Jorie Costanza: Climber, Antagonizer, Garbage Eater

[mamabusypants]

Having my firstborn diagnosed with autism, I can say that raising a neurotypical (NT) feels anything but typical.

For me, a typical just-under-two toddler stays where you put him and only explores the room he's in. He creates minor annoyances like throwing all his food and his sippy cup on the floor when he's done, but he does not protest going inside, going to bed, or his mother going insane.

Miss Chattyshoes does not fit this description.

Take climbing, for example. Miss Chattyshoes makes it her personal mission to lean against and hike up her stinky little hoof onto anything she can pull herself up on. Her upper body strength and determination is at least a year ahead of Mr. Busypants, who at this age needed me to help him climb each level at the McDonalds playland. Whether she's standing on the kitchen desk re-arranging our bills and relocating our car keys or using the dishwasher door as her own personal foot stool to access the knife drawer and leftover breakfast, Miss Chattyshoes needs no help in the kitchen.

If she wants to play with water, she'll just pull a bar stool over to the sink; if she wants the goldfish crackers on the third shelf from the top, she'll embed her little toes into the wire shelves and start climbing; and someday, when she wants to swing from the light fixtures over the island, well, I'm sure she'll have no problem figuring out how to do that either.

For the rest of the story go to http://mamabusypants.blogspot.com/2009/04/jorie-costanza-climber-garbage-eater.html