Update on Connor

I have to say I am really shocked at how much Connor knows. He can't say much that's truly coherent, but he knows EVERYTHING. It makes me remember how when I was child I knew a lot more than I do now.
A typical child, he loves to investigate. He just learned how to open the refrigerator door. He LOVES playing with cell phones and opening and closing the disk drive on our computer (strongly discouraged).
His mouth is rather full of teeth now. He still battles dry skin at times. Having his diaper changed is not a favored activity. Lately he's been enjoying trying to feed himself with fork and spoon. He may be left-handed, or it may be too soon to tell. (This afternoon we were out with some Japanese friends. Connor was eating ice cream. "Is he a southpaw?" Seiko inquired.)
He is fascinated with letters and numbers. He seems better at analyzing spatial relationships than I am. He can complete his alphabet puzzle independently. He's also skilled at putting shapes into a block. His little brain seems to work like a computer, because the block includes some complex shapes, yet he can assess in a split second which one fits where. It's interesting though, he doesnt always have the shape facing the proper angle. So his brain's a malfunctioning computer, I suppose. Ha! Actually he enjoys trying to fit the shapes into spaces he knows don't fit so he can say "nooooooo" kind of nasally.
I realized yesterday that I like Connor because he never does stupid things. I probably do more stupid things than Connor. I can always understand his reason for doing something. Sometimes it's amusing - tonight for example - there was a plastic dish in the bedroom. "Connor, can you put this in the sink for me?" He obediently took the dish and dropped it over the edge of the counter into the sink. Then he proceeded to open the drawer where the OTHER, clean plastic dishes are, and toss those into the sink as well. That's funny! It wasnt what I had in mind but I can understand why he did it.
So he's very helpful. I can ask him to throw something away, put a dirty dish in the sink, turn on (or off) the heater, take off his socks, get his shoes, pick out a book - and he will do it. He can't really talk (though he generally gets his point across) so it's somewhat astounding all that he comprehends. At lunchtime today I asked, "Connor, would you like me to cook you an egg?" and he went and got an egg (yikes!) from the fridge. (I took that for a 'yes.')
So what can he say? He is beginning to parrot new words that he hears - he says something that sounds like "star," some semblance of "circle," and today I remember him mimicking "flower.""Ato" (arigato) is a favorite, quickly losing its #1 status to "ano," the Japanese version of "um," though I imagine Connor simply likes how it sounds. Try as I may, I can't get him to say konnichiwa. I guess that's a mouthful. This morning he seemed to get the words and the concept of mama and dada. He can say nose (no') and eye (with a good flat mississippi I!). Of course he can say "O." Oh yeah- he says zebra! (something like beeber). So gradually he's picking up sounds and words and before we know it, we'll be saying, "Can you believe there was ever a time when Connor couldn't talk?" (by Elizabeth)