Dear Nora,

It’s coming. Your first birthday, I mean. I cannot believe that we are already approaching the one-year mark with you in our lives. By the time I write your next letter, we will be able to describe your age with the word “year.” Whoa.

You are SO. MUCH. FUN right now. You are still growing and changing each day, right before our eyes. In the short time since your 10-month letter, you have done so much.

For starters, you are no longer toothless. Your first tooth FINALLY popped through in the middle of July, and your second one surfaced this past week. You’re still drooling more than usual, so I’m already wondering if there are others not far behind. And with those new teeth, you’ve already managed to destroy your beautiful crib.

Alright, maybe I’m over-exaggerating a bit. But early this week, I leaned over the side of your crib and happened to notice a few dozen hash marks on the backside. I had seen you putting your mouth on the rail, but I never imagined that your ONE tooth (at the time) could’ve done that much damage. Come to find out, I think the reason you were so determined to chew on something like wood was because that second tooth was bothering you. Lesson learned. I quickly fashioned a crib rail guard out of receiving blankets and some twine-like rope. It looks ugly, but it’s been doing the job while we wait for Grammy to make you a real one out of fabric.

Another newfound “talent” you are exercising with your teeth? BITING. Biting ME. You know, when you’re nursing. All I can say about that is “OUCH.” Thankfully, it is not happening often (yet), but you surprised me a few times earlier this week. Both times, I quickly gasped and said, “OUCH! NO!” very sternly, and you cried like I had just ended your world. Of course, it killed me to make you sad, but you’ve gotta learn, right? I’m sure it’s not the last time you’ll be scolded!

On that same note, we are STILL breastfeeding. Hooray! There were many days this month when I thought about throwing in the towel with that damn breast pump, but I stuck it out. Now, it’s amazing to think that there’s only one more month. In fact, thanks to a healthy freezer stash, I might not even have to make it that far. We’ve been chipping away at my reserves for a while now, since I haven’t quite been meeting your milk intake, but we might have enough to allow me to quit the pump a bit early. As of now, I plan to nurse you in the mornings and at night for a while longer, but we’ll see how it goes. Most importantly, it looks like we are actually going to make it to my one-year goal of exclusive breastfeeding. Amazing!

Finger foods are going OK. There are some that you love—bananas, for instance—but there are other things that you won’t even really try at this point. It’s a little frustrating, because I REALLY hope you’re not a picky eater. For now, I’m choosing to believe that it’s still early, and you will get better with time. You eat pretty much anything as long as it is pureed, so I don’t think it’s a flavor issue—just a sensory/texture sensitivity that might be holding you back a little. We’ll keep working on it. For now, when you don’t like something, you toss it off your tray for Tessa to enjoy—at least it keeps Daddy and I from having to do a lot of clean up!

You can pull yourself up to a stand now. You mostly do it in your crib, but you also manage to do it on other things as well—your activity table, the railings by the stairs, our laps, and even the TV stand. Pretty much anywhere you can get a firm grip, you are happy to pull up to stand.

You’ve become an expert at the “Army crawl,” and have started to get up on your hands and knees more. We think you’re going to move to a “real” crawl before you walk, that’s for sure. You’re all over the place now, which means more work for Mommy and Daddy as we chase you around and pull you away from things like electrical cords, outlets, shoes, and (your favorite) the dog’s water bowl. We will most definitely be baby-proofing at the new house!

That’s right, my love: we closed on our new house today! Perhaps that is the biggest milestone of all. You will have a (much) bigger room, a whole downstairs to explore, and a YARD. We are ecstatic. In a week or so, we will be moving in, and I hope that you will take the transition in stride.

We ditched the pacifier this month. It was one of those things that just kind of happened. We didn’t think you REALLY needed it, and after a few days of an adjustment period, you were fine about it. We decided to get rid of it because we figured it would be easier to do it now than when you’re older. You don’t seem to miss it anymore! You have, however, become attached to your lovies for sleep. Last night, you were doing your normal play-in-your-crib thing before bed, and suddenly, you started SCREAMING. I knew it was not a normal cry for you, so I went in to check on you, to find you standing at the side of the crib, with your lovey on the floor right beneath you. You were DEVASTATED. As soon as I rescued lovey and gave him back to you, your crying returned to your normal tired cry. It was easy to see you were relieved.

By FAR the cutest thing you began doing this month? KISSES. You give kisses! It is so hilarious and sweet, and pretty much the most awesome thing ever. When we say “Nora, give me a kiss!” you lean in—sometimes with your mouth wide open, sometimes with it closed—and put your mouth against ours for a few seconds. I could seriously die, it is THAT cute.

You point at things now. To see your little pointer finger sticking up in the air is adorable. You “sing.” You “dance” to pretty much any kind of music–music from your toys, the commercials on TV, on the radio in the car. When you’re in your car seat, you do this little “bop” that is your version of dancing while restrained. It’s hilarious. You love cell phones and remotes (what kid doesn’t?). You still won’t drink out of a sippy cup. You like to crawl underneath things. You wake up a little earlier than you used to. You give me a heart attack when you try to pull up to stand in the bath.

You are officially over your stranger danger. You let other people hold you (I’ll tell you, the grandparents are THRILLED!), even people whom you just met. As much as we loved how you were attached to us, I’ll admit that it’s really nice not to have to worry about you every second when we are with others. You allow other people to entertain and care for you now. It’s so great to see you share yourself with others like you do with us. You are irresistibly cute, you know. You’re quite popular these days!

We’re going to be busy with the house this month, but I’m going to take special care to make sure to cherish all of my moments with you. As we get closer to a year, it feels like your infancy is suddenly slipping through my fingers. I need to enjoy every second while it lasts. I have to say, though, that I sure am loving the toddler you’re becoming.

My love for you is big enough to stretch around the world.

Kisses,

Mommy