Ten Things About Will

When I taught third grade, we read the novel, Because of Winn Dixie (can someone tell me how to underline on here?) with our students. It's about a little girl who is being raised by her father and finds and adopts a dog, whom she names Winn Dixie (after the grocery store). It is one of my very favorite books and I highly recommend it to adults as well. Anyway, India Opal's mom left when she was very little, so she begs her dad to tell her ten things about her mom, because he doesn't talk about her much. He finally agrees and she loves hearing every single detail. Eventually, she makes her own list about Winn Dixie. The teacher in me thought it would be fun to do this activity with Will. So now you know where I came up with the number 10 (if I didn't come up with a number, I might get carried away - if you haven't noticed, I can be a little long-winded)! We used to have our students write a list about themselves and they loved it. Will doesn't have the writing skills to do this himself yet, so I'll just have to do it for him. But the teacher in me might make him one day! In a few days, Will will be 21 months old, so this list will sum up Will at 20 months.

Ten Things About Will

1. Will's new favorite words are butterfly and caterpillar (sounds like firefly and powpillar) . He also loves looking at pictures of these critters or going on scavenger hunts for them at Town Lake. Pretty good timing since spring is here and Easter just passed us by!

2. Will is a boy, through and through. He loves picking up and playing with dirt, sticks, rocks and even dog poop. He also has attempted to eat these things. Yes, ALL of them.

3. Will is strong-willed. Maybe it has something to do with the name we chose for him? He is a stubborn little guy and I know this quality will pay off...eventually...like when he's an adult and we are no longer "in charge" of him. :)

4. Will is a bookworm. He especially enjoys reading books that are somewhat interactive, but is coming around to more traditional stories. Some of his current favorites are Goodnight Gorilla, Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? and F is for Farm.

5. Will already enjoys watching TV a little too much, which we are working on. A few weeks of Will being sick off and on, our house going on the market, and Jim leaving before 7 for work some days led to some necessary tube time for Mr. Will. He loves watching Shish (Fish or Finding Nemo), Chars (Cars) and Choo-Choo (Thomas the Train). Yes, I know the American Pediatrics Association says no TV 'til 2, and yes, it makes me feel like a bad parent from time to time. However, sometimes it's just what you have to do! Ok, sorry - this list is supposed to be about Will, not me. :)

6. Will is not a sleeper. I guess he gets that from his dad, because it's definitely not from me! His normal wake up time is between 6 and 7, but lately it has been even earlier...as early as 5:30 on some days! His naps are getting better though. This just fits with his personality - he doesn't want to miss a thing (even though I try to tell him not much happens before the sun comes up).

7. Will is Active, with a capital "A." He loves running, jumping, tackling the dogs, and being a wild man, especially before bedtime. He hit his face on our dresser this morning while running through the house with his popcorn popper vacuum, which resulted in scratches and a puffy eye. This incident was followed by a scary fall off the "drawbridge" at the Central Market playground, which led to a mulch-like pattern of scratches on his face (and also resulted in my heart skipping a few beats). Poor child looks like he got beat up at school. Oh, and did he try to run across the "drawbridge" again about 30 minutes later? Of course! We will be staying away from the big kid play areas for now, thank you very much.

8. Will is turning into a bit of a picky eater, but I'm hoping this is a phase. I would say his favorite foods right now are goldfish, yogurt and cheese. He still loves his milk too. He recently tried (and liked) salmon, so maybe we are turning a corner. His favorite vegetables are canned green beans and frozen peas.

9. Will loves saying "hi" to strangers. Actually, shouting would be a more appropriate word. He likes surprising (or startling) people by greeting them when they're least expecting it. I'm just glad he's friendly.

10. Will is a blessing. This one might just have to always be my #10, if this turns into a montly thing. Cheesy, I know, but so very true. He's spunky and very busy and loves to throw tantrums, but I love that little boy more than I ever could have imagined. He's always up for giving me a good laugh, a good workout and yes, sometimes a good teeth-grinding, but I try my best to enjoy every minute, because those minutes are passing quickly.

We love you, Mr. Will!

PS - Aren't you glad I stuck to only 10 things? :)