Potty Mouth

Clara Grace’s daddy took his turn changing her diaper on the morning of Friday, December the thirtieth. “Here’s your new diaper,” he told his daughter conversationally as he fastened the snaps. “Diber!” Clara Grace said for the first time.

She's Listening

Wednesday, December the twenty-eighth, Clara Grace pushed a rubber frog across her tiny bathtub. “She ate such a good dinner tonight,” her mommy said to her daddy, “maybe she should get a teensy weensy bit of ice cream.” Clara Grace looked up and said to her parents’ amazement, “Teensy teensy.”

Pavlovian Baby

In her short fourteen months, Clara Grace has become familiar with several routines. For example, when her mommy says, “Get your coat,” that also means “We’re going outside.” On the morning of Friday, December the twenty-third, she heard the familiar “Pop!” of the toaster and naturally assumed her blueberry waffle was on the way. She squealed with delight and was so overcome with joy that she flung the soggy cracker she’d been munching into her Daddy’s cup of coffee.

Big Shoes to Fill

Clara Grace played dress-up for the first time on Thursday, December the twenty-second. She set her mommy’s boot down with a clunk, and then proceeded to place her entire foot, shoe and all inside. She seemed pleased with the boot, even though it swallowed her whole leg and made walking extremely awkward.

It Could be Worse

On Wednesday, December the twenty-first, Clara Grace’s Aunt Amy took her to the aquarium. She watched as Clara Grace splashed her hands playfully in the pool of petable stingrays and bamboo sharks. When an unsuspecting ray glided near, Clara Grace stretched out her hand. On touching its silky skin, Clara Grace drew back with a surprised, “Ooooo!”

And She Sits in the Back Row, Too

Clara Grace’s mommy and nana went out for lunch at the Chinese restaurant on Monday, December the twelfth. Nana was so intrigued by Clara Grace’s folded hands, that she had to peek during mommy’s prayer. Clara Grace unclasped her hands until the familiar phrase, “In Jesus’ name…” Nana reported that the little girl’s tiny hands were refolded just in time for the Amen and opening of eyes.

Mutual Bye Bye's

On Saturday, December the tenth, Clara Grace’s daddy was shocked to hear his little girl repeat “Bye, bye" right in his arms. He promptly began a game of entering the living room and greeting the visiting Paulson family. Then he left with a very loud “Bye, bye,” which Clara Grace happily repeated time after time.

Partners in Crime

Clara Grace followed her cousin Peter away from the noisy Paulson crowd assembled in her mommy and daddy’s living room and into her nursery on Friday, December the ninth. Her daddy peeked around the door in time to watch Clara Grace reach into her diaper holder and withdraw one of the freshly laundered pampers for Peter and one for herself. She then went about showing him how to join in her favorite game of strewing the diapers around the room in all sorts of hard to discover places. Each time she went to the bag, she took two diapers and only went for more until she was satisfied both hers and Peter’s had been adequately distributed about the room.

A Star is Born

Sunday morning, November the twenty-seventh, Clara Grace’s mommy admired her daughter’s frilly Sunday dress as they danced to a Carter’s tune. “Daddy will shoe my pretty little feet, and mama will glove my hand,” she sang. And then, as if Clara Grace had just unlocked the secrets of song, she joined her mommy in a clear high pitched, melody which flowed first up and then down.

Everyday Math

Clara Grace didn’t show much excitement over turkey and cranberries on her second Thanksgiving; however, the ice cream for dessert was a true cause for rejoicing and thankfulness. Daddy fed her bites from her abundant bowl and then snuck one for himself. “I think she has mastered the concept of subtraction,” her daddy announced as Clara Grace waved her arms emphatically and indignantly grunted for daddy to stop digging into her supply.

Ukulele Baby

Clara Grace’s daddy watched proudly on the afternoon of Friday, November the twenty-fifth, as Clara Grace held his ukulele correctly and strummed properly with her right thumb.

Maybe She'll be in Shoe Sales

During the month of November, Clara Grace began several new morning rituals. First, in an extremely helpful way, she always delivered mommy and daddy their shoes at the first signs that they were getting dressed. She ran into the bedroom, dove under the bed and reappeared holding an enormous shoe with both hands. “Shoe,” she would say and lift it to her thankful parents. She always delivered both shoes and never once delivered daddy’s shoes to mommy or vice versa.

Q & A

Clara Grace answered her first question on Tuesday, November second. “What do you want to eat?” her mommy asked while preparing lunch. “Cheese!” Clara Grace answered enthusiastically.

Imperatives

Clara Grace spoke her first two-word imperative on Thursday, November the third. It occurred while her daddy wrestled with a pesky sink pipe. Clara Grace pulled at his arm, whined, and tried all manner of attention getting techniques very non-conducive to plumbing. Finally, she took hold of her daddy’s arm and said “Daddy, cheese!” “Oh, are you hungry?” her Daddy asked. Clara Grace bounced up and down in a happy dance and repeated, “Cheese, cheese, cheese,” all the way to the refrigerator.

Spelling Bee in Training

Clara Grace and her mommy sat on the kitchen floor playing with refrigerator magnets on Wednesday, October the twenty-seventh. Clara Grace plucked three letters from the door and held them out for her mommy’s inspection. “Hmmm, F, R, S. Well if you added a U it could be furs, or maybe an I and a T would make first.” Clara Grace retrieved her letters and as if aware of the new point of the game plucked two others from the door. “GO” was the first word she spelled all on her own. Whether Clara Grace is blessed with extremely high intelligence, or whether she has merely inherited her mommy’s uncanny good luck, it is clear she will go far in life.

Kissy Litter

Thursday, October the twenty-seventh, Clara Grace blew her first kiss to mommy. It took almost no time for her to realize the vast potential this one gesture held for obtaining attention from family to complete strangers. If kisses were tangible things, the isles of stores, neighborhood streets, and house floors would be littered with the thousands she liberally dispensed during her first years.

Would You Like some Cheese with Your Shoes?

Wednesday, October the twelfth, Clara Grace announced “Shus” as her mommy slipped her shoe over her wiggling foot. The following week, Wednesday the twenty-sixth, she announced, “Chus!” as her mommy opened the refrigerator drawer where the dairy products are stored.

Tickles and Kisses

Clara Grace was particularly charming on Wednesday, October the fifth. She crawled over to mommy and tickled the toes. Her mommy rewarded her with a high-pitched, “hee hee hee!” which prompted the same giggle from Clara Grace as well as many more tickles. When her mommy couldn’t stand it any more, she bent down and retrieved the little girl for a kiss. Clara Grace seemed to find this fascinating and brought her round cheek close for mommy to kiss time and time again. Each time, she screamed for fun.

Morning Duties

Clara Grace has what has become almost an obsessive-compulsive ritual to complete each and every morning. Each day, before she cries out to alert her mommy and daddy that she is awake, they hear one by one, pacifiers kerplunking to the nursery floor. When the binkies are all dispatched, Clara Grace calls out her greeting to the world. Each morning, mommy or daddy enters and lifts her from her bed, but before any good morning kisses or hugs can be dispensed, business must be taken care of. The little girl wriggles until she is set down on the floor. Then she pops one pacifier in her mouth and collects two for each hand. Now she stands and is ready to be hoisted back up to the side of her crib where she ceremoniously pitches the pacies to bounce around on the waiting mattress. It seems her day cannot begin until each and every binky is in its proper place. This ritual carried on well into her first year.

Told You So

Clara Grace and her mommy sat across from each other on their music room floor in the late morning hours of Tuesday, June 14. Strewn all about them were the contents of the little girl’s band in a box. Clara Grace had rattled the maracas, beat the drum, tapped the triangle, shaken the tambourine, and clicked the castanets. She had even delved into experimental and creative forms of music such as clashing the cymbals with the maracas, and tapping the drum with the triangle. Finally, Clara Grace sat still as if to say she had gone as far as her eight months of talent would take her in percussion and knew it was time to branch out. Tentatively, Clara Grace’s mommy honked a purple kazoo and handed it to her daughter. Clara Grace accepted the woodwind and gave it a resounding toot. There was some discussion and a good deal of pulling and tugging between Mommy and Baby about which end was to be blown upon, but seeing as how both ends produced the same sound, in the end, Clara Grace’s mommy graciously decided not to belabor the point. It could be noted that when Clara Grace showed her new talent off for her daddy that afternoon, he confirmed that his daughter had been using the correct end all along. In light of the new circumstances, in what can only be described as genuine humility, Clara Grace refrained from telling her mommy, “I told you so.”