Genius revealed

It's amazing to me that Elias still amazes me almost daily. Yesterday he was busy reconfirming his genius status while being his delightful self. Genius, of course, entails being unusually gifted in a multitude of areas.

Language:
His current favorite books are some of his longer ones: Dr. Seuss' ABC's, If You Give A Pig A Pancake, and Are You My Mother? Yesterday he started with the ABC one, and surprised me by flipping open the cover where the alphabet is printed all jumbled up, and thrusting his finger at the M, and loudly declaring "M!" Then Q, then B! Wow. Then at the end of the book, he went and got one of the many wooden blocks "decorating" the living room, handed it to me, and said "M!"...and sure enough, it was the M block! Then he got another and said "Q!" and it was the Q block. Wow, Wow! Different context entirely; I don't know if I've ever went over the letters on the blocks with him. No wrong guesses, either. He's soaking up the alphabet like crazy, and I haven't even been "trying" to teach it, definitely not quizzing him with letters. Well, that's going to change now! The daycare folks say they don't really emphasize the alphabet either this early. When reading the book, he constantly quizzes me on his favorite letters, B, I, G, R, Q, and M by pointing at them and looking up at me waiting to say what they are. B and I are favorites perhaps because he uses the words "bee" and "eye" quite a lot, and likes confirming that these are somehow different. It seems to me that identifying a sound with a symbol (even more than an object) is a pretty big concept for someone who just turned 22 months old.

Geometry:
After the letter shockers we went outside a bit to play. He found some of the sidewalk chalk and happily chewed on one while I sketched out his favorite letters on the driveway. I decided for the heck of it to try a few shapes, too, since I'd introduced those while coloring a week or so ago. He nailed "square" and "circle," although he wasn't too sure about "triangle." Sheesh, what else does this kid know? I think now I'll introduce "trapezoid," "spiral" and "parabola."

Sports:
OK, so I don't specifically recall this from yesterday, but for months now Elias has been very accomplished in catching a ball, getting it just about every time. True, I throw it to him softly, but I haven't seen any other kids his age (or up to 3yrs old) that can do that!

Theater:
After his bath we dried off (well, he dried off; I usually remain wet) and sang songs while I slathered him up with moisturizer. He loves action songs, and he asked for the schoolbus song. He acted out all the verses (wheels, doors, driver, babies, wipers, horn), skipping to the next hand motion he wanted before I was quite done with the previous one, to ensure that'd be the next verse. He really gets into those hand motions.

Music:
Elias' bedtime routine is to have a sippycup of warm milk while I sing to him two or three lullaby-type songs, usually "Rock-a-bye Baby" and the alphabet song, ending with the doxology (my repertoire is severely limited). Well, he "gonged" those by shaking his head "no" very seriously when I started "Rock-a-bye," then the alphabet, then "Michael Row Your Boat Ashore," then "Yankee Doodle," then maybe something else (I was running out of songs), until I finally came to "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands." So apparently now the song must fit his mood. He settled down very happily and listened to that, occasionally supplying the appropriate sound effect for animals he knows and signing "more" when I'd stop: quite the music director. Finally, after a cajillion verses, I switched to the doxology (which he always loves) and put him to bed.

Mechanical engineering:
Carrying over to this morning's genius demonstration, as we were getting ready to leave for school & work, I found that Elias had taken out the hinge pin and doorstop assembly to the back door, and was carrying this new toy around the house, fitting them together and taking them apart again. Just before leaving I looked for it to put back, but he had already reassembled it and put it back on the hinge!