20 Months

Dear Mina-

This has been a wonderful month to watch you grow. We enjoyed your first interactive Christmas/Yule. You had a wonderful time, and walked around with a bit of a stunned look on your face for much of the day. For Yule, Kunshi got you a drum.

From Yulemas 2008

After you joyfully opened it and played it, the entire family joined in and drummed. It was as if the whole world had stopped and was playing music for you. You stomped your feet, clapped your hands and took turns playing all of the drums. If we stopped, you would clap and ask for more. It is a memory that I will cherish forever, and one that I don't think my silly words can ever capture.

On Christmas morning, you were a bit shell shocked

From Yulemas 2008

- All of the presents around. You were just amazed. Your favorite gifts included a step-stool embellished and painted by your daddy, a doll made by me,

From Yulemas 2008

and a tractor

From Yulemas 2008

. Actually, there was also a horse born while we were visiting, and you thought that was pretty cool too~

From Yulemas 2008

Overall, it was a fantastic holiday filled with lots of excitement, and you did great.

Your speech continues to improve and it amazes me. You have taken to singing full songs and have started to interpret songs with the actual melodies and you sing them in their entirety. Your favorites are Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, the ABC song, Itsy Bitsy Spider (complete with movements), Jingle Bells, I Love You from Barney, and Elmo's World... Though the last one you do not sing in entirety, instead you prefer for someone else to sing until the very end where you will sing at the TOP.OF.YOUR.LUNGS "THATS ELMO'S WORLD." Though it comes out more like thass emmo's wooooord. Its pretty cute. You also will sing back pieces of songs I have sung to you- like the song Sing. I love this song, it has warmed my heart since childhood, so to hear your sing it makes my eyes well up.

You have started being more altruistic and pick things up when asked- not always, but every little bit helps~ You also have figured out how to get into your highchair by yourself. I am not sure how you do it because you seem to do it when I have my back turned making a meal. The dining room FASCINATES you. In fact you are obsessed with the china that I we used when I was a little girl.

Pregnancy has gotten a bit easier for me and you are such an angel. I explained to you that there was a baby in my belly and asked you to give it a kiss and now this is all you want to do. You hug me and place your head on my belly and then lift my shirt to give sweet belly kisses. I imagine you don't fully understand what is happening, but you have been so amazing- it is hard for me to imagine that you don't
"get it" on some level.

In general, I feel like our lives are continuing on this great journey. I love seeing you change and grow and become more of the person you are destined to be. I love the way you throw your arms around my neck when you give me a hug, I love that you run across the room and hug my belly, sigh deeply and say "I love you Mamma."

It is a real pleasure being your Mamma. Most Certainly.

Love,
Mamma