Chase Topher

I know his name is Topher Chase, but my new favorite joke is that I should have named him "Chase Topher" since that's all I ever do anymore. It might have taken him a little longer to walk, but that doesn't seem to matter anymore. He's everywhere. And he's fast. Yesterday we went to Target and for a solid hour I just followed him. He made his way around the entire store. I was happy to find that he didn't knock anything down and he didn't mess up any displays. If I said, "No no" he would just keep walking on to the next thing. He especially loved the row of assembled bicycles (he had to touch every single one and make a "vroom vroom" sound) and the row of talking toys. And since I didn't have anywhere that I needed to be, it was fun to watch him explore the store and stretch his legs. He absolutely cannot walk in hard-soled shoes, but put him in a pair of Robeez (soft leather shoes) and he's off. I could see that checking out with him was going to be a screaming disaster (how dare I put him in the cart when he has so obviously evolved past that stage of his life?) but luckily the bakery man saved the day with a cookie that happily entertained him out to the car. (Nevermind the unfathomable mess he made with it.) After a nap, Topher kept asking to go back "Out, out!" so we took a long walk to the park and I let him run around some more. A woman commented on how busy a boy he is, and I said it's probably just the age he's at. She told me that neither of her girls were ever like that. This confirms my sneaking suspicion that we gave birth to a wild, wild little monkey (and that boys in general naturally need more physical play). I chased my primate around for another hour before he showed signs of being hungry. Again I was spared from a time-to-go meltdown by my mom's random package in the mail that gave Topher a new toy to hold all the way home. (Thanks mom!) I'm so glad he can walk. Strike that, I mean run because let's face it, he never WALKS anywhere. It's fun and everyone smiles at him and it just makes him so happy. I could tell that he was often frustrated as a baby, and being able to walk has really given him the power over his body he has always wanted. So I've officially moved into the Chase Topher phase of my life. In case you haven't seen me lately, I'm that blur behind the shorter blur going by. --KC