IT'S TOUGH TO BE A BABY!

FROM RORY:

To my family and world-wide fans,

I have something to say: IT'S TOUGH TO BE A BABY!

1. I am expected to be cute ALL of the time!  I've been told that I am a natural "beauty". Even strangers come up to my adults and mention how cute I am. I get more compliments when I am smiling and happy than when I am tired, fussy, hungry or sporting a dirty diaper (I REALLY don't like a dirty diaper- and I let my adults know, immediately!). So I try hard to be adorable at all times. My Papa and GG, who are my very FAVORITE people in the whole world –ahem!-, tell me I am beautiful even when I occasionally have a rough day. I believe them because they are the most "experienced" of all of my adults. Being permanently cute is hard work!  But I do my very best.  And my adults tell me I am doing a good job. They press their lips on my cheeks and make weird sounds. My adult they call "Grandma" seems to do this the most. And the one they call "Grandpa" is also called "The Baby Whisperer". I don't understand what that is all about, but he tells me I am gorgeous, and I have no reason not to believe him.  My two most familiar adults, called "Mommy" and "Daddy" hug me the most! I'm glad they think I am cute; I depend on them for most of my food and cuddling. My adult called "Daddy" lets me chew on his nose!  I have two other adults. I think they are called "Uncles".  They both love me very much. One feeds me, rocks me and even changes me. The other one says he will enjoy me more when I can walk and talk. They both smile at me, hug me and make me feel special. I have a WHOLE GROUP of other adults too. I think they are called "Mills".  Hey! Isn't that my last name? I LOVE the adults in my life!

2. My parent adults want me to sleep through the night –EVERY night! Now, really, isn't that asking a LOT from a baby? Sometimes I just want to PLAY!  And sometimes I am HUNGRY!  It's tough to have to wait and wait for my adults to figure out just what it is that I want.

3. At my Papa and GG's house on Thursday, I tried and tried to tell them I was soooo tired and just wanted to be snuggled up in my blanket and rocked to sleep. But they just didn't get it! I told them and told them- over and over. GG even called me a "Cranky Pants", which I didn't appreciate, but my Papa defended me and changed my diaper! YES! My biggest male adult changed my diaper! Finally, my GG decided to wrap me up in my froggy blanky and rocked me. I went right to sleep!  It took them long enough!  . . . sigh . . .

4. I do NOT like sherbet!  My adult Papa loves sherbet and got permission from my parent adults to give me a tiny, tiny taste. Papa put a bit of freezing cold, tart something in my mouth, and I let him know right away that it wasn't my favorite. I pulled my lips in and screwed my eyes up tight, and I guess I spit a little. I don't know what was so funny, but both of my older adults started to laugh. But they haven't given me any since then, so maybe they figured it out!

5. No one wants me to fill my diaper right after my bath. Don't they understand that a nice warm bath relaxes me and makes everything easier? Besides, I really enjoy the attention I get when someone admires the quality and quantity of my work.

 6. It's hard to me to be cute and cheery when my adult is trying to stuff my arms and head into an outfit that is just too small! I do my BEST to explain what is wrong, but they just don't get it!  My adults Papa and GG seem to have the MOST trouble getting my cute clothes on me. I think my GG might have gotten a little frustrated because she said, "Rory! We're on your side! Help us out!"  I tried to flail my arm into the sleeve she was holding, but that just seemed to make things worse!

7. Sometimes I am expected to wait a few minutes to eat!  When my tummy is empty, I tell my adults in the only way I know how- but they STILL take a few minutes to get that bottle into my mouth!  It's tough to wait for them.  . . . sigh . . .   And THEN, about halfway through my meal, my adult removes the bottle, puts me on a shoulder and pats me on the back!  When I produce a very unladylike belch, my adult is happy, and I get my bottle back. But sometimes it takes me a minute, and my adult will not give me back my bottle until that burp is heard. My adult encourages me, "Come on, Rory! Come on!" Do they think I can control my burps?  Come on, I'm still hungry!!!!!!

8. My Papa and GG (who love me soooo much!) gave me TWO jumpers! One is for their house and one is for my house!  Every time my adult puts me in a jumper, I am expected to giggle, jump, giggle, hop, giggle, and skip. Oh, I'm also expected to GIGGLE!  You know, believe it or not, I don't always feel like giggling. Sometimes I just want to sit there and play with the zebra toy attached to the strap! But my adults keep urging me, "Jump, Rory! Jump!" . . . sigh . . .

All in all, life is great. My adults feed me, love me and play with me. But a LOT is expected of me, and I sometimes get tired. I wish I could explain things to my adults. I think they would like that. AND . . . then I could tell them HOW TOUGH IT IS TO BE A BABY!