Dawson's most favorite activity this month is climbing up and down any flight of stairs that he sees. Aunt Casey's is the first place where he accomplished the feat of going up... without anyone watching him actually do it. All of us were unpacking and I turned around for one minute and then I saw him at the top of the stairs bouncing up and down while sitting on his bottom, smiling his big toothy smile!
I showed him twice how to turn around at the top of the stairs to crawl down backwards and now he can go up and down with great ease. It is hilarious to see him "on a mission" to make his way down. He scoots around in a circle and sometimes bumps into the couch or wall all the while thinking that he is headed down. But when he finally gets to the right spot, down he goes!
The last few days, he has decided to take souvenirs on his trips down the stairs. In one hand, he will hold a block, ball, or anything else he can hold and go all the way down. Sometimes he makes it back up with his treasured item, and sometimes he doesn't.
His newest feat, however is launching things down the steps when the gate is open AND closed. I have found a baby bottle, one of my tall brown boots, and his fire truck toy, all at the bottom of the steps. I guess he hasn't yet figured out that those larger items are more difficult to retrieve. Every time he learns something new, we smile. It is such a joy to discover the world again through his eyes.
