Monkey Love

Do ya'll remember those sock monkeys that we grew up with, they hand long gangly arms and legs, and the best part was that the hands had velcro on them so they could connect so you could wear your monkey around your neck like big ol fuzzy bling, 80's style? Well I never had one of those, but I don't think I was missing much. I don't even think I was missing much when I didn't have my own Coco the Chimp.

After Babygirl's little bout with having a cold- waking up in the middle of the night due to fevers, runny nose, etc., we got a nice little bond going on. On the flip side, she's not sick any more, but she's going through a needy stage, and does not like to be consoled by Babymama if I'm around. I think the for the last couple of mornings, I've had to make my breakfast+lunch while holding Babygirl in one arm, just like one of those monkey with the velcro hands.

Sometimes Babygirl is pats me on the head, or strokes my hair with her hands, other times he hands morph into a mean Bahston Lahbstah Clah or a violent monkey and leaves marks on my face or neck. I enjoy being a source of reassurance, sense of safety, and nurturing Babydaddy, but c'mon Daddy also needs to be productive and efficient with his AM routines, as well as not go into the office like a rabid squirrel landed on his face while biking to work.

Irregardless(Babymama's least fav word), I still love this monkey baby of mine, and will continue to take the good with the bad, but really it's not even that bad, so it's really a whole lotta good, mixed with equal amount of love.

In Love with Babygirl

Babygirl, it's been a pleasure to hang out with you the last two evenings without Babymamma. During this time I just had so much love for you, and I also became aware that I need to find the balance in my love. Otherwise I would regress back to freshmen year in college when I thought my then girlfriend was going to be the girl I would get married to and have kids with, that's not the type of love you'll need growing up.

With the absence of Babymamma we've gotten to bond, learn some new things, and just play. We learned a new body part- you now know where your tongue is, and stick it out quite frequently these days. We watched a couple minutes of BBC's Planet Earth, and you thought the polar bear cubs were "bow wow's,"(dogs) and empathized with their hunger, and offered them your "bopple" (bottle).

You've also been thriving in many ways, just eating everything in site, and you seem to be getting bigger, taller, and heavier each day, which is all a good thing (we're almost back up to double digit percentiles for your weight, yeah!). You're into climbing, and sharing your food, pacifier, bottle, with me and your stuffed animal pals. You've also discovered the word and concept of "mine," which is a shocker for both Babymama and I.

You've also had some difficulties at night, waking up due to not being able to find your pacifier, just being uncomfortable, etc. which has led to increased time we spend in the dark. Sometimes I sing, we'll re-read "Gossie," or sometimes we just rock. Most often you ask for "Geoge,"(Curious George) to help soothe you, and if I'm lucky you'll fall asleep with your head on my chest, like earlier this AM. It's all these little moments that makes my heart melt, and allows me to furiously ride my bike home to spend whatever time I have with you before you head off to bed, or I head off to my other office.

Despite getting older, it's good to know that I can still rock you to sleep, and teach you silly things. For now I can give you all this undivided attention and love, and that's ok.