Day Twenty-Three: Hot Hot Hot!

It was actually a bit hot today, perhaps even a bit too hot for February in So Cal. It was so hot that LB actually went part of the day in the buff. Here she is enjoying her jumper sans clothing. She does, of course, have a diaper on here. There's no way I want to clean poo or wee out of her toy!

Tom and I have been teaching LB baby sign language. According to the research I've done, babies who learn sign tend to have a larger vocabulary and also better language skills overall. One source claims that babies have an easier time learning a second language when they get older if they use sign (I wonder if this is true). Also, it is supposed to help ease the stress of the pre-verbal stages because they can more easily communicate what they want. We've been teaching her the sign for "more." I read that this should be the first sign taught because it's an abstract idea, and once babies understand how this sign works, they can very quickly pick up others. We started doing the "more" sign (as well as the sign for "milk) about 2 or 3 months ago, though we knew she wouldn't actually make it herself until she was older.

I'm telling you all this because yesterday Tom saw her do the sign for "more" and today I saw her do it!!! It was truly a magical moment. We were having lunch together (just LB and me--Papa was at work). I had given her a couple of bites of her spinach and carrots, and I was looking away to take a bite of my own food. When I looked back, she was looking at her bowl of food and putting her hands together as you do with "more!" So so cool! She did it again later in the meal though it took a bit of prompting from Mama the second time.

. . . I am completely exhausted tonight. I woke up with LB at 5 AM and had a short, 15 min nap at about 8 AM. Other than that, today has been "Go, Go, Go!" LB took a short nap around noon, and as soon as I leaving her in the bedroom, I heard the phone ringing, and it was my dissertation chair. So I didn't even get much of a break during LB's nap (though I was planning on spending it writing anyway).

Right now I'm working on the paper I'll be presenting at a conference next month: http://washingtontraumaconference.com/. I was planning on doing some editing on the paper tonight (since it is pretty much written), but I think I'll just do a little more research for it instead. I'm too tired to write / edit. My mom will be here tomorrow and Thursday afternoon, so I'll do some heavy lifting then.

I am looking forward to this conference for several reasons (in no particular order):

1) I love traveling, even when it is for "work," and I've never been to Washington DC.

2) I am really looking forward to hearing some of the papers and speakers. I think there will be some very exciting research presented.

3) I'm going with my chair and another grad student, so I'm glad that I'll have some company on the trip, and it will be company I enjoy.

4) LB is staying at home with Papa and G. In theory, I am looking forward to three days of no baby.

And I'm not looking forward to . . . :

1) In reality, I will be missing my little sweet love before the plane even leaves the ground. And I'll be worried that she might get sad or mad about something and that I won't be there to give her a cuddle and give her some "tee-tee." And what if she forgets me while I'm gone?

2) My chair is using some grant money to pay for the hotel, so she's getting a bigger room . . . so we can share. On the plus side, this means I don't have to pay for a hotel. On the downside, although I adore my chair, I'm afraid I won't be able to relax the entire trip.

3) I feel completely intimidated about presenting my paper. As Nicole put it: "Sometimes you attend a conference, and you have this fear that you may be the stupidest person there."