My talented son

I’m sure most would tell me that this is simply something all kids do, but I tend to think it’s because he’s MY son. Titus loves remote controls. Like any 21st century family, we have 45 bazillion remotes to control all the technology in our life. We have a basket beside our couch where these remotes live (okay, so we don’t have 45 bazillion of them… maybe more like 5). But Titus loves them. Partially because I think he has an affinity for technology and partially because it’s the "forbidden fruit." You see, we don’t let Titus play with the remotes. All the more reason he wants to play with them. So, just about every day we’ll turn our attention somewhere else for just a few minutes and in that time he’ll find a remote and begin what I call "remote happy time." He just absolutely loves it. However, as soon as he sees that we see that he has a remote, he gets that "oops, I’ve been caught" look in his face. Before we can even say "no touch" he releases the remote from his grip like it was a deadly virus with the look on his face that says, "what remote? I don’t see any remote."

As we continue to train Titus in what he is allowed to play with and what he isn’t, he’s done something quite remarkable. I’ve had my TV remote for almost 6 years. About 18 months ago the power button on the remote stopped working. Everything else works just fine, but if I want to turn the TV on, I have to do it manually. Interestingly enough, Titus has managed to turn on the TV with the remote at least 5 times. The power button is a big red button, so he is naturally drawn to touching that one. But how does he do it? Why can he do it and not me? Oh how I wish to learn his secret technique, but to allow him to teach me would be breaking the rule we’ve set for him… what a quandary I’m in!