The Climber

I mentioned before how incredibly determined Dylan is, (see "My Son Is Joining A Nudist's Colony"). Well, his determination is continuing to amaze me. When we learned that he had torticollis, I read all the information I could find on the internet about this word I had never heard of before. I read that children with torticollis often are delayed in reaching milestones, such as rolling over, crawling, sitting, walking, etc. I am happy to report that so far, instead of being delayed in these areas, he has done them EARLY! I have to give some credit to his physical therapist, Adina, for this. She has worked with him since he was 4 months old, so she has helped push him along, and she has taught me helpful tricks for getting him to do all of those things. Mostly, though, I think he has done them early because he is so determined.

When he wants something, he WILL get it. If he has to climb over you, half his toys, and go through an end table, so be it. His attention span is amazing when it comes to doing what he wants. If he wants to pull Daddy's glasses off his face, he will keep grabbing at them until poor Daddy's neck is sore from tilting his head back, and Dylan is victoriously waving around said glasses while Daddy shakes his head in disbelief!

He has been cruising around all the furniture since 8/12/07, and he has been taking a few steps before crashing to the ground since 9/21/07, but he still isn't walking. He is far more interested in another feat - climbing! He can climb stairs faster than (insert famous climber's name here). Since mastering the stairs, he has set his sights on conquering the couch. I blame this newest obsession on Jim, who loves to rough house with Dylan on the couch. He throws him onto the couch, shakes it yelling "Earthquake!", and piles the pillows on top of a hysterical Dylan. To say that Dylan enjoys this would be an understatement. Of course, he wants to get onto the couch - that's where the fun is!

So, lately he spends a lot of his time trying to climb the couch. He tries, and tries, and tries, and he cries, and cries, and cries, because he is so frustrated that he can't do it, but he NEVER gives up. I try, and try, and try, not to laugh, because I don't want to encourage this dangerous behavior, but it is just so damn funny! I am impressed and yet frightened by his determination because I know I'm in trouble when he is in the terrible twos, or worse, the teenage years!



If you're wondering, he did eventually climb it. I went into the kitchen, and when I came back into the living room, he was sitting on the couch with a big goofy grin, looking around as if to say "Well, now that I've done that, what else can I try?"