Lessons I learned this weekend from my almost 18-month-old grandson

My almost 18-month-old grandson is learning to go up and down steps. Here he gets a lesson from grandma.

 

I was reminded this weekend about how much a very young child has to learn in the first couple years of his or her life.  Our son and his wife and their almost 18-month-old son are celebrating Thanksgiving with us.  We baby-proofed everything we could think of.  We even pulled out an old gate for our steps going to the basement, leaving one set of steps without a gate.  

Our grandson is a newly-minted walker and, of course, the first thing that attracts his attention are the steps.  Doing up and down safely is an important learned skill.  It's one that's vital to learn.  Otherwise, you fall.  With the help of all of us, especially his mom and dad, he's learning.

This made me think about the joy of learning and how it's lifelong.  As I approach turning 70, I've mastered going up and down steps, but I have a long list of other things that I want to learn.  When do you stop learning?  I guess, it's when your heart stops beating.  

My grandson knows about respecting gates.

 

With help from his dad, our grandson learns about going down steps on your butt.