A Post Having Nothing To Do With Sleep
Olivia has definitely entered The Phase During Which All Limits Will Be Tested. She knows "no", knows what it means, and often knows what will elicit it before she does it. She gets that look - the stealthy glance over her shoulder to see if I am looking, then when she sees that I am, the devilish gleam that indicates she is going hellbent to get to whatever it is before I can get to her. I am having to play around to find what best works. Diversion and removal from the scene still seem the best way to go. With the pinching, for example. Olivia has always had busy hands. When she was very small, she was constantly petting and pinching me as she nursed. Our hands danced a busy ballet around my chest as she moved her hands towards and I moved them away, over and over again. It was just something she did and has continued to do reflexively when nursing or being held. I have told her no a bazillion times. "No, that hurts Mommy." No, Mommy doesn't like that." "No, Mommy doesn't want to hold you when you do that." And most of the time she will stop (and then start again a few minutes later when she forgets why she stopped.) I think that she has started now to do it to see me react. Today, she followed me around the kitchen like a Jack Russell, nipping at the backs of my legs. I just had to patiently tell her no and move away, move away, while distracting her with kitchen utensils.

We interrupt this Post Having Nothing To Do With Sleep in order to talk about sleep. Olivia has slept through the night for the past three nights. The world is awash with laughter and joy!

So yeah, there's that. On the flip side, she has gotten so much more affectionate lately. She has long been a fan of blowing kisses and has done so with wild abandon. I have to double my estimate on time needed for errands, because she needs to blow and catch kisses from everyone everywhere we go. People are especially charmed when the blown kiss originates from her forehead. It's adorable and damn funny. In the last week though, she has also taken to leaning forward and giving big grinny kisses to my and Marc's (mine and Marc's - which is it? "My" seems to make more sense, but "mine" sounds better.) faces. She hugs and pats our necks, lays her head on my leg when we sit together on the floor, and calls out to us in order to have us turn around and enjoy her face-splitting grin. She has taken to chasing me around the house (not a fast paced game, this one, as she is on all fours, but fun all the same.) and she loves to be tickled. She both asks for and offers affection and that tickles me. Yesterday I told her I loved her, and she immediately leaned over and kissed me.