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wonderbaby

Artistic Expression
Naomi has grown into a tactile appreciation of her food. She likes to smear food onto her fingers and paint surfaces with it. Trying to hone her artistic instinct, one evening I encouraged her to paint her tongue and lips with yogurt. Patting myself on the back for good-mothering, I walked into the kitchen and ran a sink full of hot water for our dinner dishes. When I returned Naomi’s face, hair, and hands were completely covered with a thick layer with peach yogurt. She had to blink back the yogurt clumps falling from her eyelashes. Proud of herself, Naomi beamed at me with this winning smile.

The Big E
All children must grow some attachment for various characters – Tele Tubbies, Barney, Winnie the Pooh, or Sesame Street. Naomi has developed an obsessive relationship with Elmo. You know how David Cassidy in his hey day had swooning hoards of young girls? Imagine the same reaction from a toddler to a scruffy red puppet. Naomi wakes up with Elmo’s name on her lips. She mentions him at random in conversation. Clutches her Elmo doll to her chest like it is one with her small (but wildly) beating heart.

T-i-double-guh-rrrrr
Naomi paraded her wildest self on Halloween. As Tigger, she strutted, roared, chased her family around the coffee table, and answered the door for trick-or-treaters. The whole trick-or-treating ritual, while a little confusing, was also VERY exciting from the toddler perspective. Oct. 31,2003

They All Fall Down
Naomi goes to the Mill every Sunday to hear her Grandma Mel play fiddle with a band called the Pot Scrubbers. Regularly Naomi will sing, dance and applaud voraciously for the group. However, this Sunday, Naomi let loose spinning and spinning and spinning in circles until she plopped to the ground with dizziness. Delighted with her newfound dance move, she cackled with delight, bobbled to her feet and did it again. Oct. 12, 2003

Who’s On First?
Brent was trying to explain to Naomi where mom was after the fall semester of classes started. His first attempt was to say, “Mom’s in class”, to which Naomi responded by putting on a pair of imaginary glasses looking quizzical and asking “glass?” Next Brent tried saying “Mom’s at School” which Naomi translated to say mom was in squirrel. We left it at that. Naomi will sometimes look in the trees for me on Tuesdays, but we don’t see much harm in that. Aug. 26th, 2003.

Party Tricks
At a birthday party for a close friend of mine, Brent asked Naomi to perform a trick he taught her. Brent wanted Naomi to show the group that she could tickle her mother. Naomi, however, was much more interested in the latest discovery of her belly button. When asked an open ended question “can you show them what daddy taught you,” Naomi lifted her t-shirt, carefully pointed to her belly button beamed with pride and said “beh-bee-bu-bu”.