The More You Know

When Landon was younger, people would comment about how much he must be changing each day and all the new things he must have been learning. I would politely nod my head, all the while thinking, "I know that he must be learning new stuff, but I'm not seeing it." Of course there were the big milestones, that had me calling everyone in my phone book - "Landon rolled over today from his back to his tummy!," "Landon started pulling himself up on furniture!," etc, but day-to-day it seemed to be the same old stuff. He'd eat, he'd sleep, he'd need his diaper changed.

Today, I can unequivocally say that Landon is changing each and every day. There isn't a day that goes by that Alan and I shake our heads in amazement and wonder. The observations and conversations that Landon has heard for the past 13 months are coming out of the file cabinets in his brain. Case in point: from the time Landon was about 2 months old, we started doing sign language with him. As he got older, he would actually laugh at us as we did a sign. Now, he knows how to do the sign for "please" and no longer laughs at us.

Some other stuff that he knows:
He knows that when he gets to the stairs, he needs to turn around and go down on his tummy. I think he also knows that he can sometimes give me a panic attack because he'll barrel towards the stairs and not even crouch down until his feet are at the edge of the stairs.
He knows where to put his diaper when I'm done changing him.
He knows how to feed Bentley, although were still working on the fact that Bentley's dry dog food doesn't need to be mixed up.
He knows to go to the bathroom when Alan and I say "It's time to brush your teeth. Where's your toothbrush?" It's funny that he actually does go to the bathroom considering he no longer likes having his teeth brushed. We can wait a few more months before he figures out that he could just bypass the bathroom and lead us on a wild goose chase.

Landon isn't the only one that has acquired new knowledge. I now know:
That laundry and dishes are never-ending.
That a later bedtime for baby does not mean a later wake-up time.
That it is okay to let Landon watch a video in the exersaucer and not feel guilty about it.
That being a parent is the most rewarding job ever.