Dear Nathalie,

Time keeps passing by and we are full on into Autumn… my favorite season.  You own BOOTS now!  Not winter boots… fashionable fall weather boots.

You are still not REALLY saying much…in English.  You say things that sound like “Hey” or “Hi”  and then there are all kinds of sounds leaving your mouth but they are not yet making words that we understand.  I am starting to think that you and Whimsy might have a secret language.

You are really figuring out how to climb into things… the toy box… the water bottle package (which is Whimsy’s favorite hiding place).  Climbing over things is good too.  Keeping you quarantined to one space is becoming more challenging.  I really don’t want to purchase baby gates…again.  I prefer force fields, the technology just hasn’t caught up with my preferences yet.  C’mon Elon Musk… you need to get started on the baby accessories!!!  Enough already with the cars and solar roof shingles!!  (Both of which I want and cannot afford)

Moving on….

You are figuring out how to give kisses.  And not the open mouth, and drooly (is that a word?) kind that most babies give… you keep those lips closed and sometimes pucker, but only when you DARN WELL FEEL LIKE IT and that is not often.  Same goes with giving a high five.  You know how… you just don’t appear to be interested in performing on demand.  Which, in the grand scheme of things, this is a good thing but in the world of babies… You are A FREAK  unique.  I swear, I can see the little gears working behind your eyes and you just KNOW I want you to speak to me…anyone really.  You obviously UNDERSTAND words…you just don’t want to use them.

Oh, let us discuss your current hierarchy of people… Mummy is obviously the top dog.  Grandfather may be ahead of Father right now…Recently when Grandfather handed you to Father and went behind a closed door, you exhibited displeasure.  Whimpering… struggling… it was sad…and funny.  I believe Cousin Jenny is next in line – sort of equal to Father since she has you a few days a week.  Then… there is me.  I may even be behind Whimsy.  Heck, I may be behind ALL of the kitties.  Grandfather is of the belief that it is because I have special Grandmother magic that causes you to fall asleep once you spend too much time in my arms.  He thinks you KNOW that I can get you to go to sleep and you don’t WANT to risk that possibility – especially when Grandfather and the kitties are present!

About your education… You still are not wanting to sit down and read with me.  Except recently I received two toy catalogs in the mail and you were sitting on my lap actually looking through them with me.  You even tried to snuggle the stuffed kitties and tigers that were in there.  It was adorable… until….DUN DUN DUN…THE HORRIFIC THING happened.  You were squirming and wanted off of my lap (we were sitting in a comfy chair in the living room) and so I let you wiggle your way down…and (GASP!) I allowed you to slide off and tumble onto the floor!  Like, a WHOLE TWELVE INCHES or something HORRIFIC!  Your little shoulder made an impact with the floor… and (OH THE AGONY) you whined and sorta cried for A WHOLE FEW SECONDS and stood up and started circling the spot on the floor you hit, looking at the spot all angry!  As if:  HOW DARE THE FLOOR BE THERE!  Grandfather WAS NOT PLEASED with GranDawn for ALLOWING YOU TO EXPERIENCE THE PAIN!!!

And yes, this is me mocking Grandfather for his reaction to it all.  Much akin to wanting to call 911 when you were trying to poop.

It may be a good thing that Grandfather and I did not work the same shift when your Mummy was a tot… I am sure he would have had me arrested for child neglect, endangerment… something.  Rest assured… no harm will come to you when Grandfather is on duty.  With me, I will allow you to fall off your bike.  I will let you fall and scrape your knee.  I’ve already let the handle on the See-and-Say pinch your fingers (Muahhhhhahahahaha…Grandfather was not home) and you survived.  I will not allow you to play with knives, the stove, boiling water, rabid animals, strange animals, wild animals, medicine bottles (ahem…not even vitamin bottles), mobile phones, ummmmmm… I will not allow you or force you to interact with strangers, I will always slather you with SPF 100, I won’t let you play in the street or parking lots, I won’t let you go in water deeper than a couple inches and would never leave you alone in water even that shallow at this point.  But the scrapes and pinches and scratches and falls and bumps – Yeah, Imma let you get those. I will apply the ointment and bandages and cold compresses as needed, I might (not likely) even have to take you to get a stitch or two, but I am still gonna let you get minor injuries.  That is how you learn to NOT get them.  And someday… someone is gonna break your heart… but let’s pray for that poor fool right now because God knows between Father, GrandFather, Me and Mummy – that fool better go into witness protection. I would never physically HARM anyone… but ask Mummy and Aunt Pixie… they won’t like me when I’m angry.

Speaking of injuries… not really but this is as close a segue as I’m likely to get… you had your first opportunity to visit someone in the hospital!  Cousin Kimmee had a NASTY kidney infection and they kept her overnight and you were there with many of the people who love her… Party in ER Room 25!!  Yeah, there were way too many of us, but it is our Kimmee, we won’t apologize.

Finally… let’s say a word about the coming holiday.  Halloween.  Yes, you are actually going Trick or Treating… and you are going more than once.  You are going to be a Bunny.  (On the list of things I won’t do… I won’t allow you to eat Halloween candy that has not been thoroughly evaluated for safety…odds are, your parents will eat most of it anyway – so LOTS OF TRICKS FOR YOU!!!)

I think that covers this month…  You rock that Bunny costume Nathalie and I will post pictures of it in the next letter.

Keep being snuggly!

 

Love, GranDawn