oo-aah, wheja wheja

Noelle has started blowing kisses. What delights me is that while she refuses to learn how to say "more" or "please" in sign language, even after I doggedly rehearse it with her, she picked up blowing kisses without a single lesson. I like to think that this is a reflection of her character. Sure proof that she is sunflowers and sunshine. I know that this is just the goo-goo-gaga thought process of a wildly in-love mother.

She doesn't just blow kisses to anyone. She blows them to her Nana and Bop Bop, and to me. At night, when I lay her in the crib, she waves up at me and then slaps her palm to her open mouth and says, "oo-aahh." I think I might go bonkers with adoration. This bedtime routine is too perfect to be true.

Tonight, after her bottle was done, she just laid in my arms giggling like a bubble bath. I don't know what made her laugh. It was all I could do just to try and absorb the insane cuteness of it all. How is it possible that babies can be so scrumptious? I didn't get it before I had Noelle. I didn't realize that they are bright rain, falling from heaven.

Today we babysat for a friend. Her son is one day older than Noelle and as sweet as he is cute. I'm not just saying this to be nice; Caleb actually has a modeling agent. Liquid brown eyes, round nose, small chin, and hair like the Beatles.

Anyway, Caleb and Noelle were playing together and I was swept up in the meta-thought of how to manage two one year-olds?

I was busy scanning the room, refereeing any toy disputes, and scampering to tidy-up the clutter left in their wake. I was busy like this, trying to take care of them, but not paying attention to them, when suddenly they stopped time. It was nothing really. Just that routine one-year old sweetness that makes me believe in such a thing as a perfect moment.

I don't know if it's possible that perfect moments exist. I mean truly P-E-R-F-E-C-T snatches of time, when life is still rumbling along, the world is still dizzy, somewhere something is falling, and someone is piecing apart, but I believe I experienced that perfect moment while watching Noelle and Caleb.

This is all it was: They looked at each other. They reached for each other. Noelle said "ooo" and Caleb responded "wheja wheja." A mutual recognition of existence.