Brennan is...

*Smart: He manifested a hunger for information while still in diapers by eating the newspaper. Of course he had a considerable challenge digesting what he had ingested, so had to be taken to the doctor and given a laxative to ease his discomfort. None of us knew what was making him so cranky until newsprint showed up in his diaper.

*Resourceful; a gifted problem solver: We big sisters have to take at least some credit for this, since we gave him his first complex problem to solve. I'm pretty sure it was Lamona's idea to put one cracker in each of his fists, one in his mouth and one on the tray of his high chair, to keep him quiet. It worked well--because he was unwilling to let go of the crackers in either hand or lose the one in his mouth by biting it--but for less time each day as he cleverly designed a system for eating all the crackers without losing any of them.

*Tidy: He has to have a place for everything. He was sitting on Jackie Goudy's lap, facing her, playing with her car keys before Sacrament meeting one Sunday afternoon. When he was finished playing with the keys, not wanting to be so sloppy as to drop them on the floor, he looked around for someplace to put them away. And then he had a wonderful idea! He very adeptly grabbed the elastic of Jackie's peasant blouse, pulled it firmly toward himself, dropped in the keys and let go with a snap. Another problem solved.

*Having a great day today, I hope. Happy Birthday Brennan!