Friday, March 2, 2012

Ketchup and Attitude

We have reached that state in our house where the whole point of being a toddler is to rule the world. And Adam is a pretty good ruler.

In three days, Adam will be 22 months old. I have often referred to him as my almost two-year old and this is in no way a reflection or indication that I'm speeding up his maturation (he's doing that very well on his own). He speaks like a two year old (phrases, repeating words verbatim and then using them appropriately later), and is more frequently showing the infamous two year old behavior of the collapsing, life ending tantrums and some pretty serious bossiness.

Luckily the bossiness is usually to make us do something sweet... like his new game of pretending to ask for a kiss while Shannon is holding him, and then when I get close he grabs the back of my neck, the back of Shannon's neck, and makes us kiss. Then he giggles and grins and makes us do it again.

His tastes are changing also. Two months ago he would have thrown a french fry on the floor for the dog. Now he eats them first and asks for more. Last week, if you put ketchup on his plate he would have tried it and then looked at you like you tried to poison him. Yesterday, well... it couldn't be more opposite:



I've often been very curious about how Adam's energy level compares with other children his age. I often use words like "active," and "full of energy," to describe him (and have even told people that I would swear he has 8 hands - when one forbidden object is taken from reach he can manage to get ahold of another before you have a chance to blink). When I say these things to other parents, I usually hear things like, "all toddlers are energetic," or "welcome to parenthood," or some other nonchalant wave-off like that. I usually let it pass without arguing the point.

After talking to Adam's day care teacher this morning, I confirmed even further what I already knew. Adam's energy level is far higher than any of the other toddlers - she says that when they go outside, he runs and runs and runs without limits. She said she wondered if he was the same at home and wondered how we handled his energy, and I basically told her that he was the same with us and that it's constant, from sunrise to bedtime. How we handle it is to embrace it, and just realize that he, for now, can be a two person job. I shared that his new nickname is "The Flash" because he does nothing slow.

She asked (curiously, not negatively) if I thought he might calm down after having the twins, and I had to be honest and say "no." I got the impression she felt for us and the upcoming battles of having three babies that age, with one who seems to have no limits to the amount of movement he can fit into a day.
But I am not complaining. There's nothing wrong with energy or excitement, and it only adds to his charming personality. Days can be exhausting, but I wouldn't change him for anything.


Last night after dinner, Adam and I had a little talk before bath time. Here's he's saying, "Whatcha talking 'bout?!" It's much more clear the first time he says it, but after that he gets excited and it gets a little garbled. It's still cute though.


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