And then there's Enthusiasm!

Amelia's enthusiasm is marvelous to watch, especially when it's combined with her sense of discovery. She immediately notices if there is something new near her or if she is in a new environment. Even something like the kitchen floor gets an intense inspection. First she pats the floor with her palm, then she rubs it a few times, then she rubs it with enough intensity to produce a squeaking noise, after which she'll look up, hand still on the floor, with this delighted whole-face smile as if to say, "How wonderful!" She also really enjoys the texture of the fabric on the chair and ottoman in our living room. Things like that also get the scratch test. Early on when she was discovering things, she would use her fingertips in kind of a clawing motion to feel things. She'll still do that, but now I think it's because she likes the sound it generates on things like fabric.

When she finds new objects she'll pick them up, look closely at them, give them a little wrist action to feel them out and then she'll go into the full arm shake/wave while breaking out into a huge smile and a few "huh huh huh"s matched with a kind of sit-dance. Sometimes she even dips and bobs her head a little and looks like she's rocking out or something.

And she is so affectionate. She will dive bomb my neck or the side of my face with these open mouthed smile kisses and then start laughing. She'll then right herself, look at you and duck her head down so you can kiss the top of it. If you aren't fast enough, she brings it to your chin so you can help but kiss it. She'll lift her head as she laughs and then duck it right back down. Nana started this with her several months ago and I believe it's one of her favorite games.

[photo dated 7/24/06]