Thirteen Months Old!

Dear Riggins,

Welcome to toddlerhood!  While you aren't exactly toddling just yet, you are definitely more of a little boy these days.  Everyone who knows you well has commented on how grown up you are looking; you are losing that baby chub and starting to look like a little boy.  And what a sweet, funny little boy you are!

This month, you gained the ability to stand on your own (without pulling up first), and you can now stand for quite some time.  You are so close to walking and I have a feeling that you'll just take off one of these days, but you are content to crawl for now.  In my opinion, you can take your sweet time, because if you walk and run as fast as you crawl, I'm in big trouble!

Your communication skills have grown significantly this month, primarily in signing.  "Please" and "all done" are used frequently, and we can no longer eat or drink in front of you without you patting your little chest in urgent desperation to "please" share with you!  Waving bye-bye and hello is another favorite gesture.  You say "Uh oh," "Dada," "Weber," and "boat."

My favorite new skill is your ability to give kisses on command.  You had been doing this for several weeks when one morning as we snuggled in my bed, you sat up and smiled at me before leaning in and giving me a huge smooch on the lips, completely unprompted.  Oh, how my heart melted!  You are such a sweet boy.

Your little mouth has six teeth with a few more in the works.  You have quite the little gap between your two front teeth, which I think is the most adorable thing I have ever seen.  It is impossible not to smile at the sight of your cheesy grin!

Still a great sleeper, you nap for an hour in the morning and two hours each afternoon, and sleep from around 7 p.m. to around 6:30 a.m. each night.  (I don't want to jinx it, but I am really hoping that you've grown out of the whole "let's wake up at 5:30" thing!  Who would have thought that I'd ever consider 6:30 a.m. sleeping in!?!)

You nurse when you wake up in the morning and before bed at night.  I'm not sure how long we'll keep that up, but at this point you eat so fast that it isn't a nuisance to me, plus it is such a sweet time together...I know that once it ends, it's over for good, so I'm just playing it by ear.  You drink whole milk at meal times and are still a great eater.  New favorites include watermelon, blueberries, muffins, and Veggie Straws.

Firsts this month included meeting your cousin Grayson and attending your first baseball game.  Your daddy was pretty excited that your first game was between the Redbirds and the Omaha Storm Chasers, a farm team of his beloved KC Royals!  You loved the atmosphere and clapped every time the crowd cheered; your Daddy was one proud papa to have you there with him!  We also busted out your new pool in the backyard, and you have turned into a little fish; you love the water!  Other favorite activities include going on runs with Daddy and Weber, going to Jazzercise with me in your Jumperoo, crawling around the back yard, and riding in your wagon.  We have also been spending lots of time at the zoo, and you have really started to notice the animals.

We are definitely getting into the never-ending journey of discipline.  While you are a very laid back little guy, there are a few things that you are determined to go down fighting on, namely touching the DVD player and standing up in the grocery cart/high chair.  My two mottos are "The easy way is not always the best way" and "Begin as you mean to go on."  It is so hard to be consistent and to follow through, especially when you are repeatedly and intentionally pushing the limits, and when you're so stinkin' cute!  But I know it will all be worth it some day when you are a well-behaved, polite young man who obeys the authority of your elders and, most importantly, God.

Riggins, you are such a sweet little boy.  You have a wonderful sense of humor and are truly a people person.  I think you take after me in that way; if we've been home for a couple of days in a row and finally leave the house, you kick with glee all the way to the car and then smile and flirt with every single person at Target.  You get your energy from interaction with others.  You play well with other babies and are just an all-around happy guy.

And one last thing that has been on my mind...a little heavy, yes, but something that has defined this month for me.  Some really bad things have happened this month.  Tragedies have occurred in our nation and in the lives of the people we love.  I have spent many days of this month in a feeling of depression, overcome with worry and sadness over the "what ifs" and fearing for your future.  And the truth is that, try as I might, I cannot protect you from this fallen world in which we live.  Scary things might happen.  We might lose things or people that we love.  I want more than anything for you to follow Christ, and if you choose to do so, you will not be exempt from suffering; quite the opposite.  And yet the great paradox is that only in following Him will you have hope and peace in the midst of this broken world.  So my prayer for you, my little 13 month old boy, is that you will grow to know the peace and hope that come only from the Redeemer, the Restorer, the Rescuer.

I love you, my wonderful child.
Momma