motivation? I made some trail mix last week with M&Ms and one afternoon I turned my head for a second while you climbed up the counter and helped yourself to a snack. I wish I could say I'm concerned but by now, it's no shock to see you standing on the toilet next to me as I brush my teeth in the mornings.

Watering Mommy's flowers, one of your favorite pastimes.

You've had a huge burst in language development this month and try to repeat almost everything we say. Of course you were bound to start talking someday, but I'm still absolutely amazed at every word that streams out of your mouth. My baby is talking! Some of your newest words this month are knee, down, toes, nose, green, hat, orange, more, ear, towel, horse, help, bag and counting 1-2-3. There's a slew of other words you're attempting to say (like "ink" for drink and "butt" for button) but I won't count those until they're a little more spot on. I keep a running tab of your words and it's becoming harder by the day to document all the new things you say. This weekend, you started calling me "mommy" instead of "ma" or "mom" and I'm not sure I was quite ready for it! Mommy sounds so grown up and I'm stuck in this place where I want you to both learn and grow, yet stay my baby forever. By far, your favorite word lately is owie (or "owbie" as you say). Everything is "owbie," even scratches on your leg that are far from new.

Stopping on the street to smell the flowers.

You are such a GIRL, Tory, and your flare for drama is really starting to show. Last week you were playing with a stick in the backyard. I watched you toss the stick on the ground in front of you, then throw your hand up to your forehead like a Southern Belle and say "Oh! Oh! Waaaaa! [cue fake crying]." (Daddy says he knows just where you get this trait. I have no idea what he's talking about.) You've also been known to lay down on the floor and fake cry like you just fell down and hurt yourself. Except, I watched your whole performance and all I can do is shake my head and laugh. Oh Tory, we are in for a ride with you!

At the lift bridge in Duluth, Minnesota

I'll put on my proud mama hat and note how much I admire your loving personality. You're very good at sharing your toys with others and love to give out hugs and kisses. The other day, you were playing with a ball another little boy wanted at the library's Baby Storytime. I suggested you sit down and roll the ball to the little boy, thinking he'd in turn roll it back to you and you'd share the toy together. You sat down and rolled the ball to him and he took the ball and ran away with it. I felt so sorry for you as you stood there in awe by what had just happened. Sharing is part of growing up and it's hard, I know. I'm really pleased to see how well you play with others and I hope this cooperative trend continues, especially when Baby Brother arrives this winter.

Oh, hey! This month you learned you're having a baby brother! We've started talking about him often and you seem to understand the concept. When I ask you where Baby Brother is, you'll point and kiss my belly which absolutely melts my heart. I hope you're still as excited about him after he comes home from the hospital! You sure love babies and you love to help, so I think you'll adjust just fine.

Hiking at Big Bay State Park in Madeline Island, WI

You're holding steady in a great sleeping pattern this month. Lately, you've been waking up around 7:00am and going to be sleep around 7:30pm, with a two hour nap in the afternoon. This schedule really seems to fit you well. You're happy when you wake up from sleeping and you're tired and ready to sleep at bedtime. In the last two weeks, you've begun bringing stuffed animals and baby dolls to bed with you. It's almost laughable the amount of "friends" that are in your crib at bedtime. There's Dog and Monkey, at least two or three babies, your Sleep Sheep, a pillow and a blanket. In the last two weeks, you've requested to sleep without your Sleep Sack which makes me a little nervous for a few reasons. First, I worry you'll be cold in the night because you never stay covered up and secondly, you're quite the little climber (see above) so I worry you'll figure out how to monkey right out of your crib. This past weekend at the cabin, you actually did climb out of your pack-n-play both nights and came screaming into our bedroom in the middle of the night. I have no idea how you scaled the side of the playpen, but in any case Daddy and I are scrambling to find you new sleeping arrangements there. You're almost two years old and Baby Brother is coming so moving to a big girl bed is inevitable, but I definitely wasn't ready for it to be so soon. In the meantime, the Sleep Sack is back and your sticky toes shall remain contained.

Playing in the lake

We took a family RV trip around Minnesota and Wisconsin this month, and you and I flew back to Nebraska to visit family in June as well. So far, you've traveled to nine states and have been on countless plane rides in your 22 months of life. You continue to be a really good traveler and are nothing if not a thrill seeker. One of your very favorite things to do is go for Ranger ATV rides at the cabin with Daddy. You shout "go!" and he drives faster, as you hoot and giggle the entire way. You really are so much fun to be around. My cheeks just ache at the end of the day thanks to all the smiling we do together. Thank you for being you, my favorite girl.

Love,
Mommy