the fun age

when i became a new dad, i didn't quite understand what parents meant when they'd talk about toddlerhood being "the fun age."

i was very much enjoying the little bundle of burps and spews and crying the way he was. how could the little monkey be more fun than that?

now i see.

yes, the lil dude is mobile and a constant source of anxiety as a flight risk, but, yeah, the stuff he does at this age is pretty funny.

watching the synapses connect as he applies his observations and discoveries toward whatever new permutations his imagination dreams up is a source of wonder.

the bemused or gleeful amazement that comes across his face when presented with new experiences warms my heart and gives me hope for his intellectual curiosity.

then there's the simple laughs and silliness of being a child.

yeah, that stuff's just cute.