A Whole Lot Like Love October 3, 2014

Something pretty spectacular happened today. And the best part was it happened in the presence of more than one witness, so you simply have to believe me. Because I have a feeling you all are going to think I’m crying wolf already, but let me assure you, this dog would never do such a thing. 

A couple of weeks ago, I would have sworn dear baby Carter said “dada.” It’s happened every now and then since then, but not frequently (or on purpose) enough for me to know for sure this is his first real word. Sure, he has said a version of “hi” since he was about four months old, but we don’t fully count that around here. Then there is the “mamamamamama” babble that happens frequently throughout the day. That is pretty special too.

But nothing like this. I think today, dear baby Carter honestly said his first real word. It was no fluke. It was no coincidence. It was no word that sort of resembled his usual babble. Today, as I attempted to steal peas off his high chair, Carter said “doggie.” Mom practically jumped out of her chair when it happened. So you can imagine her enthusiasm when it happened twice more throughout the day. “Doggie,” he said later as he squirmed helplessly about his changing table. “Doggie,” he said when I sniffed him after dinner.

I think it’s official. It’s still not the most frequent thing around here, but it’s certainly no fluke. It’s not a coincidence. And, even if it is, today I decide to embrace it. With my whole heart and soul. My inner crazy. From the ground up, today it becomes me. Why not howl at the moon while I’m at it? Because today is what I’ve lived for the last however many months. It might of just been one simple word, but to me it sounded a whole lot like love.

For years, I’ve had dreams of what it would be like to be around my very own little person. To learn from him and her just like I had always imagined. To embrace his or her joy, from the ground up, in everything.

So it still might have been a fluke. Or wishful thinking. Or maybe I really am going a little crazy. But I don’t care. Because today was, quite honestly, one of the best days of my doggie life so far. Today was the day I felt true love from a little person of only nine month so of age. That is something pretty spectacular, if you ask me.

*A note about the photos: Mom has been trying for the last few weeks to get an updated photo of dear Carter and I, but I will tell you, it’s not my fault it hasn’t happened. He’s always on the move!

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As The Sun Rises September 17, 2014

Sometimes it’s incredibly subtle. Other times it hits me in the face. Literally. I speak, of course, of dear baby Carter and all the things that change with him on a daily basis. I frequently hear mom repeat the same response when people ask her how he’s doing. There is something new every day, she says. 

Recently much of the change has been physical. He’s moving. A lot. He’s crawling all over the place and getting into all kinds of things he shouldn’t. Mom says she doesn’t think it will be long before he’s walking. And he is strong. You wouldn’t guess it from looking at his 20-pound frame, but take it from me – there is a whole lot of gusto in those tiny little guns of his.

But something happened tonight that struck me. It might have been a fluke. Like one of those things you can convince yourself of even if it might not actually have been the case. But I have a pretty keen sense of hearing and tonight I think Carter said the two most important first words he could ever say. Both have been making regular appearances in his daily babble fest of syllables right along with baabaabaa. Today there was something different though, like he was saying things on purpose.

“Mamamama,” he said when mom left the room to warm up his bedtime bottle. And, less then 15 minutes later, “dada” came out of his mouth as dad gave him his nightly bath.

As I said, it is possible this is all wishful thinking and just happened by coincidence. Because sometimes it is incredibly subtle. I’m pretty sure mom wouldn’t have even thought anything of it had dad not pointed it out. And then at bath time, well, it seems as though everything pieced together just as it should in that moment.

I know I’ve had my qualms about having a strong, mobile, babbler of a little person in my forever home. But he’s managed to do something pretty spectacular to my way of thinking. Change is not a favorite thing of mine, but he has changed how I perceive the unknown. As he grows, he changes each day. And as he changes, I realize he has changed me. I still love routine, but there is something about knowing tomorrow will bring something new again brings even more joy to each new day. As the sun rises, there will be change. And that’s a fabulous thing.