Why? Cuz. And other Barrett business…

Barrett loves books. Like LOVES books. I don’t know what’s normal. I’ve just known one 2 year old in the way that I know Barrett but I think it’s safe to say he has a passion for the pages. His current faves outside of a couple dozen library loaners are Poke-A-Dot Monkeys on the Bed and Old MacDonald, I is for India, We have a Baby, Trains go Clickety-Clank and Who Am I?. We spend a good bit of our days together reading which necessitates many trips to the library. Mama needs variety.

Barrett rarely eats much outside of the things within his comfort zone but the things he does eat, he eats the pants off of. Current foods of favor include pb&j, ab&j, pb&h (if you’re sensing a trend, you’re following well), grilled cheese, and macaroni and cheese. Variety is not his middle name. Fruits … not vegetables. If ever given an option, breakfast would win over dinner. And snack could be every meal if it meant banana or pumpkin apple bread were being offered. Carnation Instant Breakfast boosts his vitamin intake per our peds request and B would be thrilled with chockot moolk with every meal but only enjoys it with dinner.

Since his adenoidectomy and ear tube surgery two weeks ago, Barrett’s been talking a mile a minute. Half of what comes out of his mouth is jibberish, one quarter of his speech we’ve learned what he means and the last quarter is clear as day. The best of the best:

• In one fell swoop, B will babble “Why? Cuuuuz.”
• Barrett will run up to me and say “Cuddle Mommy peese”
• All day long B will question “Where Daddy At” and like the above, answer himself “wurk. Mommy here”
• He calls a circle a kurkle. A rectangle a gangle. A square a kare. An octagon an ottowon. So shapes are shaping up but we’re not quite there.
• Colors are a fave of B’s as well but the one he favors most is pink. Anything pink, he likes to repeatedly identify. Perhaps pink is his signature color.
• While pink is his favorite color, Two is his favorite number and B and F are his fave letters.
• He calls water dadoo but also says the word waddle dadoo. Thank goodness I know he doesn’t want the book Waddle when he says he’s dirsty.
• He calls his aunt Kim, Pim. His uncle Kevin, Pevin. K is clearly a P.
• He requests mudic and songs in the car. When one song completes, he immediately requests moo mudic and moo song.
• Taught by grandma B, Barrett will pick up or point to like objects and say “Same. Same”. Sometimes I have to break it to him that they are not the same. But hey, the kid’s got to learn.

I always said I wouldn’t be one of those parents who translated for my kids but seriously, it’s pretty darn adorable and let’s be real, pretty darn necessary. Mostly I am in awe {and I rarely say such business} about the amount of knowledge two year old can pick up from day to day. And even moreso, I can’t believe how much Barrett’s language has expanded in the two-week timeframe with tubes. We will find out in the near future if his hearing is still affected but are optimistic that with a little time, love and tenderness, all will be swell.

Barrett currently loves to play hide and seek with daddy, go on walks in his wagon, put together puzzles, line up cars (over and over again), jump, bake with mama, and shake his groove thing. He spends a minute or two in timeout on occasions in which he can’t control his temper and knows how to stomp his feet and yell “No”. He likes to “Sype Pop Pop” (translation: Skype Pop Pop) and still adores Mr. Mickey the Mouse. He likes to give kisses to Grin and snuggles up to my belly bump to do so. He was, at first perplexed by the disappearance of the paci but is back on track sans sucker. And he happens to call many men “Daddy” so don’t be shocked if you happen to be one of them.

All in all, we find mr. B to be his own man and a hilarious one at that. If these twos are as terrible as it gets, then parenthood is seeming fairly sweet.