Predicting the Future

Wow, has it really been over a week since I posted? I thought about it every day this week and just couldn't find the motivation to sit down and type something. I also wanted to download some pictures to include and was even less motivated to take the time for that, so the task of blogging got to be overwhelming. This won't be the mega-post it should be, though, because I'm still lacking in the motivation area. It's something anyway, right?

I have some new predictions for Patrick's future profession. One is a meteorologist. Any time I have the news on, he generally ignores it altogether. He'll play with anything and everything without even glancing at the tv. Until the weatherman starts talking, that is. Suddenly he will become spellbound in front of the tv. Matt and I thought it must be the moving pictures that capture his attention, but I've noticed this week that he doesn't start watching when the maps pop up. He is at full attention the second he hears the weatherman's voice. He can recognize both of the daytime weathermen on our usual channel by voice alone. It appears as though he is actually listening to what they are saying, not merely captivated by the moving graphics on the screen. His favorite part is apparently the seven-day forecast, based on the gleeful squeal. I think I'd be okay if he grew up to be a weatherman. Of course, the obsession may only indicate that he has indeed inherited plenty of genetics from his daddy's side of the family! (Kidding!)

Another possible profession for Patrick may be that of engineer--not an engineer like his daddy necessarily (although I wouldn't rule that one out), but the kind of engineer that gets to ride on trains all day. Among Patrick's very limited vocabulary is the word "choo-choo." His absolute favorite book right now is the choo-choo book, a cute book about trains that is fun to read out loud. He can sit on the floor and read that one book for ages at a time--and for a kid as active as he is, that certainly says something. Sometimes we can decipher among his gibberish a sound like a train whistle: "whoo, whoooo," another sound repeated often in the book. When both Daddy and I read the book with him, we make sure to emphasize the whistle sound, so he has probably picked that up. I wonder if he likes the book because we read it with him often because it is so much fun to read out loud. The repetitive phrases probably also stick with him better, making the book more memorable. Either way, it's cute to see him so attached to the one book over all the others (although he does seem pretty attached to the "kitty book" and the Santa book as well), whether or not it speaks of an actual interest in trains.

Patrick is a walking maniac these days. Sometimes he doesn't even need toys to stimulate him; he can wander back and forth from room to room all around the house for half an hour without pausing to play with a toy. He totters less and less as he walks, too. It's obvious that each day his confidence in his walking abilities increases. Before long, I will have to break into an all-out sprint just to keep up with him. There's no wonder he sleeps so well at night right now with all the energy he expends during the day!

We've also been better about going on outings. Patrick gets excited the second he sees my shoes on my feet and when he watches me throw the diaper bag over my shoulder. He knows it means he's going "bye-bye." That's another of his few vocabulary words, one that he loves getting a chance to practice. One place we've been twice since I last blogged is church. Now that RSV season is over and the morning sickness has finally started to subside, we're making church-going a priority. It's wonderful to see how well he does in the nursery now compared to the last few times we made it to church, back before RSV season started. He suddenly cares about the toys there and playing with the nursery workers and the other kids. It makes the experience even more special when he sees us walking up to the door at the end of church, too. He recognizes us and comes running (or crawling) as fast as his legs can carry him, excited both from his hour of playing and seeing us (Daddy) again.

As far as pregnancy stuff is concerned (which doesn't relate to anything else in the post at all), both Matt and I are starting to nest just a little already. We spent quite a bit of time this weekend de-cluttering and deep cleaning, especially the living areas where Patrick spends more of his time. We finally have a nearly completely baby-proof living room for him to play in. You can also expect another post devoted entirely to the baby on Tuesday night. We have our big sonogram coming up on Tuesday, which we are totally excited about. With a bit of luck, and hopefully a cooperative baby, we should know the gender then. And, if you're really, really lucky, we might just decide to reveal the name then as well. So stay tuned! I promise to blog a bit sooner this time around.