Samuel's personality has really been emerging over the last few months. He is such a silly kid with a great sense of humor. In fact, we call him our silly monkey (or just "monk" for short). We are having a lot of fun acting goofy with him and making up games. It's not hard to make him laugh and we can really work him into a fit of giggles with a few things.
One of the best games was discovered by accident. One night, when Samuel and I were in bed and the lights were off, Allen came in to the room. It must have startled Samuel because he got scared and literally started crawling up my chest and clinging on really tight. Allen used it to his advantage and came up behind to start tickling him which turned his fear into laughter. Now we like to play "Shadow Dad" when the room is dark. Allen will crouch down low at the foot of the bed and pop up in different places to surprise Samuel. Then he will quickly rush over to start tickling him. He loves it! I love it too since Samuel always looks for Mommy to save him and hold him close for protection.
Another favorite of Samuel's is "giddy-up." This one is a classic and as soon as I showed it to him he started initiating it all the time. Anytime Allen and I are laying flat Samuel will crawl over, straddle our waists and start bouncing up and down. Now he even grabs my hands first since they are his "reins." I like to hum the William Tell Overture or sing "I Should Have Been a Cowboy" by Tracy Lawrence and "Wanted Dead or Alive" by Bon Jovi, while he bounces. Allen and I are particularly susceptible to games of "giddy-up" when we are lying in bed (the perfect position). Sometimes, if Samuel and I are awake before Allen, I will whisper softly in Samuel's ear "giddy-up Daddy" and he will crawl right up on him and start bouncing. He always wakes up laughing!
Often times after a good game of "giddy-up" Daddy will decide it's time to collect his "tummy tax." This little game is nothing more than blowing raspberries on Samuel's tummy, but Allen likes to tell Samuel that he has to pay the "tummy tax" for being so adorable. Samuel laughs so hard that he actually has to stop and catch his breath! Daddy also likes to collect tax on other body parts like the neck and thighs, but that's only when Samuel is super-adorable and owes extra taxes.
Mommy has found that, like all babies, Samuel is a sucker for "coochie, coochie, coo." I just tickle him under the chin and around the neck while saying these words and he erupts with giggles. He twists and wriggles trying to avoid the next round of tickles, but I'm too quick and always catch him. I make sure my "coochie, coochie, coo's" are high pitched and silly-sounding which undoubtedly adds to the humor of the game.
Another ridiculous game we play is "ah-ah-ah-choo!" In this game I pretend to be sneezing, often with some unexpected toy or household item on top of my head, and then on the "choo" part I snap my neck downwards to send the object flying. Samuel will then retrieve said object and hand it back to me so I can start over. I recently found that I can initiate the same uproarious laughter even without flying objects, so we play both ways now. Samuel has even started trying to copy my "sneezing" by bobbing his own head up and down.
One game Samuel likes to play is actually one I would like him to forget. This game involves hitting Mommy or Daddy, and sometimes himself, in the head with things. It all started with his toy hammer. If you hit it on something it will make funny noises. To demonstrate I tapped him very lightly on different parts of his body, including his head (which was the funniest part by far). Of course Samuel doesn't know his own strength, so he will try to imitate me by pounding my head with his hammer. The first time he did it I think I actually saw stars! I am now working on dissuading this activity, but I'll do just about anything to hear my baby's sweet laugh, even endure a few knocks on the head!
