two-and-a-half

Brother is two-and-a-half today.

He is

outside-of-the-box thinking

brilliantly imaginative

bursting with energy and enthusiasm

chock-full of  both attitude and sweetness

sensitive and tough

handsome and verbal

I decided to celebrate his milestone day a little differently than usual.  Instead of simply making a list, I did a little interview with him.  It went as follows:

Me: What's your favorite color?

Brother: Mater.

Me: Mater is your favorite color?

Brother: Mater. And Lightning McQueen.

Me: Tell me about your friends.  Who do you like to play with?

Brother: [Little Man]

Me: Why do you like to play with him?

Brother: Because...because yeah.

Me: What do you like to play with? What are your favorite toys?

Brother: Uh. Mater. And Woody.

Me: What about your trains?

Brother: Yeah.

Me: How about painting and play-doh? Do you like those things?

Brother: Yeah. And painting.

Me: what is your favorite animal?

Brother: A monkey.

Me: A monkey is your favorite?

Brother: Yeah.

Me: What other animals to you like?

Brother: I smashed the jellyfish! (He was playing with silly putty while I was interviewing him, and I think he had made a silly putty jellyfish.)

Me: Tell me about something that makes you happy.

Brother: Moody Man. (Moody Man was a squishy, latex fellow that could be stretched and squeezed into strange shapes.  He met his demise when his cheery orange skin was punctured and his mysterious white innards began oozing out.)

Me: Moody Man? I thought he made you scared!

Brother: No, he didn't.

Little Man: Yes, he did!

Me: Does anything make you scared?

Brother: Um. Yeah.

Me: What scares you?

Brother: Um. Yeah.

Me: What do you like to eat?

Brother: Pasta. Pasta. Pasta!

Me: What else do you like to eat?

Brother: Dinosaurs!

Me: Dinosaurs? You like to eat dinosaurs?

Brother: Yes. Dinosaurs. And Pterodactyls. They taste good.

Me: Where did you eat a Pterodactyl?

Brother: Um. At home.

Me: What books do you like?

Brother: Um. Little Man's books.

Me: Which book is your favorite? Which one do you like?

Brother: Um. Franklin. (A book they read at their Nonna and Grandpa's house; I'm a little surprised he remembers it.)

Me: What other books do you like?

Brother: My books.

Me: Can you show me one that you really like?

Brother: This one. My machine book.

And then he was off to inspect the cars Little Man was playing with, do some jumping, and splash in the bath.