Up until a few weeks ago, Corbin was the picture-perfect little boy. Well, he still is, but it seems as though he's realized there's so much more he can do in the apartment besides play with his toys and get into a spot of bother with Deedee.
A few months ago, I delegated the cupboard beneath my microwave stand to him. I put all his toys in there, and he seemed happy with this arrangement. He would happily empty the cupboard and then sit amidst the toys playing with one after another, or sometimes he'd actually get in the cupboard after emptying it. Of course, all of the kitchen cabinets were locked, but he didn't show much interest in them. Sadly, that has come to an end.
Not only does he try to get in the kitchen cupboards (most of them just hold pots and pans and plastic storage containers, so they're pretty harmless), but he's decided that the space under my desk is a fun place to play, too. I previously stored his exersaucer under there to protect the power bar, but now he can move the exersaucer, so up goes the power bar. He can move chairs as well, and I've come into the living room to find furniture scattered throughout the room. He can crawl in the small space beneath my desk that is specially designed for a PC tower, and he thinks it's great fun to grab the cordless phone and hide in there with it.
I can't let him near the bathroom unless he is having a bath. The toilet brush, plunger, toilet paper, and heck, the toilet itself have all become fascinating play things. I know this stage won't end any time soon, so the bathroom door is firmly shut, and I have false door knobs waiting on standby for the time when he learns to open doors.
lastly, I keep a pretty tight ship around here--I vacuum every day, and i'm usually careful to put everything out of his reach whether I think it'll harm him or not, although he does manage to kidnap the remote and the telephone from time to time. But Corbin seems to have a knack for finding bits of cardboard, paper, and other small things that somehow end up on the floor. Oh how I long for the days when all I had to worry about was whether or not he and Deedee were sharing toys.
Speaking of toys, they're everywhere! Dump trucks, walkers, ride-on cars, and then there are all the little ones that can send an unwary mom flying across the room. For once, i'm glad I have a bad habit of not picking up my feet when I walk. I don't even bother to run behind him and pick up any more, because 5 minutes later, my living room is morphed into Corbin's Playland again.
And what word that rhymes with toys that every mom of a budding toddler experiences? Why noise, of course! Corbin loves to make lots and lots of noise. Babbling incessantly is his favourite thing to do, of course, but when babbling, squealing, laughing, or screaming doesn't reach the decibel level he desires, he practices his percussion skills with Deedee's stainless steel dog dishes, or bangs on the floor using one of his wooden trucks. At only 1 year of age, Corbin can already multitask--he can bang and squeal at the same time. This produces a head-pounding effect to which he is immune but I am not. Neither is Deedee; sometimes I find her curled up in a remote corner. Perhaps she wants to stay out of the way of the little demon, I mean the lovable little guy. Perhaps she is wondering what the heck she's gotten herself into.
As for me, would I have it any other way? Certainly not! I've always said I like a challenge in life. Well, I've got one, and he never ceases to amaze me every day. Corbin is very creative, imaginative, and spirited, not to mention loving, happy, and very easygoing. I know the next year or so will be filled with many adventures for us, even more so than the first year, or perhaps just different types. I've got my seat belt fastened, and I'm holding on for dear life. This promises to be a ride that Corbin won't remember in a few years, but I'll never forget it.
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