Two teeth... too fast!

Photo taken in Grandma & Grandpa's backyard, 5/19/05

Can't believe it, but at 4 1/2 months, Maiya now has two teeth! Last week, I put my finger in Maiya's mouth and felt the beginnings of a tooth!! Whaaaa? Oh, my gosh, I was so excited. I said excitedly, "Maiya, your tooth is coming in!" She beamed at me like a crazy girl, and started flapping her arms at me. The lower left tooth is now about 1/8th of an inch, and the lower right tooth is starting to pop out what's called a tooth bud, or a tooth cap, which "erupted" yesterday.

Poor little Maiya has had some serious bouts of crankiness as a result. She has been waking up earlier in the morning hours the last week or so. She has been mouthing everything in sight, and we can't hand her things to teethe on fast enough. She is nursing every 1 1/2 - 2 hours these days. I have been calling her "Droolie Andrews" for the past month (a name that I heard from my friend Mike describing his son Amani) as she has been like a drippy faucet. She's also been spitting up quite a bit, and I'm changing my t-shirt at least once a day, if not twice (I am finally wearing all those political and community t-shirts that I have been collecting for the past 10 years).

After the initial excitement of the first tooth wore down, I got a bit scared. What? Too fast! Gulp? Next will be the introduction of solid foods, then she'll be crawling, then walking and talking, graduating from high school, etc. Ai yah, she's growing up so fast! Wah! The good thing is that it's all gradual. Just in the last two days, Maiya has started sticking out her tongue and babbling. She makes sounds that sound like "Hey You!" when she is happy and "Ma ma ma ma ma" when she is crying her eyes out.

Today, we're off to the health food store to get some of the Hyland's homeopathic teething tablets, which I think have camomile in them. What I'm realizing is that the coming in of teeth, as with most things in life, is a process.

PS. Big congrats to Jim & Julie on their baby girl born Sunday!!