The New Lu

Mothers and fathers who have kids older than 12 months will understand completely what I'm about to describe. It's a finite moment when suddenly, your once innocent and immobile baby, now seems to have batteries. Batteries that are completely charged and running at full power. Gone are the days when you buzz around the kitchen while your baby sits quietly with a basket full of toys. Everything in the house is a liability; the cat, the bunny...and nothing goes unnoticed from the emerging toddler-monster toddling the halls.

This is where we are with Luna. The cuddly, kissy, baby, who not to long ago would cling to me for dear life, now lunges from my arms in the direction of the floor, each time I pick her up.
However, this child is still not crawling. So, you're wondering how is she moving all around? Well, as the old saying goes, "where there's a will, there's a way". And Luna has certainly found hers. She scoots on her bum, from one end of the room to the next. (eventually I'll figure out how to post a video, so you may actually witness this for yourself), but for now, you'll just have to trust me. The funny thing about her scoot, is she doesn't use her arms. She sort of bounces on her bum from one end of the house to the other. It's truly hilarious.

Did I mention she's nothing like Sienna?

Sienna is cautious. And has been since she was a baby. She always talks about her Grandmother, and perhaps it's because she feels a connection to her: neither will walk on ice, and neither are particularly daring (at least physically). She's approaching three years old, and still she insists in clinging to my hip every time we venture out into the abnormally-cold-even-for-New Hampshire-climale.

Well, Luna, she is just the opposite. The most dangerous corners of the house are what fascinates her most. The heat register, "perfect! let me scoot over and try to put my fingers on the tiny blades behind the vent!"
An antique candle stand that is strong enough to hold a single stick..."Sure! let me try to pull myself up on this!" You can almost see the thoughts registering in her young mind.

The most fun are the places Luna goes that I can't get to. Case in point: yesterday I was blow drying my hair while she was playing on the rug in her room just across the hall. Her room is pretty-well child proofed...or so I thought...
With the shrill whistle of the hair dryer, I couldn't hear what was going on-but again, I had some big wooden puzzles on the floor and a few soft balls, so I thought I was safe for five minutes. I look over one minute and see Lu playing. Then I look over the next, and she is GONE. I thought she had managed to scoot under her crib (she has a penchant for getting trapped under large furniture..)
Then I noticed the bottom drawer of her armoire was opened. What I saw next was two chubby legs flailing from within.
Yes, Luna had opened a drawer and managed to topple inside.
No harm done. Though I wish I had grabbed a photo of this spectacle, but leaving her with her legs flailing seemed cruel, so I plucked tiny sweaters off her body and pulled her out.

But the fun didn't end there.

I plopped Luna back onto her new pretty rug (with flowers and dots, purple and pink that perfectly match her curtains, crib set and lamp shade) and this time tossed down a few toys that really aren't her toys like Candy Land; thinking that an un-toy would keep her interested. I got back to grooming, which is a luxury these days, and something I hadn't enjoyed in far too long.
Over the buzz of the dryer, I heard a slam. I looked across the hall to see Luna had shut the door.
From the yelps and chirps coming from the other side of the door, I could gather Luna was both pleased with herself but also a little annoyed that she couldn't get the door back open.
This was all great fun, until I realized I couldn't open the door more than a crack to get to her-because she was sitting not one inch away from the solid pine panel.
Each time I would crack the door an inch, Luna would try to push it shut. Squealing with delight each time. After several minutes of this exchange, where I have to admit I was a bit panicked thinking the pre-toddler monster would defeat me, I finally had to reach in and gently push her to the floor so I could sort of roll her away from the large swinging door.
Naturally Luna was furious the game was over and erupted in tears.

Later that night while sitting on the couch, I told Paul-who also happens to be an architect-of the incident. He simply responded with, "that's why in public restrooms, handicapped stalls always swing out".