What's she up to?

Everything! She laughs a lot -- sometimes it's a chortle, a burst of rapid-fire chuckling. Mostly she just grins. Suburban life is very amusing. Today, she enjoyed watching her stuffed animals tumble humpty-dumpty-like from the upper edge of her crib. Does it mean she lacks empathy or like her daddy, she enjoys seeing a well-executed PLF (parachute landing fall)?

We are at two teeth and counting. The Niagara rush of drool has abated, so perhaps we are between teeth right now. She uses the existing ones to masticate tortellini and the ear of an extremely patient dog.

Crawling is fast and purposeful -- usually the purpose is to get to the dog's dishes of food and water before the tall people notice. Lately, she has discovered the joy of hanging over the edge of her high chair after we have removed the tray but before we have released the prisoner. I think she is trying to test the gravitational pull of the pergo flooring, or the balance/load capabilities of the chair legs. I still have my money on civil engineer but daddy is pulling for LPGA pro.

She is not shy. Last week, she went to work with mommy to meet all her fans. High-level pols and other greatness doesn't phase her. I am pretty sure she was sizing up the offices to see which one she will take.

Words are still more like sounds -- although we get a lot of "Uh Ohs" now. "Mama," "Dada/Baba" have always been with us but "VaVa" arrived with the teeth (I keep waiting for the "Voom!"). A squeaky "Hello" seems to be getting a trial run.

Did I mention that she can throw a tantrum now and has lost interest in potty training? She still knows what the potty is for but will only use it if she is allowed to stand on the seat, Hunan style.

And lest we forget who is in charge, the fussing over the baby monitor (A.K.A. Grace TV) caused me to dash upstairs and miss the last pitch of the World Series. She is definitely a Sox fan, but her timing is lousy. I think she is actually a bigger soccer and football fan and was trying to signal as much to me.

Gotta go -- Grace TV is beckoning.