and we're off

sparrow is learning so fast that i definitely cannot keep up on the blogging. today was the absolute cutest: i taught her where her belly button is (and mine.) then i would say, "where's sparrow's belly button?" and she would faithfully point inwards... but to her chest, as if her belly button were right in between her nipples, haha, i know that one's not gonna last long, so i got it on video even though i got kind of a crappy perspective since she couldn't know the camera was there.

i can definitely see her will emerging more and more as she is learning to whine and to create a reaction with loud crying. luckily i'm the one that appreciates her cuteness the most, so i am also best able to deal with the annoying parts of her human nature!

tomorrow we will be flying away to ireland and germany and london, and i have lots and lots of wonderings on how it's gonna be with this little insatiable one... but we are off, no doubt, and ready for the adventure! oh, God dropped off on my doorstep today an anonymous envelope with cash and a note that said, "spending money for ireland--have fun!" i am always blown away. thanks to whomever let Him speak such a generous thing into your heart! more later, my head isn't on straight right now. sleeeeeep!!!

here's a shot of packing. she broke the suitcase playing in it like this...

3 cute things

one is from a month or so ago, when she was sleeping next to me during a nap, i believe. she usually sleeps on her tummy with her feet tucked in under her, but she ended up on her back for some reason. the whole time we were sleeping, i was vaguely aware that her little legs were frequently up in the air and absently rotating. when i thought about it later, it made me laugh so much. she's used to having her knees up under her tummy and her legs were trying to find their usual resting point, but were encountering nothing. she reminded me of a bug stranded on its back... or a possum? (why a possum? do they lie on their backs or something? i don't remember. oh yes, i think they play dead.)

the other two are from today:

we wash her hands every night before bed. we put a dab of soap in her hands and then rub them together the whole time we are singing the abc song. tonight i was super out of it and too tired to get on the soap and singing train right away. i just stood there for a minute and let her run her hands under the water. when i snapped to it, i realized she was rubbing her hands together by herself, and making attempted singing noises! oh my goodness, i practically started crying, it was the sweetest (and smartest!) thing she could have done. she remembers and loves her bedtime routine, and it's so flattering because i created it!

during our reading of goodnight moon, i made the "young mouse" sound (squeaky), and she tried to copy me! but it came out as clicking. it's hard to describe sounds and how they are made, but believe me that it was another heartbreaking moment.

it was dang funny today when she ate a piece of gum off the floor while thomas and i were letting her cruise happily around the office as we tried to fix the internet. we weren't paying that much attention to her; she was loudly and happily crinkling a blue piece of acetate that thomas had given her. suddenly, she began to cry, and the next thing i noticed was the strange minty smell. for a minute i thought she somehow swallowed something crazy like mouthwash. but then i saw a bitten-into piece of hard square gum on the floor and understood. she was looking up at us with such confusion in her eyes and crying, like, "Why? why does it taste like this?" hahahahahaa, poor baby! definitely the most potently flavorful thing she's ever found on the floor. we had to feed her yogurt to get the taste out.

yesterday sparrow got off the bed w/out any help for the 1st time. thomas has been trying to teach her to go "feet first" (instead of diving with her face) for weeks now. today she started doing "fish face" all by herself, too. i don't know if she saw it anywhere; i think she is just exploring what she can do with her mouth. holly l. came over today with her samuel and baby "hopelino," as i like to call her. it was really funny to watch sparrow being the big bully baby (to hope) instead of the one getting picked on. but i guess samuel was picking on her. she skipped her afternoon nap and was therefore being tired and grumpy for a lot of the day. she was bringing me to my wits' end, so to speak. but i have noticed that i need to watch the way i talk to her/about her, poor thing, she is a baby, and words have such power. she is so sweet, so darling. with a human nature, yes, willful, but a daughter of the King. i want to make sure i imbue her with that identity and don't get frustrated when she needs to be held a little more or doesn't want to sit in her high chair. she has been biting my nipples almost every time she nurses and i don't know how to deal with it, because it's right when she's falling asleep. i can't very well flick her then, unless, i want her to wake up again! but ow, ow, ow, ow.

she is amazing at playing peekaboo now; i might have mentioned that. yesterday she was putting two little tea packs over her eyes and peeking out behind them, while may and i were at the laundromat. i take her "cadillac cruiser" when i go there and she happily toddles to the washers and dryers to look at the spinny clothes, bumping into everyone's feet in the meanwhile.

the night before that, when i put her down to bed, she was coherent enough to say "wu-wu," and 5 mins. later she was crying again. i had tons to finish up in the kitchen and couldn't sit and nurse her forever, so i stuck her on my back in the wrap, and she fell asleep on my back while i was clattering pots and pans and unloading the dishwasher, etc.