The Adventures of Thomas and Cooper.

Today we spent a lot of time wandering around the neighborhood pushing Thomas's new (old, rustic and very authentic) wheelbarrow, or as Thomas affectionately calls his "wee-wee". His plastic one just wasn't good enough, so grandpa found one that looks almost identical to the big one on the property. It seems to me that Thomas thinks our whole neighborhood is his "yard" and I'm having to teach him the rules of the road earlier than I thought, as we're wandering the streets, up and down, all over the place. He knows which streets he wants to go on, where he wants to go and how to get there, too. There is no fooling him, either, as I tried to coax him back down our main street to get him home before dark, and he was having none of it. Cried and carried on to the point that a neighbor actually came out to see if I needed help. Ofcourse I stood my ground with him...it was dark and we needed to get home....and Thomas alternately cried in my arms while I tried to also carry this wheelbarrow home by my teeth, (no, but almost) and tried to somehow get his wheelbarrow pointed in the direction he wanted that was not home.

His little personality is blooming, and although he knows the word no (he says it nu-nu) he rarely uses it when it's not appropriate. It's nice to be able to have him tell us what he wants, and most of the time it's easy to figure out. He loves to try new words, play with flashcards, go outside at night to look for stars and the moon, and would spend hours on the computer with his grandpa and daddy or on the lawn mower or in the wheelbarrow. On our way to the Seahawks game the other day, Jock Jams came on the radio and we looked back to find Thomas waving his fist to the beat and flashing us the biggest smile ever! He loves his grandpa, (bahba) which is also the sound he uses for apple) and sometimes I think he'd choose him over me, unless he was really, really sick. Thomas goes around and says his name all day long, and it's so adorable to see Thomas run circles around the house when Grandpa shows up. He point to Lo-lu's house, which is his name for Lauren, and recently figured out he liked the sound of "Matt" said with much emphasis. We go on long walks together and I'm in trouble if I forget to stop to look at and pick the "debbies" or berries as we call them. He knows exactly where they are, too. It will be a sad day when there are no more blackberries to pick through our neighborhood. Today he walked us up to the Firs property and over to Jenny's house to play and swing. Afterwards, while it began to rain, we went down to Fairhaven to play at one of my favorite stores, Wild Blueberries, and then down to the fish bus to buy Thomas fish and chips for dinner. Thomas wasn't too much into my quick jaunt into the flower shack or Fairhaven Runners, but I thought I deserved the time after chasing him around the toy store. It's hard to see the evenings turn dark so quickly, and with darkness comes more thoughts on how to keep his little mind and body entertained. John came home late from work, and found us in the shop playing with the tools and then out for another walk in the dark and rain. I'm sure this is one of many nightly rain walks to come. What an amazing little boy to enjoy the rain with, though. I never thought walking in the dark, in the rain, could be so much fun!