Darcy 10 Months

Holland: Look at the cute Darcy. She is beautiful. Look at her dress and bow. Pretty darling, huh? 

Here's cute Darcy again. 

Okay, that is as far as I got with cutie pie Holland. She just dotes on her baby sister and loves her to pieces. 

Oh 10 months old! I know I say this every time, but how does time go so fast. I swear it is only speeding up too! These monthly photo shoots and posts sometimes feels like a lot, but you are changing so much that it is only right to try to document this in little increments. 

This superman pose. So funny and cute and spazzy. Point those toes, flex those legs and bum, fly your arms out, and squeal. It's the best. 

At ten months old our main mission in life was to stop you from crawling, which worked until the last week before you turned 11 months old. You were about 30 seconds away from crawling (developmentally) for about a month. We knew things would change when you got more mobile and they have, but probably not as much as they should have 

We are just not at a point in our lives where we can baby proof our dwelling like we used to be able to. Not that we don't try to keep you out of dangerous things, but lets just say you definitely live a more adventurous babyhood than Ellie did at your age. 

Our first sign that we were in trouble was before you were even really crawling. You rolled around and pushed yourself backwards to get places and you could sit yourself up (so funny, more on that in a minute). So one day I sat you down with your beloved bucket of toddler legos and little ponies where Daddy could keep an eye on you. During Covid he works at the dining room table so this was in the front room where the blue rug is. You scooched around and played with toys and things you found, when *thunk.* Something heavy had fallen right by you. Turns out it was a pot that Daddy and I had made when we were first married. It is not particularly sturdy (you know, it is just ceramic) and it had 3 real life cannon balls in it that I inherited from my grandparents really recently.

These cannon balls are from the civil war and my history loving heart just loves them so I wanted to display them someplace cool. I picked to keep them in this pot on the bottom shelf of the bookshelf under the painting. Now these cannon balls aren't large. They are a set of three (three sizes) with the largest being about the size of my closed fist. But they are weighty. Surprisingly heavy. 

Apparently your cute little 10 month old body made its way over to the bookshelf (without crawling because we are actively discouraging that), sat yourself up, and pulled down the ceramic bowl with the three shockingly heavy cannon balls in it. I don't know what is more surprising about this situation--you weren't hurt at all because nothing landed on you, the bowl also didn't incur any damage (what??) or that we hadn't thought to move the breakable bowl with the heavy cannon balls out of reach in your play area. Yikes. 

You don't really like stuffed animals, but you wouldn't know it by these two pictures!

We are so grateful that you weren't hurt and have been a little more vigilant about keeping heavy/breakable things out of your path. 

Our methodology to keep you from crawling was constant vigilance. We just gave you whatever you seem to be wanting. The idea was to keep you from being too motivated to figure out how to crawl. You just have to stay a baby forever, okay, thanks. 

Honestly, that superman pose gets me every time.

I love your huge, happy smile. 

Backing up onto your bum. Scoot, scoot, scoot. Turns you just push yourself to sitting via the splits like it is no big deal. 

Droolly, happy smile.

You're sure thinking about crawling.

You also love jutting out those bottom teeth.

Hey, bright eyes.

Ellie's crocheted blanket is pretty interesting.

Okay, everything about this photo. Those eyes, lips, cheeks, hands, toes, your whole self! You are so kissable. 

Heart melting.

Could you be any sweeter?

Your favorite toy! Legos!

One of my favorite things you are doing at 10 months is slobbery kisses. You just dive for us with a drooly mouth and lay one on us. No puckering of any kind. It is adorable...and wet. :) 

Legos plus the little bus is your favorite. We had include it in the photo shoot.

You still love being in the carrier with mama even though we don't do it as often because it is too hot to hike. You wished we did though. You don't like being sat down at all. Especially if then I walk away. Not even if I put you in the swing or saucer. "Just carry me, mama!" Okay, you're my last baby. I'll carry as much as possible.

You love books. It was a fun thing for Grandma and Grandpa to do with you while they were visiting. This angle highlights Grandpa's bald spot. But he's not as bald as you. :) 

Holland's birthday ball was fun for you too! Especially with the ribbon attached. 

Occasionally I get a cuddle. I soak it in like rain in the desert. :) 

Daddy gets cuddles way, way more often. It's okay, though, I can tell you love me more. That sounds mean, but you'll cuddle Daddy but reach for me (and Ellie).  
Also, Daddy wins on you saying his name. You will babble "Dadada." But not Mamama. Not yet anyway.

"Oh, look at the light."

Two little teeth! You love, LOVE cheerios. You also like eating off of my plate at dinner. I just feed you tiny, soft bites of whatever we're eating. You seem to really love things with flavor. You didn't react at all to tiny bits of raw onion and pickles. In fact you opened big for another bite of each. 

Spice doesn't seem to bother you either. You love the taco filling we often have. 

You developed a cute habit of playing with your feet while you nurse. It makes me smile.

Gotta find a toy while getting some milk obviously. It marked the end of you scratching at my other breast while nursing which made me happy to say goodbye to. Not my favorite stage.

You love seeing yourself in the mirror and phone. Such a cute baby. 

Such a happy baby after nursing.

I'm fine. I am not jealous at all. Ya, right!

I think it is so cute how your jut your jaw to the side when you smile. It shows off those two teeth admirably. 

The blinking photo was too cute not to share.

Cutie patootie!

I think it is darling how you use your feet so much. You play with them, hold things with them, suck on your toes. I love it.

The girls love being put in charge of watching you. They like making you play yards where they block you in with all of the toys they can come up with. 

Legos are your favorite, especially those white fences!

Two brief cuddles in one month. I'll take what I can get.

Scooching backwards into the splits to sit up. You are by far the most flexible of the family. I'd break my hip if I had to sit like that while playing. 

Sitting you down by the Legos in the morning. 

After just a few minutes.

Holland loves you so much. She is one of the main people that read to you. It is the sweetest.

Okay, sometimes she hangs to you a little too much. You don't love that.

Where should we put the baby? How about in the toy bucket? Done.

One of our favorite things is how much you push yourself into plank position or even as this photo shows, down dog position. Maybe are giving your knees a break from the carpet? Maybe you just want to be on your toes? It is so funny.