Let's Play Pretend and Count to Ten!

Meeting Tigger

"Bulls Eye" a.k.a. X's new best friend, after riding a pony the day before he fell in love with this stuffed animal.

Xander about died meeting Bolt and Rhino... he could NOT stop giggling, kissing Bolt, and giving him high-fives, which he is doing vehemently in this picture.

This Easter weekend was quite an experience. Xander fell in love with MickeyMouse, and pretty much any character that crossed his path. I guess I should have seen it coming, a few weeks ago he started acting out his favorite TV episodes, and then his favorite movie, Bolt. All his stuffed animals and little characters seemed to take on an even greater role in games of pretend. But then something happened on a visit to Playhouse Disney where it all clicked. The characters he was used to seeing on the screen were out walking around in real life, and Xander was amazed. My normally shy child would RUN into the arms of any and every furry character that crossed his path, with stars in his eyes, and the biggest grin I have ever seen. I think he actually smiled beyond his eyes. It was pretty amazing to watch, I really didn't think such a dramatic shift would take place.

Also, a new development is counting! He started showing an interest several weeks ago when he became pretty proficient at exclaiming, "TWO" whenever I would count to three. He became totally fascinated by any and all counting, be it on a TV show, something he was overhearing, or me intentionally counting with him. Today he counted to ten all on his own! Mind you many of his numbers are not articulated well, but it was counting to ten!