When Emma was born, heck even before she was born, I always
thought that by the time she turned 1, her baby days would be long
gone.
When Emma was born, heck even before she was born, I always thought that by the time she turned 1, her baby days would be long gone.
Oh, I didn’t expect that she would suddenly start changing her own diapers or fetch me my coffee.
But I did think Emma would maybe act a little less, well, babyish.
In some ways, she has. She’s quite the independent little lady and very, uh, opinionated.
For instance, she won’t be held for more than mere seconds as I lift her from her crib and onto the floor. Then she wriggles from my grasp and launches into her day, choosing what to eat and what to play with throughout the next 24 and a half hours.
I’ve also noticed that she has been “modeling” my and my husband Chris’ behavior. That’s psych-talk for watching our every move and then copying it brilliantly.
Emma has taken to barking into the phone that’s conveniently tucked between her chin and shoulder while wiping down a countertop. Wait a minute, who does that?
Emma can also be found picking up – and spilling – Lucy’s dog dish to remove it from Emma’s path – something she has seen her dear old mom do. She also started saying what sounds like “no” to Lucy while vacuuming the carpet. No, I haven’t put her to work just yet. She pushes around the talking toy vacuum her Auntie Katie got her for her birthday.
But I have half a mind to take the batteries out of “Sweepy” – that’s the name of the vacuum. It has the nerve to happily tell me what a pigsty my house is while it zooms uselessly across the floor not picking up a speck of dirt. I say if a vacuum can talk, shouldn’t it be able to sweep up dirt, too?
Alas, I digress. I must say though Emma’s “modeling” has caught Chris and I off guard. We’ve started spelling words in front of her, just in case.
Emma has also developed a great sense of humor. She loves to dart behind our curtains then bounce out to surprise me.
But naptime is when her funny bone almost always emerges. Just when I think my little angel has floated off to dreamland, she throws the blanket over her head then pops up again with a huge grin on her face.
She’s so affectionate as well. I can always count on a quick Eskimo kiss from her or to be toppled over by one of her world-class running hugs. She hasn’t quite gotten the hang of kissing though, instead she plants one on the lucky recipient, mouth open wide, whenever she pleases.
She especially loves her singing Barney doll, which she picks up and squeezes its “I Love You” song out of.
Then earlier this week I took her to her one-year doctor’s appointment. Twelve months ago, I don’t think I believed I would ever see this day. But there we were, answering Emma’s doctor’s questions.
Yes, she can walk. Yes, she can say mama and dada. She can also wave bye-bye, throw her food tray on the ground when she’s done eating and play peek-a-boo with anyone standing behind us, I wanted to add.
It turns out that Emma is now ready to consume every available food, with the exception of honey. That’s fine. She’s sweet enough for now.
I can’t believe that she’s growing up so fast. Can’t I keep her as a baby a little while longer?
We’ll just shorten her teenage years by a year or two. I don’t think anyone will notice.
Kelly Barbazette lives in Gilroy with her husband, Chris, daughter, Emma, and miniature dachshund. She is the owner of Write Now, a copywriting and public relations company in Gilroy. She can be reached at kb*********@ya***.com.
