Thirteen Months

November 05, 2012

Seth,

So much to talk about this month. You moved halfway across the country! Not only are you moving, but you’re walking all over the place. As I’m writing this, you’re walking around the room, throwing your ball down the slide for the dogs, and chasing after them to retrieve it. Certainly they’re now more interested in you, if only because you can throw their ball. The new house has a railing that overlooks the stairs, and we find lots of toys, balls, and other things dropped through to the stairs below. When the gate is open, the dogs think fetch up and down the stairs is the greatest thing since dog food.

You’ve finally said “please”, with the gesture across your chest using both hands. Pretty sure that you’ve known it for a while, and just didn’t want to say it. You quickly learned that it both melts our hearts and you can get almost anything by adding “please”. Of course, it’s not that much help when you simply say please and wait for us to interpret what you mean. Similarly, all numbers are “three”. Any time we look for a number response, it’s three. You also skip straight to three when we’re counting up to something, as if to say, “Let’s get right to it!”

Our two favorite lines are “Seth does it!” and “Can you say _____”. Seth is our little mimic, from gestures to words he’s soaking up everything and repeating it back. Fortunately, we haven’t run into the sitcom situation where we say something ill-considered and he picks up on it. Inevitably, that’s only a matter of time, as having you around is like having a daemon in the computer that randomly hits “Ctrl-Z” or “close without saving”. We often ask the question, “Why do kids books come with dust jackets? Aren’t hardcovers much more resilient?”

Bath time comes much more frequently now, and you love your baths. Splashing and blowing bubbles, and plenty of toys to play with. You also stay on top of us, and make sure we don’t miss brushing your teeth. Little hands pointing at the bathroom with the exclamation “Teef!” to ensure that we brush your teeth frequently.

The move to San Diego hasn’t seemed to disconcert you too much, though I suppose you still have the dogs, your nursery, and your two loving parents as consistent touchpoints. Would that everything were that simple for all of us, though we do have our consistent touchpoint in Christ. San Diego has many fun things to do, from the Miramar Air Show, to the pumpkin patch at Bates Nut Farm. You took right to the pilot’s seat in the plane we visited.

You’ve just recently started sleeping with a blanket. Not only are you even more cute in your crib curled up under a blanket, I cherish the opportunity to go in and tuck it back up around you before we go to bed at night. You’re a whole lot of blessing wrapped up in a small package, buddy. We love you so very much.

Daddy