Get Up, Stand Up

I think I spend about 10 hours of the 12.5 hours of Tucker’s waking day donating my pointer fingers to Tucker so that he can hold himself up in the standing position. The only times during the day he is not up on his feet is when he is eating (and strapped into a high chair, otherwise I’m sure he would happily mow down in the upright position) and napping, although even this is up for debate. I went into his room during naptime to check on him the other day and he was standing up in his crib, smiling, of course. First thought, wow…didn’t even know you had figured out how to do that yet. Thought two, how long have you been standing there? did you sleep at all? It’s exhausting I tell you, all this finger giving and I’m not even the one standing…I’m often sitting the whole time. I tell you, when he goes down for his nap, I guess I should say, when he is put in his crib to supposedly nap, I feel like joining him.

My husband wants to make a little stand in order to give our fingers a break. I think it’s a great idea, and as he gets older we can put wheels on it so he can mozy around on his own. At this rate, I’m going to have Popeye Pointers on each hand. I’ll just be able to point at things to make them move, that’s how strong they will be. And, then my ego gets knocked back into place when my finger accidentally finds itself in Tucker’s mouth on the receiving end of Tucker’s two bottom teeth. Holy crap, those things are sharp…no more super-powered fingers, just back to regular old mommy-hands whose only use is keeping my son on his two feet.

It’s all worth it to see the look on his face as he rises up. He just beams, starts laughing and blowing spit bubbles. Fingers are just the most convenient thing for him to hold on to, but he is definitely not picky. He will hold onto chairs, bureau drawers, toys, the bathtub (which makes for a fun game all of its own, especially when he is in it), legs, pants, beds and basically whatever he can get his hands on. And he pulls himself right up. Once he has a strong hold he works his way up, not just to standing, but off the ground. He climbs. I have this feeling that I will one day walk into our family room and he will be hanging from the top shelf of the bookcase unable to go up any further, yet not quite certain how to get down either.

Now that he has been finger-surfing for a couple of weeks, he is becoming very brave,  letting go with one hand, spinning around and grabbing a chair or a toy, squatting down to pick things up, or trying to climb on top of whatever object is holding him up. On the flip side of this, he is getting a little cocky and going rollercoaster style, both hands in the air. Inevitably, he topples, knocking down toys and falling to the ground. He doesn’t quite have that whole balance thing down yet. Even after crashing down, he looks up, puts out his hands and once again reaches for the two fingers that await his grasp. Up we go!

Healthy. Happy. Loved.

PS The other day I was getting ready for work and I put my shoes on. On top of my left shoe was a splat of dry baby puke, which is not surprising as I oftentimes find these spots in various places all over me throughout the day. However, when I got home and took my shoes off, I noticed that the baby puke was still there. I never wiped it off! What is happening? I used to watch those make-over shows on TV where the moms are nominated by their husbands to get a new wardrobe and hairdo…”My wife used to dress so cute, but since we’ve had the baby all she ever wears is sweat pants and my old t-shirts.” Well, I could never understand these women. Why would you walk around in your husband’s clothes, it looks terrible. Oh, yeah Suzanne, but baby puke is all the rage.

Get Up, Stand Up!

New Shades- Head is too big for the other ones.

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