10 Months is a Cool Age

You know how they say that babies will bypass the toy and play with the box it came in?

Keep that in mind as you take this quiz I have for you.

Question 1:

The answer is 'c'! The grating is the perfect size for little fingers. I figure he's interpreted "NO, not for Owen" as "Thar be treasure in there if ye kin get the cover off."

Question 2:

The answer, again, is 'c'! Bath time is officially over when there is no water left in the tub.

Question 3:

Did you pick 'c'? Right again! You never know what will be most appealing to your curious kid.

In all, 10 months is a pretty cool age. My son's excitement for...  well, pretty much everything, is contagious, especially as it becomes evident that he is starting to grasp how the world works.

WOW! The train moves if I put a cube in the caboose! 
WOW! If I chuck it on the floor, Mum picks it up! Whoa, she did it again! Sucker.
WOW! You were under the blanket! I totally knew that.

I'm also impressed by the effort he is willing to make in order to make these discoveries.  I see him huff and puff and grunt as he crawls through the base of the kitchen table, for no apparent reason but to get to the other side. Dude, go around. I'm tired just watching him. If only he could save some of that enthusiasm for when he's 15.

It's fun to get down on the floor with him, though, and discover the world alongside him with new eyes. Opening cupboards. Blanket rides through the kitchen. Suspenseful games of Peekaboo.

Once again, though, he often has his own agenda. I'll set up a big ol' discovery scenario for him on the floor with different-sized plastic containers and big spoons (as suggested by the baby books), and he'll go right by them in delighted pursuit of the heating vent cover. Again. So now what; do I have to wash all these Tupperwares I took out?

And then there are the times I'll get all carried away, getting in full goof-mode, only to discover he's moved on to something else and I'm playing baby games by myself.