Read to Me

Luis will sometimes play in his crib for a while after he wakes up but before he asks/demands to get out of his crib. But when he's ready to get up, he's very clear. He'll start by throwing his stuffed animals out, one by one. Then the blankets. Then, he'll flip over each of the mirrors that hangs in his crip. However, when I hear the pacifier hit the floor, I know that time is up!!! For a while, I couldn't keep toys on the bedside table next to his crib; when he dediced that NOW was the time for me to come get him, he would throw these toys onto the ground.

This afternoon, I was studiously reading Dodie's draft dissertation in the office when I heard a small thud in Luis's room. There was no other sound after that, so I didn't tell Pauline (who was working in the kitchen where it's a bit hard to hear Luis's room). Some 2o minutes later - after 3p which is a LONG nap for Luis - Pauline looks in to see what's going on. She says to me, "Ma'am, he's reading."




Sure enough, I had left 4 books on the bedside table from earlier in the day. He had pulled two of them in - a "peekaboo" lift-the-flap book (a gift from Sarah) and a book called Read to Me (a gift from Bettie Traxler). He was very content in his crib reading. I wonder if Pauline hadn't gone in there, how much longer would he have "read"?

(By the way, there is NO staging in this picture - this is exactly how Luis looked when I came in.)