Opinionated

Another month of big changes in the Spero-Nickerson family!


I got a job, so William had to start daycare. He LOVES it. When we drop him off in the morning he runs to the toys without a look back. If he's a bit truculent one of the nice daycare workers distracts him with a book or a toy and he's good for the day. He naps on his mat without a bottle or a paci (something we could not convince him of at home) and eats all the food that they provide. He barely looks up when I go to pick him up. I wash the sand out of his hair from the play area every night.

Before he started daycare I took Will to the Children's Museum of Denver. He enjoyed the train room for a little bit.


And a nature room.

Will has learned to ride his zebra (thanks Auntie Alicia!).


And he's transferred that skill to riding Rocky.


When we do get home he expresses ALL SORTS OF OPINIONS. Wow. He's been changing daily since the day he was born, but this is new and insistent! He will screw up his face and cry if he is unhappy with something or frustrated and when he's angry he'll stomp his little feet until he achieves the desired result. For example, when we stop pushing the toy car for a second.


This weekend Papa Joel and Grandma Judy came to visit. Boy, Will was the Superstar-Center-of-Attention! He loved it.


Papa took him to the park and climbed on all the play structures with him.


He watched Will turn the wheel.

Over and over again.
And Papa read his favorite three books.


Over and over again.

It was a fantastic visit. Will and Dave and I had a wonderful time with Papa Joel and Grandma Judy. We hope to see them again very soon!

Physics

Wow, it's been quite a summer! We moved to Denver, Dave started his new job, I turned 40 (!), and Will has been doing just about everything, including figuring out the secrets of the universe.


Will's physical agility has progressed so much in the last two months. He's now able to climb up the slide and go down all by himself. He can climb into his high chair and sit himself down for meals and he can toss a ball up a little and catch it.


Ah, balls. Will is such a jock! His first word was "ball." If he sees a ball when we are shopping we must either buy it for him or be prepared for a major meltdown when we take it away.

He enjoys climbing and the dogs and was curious about the farm animals we visited at the Denver County Fair, but balls are his first and foremost one and only true love.


He also loves team sports. In the last month Will has become much more interested in other children. He had a "no-no" battle with another girl his age, where they chased each other around and pointed their fingers at each other and shouted "No! No!" back and forth, back and forth.


We've been to a couple of parks where there are other toddlers playing and he's so interested! At one point he was flirting with several little girls from a daycare.


He loves story time. We've been going to a variety of story times at libraries in the area. He loves the singing and dancing.


He's still obsessed with computers. We went to a branch near our house and I had to chase after him several times because he kept running to the desktops available for library members.


We found out he loves to play dress up. I put my shirt on him one day and he swanned around completely delighted with his new garb.


Will's much more into books. He will often bring a book to you, plop down in your lap and turn the pages as you try to read him a story. Occasionally he'll read the book to himself.


We also went to the art museum. There was an installation that everyone could walk on. He spent several minutes tromping back and forth across the tiles.


And we've been to a play place where Will can run back and forth. There is an art room there where Will tried his hand at painting with a brush and an easel. Will is fascinated with how things work: surface, texture, mark and influence.


This applies to everything, including puddles.

And grass.


We've enjoyed our new environment this summer. Will had an 18 month checkup with his new doctor and was pronounced completely healthy and developmentally on track. Good job, William!