This baby boy is spinning my head with how fast he is learning, growing, and changing everyday. Every month since he was born I have found myself thinking, "it can't get any better than this... I wish I could freeze time so that I could enjoy him like this forever". Then he grows older and somehow it just keeps getting better.
He can be very serious, when he goes to his toddler class he usually hangs back and observes quietly or finds a new toy to puzzle over on his own. I see a lot of his "dada" in him. He loves a project like digging in the sandbox or sorting blocks. He'll sit patiently entertaining himself by moving cubes from one container to another and then suddenly he'll become frustrated (when he can't make the pieces fit) and will hurl the whole box across the room with an angry squeal. He does have a little temper.
I also see some of myself in him. He notices the details; a grain of dried rice wedged between two floorboards, a small stain on my shirt, one wilted leaf on a flower's stem. He can spot both "dahs" and "dawls" (dogs and balls) from miles away and always shouts and points when he sees them.
He loves to stand at the window and watch the cars drive by. Rush hour is his favorite time of day and he will climb up and down his little stool tapping on the window's glass and chattering to himself, "caar... vroom vroom... dada... the caaar". Dada only takes his car to work occasionally but watching him pull out of the driveway has apparently made a strong impression and "dada... the car... vroom" is his favorite expression.
He is obsessed with cars but anything with a wheel counts and will be enthusiastically identified as "the car!"; strollers, shopping carts, wheel barrels, bikes, skateboards, and wheelchairs all qualify.
He is terrified by balloons and will burst into a deep cry if he gets too close to one. He looks at them recoiling with shock and confusion, almost as though he feels they are moving in a way that isn't quite natural. He also gives this look to moving and talking toys, bumblebees, and sometimes babies... but without the tears reserved solely for balloons.
At home he is not serious, he is silly and cracks himself (and anyone watching) up all the time. He dances, bending his knees and almost sitting on the ground and bobbing his head. He loves all music but especially a bouncy beat like reggae and motown. He walks around in dizzy circles laughing at the sound of his own footsteps and chases the cat everywhere she goes.
And he is so sweet and affectionate; running to my lap with a book, gently tracing my eyebrow with his little clammy fingers and giving lots of hugs. I love him more and more everyday and that sounds both impossible and corny but it is so very true.
I wish I could freeze time so that I could enjoy him like this forever.