We were supposed to go the "swim house" today for swimming lessons, but Levi's harsh cough and glazed-donut nose held me back, out of respect for the other moms and kids. But since Nana was already planning on coming, I took Levi to the park instead. Fresh air and sunshine cure everything, right? And we had the park to ourselves.
It's fun to watch these little people's traits develop. Levi is a unique mix of hambone and wallflower. If you've ever visited our house, typically he's ready to put on his dancing shoes and show you what he's all about. Put him one-on-one with another kid and he tends to go along with whatever the other kid is doing (especially if it's naughty). But put him a crowd of kids, and at first blush I'd say he's on the awkward side of things. He tends to hang back, watch, and then just boogie in the other direction and kind of hang out by himself. Last week we were at a friend's house and there were about ten kids there...they were all being kids, and Levi kind of hung out by himself. If they were in the living room, he was in the bedroom playing with Legos. When they moved into the bedroom, he beelined to the living room to look at books.
Of course, the anxious mom in me was concerned - is he socially impaired? The worst runs through your mind. At dinner, though, when Matt asked him if he had fun with the other kids that day, Levi pretty much laid it down - and this is a direct quote: "They were screaminnnn,' an' runninnnnn,' an' slamming doooooorssss...and I was like, 'oh boy, I gotta go.'"
There you have it. Screamin' and runnin' and slamming doors just isn't his thing. Unless he's at home, of course. I think he's going to be the kind of person who will be a crack-up in a small setting, but in larger groups will prefer to watch or go off and do his own thing. We're okay with that, marching to his own drummer.
At the park, he walks around the whole playground. Walks and walks and walks. Cautiously climbs the stairs to each level and peeks in each tube and peers down each slide. Over and over and over. Doesn't want help getting up anything, doesn't want to push the envelope. Then all of a sudden he picks the most difficult climbing device and carefully and calculatedly scrambles up. Totally owns it. I was intrigued. I don't think he'll be our risk-taker, he'll think thru everything he does.
Luke, on the other hand, I can see that he'll be our kid who swan-dives into a gravel pit or sleds off the garage roof just because.
Anyway. I gave Levi some leftover coconut cake that Nana made on Sunday. I was changing Luke's diaper and Levi was playing with his trucks when he said, "Molly ate my cake!" Now, Molly really doesn't typically steal food. I HAVE caught her totally gnarfing out of the popcorn bowl when we walk out of the room, but ever since the time when we lived in Colorado and she totally hawked a piece of pizza, and Matt pretty much pulled it out of her throat, she doesn't go near our food. So I said, "Buddy, Molly doesn't usually take food, I don't think she ate your cake." Seconds later, I look at Levi and the HUGE tears in his eyes tell me that Molly did, in fact, as she glided by minutes before, hoover the cake. I laughed and said, "Well, we'll call her Cake Thief then" and gave him another little piece.
Matt comes home, and I said, "Hey Levi, tell Papa what Molly's new name is - "
Levi: "Cake Pirate."
Rolling. (I'm always telling Levi he's a food pirate - he totally swindles my morning smoothie, my snacks, you name it..so it made us crack up that he knew to apply "pirate" to the cake debacle.)
We ended the day with some bloody finger drama. Levi was working on a "project" with Matt and cut his finger. There was the typical 2yr old hyperventilation and sobbing for several minutes on my lap. It actually kind of did bleed quite a bit. I wrapped it in gauze and put a Lightning McQueen bandaid on it. He promptly slid off my lap and brightly said, "I like my boo-boo!" and that was that.
Cute pic, didn't quite get the wounded pinkie...
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