Kulia’s fever has broken and while she is still drooling and gnawing away, she is much happier. We went from a level 11 to level 5. It sure is wonderful to have my sweet baby (mostly) back.

Her latest trick is to balance. She loves to stand on her own with these big wide eyes. And when she gets it just right and stands, she starts to laugh hysterically which, of course, throws off her balance and down she falls. She is so proud of her new found trick. Everyday she stands for longer and longer periods on her own. I’m afraid walking is right around the corner.

One trick I like to pull is the Patches test. Kulia has this little snuggly Pooh blanket we’ve named Patches. It’s about the size of a napkin and is furry soft on one side and satiny smooth on the other. Kulia adores Patches and snuggles it during every nap. I’ve discovered that Patches is the ideal way to test Kulia’s sleep state. She’ll be crawling around wrecking everything in sight. When I can guess her path, I’ll throw Patches in the line of crawl. If she is nice and awake, she’ll crawl right on by without missing a beat. If, however, she is sleepy, she will immediately throw herself face down on Patches, grasp a good handful and stuff it, and her thumb, into her mouth. The amount of time she spends face down on the floor is directly proportional to her sleepiness. A quick grab and rest means she’s tired but not quite ready while a prolonged Patches snuggle means it’s time to get her crib ready. It’s quite hilarious to see her plop down and snuggle away in mid-crawl.

Her newest game is drop. I believe she is discovering gravity and is quite amused. If she gets fussy sitting on my lap I will give her some toy to rattle or shake. Once that no longer grabs her attention, she will purposely lean over and drop the toy on the ground. She will stare at in on the ground for a while, drool flowing freely from her mouth and then reach for it an grunt. This is my cue to bend over, pick it up, and give it back to her. Rattle, drop, dool, grunt. And repeat. We can play this game for up to 20 minutes at which point my back starts to hurt. I’m not sure how long Kulia could go. Probably hours.

Well, Leina is up and yelling for me. Just my luck, she’s decided to skip her nap today. Yipee! A cranky two year old and it’s pouring rain outside! If I’m really lucky, Kulia will wake early and then I can add a teething toddler to the mix! Motherhood, ain’t it grand!