So Does He Do Any Tricks?

Recently, Caedmon and I visited a friend who has three little girls of her own (consequently, all of them have hair of gold like their mother, the youngest one in curls... See what I did there??... The Brady Bunch reference!... No?  Okay.  Nevermind.)

Anyway...

So this friend of mine has three girls, who are, truly, my favorite little girls on the planet.  And I'm not saying this because I'm the type of person who favorites everybody and everything, making hackneyed comments like "they are my favorite little girls on the planet" often.  But they are my favorite, because they are fun, imaginative, bold yet well-mannered, and do things like take a nap in our dog's bed when they come over, and belt out their own rendition of The Sound of Music's "Do-Re-Mi" in the middle of lunch (and I mean the middle, no pretenses or warning... just "DO, A DEEH, A FEMAWE DEEH!!! WAY!!! A DWOP OF GOWDEN SUN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"), complete with grandiose gestures and appropriate dance moves.  The last little diddy was what Sariah, my friend's three-year-old, graced us with during our visit. And then, when her performance was over, and our wild applause had died down, she looked up at me, a little shyly but eyes full of hope, and asked "So does he," pointing at Caedmon, "do any tricks?"

Hm... Her mom and I smiled at Sariah's sweet choice of words, but at almost 15 months, Caedmon is able to understand and execute many simple commands, and I do find myself saying, "Come", "No!", and "Good boy!" a lot.  And in reality, my process in teaching Caedmon his "tricks" is reminiscent of how I had taught Lucy's hers when she was a pup--a lot of showing, repetition, and rewarding with praise.  And what really gets me is that he is actually learning and responding to me!

Being a first time mom is so much fun, because all of you seasoned moms are probably thinking, "Yes, he's a child; that's what children do."... But for me, my baby sitting down when I ask him to is AMAZING!  What a fun age this is right now!  Every morning I wake up so thankful for my baby, and no sooner have I gone into Caedmon's room to retrieve him from his crib, and he smiles, arms moving to the music he's turned on from his mobile, and he thrusts toward me his stuffed doggy, than am I reminded that he is growing more and more into a boy.

Some of Caedmon's "tricks"...

Caedmon loves choosing the books for us to read to him.  When we're done, he also loves "putting it back", a command he is very good at executing in all contexts (he'll put back his toys, products he's pulled off shelves at the store, and household items he's dug out of drawers and shelves)... until his attention is captured and diverted by something else shiny, new, or racket-inducing.

So it's Chicka Chicka Boom Boom again?  I love it when he brings the books to us, turns around, and plops down in our laps.  

This boy can polish off a banana in 6 seconds flat.

Caedmon helps with chores, like...

mowing the driveway...

emptying the dryer...

feeding Lucy...

and then taste-testing to make sure Lucy's kibble is satisfactory.

Baby sign language has proven to be very useful for us, since Caedmon is still not saying many words yet. His favorite signs are pictured below, but he also knows "water", "cereal", and "help".  He also moves his arms up and down, like he's climbing an imaginary ladder, whenever he hears music or wants to listen to music. That's a sign/motion he came up with on his own!

"Please, Suh, can I have some moh?" "More" and "please" are Caedmon's favorite signs... probably because he is rewarded with food each time!

signing "all done" when the sprinklers turn off

Here he is right before the sprinklers had turned off... This is not a "trick" but was just too cute for this doting mama not to post.

So does he do any tricks?  Oh, Miss Sariah, does he.  It may not be a song and dance, but he's getting there.  And wait a couple of years... perhaps you'll have a willing partner with whom to perform "Edelweiss".