pointing at reptiles

Dylan,

Mommy recently decorated your room with these fantastic things called "wallies", which are essentially wallpaper decals that can be applied and removed with a wet sponge. You now have three giant colorful tree frogs, a smattering of green leafy accents, and a custom-made dragonfly with purple pipe-cleaner wings mounting your bedroom walls under the ceiling of blue sky and puffy white clouds.

Every time you're in your bedroom -- including every nap or diaper change -- you extend an arm and an index finger insistently toward the frogs. In fact, this morning at 7 o'clock I heard you yammering in your crib and went to get you started on your day. The *instant* you saw me enter the room you jumped up, pointing ardently over the crib rail and across the room, eyes wide, focused and unmoving.

Ordinarily I like to change you first, but Mom had just jumped in the shower so it made a perfect diversion before the normal routine of substituting a fresh diaper and handing you off to The Boob. You stood on the spare bed, dancing across small piles of your own clean laundry, and reached up to touch the frog most accessible, the low one with wide red and blue lateral stripes and a keen eye for the dragonfly.

You love your froggies, and it's wonderful.

Dad