Sleeping, Eating, and Your First Steps

My Dear Scarlett,

Every day with you is such a gift.  You are now nine months old.  You bring me more joy than I ever would have imagined.  Thank you for being the best little girl in the world.  I have been loving introducing you to finger foods.  Watching you experience every single first is just so incredible.  Yesterday you tried oatmeal, apples (not pureed), and yuca for the first time.  I am trying to keep you on a vegan diet, with all sorts of flax seeds, beans, nuts, fruits and veggies.  My little one, I am trying my best with you and I hope you will forgive my imperfections.  I just want you to be healthy and happy.

We are also trying hard to help you learn how to take your naps in a bed.  This has been very hard to do because you just do not like to be left alone in your bed during the day.  At night you go down with such ease and not even a peep, however the day time is a different story.  I am letting you cry it out, and it has been so hard.  I sit and watch you on a monitor, with you the whole time.  Do you understand that I am there with you, despite my physical absence?  I am told that this is what you need in order to acquire healthy sleep habits, so I am going with it.  It has been the hardest thing I have had to do so far as your mommy.  I hope you will be okay and that soon this training process will be over so you can sleep and have healthy and peaceful naps in your bed.  I love you.

You mommy.

YOUR FIRST STEPS (a couple months later)
Dear Scarlett,

With each passing day I love you more.  Your eyes are so bright and filled with light, and you bring so much joy to everyone with whom you connect.  You are changing so quickly.  A couple of weeks ago, here in Merida, you took your first steps.  So wobbly, unsure, and yet off you went.  First two, here in the little coral we built you in the living room of Cuckoo/Papu's house.  Then, you took six more and now it's become something regular.  Still, your preferred mode of transportation is crawling, but I know it's only a matter of time.

You are continuing to eat a vegan diet.  I'm so proud of you.  You love to eat walnuts, almonds, beans, fruits, and veggies, oatmeal and whole wheat bread.  You are still breastfeeding about five times a day, and you just love to look up and smile at me.  It melts my heart.

In September, we took you to Argentina.  It was your fifth country and you did so well.  We explored parks, museums, restaurants, street fairs, and so many cool neighborhoods.  You are such a cool baby to travel with because you are truly open to the world.

We have also started watching you interact more with other babies.  You do so well.  Some of the other babies tend not to be so nice, but you are peaceful and just let them be.

We have been in Merida for about a month now and in two days we will head back to Margarita.  Every single day that I share with you is a gift.  I love when we explore nature together.  You love to touch the plants and you laugh at the flowers.

Having you has been the greatest joy of my life.  Thank you.

Crawling Craziness

Dear Scarlett,

Everything changes with you so quickly.  You are growing up and now have such curiosity and love of life.  You are crawling all over the place and exploring the world with a vigor that reminds me of me and your daddy.  You want to see and understand it all.  We have finally let go of our fear that you will eat sand, and you are now able to just let go at the beach.  You love to crawl everywhere and explore the sea weed, water, and sand.  You have no fear you know?  You crawl straight for the water. 

You have been sleeping through the night lately.  We put you to bed around 7pm, after we read you stories in English and Spanish.  You love to smuggle toys into places they aren't supposed to be.  We find rubber duckies in the bedroom, and pieces of your puzzle in the bathroom.  It makes our hearts warm.  

We are also pleased to announce that you have officially started taking a bottle, which is hugely exciting.  You are drinking water from the bottle now, and still breastfeeding all the time, and also eating a great diet of fruits, veggies, and flax seeds.  I am doing my beast to keep you healthy my little girl.  I hope you will find it in your heart to forgive my shortcomings.  

Margarita Peace and Cuba

Dear Scarlett,

We have now been living on Margarita Island for three and a half months and you have been quite a beautiful baby.  I just cant believe how quickly you change though.  In this short time you have started eating solids, rolling over, sitting up, and crawling.  Watching you as each milestone passes brings me a lot of emotion but what a lucky pérson I am to be able to watch as you reach each milestone.

We tried to give you your first solid food at six months in Cuba.  We tried banana, but you just werent ready.  So a week or two later we tried sweet potatos, and from here on out, you have just taken off.  I make all your food on my own and you are eating only fresh fruits and veggies.  And of course you are still breastfeeding all the time.  I make your food by peeling it, then steaming it, then I blend it up using the water from the steamer.  Finally, I put the food into little ice cube trays and freeze it for later.  So far you have enjoyed many foods:  sweet potato, peas, carrots, squash, avocado, peaches, apples, pears, spinach and banana.  I love watching you taste a new food for the first time.

We have been really enjoying our life with you on this perfect island.  We love to go to the beach and we put you in a little pool and you just chill on the sand for hours playing.  You are so cool, my little girl.  At night we read lots of books together (and during the day) in both Spanish and English.  You love books.

You also traveled to your fourth country with Mimi and Doodle a month ago.  We went to Cuba, which is a story all of its own, but the Cubans loved you, and you they.  We would be at bars or restaurants and they would steal you and take you behind the bar and pass you all around.  You love the world, Scarlett and welcome new people with smiles and laughter.  On this journey you entered caves, took boats, crossed valleys, went on horse driven carriages, and so much more.  So nice to see you up for any experience at such a young age.  I hope you continue to embrace the world in this way.

And the other day you started crawling (7.5 months).  Wow!  I just cant believe you are mobile now.  You smile and more so wonderfully.  Screaming and moving with ease.  Now I must baby proof the house.

Well, I just wanted you to know that this time off with you has been the best of my life.  Each day with you is a gift and for this, I could never be more grateful.  Thank you for being my daughter.

Margarita Island

After about 2.5 months being surrounded by family and loved ones, our family is now together alone again, just the three of us.  We took the ferry to Margarita Island and arrived at our new home.  Little Girl, it´s such a beautiful place and we are incredibly lucky.  There is a sweeping view of the island and the Caribbean Sea, and we can see the majectic, Los Frailes Islands from every room.

You accepted the change with ease and are adjusting wonderfully.  We spend our days staring out the windows, reading, playing, and hanging out at the beach.  You love to stand on the sand.   We have been having fun making the condo our own, and enjoy the large mall here on Margarita.  Every morning we eat empanadas at a little hut on the beach.  It´s a beautiful day to start the day.  Everyone there loves you and you are a great way for us to meet people and make friends.  You are just so friendly with everyone.  You give everyone the biggest smile when you meet them.  I know you are going to have lots of friends in your life.

We have also started to establish a bedtime routine for you that is working nicely:  bath, read lots of books, eat, halfway through eating we swaddle you, eat again, and then bed.  You are now sleeping in your own room in the travel bassinet.  Last night you slept for almost 12 hours uninterupted.  We feel so blessed.  Thank you.

Lately, you have been able to sit up on your own.  You can also lay on your own in the bathtub and sit up in there as well.  You dont need our help.  And you still love to stand up.  You almost never cry anymore either.

We are here during a crazy time.  The elections were just a couple of days ago and we lost the election by only a few votes.  The opposition (our party) is calling for a recount, but the government does not want to do this and therefore there is a lot of protesting and hatred that is occuring on the island.  We are keeping you safe, dont fret.

I told my job that I will not be returnign for another year.  You see, we are living in paradise, little girl, and the three of us are so in love with each other.  I don´t want to give up any time with you at all.  You are my everything.