Theo

Theo is our little thinker, always strategizing, questioning, and figuring out how things work. He has lots of detailed questions about why things happen the way they do, how things work, and what a given item does. He's the first, for example, to ask HOW the baby got in Mama's belly. On a walk, Beckett is finding letters on street signs and Theo is asking about the architecture of the houses or why the telephone wires are going the way they are going. He is so-so on his numbers but he knows the number 16 because it's when he knows he can drive a car. He is more interested than Beck in the various features of our cars and of any piece of technology. He sometimes looks lost in thought and has to be encouraged back to a conversation.

He loves playing with Beckett but also really likes to play by himself, and has imaginative and complicated play scenarios by himself. At school Miss Mo tells us that he likes to play with other kids but also doesn't mind, when they get too rough or unpredictable, moving his toys or books elsewhere and continuing to play by himself.

Theo is physical in different ways than Beck. Whereas Beck barrels around, bumping into things and knocking people around accidentally (and not), Theo is very careful with his body but also very athletic and agile. He's a faster runner than any other kid I've seen his age, and was faster and better coordinated in the water when they boys were swimming in Sanibel last month. Theo almost never falls except when pushed or knocked over by Beckett, and he has way fewer bumps and bruises as a result.

I've been worried about Theo at school on and off this year because of how much he has dreaded going, and we've been thinking about alternative school environments for him as a result. But I went to school the other day to watch the short "class" part of the day, and he appears to be very comfortable and engaged with what is going on. Certainly the "class" is not sitting in desks and chairs and watching a teacher at the front of the room, but rather songs and physical activities and sounding things out together, but he seems to know what is expected of him and to enjoy participating in what's going on. I wonder if his tough time at school was more a longer-than-expected period of adjusting to the routine of school (made more difficult by the fact that they only go two days a week) rather than some underlying school issue. He definitely seems comforted by Beck's presence and interacts more with Beckett than with other kids, but so does Beck, and I mean, OF COURSE they interact more with each other than with other kids.

Theo is interested in cooking, and often uses his play kitchen to make various foods. He is also more likely to offer to help me in the kitchen. He is more interested in sweets than Beck and can eat more sweet stuff than Beckett.

Theo can also be more engaging with strangers or in strange situations than Beck. This past weekend we had some family photos taken and while Beck was hiding in my chest Theo was posing hilariously, using his hands to frame his face, and making all kinds of goofy faces. When we skyped with our friend Tricia a few months ago, Theo couldn't take his eyes off of her and just kept wanting to tell her more things, or look at the books she had in her bookshelf.