Cleaning Out the Drawers

I moved Charlie's summer stuff into bags--he will be too big for them next year. I also sorted out some winter stuff that he has also outgrown. Found some clothing remnants in all the drawers that won't fit him any longer. We're giving the clothes to a friend with a newborn, so I feel better they are going to a good home.

This might not seem significant, but I can assure you there is an emotional attachment to those clothes. They each were a part of a day, or some time, in his young life. I remember some from specific pictures. I remember others from when we bought them, or they were given to him. Certain moments, all positive and happy.

My child is alive and well, and I am still very emotional about it. If I had to sort out the clothes of a child who had passed, I expect I would die on the spot.

Love for only one?

Putting both boys to sleep last night, I started laughing when Charlie told Brandon "you love mommy." I asked Charlie who he loves, and he said "I love daddy." I explained to him that Brandon and Charlie can love both mommy and daddy at the same time.

He looked suspicious.

"Brandon, I'm busy."

Charlie is something else. He is developing some real attitude. After a couple of months of standard 2-year-old sensibilities concerning toys--i.e., they are all his, despite Brandon clearly showing which belong to him and in fact have been in his possession for longer than Charlie has been alive--Charlie has now decided that when Brandon won't give up his toys, he will just play by himself. Last night, he turned his back to Brandon, and when he went to play, Charlie said "Brandon, I'm busy." Well yes! Where he got this one I just don't know.

He also identified some letters this week--that was a surprise. Colors are coming along really well too.

Super Readers Dance

Charlie has started watching a show called Super Readers, about five kids who all have super powers related to reading (punctuation, spelling, et cetera). Like all shows for kids these days, there is a musical interlude between scenes. Imagine my surprise when the music started for Super Readers, and Charlie jumps out of his seat to start dancing to the music. He was jamming like he was grooving to surfer music. Once the dialog began again, he jumped back in his seat, like the dancing never happened.

What an age, when you listen to your inspirations and ignore what the world might think of you.

Crabby for the Sake of Being Crabby

Last night, Charlie decided he was going to have a foul mood. There's no particular reason I can ascribe to it. He wasn't feeling sick. He didn't eat too much or too little. He wasn't punished. He didn't have any rough encounters with the baby with one eyebrow (Simpsons joke). He just felt like being contrary to life in an effort to avoid sleep. Worse, he carried this with him into his slumbers, so he literally dreamed all night about being upset, which woke him up. I'm glad he's in touch with all of his feelings. I'd just prefer this set of negative ones to be contacted during the day.

zzzzzzzzz

The Little Imp

Charlie has taken to running into a room while emitting what I can only describe as an impish squeal: completely mischievous, utterly playful, and quite bold. He's moved from hiding any wrongdoings (such as taking Brandon's toys as his own) to announcing that mischief is imminent.

I wonder where such things come from. I learn more and more how much we are already pre-programmed (not in a literal sense), especially in areas that I would have assumed would be environmental. Maybe this is why so many people have such major differences from their parents. This is great when a kid for exceeds what others in a family has achieved. This is terrible when a child from a great upbringing does terrible things later in life. Regardless, it's a good lesson for me to not focus only on what I can teach my kids, but to also observe who they are instinctively and learn to adjust.

The Foundations of Communication: Small-Talk and Um

Charlie has long shown himself to be a good talker. He knows his audience, whether his parents, siblings, distant relatives, or friends. He has linked all of these individuals to events, so when he sees coffee, he says "Daddy," and when he sees a Nintendo DSi, he says "Brandon." His vocabulary is splendid. His enunciation is impressive. He applies different tones of voice to different situations. He even has topic-specific body language. So, he seems to be doing great when it comes to learning how to talk with others.

Lately I've noticed two parts of conversation that he has learned as well, and they are not things it ever dawned on me that someone would develop so early. One is small talk. It's amazing that when I first see him when coming home from work and he runs up to me, he starts listing off stuff that he sees around him: "Football. Juice." Othertimes, he'll just list off the words he hears the most. "Daddy, Mommy, Brandon, Dija, Ba-Ba..." He doesn't actually have anything to say here, but he wants some attention, and he is getting it by speaking. Not having any prepared notes and being untrained in impromptu speeches, he instead makes use of the inspiration around him.

Once he is in a real conversation, I have also noticed that he has started to say "Um." So young? Amazing. And it's not that verbal tick most adults have when they are on the spot talking, filling in gaps with not only Ums, but Errs, Wells, Actuallys, Whatnots, and whatnot that come out because we are blabbing and don't want to lose our audience. He is actually using the Um to take a break to formulate his thought, to get the right word, to say what he means.

He's only two and a half.