June 8 – Quirks

Written on June 8, 2009 by emily

I nearly went to bed (early) without writing. Tisk tisk. But here I am…with some last minute thoughts on the day. I have to giggle about my children’s quirky behaviors. Obviously they have slightly odd parents, or they wouldn’t be so weird themselves, but they just make me laugh. I’d like to share a few oddities with you.

We cannot back our car into our parking garage unless all persons traveling on the passenger side of the car exit the vehicle. This was inconvenient and annoying at first, but since we’ve been here for 3 years, we have adjusted and it is just part of the routine. Our daughter sits in the rear-passenger seat, and I’m usually in the front-passenger seat if we’ve all gone somewhere together. When she and I get out so daddy can park, she finds her way to the front of the car, where the headlights are shining, and does a ballerina dance (or sometimes a funky hip hop dance) so that daddy will flicker the headlights at her. If he doesn’t flicker the headlights, she is quite disappointed, but dances harder. It’s really funny to watch. In other dancing, she has what she calls her ‘trick’ which consists of falling to her hands and knees on the floor and sticking up one leg behind her as high as she can get it. Some trick!

As for the son’s oddities…I have never heard a one year old cackle with ridiculous energy like him. He will throw his head back and let out the most over-the-top cackle-laugh you’ve ever heard. Over and over. If he were a bit older and of more eccentric dress, I might actually be more afraid than tickled. He is a very loving child, but also very…um…clumsy? I’m not sure exactly which word I mean to use. Anyway, his cuddling regularly includes lovingly (but not gently) knocking his head against mine. Unfortunately, he’ll really knock it against whatever he gets closest to, and I am not always aware of what is coming. My poor nose isn’t broken yet, but I’m seriously concerned it might be soon.

Together, they make a delightful pair. I love watching how they play together, even if some of the play does include some injustice from time to time. The younger is now learning how to hold his own against the older, so she can’t always get away with swiping toys or pushing him away from an activity they should both be able to do. I’ll be interested to see what the dynamic is like when he passes her up in size…that day is coming sooner than she thinks!

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