Did I mention the quiet?

I never thought I'd say this. There was quiet at our house this morning. Baxter has begun, more and more, to enjoy sitting quietly on the couch, reading. Not leafing through a book, whining, "Mommy, reeeaaad to meeee!" or flipping casually through a few books, jabbering all the while, and then lurching up to leap off of a stool and onto his brother. He can actually read some of the easy board books and, this week, those "I can read" level 1 books. You know, "The dog is running." (turn page) "The boy is running." (turn page) "They like to run!"

I am having flashbacks to my childhood. The hours I spent up in my room, just reading and reading and reading. I was very Baxter-like in my energy and enthuasiasm and, yes, hyperactive tendencies as a young child. But when I got older, all I wanted to do was read. I can hardly imagine this in our household, but is it possible that Baxter will someday be holed up in his bedroom, reading a book, even though the sun is shining and the rest of us are going on a hike? Today I see a glimmer of that possibility. Part of me is thrilled beyond words (does it mean I might get to read a book, too??) but another small part of me is sad to realize that he won't be "around" as much and I will probably be very nostalgic for these days.

And, I'd like to add, there is an added bonus here. Baxter is actually modeling the quiet sitting-down-with-a-book for Lyle! Lyle may grow up to think this behavior is normal in our house. Now isn't that strange? Earlier this week, I grew alarmed when I was cleaning up the dinner table and realized that the house was silent. I turned around and there they were, reading books together in our "book nook" (and we wonder if they'll be bookworms?!). I had to take a picture.

Today, when Baxter sat on that couch reading quietly to himself and then later started drawing quietly with his MagnaDoodle, Lyle just played happily on his own nearby. I considered getting down on my knees and thanking God, but then worried that I might attract their attention and lose the moment.