Home grown

September, 2008 compared to November, 2009

He takes showers instead of baths, he feeds all the pets by himself, including maneuvering the basement stairs alone, and he answered the phone the other day with incredibly adept politeness. And, when he sets the table before dinner, he insists on handling the chore solo from start to finish, including getting the silverware from the drawer. A year ago that wasn't possible without the aid of a stool, and I could have sworn that was true even last month, but now it requires just a little help from those tippy toes. Getting the mail all by himself has been another of his shining moments.

And now you'll expect me to go on about how time flies, about how hard it is to see him growing up, or about how poignant a thing this growth is when it's happening to your own offspring, etc. & etc. Instead, let me just say that showers use less water than baths, that it's a real load off to have another person in the house who can help with chores without our assistance, and that from now on the telemarketers had better watch out.