One Step Ahead

Every so often when you have had enough days/weeks/months of just managing to 'get by' you notice that things have changed up a bit, overnight like, but not, because it was a gradual process really, you were just not paying attention.

All of the sudden your infant turns into a baby turns into an attempted toddler, pointing, talking (dat, as in whats dat), signing (milk, all done, water, light, more) and cruising the furniture like a champion.  And then you notice that he is one step ahead of you, moving the rigged up gate to the side to make his way up the stairs, pushing the on and off button on the computer when you aren't looking, dancing when there is any music on, foot stomping head banging kind of dancing.

Then the toddler turns little man surprises the hell out of you one fateful morning with his big boyedness.  While sitting contentedly at the kitchen table with a dry erase book he got last year for his birthday (actually it was for Avery's 'birth' day) he screams at you in a delighted Ro Ro shriek.  I look over at his fancy work and there in bright green marker was the outline of each letter to the word truck.  He filled out the outline of the letters without any help or prompting.  Big boy alert.  Then, as if to prove how smart and one step ahead of where I thought he may be, he did one of the mazes and made it from point A to point B with only one misstep.  Crazy.

These little steps in growing up seem to totally blow me away.  One day you are struggling, cajoling, bribing for your wee one to pee ANYWHERE but in their pants, asking them every 20 minutes if they have to pee.  Then, without even recognizing the change, you start depending on them to decide when to pee, letting you know, and THEN they just go when they have to go without any sort of consultation.  All that struggle and in the end, it happens when it happens and no sooner.   Kids, they are just full of surprises!