Maybe he’s still a toddler. Not sure when that label is supposed to be old news, but more and more I just see little boy. A little boy with distinct characteristics that give us a peek into what he is to become.
All About Counting Things…and Calling Out Letters. This is probably one of those standard pre-reading skill stages. We’re all about it these days. His counting, however, is only truly reliable up to about 15. After that, it’s 14, 15, 14, 15, 19, 17… Additionally, this process requires one to go up higher and higher until he’s counting or lettering at 2 octaves above his normal speaking voice, then finishing with the flourish back at normal tone.
Puzzle mania. Neighbor “Aunt” Anne has given Remy several puzzles. Not the wooden kind with animals and things that fit into same-shaped holes, but actual puzzles with interlocking pieces. He loves them and has become quite good. The kid has those visual-spatial skills for sure. This is probably related to the next entry.
Future Engineer. As I watched my son remove a part of my Total Gym sled then put it back after careful investigation, it suddenly dawned on me that this is a behavior pattern we’re seeing a lot of lately. That is, taking things apart then trying to put them back together. I’ve interviewed a lot of technical people (in my long time HR role) who tell me about doing this very thing from an early age. Now I see. In fact, what I see is a future filled with multiple household items (and bikes) in various states of (dis)repair. Interestingly, this habit is neither a reflection of his mother nor his father. Remy’s Papa Parr, on the other hand, is where this aptitude seems to derive from. On a related note, Gary finally figured out where the important-looking piece to his chair went. Bets on how long before Remy removes it again?
Precocious Precarious Stacker. Remy’s been stacking things for as long as he’s had the hand coordination to pull it off. Early on, he always wanted to stack things higher than they can be expected to stack successfully, which would be followed by a collapse of both stack and Remy into a puddle of frustration. I often suggested that perhaps that extra piece he was trying to place on an already questionably balanced stack would be too much, but he never listened. In fact, he seemed more intent on proving me wrong, which he has done many times since. For now my little guy is surprisingly adept at creating very tall stacks of things that appear to be on the verge of implosion.
Finger Paints. With beautiful spring weather upon us, Gary took Remy outdoors for a little finger paint action while I worked on all these projects I have going lately (and should be working on right this moment). The post-painting excitement was palpable. Now he asks to do more of it.
Mr. Director. No one will ever accuse Remy of not asking for what he wants. Sometimes, he finds himself at a loss for the appropriate word, which drives him nuts, but we push him to express what he wants rather than try and anticipate his every need. For example, he just informed Daddy that he needed him to “help him pick up trash.” This, presumably, would mean that the emptying of the office trash can into the kitchen can didn’t go without incident. Speaking of the office trash can, I never have to empty it myself. Never. Remy loves doing that. There only need be a tiny piece of trash in there to warrant the exercise. Hopefully this task will remain fun for him for many years.
The Sun is Coming Up. This is what he’ll say with confidence when it is actually early evening and he wants to do something outside. Saying it doesn’t make it so young grasshopper.
So that’s it for now. I’m out of time and, more importantly, out of ideas. Until next month…
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