Jan. 31: Andrew may not appreciate me sharing this with the world, but I found it to be so earnest and tender that I just wanted to write it down.
Andrew feels very afraid when he hears loud noises: coffee grinders, blenders, lawn mowers, and especially the vacuum cleaner. This morning, I wanted to vacuum up the hallway carpet a bit. Andrew was playing with puzzles in the living room, and when I came over to tell him I was going to pull out the vacuum for a few minutes, he got really panicky. He started breathing fast and then started crying and trying to pick up all his puzzles at once. I promised him (as I always do) that the vacuum won’t hurt him. It helps Mommy clean, and it just makes a lot of noise while it does it.
Eventually, I calmed him down, and he went into his room clutching three of his toys, mumbling something about “saving them.” When I peeked into his bedroom after vacuuming the hall, he was on his bed with his toys under his blankets. Oh, he is so cute I just want to eat him up:)