Timothy

I started blogging 6 months ago today. And I started off with an update of both kids. It seems 2 times a year isn't too much to make a note of where my kids are in life. Even just re-reading those 1st posts, I can see how much they've changed. So here goes:

• Never meets a stranger. He ran past Dan and me the other day to hug a solicitor. We have some learning to do in terms of levels of relationships. On the bright side, he is finally connecting emotionally to Dan and me. He likes for one of us to lay down with him and talk for a few minutes before he goes to sleep, and he will let me snuggle with him random other times as well. In true SPD fashion, he prefers deep pressure to light touch, but the fact that he'll let us touch him at all is amazing!
• He's reading! Mostly 3 letter words or words that are familiar, but he's definitely there. The best part is he really desires to read and tries to read anything he sees, whether it's a word he knows or not. We were warned that speech delays can cause reading delays, and we're happy to see that hasn't happened.
• Mr. Men Show is his favorite cartoon. There are about 20+ characters who are named based on their personality (like the 7 dwarfs). It's all about how these characters learn to get along with each other even though they are so different. I like that it shows him people who are different can relate and interact. Today, out of the blue (we haven't seen the show in days), he said, "Mom, Mr. Grumpy told Mr. Tickle, 'Not EVERYONE likes to be tickled.'" And I am one of those.
• He is extremely competitive. We are trying to figure out how to make the most of this part of his character right now. Any book recommendations would be appreciated.
• Obsessed with sports teams. He knows all NFL & NBA teams, and has most MLB, NCAA-B, and NHL teams down. He knows their city, team name, and logo. It's a bit frightening at times. How did he get interested in hockey? He likes for me to pull up a sport's website (nfl.com, for example). Then, he clicks on each team and studies their website. He will write down scores per quarter on his doodle pro and watch video highlights of the game-then come tell me who won.
• He has made up an "NFL teams" song/dance #. The tune is the same each time, and the lyrics are the team names. Example is: "Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers...they're pirates!" And the dance moves are a little different for each team (the Dolphins get some fish action with his hands). It's absolutely HYSTERICAL! We have to be really careful because it's serious entertainment to him. There is a stage at our playground down the street, so this has becoming a fun performing act there-and he's actually getting other kids to use the stage as well. If you turn the volume up really loud you can see some video of it here (we don't know why, but the Chargers have become the "underchargers"):