Running and jumping and climbing trees

Increasingly at the moment I'm realising that I no longer have a baby, or even a toddler, but that I very much have a little boy (well definitely in training). I'm still aware of his limits but he is so determined that he can do things that generally he succeeds.

I spent Sunday afternoon in the playground at Crystal Palace park and I sat while Kit ran. When climbed up to the slide and I didn't feel worried that he would take an accidentally-suicidal leap off the wrong way as he used to. I didn't feel like I needed to be just there to catch him (although I still jumped up to be ready to run just in case!). I could step back and watch him and see how proud he was to acheive new things (like climbing up the more difficult ladder). When we see a tree, he 'needs' to climb it apparently.

It isn't just my trust that he understands not to take the wrong kind of leap that has changed (and there are limits to this as I can't imagine a time at the moment that I will be able to trust him to not run away - he never looks back to see if anyone is behind him and he is fast!). His determination to be independant has meant his ability to do what he wants has improved incredibly. I'm no longer allowed to undress or dress him without permission, as he wants to (and often does) do it himself. On Saturday he got some sauce on the sleeve of his t-shirt, which wasn't acceptable to him. So he took off that t-shirt, went to the drawer in his room, picked a new t-shirt (without leaving a trail of destruction) and he put that on instead.