Katherine,

You have been so busy growing and moving this month.  Not only have you become a very quick crawler, but you have progressed to pulling up on everyone and everything, and cruising on furniture.  I thought it was early, your Daddy even wonders if you will be full fledged walking in another month.  So, I looked back to verify when the others where walking.  Britt began pulling up around 8 months and walked the day after his birthday.  Ruth began pulling up around 10 months and walked at 13.  Rebecca began pulling up just shy of 7 months, and we were just sure that she'd be an early walker, but she didn't start walking till 11 months.  Who knows maybe you won't walk so soon.  On your milestone email today, it told me that babies typically begin crawling between 7 and 10 months, cruise around 11 to 12 months, and walk sometime between 12 and 15 months.  If that's the case, you are giving us a real run for our money.  Don't you know I want to keep you a baby as long as possible?


In the last week or so you have started sleeping through the night again.  I think the pillow might have helped.  You rarely stay laying on it, but cuddle up too it.  Often when I set you down, I slide your raccoon up against your face.  It's head is about the same size as me, so you bury your face up against it or your pillow and don't wake up as often.  You only take one spotty nap a day in the afternoon, and there are days that you don't even take that.  Though you still nearly always fall asleep in the carseat when the car is moving.  In that you are more like Britt, who gave up naps CRAZY EARLY.


You continue to be an incredibly happy baby, continue to love on and be with anyone.  But, more and more you are showing a preference for me.  I frequently pace behind Britt and Ruth or circle the table while we do school.  And since starting back this month, you like to follow me - crawling round and round the table or, far more amusingly, crawling after me, and when I turn to pace back, you sit and turn and crawl after me.  Your circuit is much shorter than mine, but you appear determined to catch up to me.  And if I stop, you are quick to grab hold of my pants or skirt, and pull up.  When I sit to do school, you are only entertained in the living room a short time, before you come crawling in, and proceed to pull up on my chair, and cruise around trying to convince me to pick you up, or climbing around in the rungs of the chair looking for food that your brother missed when sweeping.  If you watch me walk to my bedroom, you will leave your siblings in the living room, by pass your Daddy in the kitchen, and head straight back to me.  You seem to want me in your sight at all times.


You are at the stage where everything goes in your mouth.  We are constantly fishing out the kids cerael when you are in the dining room, leaves when you are on the front porch, and fuss and string when you are in the living room.  Of all your teething toys, teething bibs, and the pacifier (which you almost NEVER, EVER use) you would rather chew on my metal jewelry, you most seem to like my solid metal bangles and Abigail's necklace or board books.  You seem more mouthy than any of our others were.  In fact, you remind me of your cousin, Julia, the amount of things that you seem to want to try out.


You also love to go outside.  Whether that's riding in the stroller for our painstakingly slow walks, or sitting on the front porch in the afternoons.  You often seem to just stretch out and hang out.  Content to be held and lay back just watching things, occasionally napping a little when I hold you.  Those couple of afternoons a week, along with our cuddles in bed when you first wake up to eat each morning, are some of my favorite moments of the day.  All those incredibly long hours of worrying during your pregnancy, that long wait to hold our baby that started the moment that we found out that we were pregnant with Abigail, the empty longing that crashed home when we didn't bring her home, all of that long wait was worth it for those moments.  We love you so much Little Love.  We continue to thank God for you each day.

Love,
Momma