Eavesdropping

I think it must be humorous listening to me while I play with Elijah outside...

Elijah, slow down.
Elijah, watch out!
Look out, Elijah, there are roots in the ground. Don't trip.
Elijah, TREE!
Hey, Elijah, look at this...
That's a curb, little man. Step.

The truth is, taking Elijah outside can sometimes be stressful.  But, less so than it was last fall.  As he continues to learn his way around our yard, I become less stressed.  This is the reality of parenting a visually-impaired, fast, cute, curious little boy.

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A Possible Future Profession

Sometimes you have a take a few steps back to see that things are changing.  Because, things are changing.

Upon taking Elijah outside this spring, it's apparent how much better his balance is.  He runs down our little hill like it's no big deal, which is possibly the cutest thing I've ever witnessed.  Being outside fills him with such joy that it's hard not to feel it too.

Unfortunately it hasn't been all joy around here, as temper tantrums have been out of control lately.  He's getting his final two molars currently, so we're hoping that he'll be a bit more agreeable once he has his complete mouth-full of teeth (and then we won't have to worry about teeth until they start to fall out!).  There's more to his temper tantrums than just teeth, of course - we do notice that Elijah is less likely to fly off the handle when he's able to communicate with us.

Although Elijah doesn't have any words as of yet, he does definitely communicate.  He continues to direct our attention multiple times a day.  His most common request is to ask to go outside.  Sometimes I'll see him trying to open the door to our laundry room (which leads to the garage).  He'll then come touch me and walk to the door and try to open it again.  The words aren't there, but his voice is loud and clear.  I have such hopes when it comes to what he'll be able to communicate with us as he grows and develops.  There's so much I want to know about what he sees and experiences and it'd be amazing if he'd be able to tell us!

So, we're busy.  Busy playing outside.  Busy trying to communicate.  Busy attempting to curb our little man's frustrations which manifest themselves in the most unpleasant ways.  Mostly, though, we're busy watching him play.  Elijah seems to be having more fun with toys within the last few months.  He plays with his toys more appropriately.  Rolling cars on the floor, drumming his drum, dancing to music.  And while he plays, he learns. And,well, so do we.

His favorite toy these days? The drum. I'm pretty sure you'd spare some change for this little guy if you saw him playing on your street corner.  You would, wouldn't you? ;)

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