Elena's Happy Place

Elena has a funny way of putting herself to sleep. She has done this ever since I can remember, so it probably started when she was just a couple of weeks old.
Does anyone remember the old joke where you tell someone that if their hand is bigger than their face that they are really smart- and then when they spread their hand out over their face you smack it into their face? (I know- not funny- I don't know how many times I got smacked) Well, picture a 10 month old spreading her hand out to cover her face like that. Then she cups her tongue into a U-shape (as if she were nursing) and then licks, not sucks, her wrist area. I think it all started because she has always slept on her side and her hands were just right there. Since she was a breastfed baby and liked the feel of flesh in her mouth, I guess that is what she did. I always thought that eventually she would find her thumb and suck it, but she never has. She is content with what I call her "licky wrist".
Soooo, all that to say that sometimes, even when she is in the middle of playing and fully rested, you will see her hand come up to her face and her head turn to the side to reach her wrist, and her eyes roll back for just a second. Then she snaps back to reality and keeps playing as if nothing happened. She just needed to go to her happy place for a second.
What is really funny is when she is super tired and nursing at bedtime. Once she is full enough of milk, she will let go of the breast, cover her face with her hand, and start licking her way into dreamworld. It is the funniest thing because I have to say to her "Honey- that hand is a substitute for the real thing, which is RIGHT THERE!" But it isn't even nursing that she wants at that point anymore, she just needs her happy place.