Small Fry is twenty-three months old today. If I had to describe my twenty-three month old, I would say funny, particular, and opinionated. I know that the last two adjectives are basically synonyms -- but man does he want what he wants!
Boy is he funny -- he dances, sings, and even tells his own knock-knock joke.
Small Fry: Knock knock.
Me: Who's there?
Small Fry: Penis. (Laughter follows....)
Umm...okay. He's a bit obsessed with his penis these days. He's not just funny while telling jokes -- he really is pretty funny in almost all aspects of his life. Even watching him eat is funny, as he stuffs as much food as he can fit into his mouth and then starts chewing. He loves to paint with watercolors, but only actually paints with water. We've shown him again and again how to make the actual colors appear -- and he "gets" it, but he still prefers plain old water on paper. He loves to hum the song from the Muppets and sing "On the Road Again."
He is particular, most especially about what he wears. He LOVES his "cowboy boots" to the point that we have to leave them at the farm or we would never get them off his feet. I wouldn't mind the cowboy boots so much if he wasn't obsessive about how his pants fit around his boots. If his pants ride up at all, he immediately says "Mama, fix it" and will say that over and over again until everything is just perfect. It's a bit more stressful than a clothing situation needs to be. It's not just his shoes -- he is particular from the tips of his toes to the top of his head. Oh the hats! Last week it was a handknit camo hat (in a newborn size mind you) that he wore non-stop until I hid it away forever. He looked like a Jewish hunter; I could not handle it any more. This week it's Fawn's old Alabama baseball cap. He is wearing it to nap right now -- it hasn't left his head since yesterday morning. Not for one second. He slept in it all night long. Gross. It's not just the accessories that he cares about either. He wants to wear the grubbiest clothes ALL THE TIME. I try my hardest to get him in cute clothes when warranted but sometimes it's not worth the effort.
Small Fry has an opinion about everything. From what he eats, to what book he reads. Even in the frigid single degree temperatures this week, he wouldn't wear a jacket (though he kept saying "Mama, it's freezing!"). He does not like me to sing to him at night -- "No sing Mama, no no no" or "Be so quiet Mama". But he does demand that I "rock-a-bye" him to sleep (in silence).
He is spoiled rotten after having been home with me for almost a month. Our transition back to school and away from me has been rough, but I know he'll bounce back. And, I do know he loves his teachers. Case in point, I asked him who he wanted to invite to his birthday party and his first and only response was "Dee!", his favorite teacher. Melt my heart. Speaking of birthdays, we are planning a Mickey Mouse soiree to celebrate Small Fry. He loves him some Mickey -- and really loves some Pluto.
He will sit and read for long periods of time now. He's learning words in some of our regular books and will say it as I turn the pages. There is hope that I'm raising another reader. He also still loves story time, especially the singing and dancing. While he likes outings like the zoo and McWane, I'm learning that this second baby of mine would much prefer to "stay at home", which he says all the time. His favorite place to play is probably our back yard with our dogs. He's turning into a homebody!
In other developments, he is eating so much better! Alleluia! It may be that I've eliminated his afternoon snack so he is STARVING at dinner time or it may just be that he's more agreeable and adventurous when it comes to food, but I'll take it. He is still not a huge meat/protein fan and has already learned that his big brother will happily eat that part of his meal. "Bubby eat it." Those stinkers! He's still not a consistent sleeper -- waking up in the middle of the night at least once a week. We are all crossing our fingers that he will wean easily in the next few weeks. I have mixed feelings, but it is time. He asked for "Mommy milk" in the middle of Christmas Eve church. Speaking of talking, he's talking up a storm, and Fawn can always decipher what he's saying even when Buck and I cannot. And he and Fawn are playing awesome together. They love to role play -- secret spies, going camping, going hunting, Transformers. They would much rather be together than apart and for that I am so thankful. When we found out Small Fry was a boy, one of my first thoughts was "brothers!" I'm just so excited for them that they will have each other and I hope as parents we can do a good job of fostering that relationship.
Our little nugget, you are growing up. We love you so!
