Dear Baby Girl

As Jack's blog becomes Jack and his sister's blog, I feel it's only fair to write my soon-to-be-daughter a little letter:

Dear Baby Girl,

I can't believe you are almost here! It seems like I have been pregnant for an eternity this time around. Maybe it's because it wasn't so long ago that I was pregnant with your brother or maybe it's because I've been running around after your brother this time instead of just relaxing whenever I want. Whatever the reason, it's felt long.

I'm so looking forward to your arrival but, if I'm honest, I'm a little scared. I've never known what it's like to have a sibling--Mommy's an only child, her Mommy's an only child, etc. I really wanted you guys to have each other so that you wouldn't feel some of the pressures that I felt as a kid. My parents never put any pressures on me, I put them on myself, but I don't want either of you to have to deal with that. I also want you to have each other. As playmates when you are little, hopefully as friends throughout your lives, and to lean on someday when we are gone.

Anyway, I think your brother is going to have a tough time at first, which is another reason I am a little scared. He likes being an only child. I think that he's going to be pretty mad at Mommy and Daddy for a little while. But I think that he is going to really like you and be very protective of you. I think that he won't like sharing the center of the universe with you, but that will probably be good for him. I am excited for him to have a little sister because I think you will become good buddies and he will like looking out for you. He's very easy going in most respects and he's really sweet. I think that you will really like him too. He's a cool kid who likes to do lots of stuff and be active. Hopefully you'll like to play together--once you can play!

There are a lot of traits that I hope you both share. I hope that you are as happy as he is. That you find joy in the simplest things. I hope that you love to learn like he does. And I really hope you are as good of a sleeper as he is!! Other than that, I am so curious as to what you will be like. Will you have Daddy's black hair or my brown (I was suprised when your brother got mine!) Will you get Daddy's beautiful skin tone or will I have to show you how to apply copious amounts of sunscreen? Will you love to laugh and experience new things? Whatever you are, I promise that I will love you with all my heart and try to always be the best Mommy possible.

I can't wait to have a daughter. I have such a special bond with my own mom and I hope that we will not only be mother and daughter but also good friends. We are going to have so much fun together. I look forward to having girls' time with you. However, I will apologize in advance for not being very girly. I am not very good at doing hair or applying makeup or picking out cute girly clothes. Actually, I thought maybe you could help me out in that respect.

So that's about all for now. November 30th will be a wonderful day for all of us. By the way, if you could just wait until that day, I'd really appreciate it--I would really like to have the doctor I picked on hand when you are born. I would also like to tie up all the loose ends at work and NOT have to do labor again! So if you could just sit tight until we come to get you, it would be much appreciated. If not, we'll get over it! I can't wait to meet you and hold you and snuggle with you! You take care, keep growing well and rest up--I hear that whole birth thing is a pretty tiring experience for babies too! See you soon, baby girl!

Love, Mommy

Kit Kat

Today I was eating a KitKat. Jack took a sudden interest in it, even though he has never had one. In fact, he isn't much of a sweet tooth (didn't get THAT from me!). He's had ice cream and cake but we haven't given him any candy at all. But he eagerly accepted the little piece of KitKat and stuffed it in his mouth.

"Mmmm, chocolate," said Paul.

Jack didn't appear to love it but didn't dislike it either. However, he came back for a bite of the second stick and said, "KitKat". My eyes bugged out of my head. I had never given him a KitKat nor had I said the word when offering it to him. I looked at Paul. "Have YOU given him a KitKat before?" He hadn't. The only other option was Grandma, who never gives him sweets. So now I'm thinking that the kid can read. I couldn't figure it out but then I said, "Jack, say 'chocolate'." "KitKat" he said. So there's bad news and good. The bad news is that he can't read. The good news is that 1) he's only 21 months old and 2) he only heard the word "chocolate" once before he started using the word!

Pronunciation

Jack's pronunciation seems to get better every day. I find myself missing his less clear "words" for things. Like when he used to call the letter "W", "Blum-blum". Blum-blum is WAY cuter than "double u". He also used to call his stuffed monkey "BuhBEAN" instead of Bunky. My little boy is growing up. Sigh.

More Love

Today Jack said to me, "I love you too much." I wonder if he's going to start loving me less now...

A Whole Lotta Love

Sometimes Jack gets a certain phrase in his head that he wants to work on. The other day, it was "I love you.":

"I love you, Mommy! I love you, Daddy! I love you, Grandma! I love you, Nonny! I love you, Poppy! I love you, rice! I love you, meat! I love you, noodles!"