Turning Toddler

We walked to the coffee shop this morning and as I basked in the warmth of the shop and the fragrant scent of coffee, Thurston decided his legs would quit working. His jell-o legs collapse from under him and he slumps to the floor. It's not truly that he's incapable, it's his ingenious solution to my not picking him up right away, whether it be in a coffee shop, grocery store, sidewalk, etc. I think to myself..."oh boy, here comes the Toddler".

His stubbornness goes further to include feeling the need to do everything just as Mom and Dad do...

He wants to throw the groceries into the cart himself, he wants to drink out of big kid cup (even when most of the water runs down his face/shirt/pants), he wants to sit in a regular chair, he wants to serve his own food (heaven forbid mom serves him a spoonful), and so on.

Yet...there are bonuses to the Toddler stage. This also means my little Toddler loves to help mom out - sweep, put away the clean dishes (or dirty, it doesn't matter to him), bring me his shoes, put on his coat, bring me books to read, reminds me where my nose is, or even a piece of paper he feels I should have. He's quite the helpful one and he actually loves to please.

In addition, my usual down-a-banana-in-a-minute-flat kid is no more. Suddenly his interest in food extends to a few bites and then his attention is elsewhere. He'll carry that same banana he used to devour in a minute around the house for upwards to an hour and then leave a third of it somewhere for me to come across later. He's losing his huge baby belly and starting to grow stems so that no counter tops are safe from little fingers any more.