Judging from how our son is currently acting, he will want to be outside almost permanently this summer. He absolutely loves the outdoors and if he had it his way, would probably stay out there all day. OK, so maybe all day might be a stretch, but he loves it out there. Now that it has been getting a little bit warmer outside, he has been wanting to spend more and more time out there. Over the weekend while my wife was out running some errands, we went outside for a little bit. Since there was still snow on the ground, I put on his little snow pants and snow boots, but left his jacket and hat off since it was almost 50 degrees out. Watching him, its funny to see in action what they say about toddlers mimicking the actions that they see. The first thing he went for when we got outside was a little mini snow shovel we have lying around. He picked it up and started moving it back and forth with one hand, just as if he was shoveling snow. That was just on the bare sidewalk. Once I saw him moving the shovel as he was, I showed him how to get some snow on it and guess what, that's all he wanted to do. He would get some snow on the shovel and drag it around before trying to get some more on it. Then he saw the big shovel that I use. He dragged his little mini snow shovel over and had both, one in each hand, attempting to get snow on both of them. When that didn't work out so well, he dropped the big one and focused on the little one. It was the cutest thing I have seen in a while. That was Saturday. On Sunday, we went for a hike as a family in the woods of Naugatuck State Forest. With a 25 pound toddler on my back, it was a good work out making our way through the slushy snow that still abounded in the woods. He, as previously, absolutely loved being the in woods. He was a little talkative, but for the most part just sat on my back and looked around as we trudged through. I was actually hoping there was a little less snow so I could let him do some walking on his own, but I knew if I put him down in the snow, he would only make it about 5 feet before wanting to get picked back up. All told, we were out in the woods for about an hour. This summer will definitely be more fun as he will be walking around and exploring everything.
Then, on Monday, I had the joy of picking him up from daycare. We ran an errand or two and when we got home, he just wanted to be in the back yard, playing. We didn't even make it inside for 15 minutes despite the fact that my wife was already home and waiting. He saw my wife standing in the door, but walked the other way to the back yard to grab some chunks of wood lying on the ground. There is a part of me that really can't wait for him to start talking so he can tell me what is going on in his head. I would love to know what he is thinking when he is going about exploring things or even just playing. Anyway, once he got his wood chips from the back yard, he walked back towards the house. While we were out running our errand, my wife had transplanted a flower from indoors. She did the transplanting on the sidewalk and had left some dirt lying around. Well, the dirt wasn't there the day before and of course, our son had to play with the dirt, move it around, and figure out exactly what was going on. All the while, the wood chips were firmly grasped in one of his hands. We tried asking him if he wanted to go inside and have a snack, but he was having none of it. He simply wanted to remain outside. Well, we knew it was only a matter of time before he became really hungry so I picked him up, wood chips and all, and brought him inside. It took everything I had to coax him to let go of the chips before actually entering the house. I managed the task and got him inside. This period of exploration is so much more fun than watching him as a baby just lying there staring at the world. To think that just a year ago he couldn't even walk yet, or for that matter, explore the world in depth like he is now is amazing to me. The progression from breathing lump of flesh to a little toddler with a personality, an independent spirit, and an insatiable curiosity about the world is fantastic. I wouldn't trade it for anything. Before our son was born, there was a part of me that wondered how I would balance having a son with my own life. Now that I am here, its not really a struggle, family comes first, then my interests. Its just a matter of finding the balance, which sometimes works better than others, and everything is right with the world. As for watching him grow, I will take it one day at a time, enjoying every minute I have with him, and teaching him about everything he sees and is curious about.
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