I'm a Walking Baby, And That's Crazy, 'Cause Babies Can't Walk.
Mood:  happy
Topic: Matt
(By the way, that is one of Matt's favorite games: You hold him up in the air and waggle him from side to side, saying "I'm a talking baby. And that's crazy! 'Cause babies can't talk. TALKING BABY!!!" He loves that. Goes nuts for it.)

So he is walking now. Just learned. In the space of about two weeks, we have gone from the first two tentative steps to trucking all over the downstairs. And then last night, a new skill: Walking all over the place with a toy in each hand, and -- this is the really tricky part -- dropping one, bending down to pick it up, and continuing on his way without falling on his ass in the process.

This walking thing was long in coming, since Matt is 15 months old today (happy one and a quarter, little buddy!). At times it seemed I would have to carry him into kindergarten. But now that he's a walking dude, it's a little bittersweet. And again I start thinking about having another baby (who will grow into Matt's $40 shoes, right). This is preposterous. I feel like that wretched woman in Raising Arizona: "Dot wants to have another baby, because she says these is gettin' too big to cuddle." Please God, save me from being that woman.

Turning to the Samness of things, he has become a prime wheedler. I have been trying to teach him manners, although Sam being male, I will be lucky if I am able to teach him not to actually go to the bathroom on the rug. But I am making an effort. And when he asks for something, I say "And how do we ask nicely?" And he says "Pwease!"

Now that he's got the hang of asking nicely, though, he has turned it into an art form. When he really wants something, his request is followed by "Pweeeeeeeeease?" accompanied by a huge, radiant smile. The more heartfelt the request, the more Es in "Pweeeeeeeeeeeeeeease" and the more radiant the smile. Little manipulator. I'm a total sucker for it, and would probably buy him a Harley-Davidson if the "Pweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease" was long enough and the smile radiant enough.