10 Months on Earth

Bear turns 10 months this week. I remember a James Dobson comment from many years ago when he observed how it takes a baby just 10 months to go from complete dependence and innocence to a willful little person who doesn't need your help. At least in the baby's mind.
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We are seeing Mr. Bear's will emerge. Little seeds of mischief are starting to sprout. I suppose this is a sign he is a normal child. Until this point, we've enjoyed the luxury of parenting a baby. There is no need for discipline with little ones. Now for the first time we are having to correct behavior. He is biting, mostly me. It started out innocently, just an interesting sensation for him with new teeth. But now it really hurts when he bites and he finds our reactions hilarious. Instead of simply distracting him like we've done with other behaviors in the past, we have to address the issue. We tap his mouth and firmly say 'no bite.' Then we disengage from him for about 60 seconds to create a consequence for the biting. So far all it seems to have done is encourage him to bite more. And laugh more. Naughty! I guess we are going to have work on our disciplining techniques.
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Oh, the joy of being a boy. He learns about his world by pounding on it, pushing it, or putting it in his mouth. If something is in his way, for instance the Pack n Play, little superman moves it. There have been times I thought he was chewing gum, and fished strange objects out of his mouth. Bark, broken plastic, cat claws, whatever he encounters along his happy little path. He also has a thing for paper products. If it's paper, it goes in his mouth super fast. Napkins, menus, toilet paper, mail, emergency contact cards, receipts, checks, the paper liner on the exam table at the doctors office. Dodd laughs and says Bear's facination with paper is yet another sign that he is the child of our hearts because I work with paper for a living.
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He just woke up from his nap and is telling me I need to play with him rather than blog. I guess it's time to close. I traveled to the East Coast on 2 separate trips in 2 weeks this month. Once for work, and once for a dear friend's wedding. Leaving him for several days was a heartache. Oh how I missed him. Bear and Dodd had a great time while I was gone though. Spending time with my boys was that much sweeter after being away from them. Here is a little video of how we spent our time when I came back last weekend. Watch him check in with Dad toward the end.