ROBIEWANKENOBIE

The state of mr8

He has lost four upper teeth front and center and one on the bottom for good measure.

He tells me that he's been keeping a daily fart count.

When you steal him away by himself, even if it is for something as mundane as grocery shopping, he is a real doll. The ride to and from the store is a treat in its own right.

He loves to sing to the radio...is surprisingly good at carrying a tune.

Loves his brother, and alternately hates him. But mostly loves him.

Is all over ice skating. And Batman. And Transformers. He still loves his bear, too. All hail Bonfonzo the Magnificent!

I love watching him read to himself. He's reading longer, more involved books, now. Reading to him is still a real treat. He was sooooooo excited when his birthday came and he knew we could start the next Harry Potter book. The biggest punishment in this house? Having books taken away.

Sometimes? For no particular reason? He puts on dress shirts and ties. The bow ties are my favorite.

You can explain things to him and he really gets it. The discussions that he has about science with his dad? Amazing. Watching him play chess with my father? Priceless.

We talked to him about having a simple Christmas, and he said that he didn't want to be selfish like Dudley Dursley (from Harry P.). When I told him that I didn't want him to sneak television in the morning because it is the job of news casters to find the worst things happening, and that it is our job to find all of the good stuff? He got that too.

I daresay that he will continue to struggle with a lot of the things that I do. He might have to struggle against his perfectionist tendencies. He might be deeply emotional. Hopefully I'll find ways to make it easier for him. His creativity and open heart? I hope that I can nurture those things, too.

I'm keeping this kid. He's amazing. When I had him? I had no idea how he would turn out. I'm starting to get a glimpse, and I tell you? He's going to be fantastic.