Judah and Micheal are watching Signing Time and when the "Silly Pizza Song" came on, Judah signed CHEESE. Hoorah!

Although he did his own interpretation of AIRPLANE a few weeks ago, the only other sign he has been doing is some thing that I can't find in the ASL dictionary where he puts his thumb and index finger in a pinch and taps the palm of his left hand with them. He does it everytime the video is on and also when we play with his toys but I can't figure out a) how he learned it or b) what it means.

As a parent, I strive to create a comfortable environment for my child at all times to avoid any mental scarring which will cause future neuroses. So, what in the hell I was thinking last night when Judah's Papa was downstairs in the backyard watering the grass and I decided to pick Judah up, hide around the corner at the top of the staircase so he and I could prank Micheal when he came back up by jumping out and scaring him, I'll never know.

I kept whispering "shhh! Judah! Don't let Papa know we're hiding! He'll be so surprised!" I "shhh"ed loud enough for Micheal to hear me and our giggles. It was great fun.....until....

Judah and I jumped in front of the top stair, I squealed, Micheal looked surprised and.....Judah nearly had a freaking heart attack. He wailed and wailed and I felt like the biggest moron on Earth!

How do I undo such a thing?

Last night was bath night for Judah. Things he likes about taking a bath:
- splashing the water all over his mommy & papa
- turning on the faucet
- floating toys
- the sound porcelain makes when you hit it with floating toys
- eating floating toys

Things Judah doesn't like about taking a bath:
- having water poured over his face (it's scary!)
- having his nose cleaned
- getting out of the tub

A few days ago, I was taking my own bath and he crawled in to the bathroom to visit me. He took one look at the water and immediately reached for his floating toys and dropped them in one by one. He's very thoughtful like that.

So, back to last night. I think post-bath rituals are probably the same for any parent of a one year old. You take the child out, put them on a flat towel-covered surface and wrap them up tight to keep them warm. Then, you apply all sorts of lotions, oils, creams, etc and then around the time you are ready to diaper, your baby has lost interest in the whole process and is crawling away to go open the vanity cabinets with Desitin on his rear end and the diaper on the floor.

This is where parents become expert at diversions. You must give the child something they can play with while you go through the motions. Last night I gave Judah a bottle of Johnson's Bedtime Lotion with Chamomile & Lavender. He likes to chew on the cap or lick the outside of the bottle, mostly. Last night, though, he sniffed the bottle. I mean a long, deep sniff. Then, he sniffed out instead of in which facilitated boogie extraction. He repeated this action with his nighttime milk by sniffing the cup.

He's learning what to do with his nose!!! For non-parents, this is not a big deal, but for those of us who have been sticking rubber plungers up our kids' sinus cavities for a year, this is PROGRESS.

Left foot Left foot Right foot right. Feet in the morning. Feet at night. -- Dr. Seuss, The Foot Book.

The day before Mother's Day, I was standing in the ranch bunkhouse looking for my shoes. I put Judah down for a second to free my hands and thinking he would plop down to play with {insert any object in grabbing distance} was absolutely floored by his decision to STAND while not holding on to anything. Seconds passed...10...20...30...40. He was a little wobbly, but seemed very self-assured. He did it!

My intrepid little explorer is also becoming quite adept at climbing and retreating down stairs. His chubby feet tentatively reach back for solid stair as he looks over one shoulder making sure he has a firm grip before backing down. Up is much easier for him. Sometimes he can't make up his mind and will go up and down the same three stairs until he thinks he is forever trapped in this cycle and squeals for rescue.

His most favorite activity at the moment is playing with dirt. We have porch plants and as soon as he is liberated, he heads for the gardenia. Dirt is squishy! He grabs a clump and then examines his hand. The dark speckles on his white skin fascinate him. It's fun to scoop handfuls of dirt and sprinkle it everywhere.

I wrote a letter to NPR today scolding them for demoting Bob Edwards of Morning Edition.

I am going to miss Bob. He was a familiar and gentle voice that went hand-in-hand with my morning cuppa and his obviously ageist demotion is appalling. I signed a petition on savebobedwards.com.

You should, too. Fight the "bare belly button bureaucracy", man! Ageism stinks!

This morning on the way to work, Judah would say fairly long sentences (still pretty incoherent, except for "Mama" or "Da") and then started laughing really hard at whatever he said. His conversations go something like this, "Bah da da geeee eee blah blah thhhhppt! Mama!"

He brought his "Little People" Zookeeper along for the ride and chewed on his head before casting him off to the floor. I think he must be getting new teeth because everything is at the mercy of his little chompers.

His "Little People" toys got me thinking about Weebles. Why don't they make Weebles anymore? "Weebles Wobble But They Don't Fall Down."

After spending the past year away from the Web being a new mommy, it seemed high time to return so I could document all the fascinating things happening to my son, Judah. He is amazing and beautiful and in full scientist/explorer mode. Nothing is left unexamined. First it goes into his mouth, then it is passed from hand to hand. Day before yesterday, Judah licked the sand off a sandcastle in his "First Touch & Feel Book". It was a piece of sandpaper that now has glue residue and bits of sand left behind. He also ate cat food (Purina One) and tried to eat dirt out of my hibiscus plant.

He loves books, but rather than being read to, he prefers to turn the pages in rapid succession over and over. At the moment, he loves Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See?. I have memorized Goodnight, Moon and so has he. When I begin reciting the first lines of the story, his blue eyes widen and a sly grin appears. He knows this is a special bedtime story.

It is a wonderful experience raising a little boy.