Dispatches from One

One (plus one month) would like you to know the following:

One is a cool guy, a fun guy. One knows how to have a good time. He can rock it with the kids and the old folks too. Just throw in some bookshelves full of reading material, a sippy cup full of milk, and some cheerios, and one will party all morning long. Until nap time, when one will fuss for a few minutes and then collapse from the exhaustion brought on by getting his party on. But! And this is key, one sleeps like a rock during said nap, unlike, say six months, who would wake up on the dot after 30 minutes and be all "Wah, wah, why am I not sleeping anymore?"

One likes to tell you things. Or sign you things, as it were. See that light over there? One noticed it and he would like you to acknowledge it as well. One would like some milk now. Um, that was now, did you not notice? And a banana. And maybe also some cheerios on the side. One is how big? So big! He knows that a cow says mmmmmbboooo. And yes, that is his nose, right there in the middle of his face. One makes the sign for 'gentle' when he sees a baby or a cat or your hair. However, one is still not quite clear on the concept of 'gentle,' which in his language translates to "swipe at it quickly and if you're lucky, get a handful of whatever is sticking out."

One is a man on the move. He waddles from here to there to there to here. He climbs stairs and turns around to see if you're watching. He pulls books off the bookshelf and toys out of the basket. He attends to his magnet collection on the refrigerator and then turns around to see if mama or daddy left the dishwasher open so he can stick his books in there. He wanders from the bedroom to the bathroom to the living room to the bedroom to the kitchen, all the while babbling to himself, "Da DA! Da Da Da Da Mama Kkkkeeee."

One is wise. When you ask him what he needs for his bath, he signs "diaper" and then pulls a washcloth from the bin. He gets distracted by the books on the shelf, but then cheerfully grabs his pajamas and makes for the bathroom to start the bath. He waves "bye bye" after we put on his coat and hat. He is studying for his SATs for all we know.

One is charming. He puts his head on your shoulder when you say "hugs" (if, of course, he feels like it). He goes away from you to play and then runs back, arms outstretched as if to say, "phew, there you are." He flirts. He tips his head coyly. He laughs at the old folks' jokes, just because he's a laughing kind of guy. He smiles at you like he's got your number, and boy, does he ever.

One is amazing. Good to meet you, one.