Playing with Others

I don't know if all children do this, but we have noticed that Patrick has distinct and varying favorite activities that he does with each individual he knows. He remembers which activity goes with which person and we are rarely allowed to change them up (sometimes, we are not allowed to change them up at all).

With his grandmother, he want's to eat, drink, and/or play with anything that's hers. She had to use a cane for a while and to this day, it is one of the most amazing toys for him. The walker became his "Cadillac" ... to ride in around the house. He loves the snacks and drinks, especially when it's from the containers she is using.

With his grandfather, he loves to sit back and watch financial news reports or sports. We can generally count on Papap putting him to sleep at least one night a week this way.

With his mother, he'll sit patiently as she reads him a book ... not with anyone else. He also loves to hear her sing "Itsy-Bitsy Spider" and barely listens whens someone else sings it.

With me, he loves to sit at my computer and type on the keyboard and use the mouse ... so glad that I got a heavy-duty gamer mouse and keyboard!

With one of his cousins, he'll race around the house (still using a walker at this point) while being chased. With anyone else, he is the one doing the chasing.

These activities are specific to each individual. He'll tolerate someone else trying the same activity, but you can tell from his responses that he is definitely not as interested ...

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Family Time with Shoes

Last night was cool. Patrick was in a playful mood ... dumping food and drinks all over the place, sneaking toys over the back of the couch (then getting upset when I passed them back to him), and climbing over everything. He also got a family game going ... with everyone ready for bed, he had us put his shoes on, then Papa and Mama had to put on their boots. It was all very funny and exciting ... mostly watching his intensity. Then, we had to follow him ... around and around we went. Through the kitchen, into the dining room, through the family room, past the front door and into the kitchen again ... over and over, around and around ... stomping our feet in some sort of family train! Every now and then, Jen or I would fall behind and invariably, Patrick would stop to make sure that we caught back up. We played other games, as well ... but we always seemed to head back to the train ... oh, and don't forget the shoes ...

Getting Involved

This is the second night in a row that we were able to spend time and Grandma and Papap's ... Patrick enjoys it so much! We even had a rousing rendition of "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" with all five of us involved ... yes, Patrick is pitching in now. He runs from person to person, giving a bit to each one of us ... there is never a dull moment. Tonight, he repeated a new activity from last night. Last night, it was getting everyone involved in chasing him around the house ... tonight, we had this activity, but what we saw was that he wanted to play different games and wanted certain people involved. This is when he went to each person that needed to be involved and grabbed a finger, pulling them along. He even checked every now and then to make sure they were still following. Such an amazing child ... knows how to ensure that we sleep well.

Outside Play

Patrick loves to be outside. When he arrived home yesterday, I was just getting finished with some weeding ... he and Jen immediately jumped in to help. We dragged branches to the pile in the back yard. Then, I found Jen and Patrick getting ready for a bike ride. Wanting to spend time with my wife and son, I opted into the ride. We didn't go far, my back and legs were a bit sore at that point ... but we did get out together as a family. The bike seat we have is not the kind I remember as I grew up. Patrick's is pretty close to my seat, in fact my heels hit the lower part of his seat if I am not paying attention. Despite this, we have a lot of fun. He loves to look around and notices things ... at one point, Jen wandered off and he started calling to her until she headed back to what he considered a safe distance. He is also a boy and likes to play. He "high-fived" my back and spent a few minutes pulling my shirt out. I hope I never forget the head-butt...

Fatherhood

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