Quebesmiles: Auggie!

Auggie! What can I say? This little guy is a force to be reckoned with. Over the last year he has gone from a spunky, excitable, tiny-tot-toddler to a highly complex, deeply passionate, cry-laugh hilarious kid. I have a favorite quote that I think of often as we go through life with Auggie.

"Watch carefully the magic that occurs when you give a person just enough comfort to just be themselves." -Atticus

To spend time with a free and authentic Auggie is to experience real joy. That's the best way to describe it, other than to say that it is fuuun. His zest for life is so vibrant that as a parent, most days I find myself desperately trying not to get in his way, not to dampen his magic. His highs are high and his lows are low, and I feel wholly unequipped to teach this spitfire of a human how to live life. It's like he already knows how. And he knows he knows, and I know he knows, so sometimes we just look at each other with this brief glance of mutual understanding.

Admittedly, some of these extreme emotions are difficult to handle as a parent of a two year old. The kid's got big feelings and strong opinions. But I try to remember that it's those same big feelings and strong opinions that will guide him through adulthood. Not only guide him...but help him find his passions, succeed and thrive.

Auggie is a very special kid with a heart of gold. There is this huge part of him that is so refreshingly pure and sweet and thoughtful. It's not uncommon for him to bring me a lego creation that he made all out of purple legos, specifically for me because he knows that purple is my favorite color. I can see the twinkle of pride in his eyes as he knowingly asks me, "did you see, Mom, it's made out of purple!". He always leads with his heart, and he's thoughtful on a level that I didn't know a two year old was capable of.

And then there is Don. Auggie's favorite person in the world. Every time Don comes home, Auggie turns to me with sweet desperation and asks "May I please have some dad and Auggie alone time?". Don and Auggie are two peas in a pod. At any given moment you can find Auggie mimicking Don's (very realistic!) car sounds, dancing and singing along to Shakey Graves, or begging for another sip of spicy water that he doesn't actually like, but wants more of just because that's what his dad drinks.

Ugh. I'm not crying, you're crying! Our little Auggie is growing up, and we can't wait to watch him take the world by storm!

Here are some of our favorite toddler Auggie moments:

{well....maybe!!!}

Early on, I tried to instill in Auggie a sense of confidence, a feeling that he could do anything if he never gave up. He took that very literally. It didn't matter what incorrect, untrue, or impossible thing we were talking about, Auggie was determined it was possible. When we told him something couldn't actually be done, he would respond over and over with a determined 'Well....maybe!'. I mean...it could happen!

{jokes}

One night when I was putting Auggie to bed, I told him 'I love you two!'. He got this funny little smirk on his face and after a minute looked up at me and said, 'I love you three!!!!!!". Hahahaha. The kid's got jokes! Other favorite Auggie jokes...Hey, pipe down out there! What's round and orange, but not a fruit? A basketball!

{throw you in the vent!}

One night Auggie randomly asked Don to throw him into the vent. Confused much? Yes, we were as perplexed as you are. We still have no idea what he was talking about, but now Don pretends to throw him into the ceiling vents and it's hilarious for everybody!

{mannequins}

I can't even with this one. Auggie finally noticed the mannequins at Target one day and asked me all sorts of questions about them. That night, he randomly struck a pose and froze. Stone still. No movement. When I asked him what he was doing, he told me he was being a mannequin! Now it's a thing, and he's got a one legged signature move.

{Geronimo!}
Sweet little Auggie. He is simply not a risk taker. He calculates danger in his head and almost always decides the risk isn't worth taking. Except for this one big slide at the park. Don told him to shout 'Geronimo!' as he went down, and he loved it. It's now officially the Geronimo slide and still the only big slide he'll do by himself.

{work}

One day Auggie was busying himself with a game upstairs, and I asked him what he was doing. He matter-of-factly replied I'm just doing my Santorini work. I'd imagine Santorini work is pretty fun? Also, sometimes Don sits with him on the computer and lets him dictate scans, which is completely adorable. But since then I've caught Auggie multiple times in Don's office doing work on his own, as he's attempting to use the dictaphone to "read TC scans". He always gets CT a little jumbled up :)

{i do. we are. it is. i am}

For months, whenever anyone asked him a question, he would respond in kind. A simple yes or no would not suffice. If I asked him do you like this? His response was I do. Are you happy? I am. Does Mimi like pets? She does. Would you like cereal for breakfast? I would.

{builder builder!}

This kid loves building things! He especially loves legos and has come up with some truly amazing creations all on his own.