Personal Achievements

Dear Connor,

Throughout my life, I have been lucky to have many proud moments. Like getting to sing a solo during my high school glee club's spring concert (GongGong has a tape of that somewhere). Landing a prestigious TV news internship at KDKA. Graduating from college with high honors and a 3.97 GPA (yeah, your mom was a nerd). Traveling to China by myself and learning to navigate around a foreign country (and making it back home alive, much to PoiPoi's relief). Getting my first real magazine job. Being promoted to a senior editor. Finally learning which Kardashian is which.

But of course, all of those personal achievements pale immensely in comparison to my greatest achievement: you! You amaze me with your endless joy, warmth and intelligence and one of the best parts about being your mom is watching you accomplish your own personal achievements every day. In just the past two weeks, you learned how to:

-Touch your head and ears when I ask you where they are
-Touch your nose and say "nose" when I ask you where your nose is
-Blow your nose with a tissue
-Say "bubbles" and "Elmo" 
-Say "doo doo" (choo choo) when you see a train (you also say it when you see cars, buses and trucks--I guess you can't differentiate them yet)
-Imitate a monkey when you see a picture of one by going "aah aah aah ooh" and tigers and lions by saying "rooooar!" (you already knew how to imitate a snake by going "sssss")
-Look at me and tap your crotch whenever you poop (thanks for the heads up!)

I'm so proud of you!

Love,
Mom

Daddy's Doppelganger

Dear Connor,

Daddy has short hair and dark-rimmed glasses. One of my favorite pastry chefs, Dorie Greenspan, also has short hair and dark-rimmed glasses. Today, you saw a photo of Dorie on her cookbook and exclaimed, "Daddy!" Daddy is going to be so excited that you confused him with a 50-something Caucasian woman.

 <--- Daddy

 <--- not Daddy!

Love,
Mom

Unsolved Mystery

Dear Connor,

There are a few things in this world that I will never understand:

1) Quantum physics

2) What your dad does for a living. I know he is a financial analyst and that he deals with commercial real estate but every time Daddy tries to explain anything beyond that, my eyes glaze over and my mind begins to wander. 

3) How you manage to get bits of food inside your diaper. Every day, you wear a shirt, pants, a onesie and a diaper. And every once in awhile, I will open your diaper and find a rogue Cheerio or blueberry or grape. How does that happen? How does the grape go from your hand and through your shirt, pants, onesie and diaper?!?! Does it have something to do with quantum physics?

We may never know.

Love,

Mom

Mommy Brain

Dear Connor,

There is a term "mommy brain," which refers to the completely spacey things exhausted mommies do. I already told you about the time I put face wash on my toothbrush. Another time, I microwaved a fork (so glad nothing happened!). Then there was the time Mochi was barking at some kids playing behind our house and I yelled, "Connor, stop barking!" And today, I had to make a phone call and I picked up your toy phone instead of my actual phone. It took me a second to figure out why the phone was playing "Mary Had A Little Lamb." 

Love,

Mom

Just Say No

Dear Connor,

We had this conversation tonight:

Me: Did you like your cheddar crackers?

You: No.

Me: But you ate them all.

You: No. 

Me: And there are crumbs all over your face and hands. 

You: No. 

Either you don't understand yet that "no" doesn't mean "yes" or you are a bad liar.

Love,

Mom

I Love It When . . .

Dear Connor,

I love it when . . .
-You run over to me, hug my leg, look up at me and chirp, "Hi!"
-You hold both of your arms straight up toward me because you want me to pick you up
-You jut your lips and chin out toward my face because you want a kiss
-You nuzzle your face on my shoulder
-You laugh uncontrollably when I tickle your armpit
-You see a picture of Cookie Monster and growl the way Cookie Monster does when he eats cookies: "Mum mum mum!"
-You say "Oh!" when I talk to you, as if you really understand what I'm saying
-You pick a book from your bookshelf and bring it over to me to read to you (even if it's "Happy Hippo, Angry Duck" for the 100th time)
-You take an extra-long nap and give me a little break during the day
-You hug me tight when I hold you
-You pat me on my back when you hug me
-You blow me a kiss when I lay you in your crib at bedtime
-I sing the alphabet song and you say "thzzzzeee" when I pause after the letter Y (I'm so proud that you know the letter Z! And I guess you are going to learn the alphabet backward?)
-I sing the clean-up song and you obediently put your books and toys away (if only there were "stop throwing a temper tantrum" and "would you please stay still while I dress you?" songs)
-You see Mochi or another puppy and say "whoa whoa"
-I say "ring ring" and you'll hold whatever is in your hand up to your ear as if it's a telephone (it's especially cute when you're holding a banana)
-You smile at me and make me the happiest mom in the world

Love,
Mom

Scaredy Cat

Dear Connor,

You're not afraid of strangers. You're not afraid of big dogs (by the way, it's so cute when you squat down to look at Mochi and talk to him). You're not afraid of the dark. What you are afraid of, though, is my Cuisinart mini food processor. Every time I turn it on, you get scared and burst into tears! You're so scared of it that you won't even touch its buttons--and you love touching buttons! It's okay, sweetie! The food processor only chops up food, not little boys!

Love,

Mom