She's in the double digits, folks!

Hard to believe but it's true...Penelope is 10 months old today!

As all three of us were sitting around in our living room, I looked at Penelope who was walking back and forth between our ottoman and me, holding onto my legs for support. She and I were sharing a banana, she'd walk away from me after I gave her some, and would walk back when she wanted more. I remarked to Doug how big our baby girl is getting, only 1o months prior, she was so tiny, so helpless...and now, she walks (assisted) and eats bananas. I probably say this in every one of my blog posts, but it really remarkable how quickly these months since Penelope's birth have passed. In certain moments, usually when I am nursing her at night, I get a little panicky when I think how fast it is all going. It is also in those moments when I remind myself that I must try to enjoy every moment, or at least appreciate it, whether it be good, bad or somewhere in between.

Doug posted a video of P crawling...a funny, leg-dragging crawl that, as Doug put it, gives it a Penelope twist. Well, she still hasn't dropped that other knee but instead has learned to MOTOR around the house doing her signature crawl! In fact, I don't even notice anymore that it is "different--"that she is not on her hands and knees. Frankly, I am more worried about where she is headed than how she is getting there! Doug installed latches on our kitchen cabinets and lower drawers and we have moved things off the lower bookshelves, etc. We have a bit more to do in the babyproofing department but I am feeling much more secure about her wandering through the house (of course, I never let her out of my sight).

In addition to crawling, Penelope is talking! Well, speaking a language only her Dad and I can understand. She says "mamamamama," "dadadada," and "tatatatata," in loose reference to myself, Doug and Tara, our youngest dog. I think she says "tatatatata" when Grizzly, our first dog, comes by, as well. Most of the time she is just vocalizing but every now and then, I swear she knows exactly what she is saying and to whom. She has also begun experimenting with her vocal range...she does both a high pitched squeal and low, raspy, growly sounds. We call the latter her Halloween or devil voice...it's really hilarous to hear her say "mamamama" in this rather demonic tone! She also points at interesting things, especially balloons. I have included a couple of photos of her with her very first balloon she received last weekend:

Boon!

In addition to the more fun stuff, we've also had to deal with the not-so-fun stuff, namely teething. Penelope's two top teeth came in about 2 weeks ago and her bicuspids are nearly poking through. Once she cuts those, she'll have six teeth total. She is a teething nightmare sometimes; in between biting me while nursing, she chews on everything in sight. The worst is the nightwaking; since really the only pain relief for teething pain tends to be nursing, guess what she likes to do, all night long? I am beyond the point of exhaustion; I think I am approaching insanity now. I know that some folks are still in much worse sleep situations with their babies but it is so hard to function on 4 hours of sleep. I try my best to nap with her but, and this may sound bad, sometimes I give up the nap just so I can have a few moments to myself (or a shower!). I especially feel bad for her...the pain must be awful.

Generally, life with P remains exciting and exhausting! We are looking forward to Halloween and the upcoming holidays with her...stay tuned for off-the-hook cute Halloween photos!

You honestly think that this will keep me in here?