Wednesday, July 14, 2010

all better

Gemma has taken to kneading her food. Like, fully plunging her hand into said food and rolling it all around together. It's irritating, because food gets everywhere. Can't you just say, "All done!"?! I ask her. This morning, for breakfast, she and Donovan were enjoying a bowl of jell-o (breakfast of champions for those who have had some stomach/intestinal issues) and before I knew it, orange jell-o was smeared all over her face, between her fingers and somehow managed to wedge itself between her bib and her shirt (and here I thought I was being super proactive since she rarely even wears a bib anymore). "Gah! GEMMA!" I cried as I grabbed a washcloth and began to wipe her down. I stood her on her booster seat as I washed her hands and shirt. "That's a no-no, Gemma. We don't squeeze our food!" She must have sensed my irritation and, being the wise child she is, as I wiped down her mouth, quietly said, "Mom. I wuff oo." And if you need a translation, you have a cold cold heart. She is wise and oh so precious, so I wiped off her lips and then kissed them and reassured her that I loved her, too.

This is Ducky, her most prized possession. Ducky makes her happy when she is sad, Ducky keeps her company, Ducky helps her fall asleep in the blink of an eye. Don't even TRY to put her to bed without it. But, instead, hand her Ducky and she'll pull it to her face, close her eyes, as fall asleep. It's beautiful. She'll hold one of his feet to gently brush against her lips and it's some kind of weird and wonderful soothing mechanism. Recently, I thought she had dropped Ducky at Target (generally Ducky stays in the car, but I hadn't noticed she still had him until we were in the store) and it was a sad sad afternoon until I discovered him in the garage. Tragedy averted!

Ducky is such a fixture, that she doesn't even realize she HAS him in hand sometimes. Take yesterday, for example, when I was carrying her upstairs for her nap. "Ducky!!! Wheh Ducky?!" she wailed. I replied, "In your hand." She looked at her empty hand, as if wondering how Ducky turned invisible. "No, your OTHER hand," I told her. She picked up her other hand, that had been hooked back around my arm, to behold: DUCKY! "OH!" she squealed. "PEEK-A-GOO!"

So, yes, as long as she continues to assail me with excruciating sweetness, I'll wipe down as many squished food bits as it takes. And she'll say she loves me and we'll live happily ever after.

(please excuse the crusty mouth. that, unfortunately, also seems to be a permanent fixture)

2 comments:

Lisa said...

That is so, so, so adorable. The rubbing it on her face reminds me of Jonathan's comfort thing, which is, oddly enough, having socks on his hands. At least she looks sweet and cute with her cuddly thing :)

Alice said...

Um...that's Finn EVERY SINGLE meal. Also, he throws it ALL OVER THE KITCHEN!...has even made it into the sink (way to go kiddo), the living room, onto the backdoor...up his nose, in his ears. Bathtime is reserved for after dinner now.

Get some of these.

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/10121520

They keep you from having to change their clothes 5 times a day.