"Ow! That hurts!"

"Ow! That hurts," I say, "That hurts mommy. Biting makes me sad."

You smile and laugh. It feels good to bite, especially when you're teething. And you get a reaction from me.

I want to cry or scream. I don't.  Sometimes I get loud. A few times, I've thumped your little cheek. We both hate that. It hurts my heart when I'm startled and react that way.

Most of the time I repeat the same thing over again. I hope you learn to understand before you bite off a piece of me. You are so small and don't get my facial expressions or words. You're starting to. Now when you hit or fall or bite, you say, "Ow!" You're learning the words. Understanding will come later.

Please let me have patience and not overreact. I don't want to hurt you. Not in anger. Not in reflex. This phase will end before long. We'll get through it together.