Sunday, August 30, 2009

Finish What You Start

That's our lesson for this week. Jack is learning so many new things, it's hard to keep up. And exhausting too! Plus, it was deadline time for my job, thus the lack of posts last week. So anyway, I'm learning how challenging it is to keep a 10.5 month old entertained. Most of the things I offer distract him for about, oh, 10 seconds.
And the things that he does seem to enjoy for any considerable length of time are the activities that I only find fun for a few minutes. Like - giving airplane rides (that's a lot of weight to lift!), chasing him around the coffee table (it's all good until the rug burn sets in), and sitting on my lap at the computer desk (works great until he starts sending off unintelligible emails). What it really comes down to is that Jack's a boy on the move, with a newfound ability to explore his huge world. And he doesn't appreciate when something gets in the way of his independence. This includes naps and meal times, which have suddenly become a challenge.
He has no problems telling me when he's done with applesauce and rice cereal, and ready to hit the ground again. So, while Jack has learned a number of new "tricks" these past few days, he unfortunately, has failed to figure them out completely. Hence our need this week to learn how to "finish the job." For instance...
Jack taught himself how to stand in his crib. Too bad he hasn't lyet earned how to get back down without yelling for mom to come rescue him. This makes naptimes very interesting.
Once standing, hands gribbing the foot of the crib and legs bouncing on the mattress, Jack figured out how to turn off the ceiling fan switch, but has yet captured how to turn it back on. It took me a few days to realize that, no I hadn't forgotten to turn the fan on for 3 naps in a row, I just didn't know my son was this smart.
And the big accomplishment, he has managed to crawl up the entire flight of stairs, breathless with a sense of victory when he reaches the top, but has no idea how to get back down again.
Other exciting milestones this week include a new attraction to the blinking, blue button on the computer - the one that shuts it down when mommy is in the middle of typing. The television remote - pushing random buttons is so fun, who has time to notice that the picture on the TV is now backwards, in the upper right corner, with captions in French. And a strange drawing towards toilets - I've had to start keeping the bathroom doors shut because the whole idea of my child crawling around the toilet kinda grosses me out. His favorite thing to do is pull the little cap off the bolts at the bottom and then carry this around the house with him.
So, in an effort to escape the house, a.k.a. the danger zone, we've been taking more walks (the only time he sits still), frequent trips to the beach (because sand and water is something we both enjoy), and running lots of errands (Jack is always the perfect child when we're out in public). I'm thinking this will get us through until Fall and cooler weather. And then we'll have to figure something else out.

1 comment:

Mauby said...

I feel ya...

I'm so tired EVERY day now! We had a great time from about 12 - 14 months. Crawling was under control, the house was baby-proofed...now we've hit the running, climbing, throwing things into the toilet during potty time stage. AHHHH! I think I'm losing my hair.

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