what is your mouth good for?

As it turns out, there are plenty of fun things you can do with your mouth. For example, you can tighten your lips a little, open your mouth just a bit, and blow through the lips. You can vocalize or not, depending on the mood. This is especially fun if you have some rice cereal in your mouth. If the consistency is right, i.e. your parents didn't make it too thick again, but nice and soupy, you can achieve a great spraying effect! You can also get your parents to say your name in unison, "Elijah!", when you do that.

Another fun thing you can do is pull your lower lip in between your gums. Then you can suck on it if you want. It's not as good as a burpcloth or Daddy's t-shirt, but it will do in a pinch. If you get tired sucking your lower lip, you can always switch to your fingers. The great thing about sucking your fingers is that there are a lot of combinations, so you never get bored.

You can also stick your tongue out of your mouth. You can do it a little bit or a lot, and you can keep your tongue flat or like a little sausage. This is best done when your Dad is holding you facing him and also sticks out his tongue. Then you can both sit there with your tongues out for a while, staring at each other.

When you nurse, or rather when you are almost done, you can firmly squeeze your gums and then pull your head back without letting go. If you do that, however, you risk loosing your nursing privileges till the next feeding. After you are really done nursing, it's fun to smack your lips for a while.

After a long day of exploring what all you can do with your mouth, you can curl up in your Mom's arms in a semi dark bedroom, and fall asleep after your last meal of the day. Then you can smile in your sleep, and your mother will think that you are the most precious thing ever. She will then put you in your crib, and spend the rest of the evening blogging about you.