When we got home from work today, I immediately put dinner in the oven - fish - so we could actually eat before 7:00pm. If I'm late leaving work, by the time I pick up the boys and get home, it's sometimes 6:30 which means dinner won't be ready till 7:00 and Alex is usually so tired by then he won't eat. Tonight we were home by 5:45 so could eat dinner at a reasonable hour.
It's a really good thing because Alex was already cranky - not sure if his nap wasn't long enough or he was just hungry or it's his teeth or what but he was not a happy camper. So in the living room, I tried to get him interested in something other than whining. Finally, he sat on my back and I let him slowly flip over to end up on the floor - sort of a controlled fall / somersault. This had him laughing which is where his brother stepped in to help.
Ethan helped Alex up from the floor, held both his hands and started turning in a circle with Alex saying, "Ring around the rosey, ashes, we all fall down." He promptly fell to the floor taking Alex with him and they both rolled around in fits of laughter. Ethan got up first and I thought I'd tell him the whole song so I sang for him, "Ring around the rosey; pocket full of poseys; ashes; ashes; we all fall down." He then repeated it with me - all the while Alex is still laughing on the floor. Alex finally got up and Ethan took his hands again and this time sang the full song with him and they fell together laughing uproariously again. This time though, Alex hopped up when Ethan did and held out his hands to do it again. They repeated this - with Alex initiating - about 15 times usually falling way before Ethan was done singing. In fact, one song lasted through three falls and the laughs rolled on. It would have continued until dinner was ready except that on the last "fall down" Ethan pushed a bit too hard and Alex hit his head on a toy on the floor. Oh well, nothing lasts forever. So much fun to watch though and Ethan helped Alex back up telling him he was "sowwy, Owix" and kissed his head so it was all good in the end. Such a good big brother.
Friday, February 26, 2010
From Santa Claus to the Easter Bunny
Background: Steve works at Verizon (at least for another month till they close) and has for the past 2 Christmases. At Christmas, someone (the same guy both times thankfully as Ethan has a mind like a steal trap), dresses as Santa and the kids can go see him in the Verizon lobby. The kids bring a book to give Santa so he can give it to kids who don't have books, then they sit on Santa's lap like any other Santa at Christmas. Ethan did this both years.
Wednesday evening I picked up the boys at daycare and then went to Walmart for a few things. On the list was gatorade for Steve cause he's trying to cut out pop & caffeine and wanted something besides water. The boys and I then went to Steve's work to give him the gatorade because his dinner break was coinciding with our schedule. We saw Steve for a few minutes, delivered his drink, he gave the boys kisses all around and headed back into work.
As we started driving away, Ethan asked, "Where's Daddy going?" To which I replied, "he's going to work."
E: "Why?"
Me: "Because that's what they pay him for."
E: "Where's Santa Claus?" [he asks this pretty often when leaving Steve's work]
Me: "Honey Santa Claus isn't still at Daddy's work. He's back at the North Pole now. He went home and is only here at Christmas time."
E: ....silence - 1/2 mile later pointing out the passenger side window "I thought you were going to turn there."
Me, curiously: "No, honey. We're going home."
E: "But isn't that the North Pole? I thought I was gonna go see Santa Claus."
Me, chuckling: "No, honey. The North Pole is far away from here and it's way too cold."
E: "But Santa Claus is there."
Me: "Yes, Santa is there but he lives there. It's just too cold for us. Santa has a special kind of magic that makes him live there and I don't think you could see him right now anyway - he's hidden by all the snow. He only comes here at Christmas time just like the Easter Bunny only comes at Easter. It's almost Easter now and the Easter Bunny is probably watching. He gets together with Santa and they compare notes to make sure you are good all year long."
E: silence....thinking about all this (keep in mind we're driving through this but I can see him in my kid-view mirror and his has his finger tapping his chin thinking as I talk)
Me: "What do you think the Easter Bunny will bring when he comes? Remeber he brought you Baby Pete [our rabbit] last year. Have you been good this year? What do you think he might bring you?"
E: "Yeah, I'm good. I think he's going to bring me my puppy dog."
Me: "No, I don't think he's going to bring you a puppy dog. He asked Mama and I told him you couldn't have one."
E: "But I dust want a little one. I dust want a little puppy dog."
Me: "Well honey, when we have our own house, you can get a puppy. But the people who own the house we live in don't want us to have a dog so you just can't have one right now but when we get a house, you can have one."
E: "Yeah, I dust want a little one. Owix wants a big one."
Me: "You just want a little puppy dog but Alex wants a big dog?"
E: "Yeah, he wants a big one like Chavy. Chavy is a good dog."
Me: "Like Chavy, huh? Whose dog is Chavy, do you remember?"
E: "Ummmm..."
Me: "He's Evan's dog. Remember cousin Evan?"
E: "Yeah, at Aunt Katie's house. And Webekah's dog, too. He's a good dog, too."
Me: "Rebekah's dog is Oz."
E: "No, I'm talking bout WeBEKah's dog. The big dog. WEBEKAH's dog."
Me: "Yes, Rebekah has a big dog - his name is Oz. Evan's dog is Chavy at Aunt Katie's house."
E: "No. Member, Mama? Webekah's dog. It's big. It tried to push me over. Member when we dropped you off and me and Daddy and Owix went to the Quarium and we saw the tractors and stuff. When we came back, Webekah's house. I'm talking bout her dog. THAT big dog."
Me: "Yes, when you dropped me off to see Rebekah and Amelia [8 months ago when she was born - I'm telling you, steal trap] and you and Daddy went to the Bass Pro shop to play and look at the fish in the big fish tank - it's not the Aquarium but it has a big tank like that. Then you came back to pick me up and you came in and saw Rebekah's dog. That dog is Oz."
E: "Yeah. I'm talking bout that dog. Well Owix wants a big dog like that. But I dust want a little one."
Me: "Ok honey but we can't get one right now. We have to wait till we have our own house and then you can get a little dog."
E: "Ok. But the Easter Bunny dust won't bring one right now."
OK so I got him off the Santa Claus/North Pole deal but maybe I should have picked some other topic. The kid remembers like every detail of an event that was quite literally 8 months ago but didn't believe me that the dog's name was Oz until I confirmed that dog from that event is the one I meant. Sheesh. But he's right - he has been good so I guess we'll see in about a month or so what the Easter Bunny will really bring him - cause it won't be a dog.
Wednesday evening I picked up the boys at daycare and then went to Walmart for a few things. On the list was gatorade for Steve cause he's trying to cut out pop & caffeine and wanted something besides water. The boys and I then went to Steve's work to give him the gatorade because his dinner break was coinciding with our schedule. We saw Steve for a few minutes, delivered his drink, he gave the boys kisses all around and headed back into work.
As we started driving away, Ethan asked, "Where's Daddy going?" To which I replied, "he's going to work."
E: "Why?"
Me: "Because that's what they pay him for."
E: "Where's Santa Claus?" [he asks this pretty often when leaving Steve's work]
Me: "Honey Santa Claus isn't still at Daddy's work. He's back at the North Pole now. He went home and is only here at Christmas time."
E: ....silence - 1/2 mile later pointing out the passenger side window "I thought you were going to turn there."
Me, curiously: "No, honey. We're going home."
E: "But isn't that the North Pole? I thought I was gonna go see Santa Claus."
Me, chuckling: "No, honey. The North Pole is far away from here and it's way too cold."
E: "But Santa Claus is there."
Me: "Yes, Santa is there but he lives there. It's just too cold for us. Santa has a special kind of magic that makes him live there and I don't think you could see him right now anyway - he's hidden by all the snow. He only comes here at Christmas time just like the Easter Bunny only comes at Easter. It's almost Easter now and the Easter Bunny is probably watching. He gets together with Santa and they compare notes to make sure you are good all year long."
E: silence....thinking about all this (keep in mind we're driving through this but I can see him in my kid-view mirror and his has his finger tapping his chin thinking as I talk)
Me: "What do you think the Easter Bunny will bring when he comes? Remeber he brought you Baby Pete [our rabbit] last year. Have you been good this year? What do you think he might bring you?"
E: "Yeah, I'm good. I think he's going to bring me my puppy dog."
Me: "No, I don't think he's going to bring you a puppy dog. He asked Mama and I told him you couldn't have one."
E: "But I dust want a little one. I dust want a little puppy dog."
Me: "Well honey, when we have our own house, you can get a puppy. But the people who own the house we live in don't want us to have a dog so you just can't have one right now but when we get a house, you can have one."
E: "Yeah, I dust want a little one. Owix wants a big one."
Me: "You just want a little puppy dog but Alex wants a big dog?"
E: "Yeah, he wants a big one like Chavy. Chavy is a good dog."
Me: "Like Chavy, huh? Whose dog is Chavy, do you remember?"
E: "Ummmm..."
Me: "He's Evan's dog. Remember cousin Evan?"
E: "Yeah, at Aunt Katie's house. And Webekah's dog, too. He's a good dog, too."
Me: "Rebekah's dog is Oz."
E: "No, I'm talking bout WeBEKah's dog. The big dog. WEBEKAH's dog."
Me: "Yes, Rebekah has a big dog - his name is Oz. Evan's dog is Chavy at Aunt Katie's house."
E: "No. Member, Mama? Webekah's dog. It's big. It tried to push me over. Member when we dropped you off and me and Daddy and Owix went to the Quarium and we saw the tractors and stuff. When we came back, Webekah's house. I'm talking bout her dog. THAT big dog."
Me: "Yes, when you dropped me off to see Rebekah and Amelia [8 months ago when she was born - I'm telling you, steal trap] and you and Daddy went to the Bass Pro shop to play and look at the fish in the big fish tank - it's not the Aquarium but it has a big tank like that. Then you came back to pick me up and you came in and saw Rebekah's dog. That dog is Oz."
E: "Yeah. I'm talking bout that dog. Well Owix wants a big dog like that. But I dust want a little one."
Me: "Ok honey but we can't get one right now. We have to wait till we have our own house and then you can get a little dog."
E: "Ok. But the Easter Bunny dust won't bring one right now."
OK so I got him off the Santa Claus/North Pole deal but maybe I should have picked some other topic. The kid remembers like every detail of an event that was quite literally 8 months ago but didn't believe me that the dog's name was Oz until I confirmed that dog from that event is the one I meant. Sheesh. But he's right - he has been good so I guess we'll see in about a month or so what the Easter Bunny will really bring him - cause it won't be a dog.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
It's the little things that get the best compliments
Steve called today to tell me the snow is now packable and therefore "snowman ready." Ethan was all set when I picked the boys up from daycare this evening. I told him we'd check the snow when we got home and if we could make a snowman, we would.
We got home and I checked the snow already thinking Steve was mistaken. Sure enough, the snow just crumbled in my hand - wouldn't pack at all. I'm thinking if you have no gloves on (which Steve likely didn't but I did and Ethan would), the heat from your hands may make it packable and therefore good snowman making snow. However, this will also give you frostbite as to make the snowman, you'd be touching that snow an awfully long time and it's bitingly cold (frost-bitingly even). So I had to break the news to Ethan that we couldn't build a snowman because the snow just wasn't right.
His face fell, "but I want to pway in the snow wiff you and Owix; I don't want to fix dinna." I had told him if we could make a snowman we would but if we couldn't, I'd need to fix dinner. I told him to go on in the house and I'd get him dressed and let him play while I fixed dinner. He said, "wiff Owix?" Alex's cheeks are still chapped from our last snowy adventure and as the sun goes down, so does his energy level so I decided Alex should stay inside with me which also meant I could actually fix dinner and not stand outside with Alex helping him up every few minutes. Ethan decided it was ok as long as HE still got to play in the snow.
In the house, Ethan stripped off his pants so we could put 2 layers of better pants on for added warmth, then the snowboots with pants tucked in, the gloves and hat (coat never came off) and he was ready to go. I opened the back door and out he went.
Alex proceeded to lay on a pillow with his sippy, paci & blanket right over the gate from the kitchen into the living room. He was not at all concerned with the fact that he wasn't outside - he was tired and completely content to lay right there until it was time to eat. He was just resting up before dinner actually because he was full of energy when I said it was ready - jumped right up and started grunting for me to move the gate.
I had already given Ethan the 5 minute warning and he's said "Ok, Mama." Because the stipulation to go outside when I'm fixing dinner whether in the snow or in the sunshine is that he has to come in when I say it's time. However, when I said, "it's time to come in, Ethan. Dinner's ready." He said, "NO! It's not time. I'm not coming." I said, "Yes, you need to come in." E: "No. I don't want dinna. I want to play in the snow." Me: "If you don't come in right now, you won't play in the snow at all the next time it snows or anymore in this snow." E: "No. I'm staying right here." I looked at him and waited a second for my last statement to sink in because he's almost said "no" before I got the statement out of my mouth. Yep, it registered. Not a word was said as he suddenly started walking to the house and came straight in. Smart boy - I could almost see the "on second thought" lightbulb turn on in his head.
Inside, I started stripped off the cold layers as he told me he thought he needed some hot chocolate. Hey, I can totally handle that - no problem. Stripped and redressed in warm, dry clothes, he sat down to eat while I strapped in the energy ball known as Alex. I wasn't even done yet before Ethan reminded me, "I really think I need some hot chocolate, Mama. Look how cold my teeth are. They really need some hot chocolate to eat." That's right folks - apparently you eat hot chocolate to warm your teeth rather than drinking it. I chuckled as I told him I was making it and to eat his spaghetti. He proceeded to eat every bite while he played in and ate/drank his hot chocolate. He kept insisting Alex really needed some, too, but as Alex was fully engrossed in his spaghetti, I thought it better to let him finish one mess without handing him hot chocolate to make another one.
The best compliment came after dinner. Ethan told me I was a really good Mama because I made really good hot chocolate and gave him ice to cool it down so he could "eat" it better and it was yummy with his dinna followed by, "fanks, Mama. I wuv you." Yes, I do believe I'll keep this boy of mine and since Alex was so sweet laying on his pillow and then ate all his dinner with minimal mess on the floor, I think I'll keep him, too.
We got home and I checked the snow already thinking Steve was mistaken. Sure enough, the snow just crumbled in my hand - wouldn't pack at all. I'm thinking if you have no gloves on (which Steve likely didn't but I did and Ethan would), the heat from your hands may make it packable and therefore good snowman making snow. However, this will also give you frostbite as to make the snowman, you'd be touching that snow an awfully long time and it's bitingly cold (frost-bitingly even). So I had to break the news to Ethan that we couldn't build a snowman because the snow just wasn't right.
His face fell, "but I want to pway in the snow wiff you and Owix; I don't want to fix dinna." I had told him if we could make a snowman we would but if we couldn't, I'd need to fix dinner. I told him to go on in the house and I'd get him dressed and let him play while I fixed dinner. He said, "wiff Owix?" Alex's cheeks are still chapped from our last snowy adventure and as the sun goes down, so does his energy level so I decided Alex should stay inside with me which also meant I could actually fix dinner and not stand outside with Alex helping him up every few minutes. Ethan decided it was ok as long as HE still got to play in the snow.
In the house, Ethan stripped off his pants so we could put 2 layers of better pants on for added warmth, then the snowboots with pants tucked in, the gloves and hat (coat never came off) and he was ready to go. I opened the back door and out he went.
As you can see, he was quite happy to be out there. The first thing he did was unstack those little chairs you see laying beside him in the snow. I then asked him to stack them back up so they wouldn't blow away and as I helped him do that, he showed me the gaping hole in the snow where they had been "stuck": "Dey was stuck wight dere, Mama. Look at da grass. I'm gonna put snow on it." And he proceeded to do just that as I went back in the house.
I had already given Ethan the 5 minute warning and he's said "Ok, Mama." Because the stipulation to go outside when I'm fixing dinner whether in the snow or in the sunshine is that he has to come in when I say it's time. However, when I said, "it's time to come in, Ethan. Dinner's ready." He said, "NO! It's not time. I'm not coming." I said, "Yes, you need to come in." E: "No. I don't want dinna. I want to play in the snow." Me: "If you don't come in right now, you won't play in the snow at all the next time it snows or anymore in this snow." E: "No. I'm staying right here." I looked at him and waited a second for my last statement to sink in because he's almost said "no" before I got the statement out of my mouth. Yep, it registered. Not a word was said as he suddenly started walking to the house and came straight in. Smart boy - I could almost see the "on second thought" lightbulb turn on in his head.
Inside, I started stripped off the cold layers as he told me he thought he needed some hot chocolate. Hey, I can totally handle that - no problem. Stripped and redressed in warm, dry clothes, he sat down to eat while I strapped in the energy ball known as Alex. I wasn't even done yet before Ethan reminded me, "I really think I need some hot chocolate, Mama. Look how cold my teeth are. They really need some hot chocolate to eat." That's right folks - apparently you eat hot chocolate to warm your teeth rather than drinking it. I chuckled as I told him I was making it and to eat his spaghetti. He proceeded to eat every bite while he played in and ate/drank his hot chocolate. He kept insisting Alex really needed some, too, but as Alex was fully engrossed in his spaghetti, I thought it better to let him finish one mess without handing him hot chocolate to make another one.
The best compliment came after dinner. Ethan told me I was a really good Mama because I made really good hot chocolate and gave him ice to cool it down so he could "eat" it better and it was yummy with his dinna followed by, "fanks, Mama. I wuv you." Yes, I do believe I'll keep this boy of mine and since Alex was so sweet laying on his pillow and then ate all his dinner with minimal mess on the floor, I think I'll keep him, too.
Monday, February 15, 2010
Snow - How we love you :)
YEAHHHHH!!!!! We finally got really good snow. Roads were horrible on the way to work this morning but I went with a smile on my face knowing I would be able to play with boys in some really good snow.
I left work a little early so I'd get home with enough daylight to enjoy it. It took about 10 minutes (maybe a little more) to round up the boys stuff and layer them up. Then we headed into the backyard for a change of pace. Ethan trekked out before I could get Alex to the door so I asked him to come back & wait for us. His snow boots were already completely covered in snow. We have about 6 inches at least in the backyard. I suck at estimating measurement so it could be more - no clue. The boys and I played about 5 minutes or so before Steve finally made it outside to join us but no luck finding the camera. We threw snow at each other and the boys used the snow covered slide a few times. Alex wasn't too thrilled that we wouldn't let him swing but Steve was right, with the wetness from snow on his cheeks already, it would have been a little too tempting for frost bite if he was swinging through the already biting cold & wind.
Alex headed back inside after sliding a couple more times because he can't seem to keep his face out of the snow so he tends to get colder faster. Ethan got to stay and play some more though. I showed him again how to make a snow angel. We made matching angels and then turned around to view our handy work. Somehow Ethan must think snow angels are bad though because no sooner did we check them out then he started wiping them away. He used his hands to smear them fully while crawling through them and then said, "Mama, let me teach you something. Let's dust do this." He proceeded to crawl up to the back fence and I told him he could just show me and I'd watch. He got to the back fence and said, "Now Mama, look." Sure enough, he'd made a cute little trail in the snow. I was cold just looking at his snow covered pants. Then again, I had only 1 layer and he had 2 but still, the snow angel was enough to soak my one layer so the snow angel and the crawling had to be getting to him. So I changed the game, "I bet you can't get me." He fell for it and the chase was on. I got most of the way to the door and he said, "You can't get me." So I turned around and he was right there. I, of course, got him and we threw snow at each other a few more times and then I had to break his heart. "It's time to go in, honey." E: "But I wanted to make a snowman." Me: "I'm sorry, babe. I wanted to, too. But Daddy said the snow isn't the right snow to make a snowman [blame Daddy for this one - I get to be the good guy]. E: "But why?" Me: "You'll have to ask Daddy. But right now, look at your pants. They are completely covered in snow and probably wet so we need to go inside and dry off and warm up and then we can come back out a little later when our clothes dry." E [crying]: "But I wanted to make a snowman." Me: "I know, honey. But look over there where we started it, the snow isn't packing to make the snowman so Daddy said we can't. But we'll go warm up and I promise we can come back out later." E [still crying]: "OK. [walking through the door] but I wanted to make a snowman."
Inside he calmed down as his Daddy explained the difference in snowman making snow and what we have while I stripped his wet layers and found him dry pants. It helped that he got his Valentine chocolates and got a pallet on the couch under a blanket to warm up while Daddy made him hot cocoa. It didn't help that Alex wanted it all, too. Ethan did share his chocolates and even tried to share the cocoa but Alex wanted it ALL and was trying to spill it and Ethan wasn't interested in sharing his pallet so it wasn't so much fun for me. But the playing in the snow part, THAT part was awesome. And Ethan didn't want to go back out tonight so I guess I'll have to wait for tomorrow to get my next dose of snow-filled fun. So glad the boys like it as much as I do (by the way, apparently Alex wasn't all that happy to be inside either but I got the pleasure of missing that meltdown since I was outside still).
I left work a little early so I'd get home with enough daylight to enjoy it. It took about 10 minutes (maybe a little more) to round up the boys stuff and layer them up. Then we headed into the backyard for a change of pace. Ethan trekked out before I could get Alex to the door so I asked him to come back & wait for us. His snow boots were already completely covered in snow. We have about 6 inches at least in the backyard. I suck at estimating measurement so it could be more - no clue. The boys and I played about 5 minutes or so before Steve finally made it outside to join us but no luck finding the camera. We threw snow at each other and the boys used the snow covered slide a few times. Alex wasn't too thrilled that we wouldn't let him swing but Steve was right, with the wetness from snow on his cheeks already, it would have been a little too tempting for frost bite if he was swinging through the already biting cold & wind.
Alex headed back inside after sliding a couple more times because he can't seem to keep his face out of the snow so he tends to get colder faster. Ethan got to stay and play some more though. I showed him again how to make a snow angel. We made matching angels and then turned around to view our handy work. Somehow Ethan must think snow angels are bad though because no sooner did we check them out then he started wiping them away. He used his hands to smear them fully while crawling through them and then said, "Mama, let me teach you something. Let's dust do this." He proceeded to crawl up to the back fence and I told him he could just show me and I'd watch. He got to the back fence and said, "Now Mama, look." Sure enough, he'd made a cute little trail in the snow. I was cold just looking at his snow covered pants. Then again, I had only 1 layer and he had 2 but still, the snow angel was enough to soak my one layer so the snow angel and the crawling had to be getting to him. So I changed the game, "I bet you can't get me." He fell for it and the chase was on. I got most of the way to the door and he said, "You can't get me." So I turned around and he was right there. I, of course, got him and we threw snow at each other a few more times and then I had to break his heart. "It's time to go in, honey." E: "But I wanted to make a snowman." Me: "I'm sorry, babe. I wanted to, too. But Daddy said the snow isn't the right snow to make a snowman [blame Daddy for this one - I get to be the good guy]. E: "But why?" Me: "You'll have to ask Daddy. But right now, look at your pants. They are completely covered in snow and probably wet so we need to go inside and dry off and warm up and then we can come back out a little later when our clothes dry." E [crying]: "But I wanted to make a snowman." Me: "I know, honey. But look over there where we started it, the snow isn't packing to make the snowman so Daddy said we can't. But we'll go warm up and I promise we can come back out later." E [still crying]: "OK. [walking through the door] but I wanted to make a snowman."
Inside he calmed down as his Daddy explained the difference in snowman making snow and what we have while I stripped his wet layers and found him dry pants. It helped that he got his Valentine chocolates and got a pallet on the couch under a blanket to warm up while Daddy made him hot cocoa. It didn't help that Alex wanted it all, too. Ethan did share his chocolates and even tried to share the cocoa but Alex wanted it ALL and was trying to spill it and Ethan wasn't interested in sharing his pallet so it wasn't so much fun for me. But the playing in the snow part, THAT part was awesome. And Ethan didn't want to go back out tonight so I guess I'll have to wait for tomorrow to get my next dose of snow-filled fun. So glad the boys like it as much as I do (by the way, apparently Alex wasn't all that happy to be inside either but I got the pleasure of missing that meltdown since I was outside still).
Mr. Attitude
Alex got a Valentine that I am now thinking he fully understood when I read it to him. His Valentine from Mama & Daddy had a cute puppy dog on the front and it said:
Happy Valentine's Day to an incredibly cute, lovable son...
[Inside] You have no idea how many times this has kept you from getting in really big trouble.
Maybe I just didn't notice how much his pushes the envelope trying to get away with stuff until yesterday. Either way, I've now noticed and I have no clue how I'll make it till the "terrible two's" are over - especially given that he's not even 15 months so we have a long haul before 2 years even.
He wants whatever Ethan has. Ethan will give it to him and get something else; Alex immediately drops item 1 and wants item 2. The only positive outcome of this is that he is completely bottle free and has been for about a month because he wants Ethan's sippy so we just stopped giving him a bottle, even for bedtime which up till then, he'd still been using. He didn't even notice. Why? Because Brother had a sippy so he wanted one - really he wanted Ethan's sippy but whatever, it's a sippy. Ethan occasionally gets Sprite which Alex isn't allowed yet and Ethan has 2% milk to Alex's whole milk or we wouldn't care at all what cup he took. And by "we" I totally mean Steve & I as Ethan has an absolute conniption fit when Alex dares to take Ethan's cup - even when they do both have the same drink. Oh joy.
Of course, it doesn't help when we tell Alex to stop doing whatever or give Ethan's toy back or give Ethan's cup back or whatever and Ethan pipes up in a nasty little tone, "YEAH OWIX. Stop it!" Even telling Alex to come to us, Ethan tries to "help" us parent. Me: "Alex come here please. Alexander David - come here right now." Ethan: "Owixanda Davit. Come to Mama. Come right now. Come to her. OWIXandA. Come to Mama. (pause) Mama, he's dust not listening to you." Uh - yeah, cause he can't hear me over you telling him.
Tonight at dinner he did it again. Alex was picking his bowl up which usually precedes him flipping it over onto the floor. As I'm not a fan of picking up spaghetti off the floor, I said "No sir. Put that bowl down." Ethan: "Owix! Don't pick you bowl up. Dust leave it on da table." Me: "Ethan listen. I am the parent and Daddy is the parent. You are the child and Alex is the child. You do not tell him what to do. We tell him what to do and we do not need your help. Do you understand?" Ethan: "Yes. (pause - nasty tone) Owix, you dust need to eat you dinner!" Me: "Ethan Tanner - do not tell him what to do. The only person you can tell what to do is yourself. Not Mama, not Daddy, not Ethan...I mean, not Alex. Just Ethan - NOT Alex. Understand?" (yeah ok so he flustered me so much as I was trying to save Alex's plate from the floor again that I said the wrong name. I so hate that).
So anyway, Alex has 2 parents and a parent helper and he listens to none of us. He tonight sat quietly on the floor and proceeded to take every piece of paper & magazine out of the cubby beneath the table in the living room. The table he is told multiple times EVERY day not to touch. He did this while I cleaned the kitchen and Steve watched the news. He'd been quietly playing with a toy so Steve didn't notice when he switched to quietly removing all the stuff he's not supposed to touch. Steve then got to bellow repeatedly to get Alex (& poor Ethan who did nothing except watch Alex remove all the stuff) to pick it all up and put it back. Ethan was doing just that as Alex was taking more things out. I could hear all this from the kitchen and thought, "oh good, he doesn't just do it to me; he does it to his daddy, too." After the 5th or 6th, "Alex, NO! Put it back! Give Daddy the paper." I went to the gate and said in my best "do it now" voice, "Alexander David, come here right now." He looked at me and grunted "huh?" "Come here." He came over and I bent down to his level and looked him right in the eye and said in a very loud, stern voice, "stop taking stuff you know you aren't supposed to have and go clean it up." He'd been smiling when he came to me but as I spoke his little lip quivered. I stood up and he walked back over and started picking up the stuff, quivering lip and all. Steve actually started to laugh because of the expression on Alex. That is precisely why I end up doing most of the discipline I guess - because Steve can't chastise without cracking up - he couldn't even give the stern look to start the talk if Alex had looked at him with the grin he'd given me. I hate having to do it but I'll never get through the official terrible two's if I don't stand my ground now.
So these are just a few examples but he is totally "Mr. Attitude" these days. You tell him something and he ignores it. He just grunts at you like "whatever" (which I'd hoped to wait till he was a teenager to get that attitude) and goes about whatever he was doing. He whines to get Ethan in trouble if Ethan doesn't give him whatever he was playing with. What Alex hasn't yet realized is that if we are in the room when he whines for that effect, it doesn't work because we can see that Ethan didn't do anything. Of course, Ethan hasn't quite realized that either because he still insists, "I don't know what's wrong. I didn't do anything." When he gets fed up though and pushes Alex down, that's when he gets in trouble. On second thought, maybe Alex does realize that and therefore continues to harass Ethan until Ethan has had enough and pushes him away which then gets Ethan in trouble and gets Alex what he wanted. I'll have to pay better attention to that aspect tomorrow to see if he is that conniving at his young age and nip that in the bud quickly.
Happy Valentine's Day to an incredibly cute, lovable son...
[Inside] You have no idea how many times this has kept you from getting in really big trouble.
Maybe I just didn't notice how much his pushes the envelope trying to get away with stuff until yesterday. Either way, I've now noticed and I have no clue how I'll make it till the "terrible two's" are over - especially given that he's not even 15 months so we have a long haul before 2 years even.
He wants whatever Ethan has. Ethan will give it to him and get something else; Alex immediately drops item 1 and wants item 2. The only positive outcome of this is that he is completely bottle free and has been for about a month because he wants Ethan's sippy so we just stopped giving him a bottle, even for bedtime which up till then, he'd still been using. He didn't even notice. Why? Because Brother had a sippy so he wanted one - really he wanted Ethan's sippy but whatever, it's a sippy. Ethan occasionally gets Sprite which Alex isn't allowed yet and Ethan has 2% milk to Alex's whole milk or we wouldn't care at all what cup he took. And by "we" I totally mean Steve & I as Ethan has an absolute conniption fit when Alex dares to take Ethan's cup - even when they do both have the same drink. Oh joy.
Of course, it doesn't help when we tell Alex to stop doing whatever or give Ethan's toy back or give Ethan's cup back or whatever and Ethan pipes up in a nasty little tone, "YEAH OWIX. Stop it!" Even telling Alex to come to us, Ethan tries to "help" us parent. Me: "Alex come here please. Alexander David - come here right now." Ethan: "Owixanda Davit. Come to Mama. Come right now. Come to her. OWIXandA. Come to Mama. (pause) Mama, he's dust not listening to you." Uh - yeah, cause he can't hear me over you telling him.
Tonight at dinner he did it again. Alex was picking his bowl up which usually precedes him flipping it over onto the floor. As I'm not a fan of picking up spaghetti off the floor, I said "No sir. Put that bowl down." Ethan: "Owix! Don't pick you bowl up. Dust leave it on da table." Me: "Ethan listen. I am the parent and Daddy is the parent. You are the child and Alex is the child. You do not tell him what to do. We tell him what to do and we do not need your help. Do you understand?" Ethan: "Yes. (pause - nasty tone) Owix, you dust need to eat you dinner!" Me: "Ethan Tanner - do not tell him what to do. The only person you can tell what to do is yourself. Not Mama, not Daddy, not Ethan...I mean, not Alex. Just Ethan - NOT Alex. Understand?" (yeah ok so he flustered me so much as I was trying to save Alex's plate from the floor again that I said the wrong name. I so hate that).
So anyway, Alex has 2 parents and a parent helper and he listens to none of us. He tonight sat quietly on the floor and proceeded to take every piece of paper & magazine out of the cubby beneath the table in the living room. The table he is told multiple times EVERY day not to touch. He did this while I cleaned the kitchen and Steve watched the news. He'd been quietly playing with a toy so Steve didn't notice when he switched to quietly removing all the stuff he's not supposed to touch. Steve then got to bellow repeatedly to get Alex (& poor Ethan who did nothing except watch Alex remove all the stuff) to pick it all up and put it back. Ethan was doing just that as Alex was taking more things out. I could hear all this from the kitchen and thought, "oh good, he doesn't just do it to me; he does it to his daddy, too." After the 5th or 6th, "Alex, NO! Put it back! Give Daddy the paper." I went to the gate and said in my best "do it now" voice, "Alexander David, come here right now." He looked at me and grunted "huh?" "Come here." He came over and I bent down to his level and looked him right in the eye and said in a very loud, stern voice, "stop taking stuff you know you aren't supposed to have and go clean it up." He'd been smiling when he came to me but as I spoke his little lip quivered. I stood up and he walked back over and started picking up the stuff, quivering lip and all. Steve actually started to laugh because of the expression on Alex. That is precisely why I end up doing most of the discipline I guess - because Steve can't chastise without cracking up - he couldn't even give the stern look to start the talk if Alex had looked at him with the grin he'd given me. I hate having to do it but I'll never get through the official terrible two's if I don't stand my ground now.
So these are just a few examples but he is totally "Mr. Attitude" these days. You tell him something and he ignores it. He just grunts at you like "whatever" (which I'd hoped to wait till he was a teenager to get that attitude) and goes about whatever he was doing. He whines to get Ethan in trouble if Ethan doesn't give him whatever he was playing with. What Alex hasn't yet realized is that if we are in the room when he whines for that effect, it doesn't work because we can see that Ethan didn't do anything. Of course, Ethan hasn't quite realized that either because he still insists, "I don't know what's wrong. I didn't do anything." When he gets fed up though and pushes Alex down, that's when he gets in trouble. On second thought, maybe Alex does realize that and therefore continues to harass Ethan until Ethan has had enough and pushes him away which then gets Ethan in trouble and gets Alex what he wanted. I'll have to pay better attention to that aspect tomorrow to see if he is that conniving at his young age and nip that in the bud quickly.
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Imagination
I recently told Ethan he should play with his "imaginary friend" since he couldn't play with Alex as he was asleep. Ethan found this funny and told his daddy, "Mama's silly." The other night I started to realize why.
Turns out he has imaginerary animals as hands rather than imaginerary friends. He was sitting in the back seat and I could hear him growling and mumbling to himself. I looked back and he had both fists in front of his face. He was talking / growling alternately as each fist. As best as I could determine, one fist was some type of cat or tiger and the other was a dog or wolf. One hand would mumble and then growl and the other would whimper away in the form of a whimper from Ethan and the fist turning into more a jazz hand effect and falling away to the side. Then the whimpering hand would come back as a fist and start growling - this time more of a dog growl (the first was more like a big jungle cat) and make the first fist do the jazz handed whimper away. This went on for about 3 or 4 turns before Ethan noticed me watching him. He was truly holding complete conversations with the 2 fists quite naturally. When he saw me watching, he grinned and told me he was Pokemon. As I've never really seen Pokemon, I'll just call his fist friends a tiger and a pitbul.
Turns out he has imaginerary animals as hands rather than imaginerary friends. He was sitting in the back seat and I could hear him growling and mumbling to himself. I looked back and he had both fists in front of his face. He was talking / growling alternately as each fist. As best as I could determine, one fist was some type of cat or tiger and the other was a dog or wolf. One hand would mumble and then growl and the other would whimper away in the form of a whimper from Ethan and the fist turning into more a jazz hand effect and falling away to the side. Then the whimpering hand would come back as a fist and start growling - this time more of a dog growl (the first was more like a big jungle cat) and make the first fist do the jazz handed whimper away. This went on for about 3 or 4 turns before Ethan noticed me watching him. He was truly holding complete conversations with the 2 fists quite naturally. When he saw me watching, he grinned and told me he was Pokemon. As I've never really seen Pokemon, I'll just call his fist friends a tiger and a pitbul.
Banter
The other night Steve picked me up from work as we had some errands to run near Lexmark. Steve and I were giving each other a hard time. To understand the context, I'll backtrack.
That morning Alex tried to follow me upstairs as I ran to get my cell phone before leaving for work. He ended up falling down on the 2nd step. He bit his lip in the process and cried until I soothed him with kisses and his paci. Steve harassed me for this asking why I hadn't put the gate up - "that's what it's for." Fast forward several hours, Steve was giving Ethan a bath while Alex played in his room - all upstairs. (NOTE: I was at work and cannot be held accountable for what happened next.) All of a sudden Steve heard thump, thump, thump followed by instant crying. He ran to check and Alex was screaming at the bottom of the stairs - his paci was apparently on the 4th step. Steve has no idea how far he fell but it's likely he was at least 4 steps up as Alex wouldn't have left the paci mid-trek. This time he got a bloody nose and a fat lip (he only bit it that morning and the fat lip hadn't formed).
So this is why we were giving each other a hard time. Alex was fine and laughing and other than the fat lip, had no lasting side effects from either fall. I said in a mocking tone as I got in the car, "why didn't you put the gate up - that's what it's for?" He then tries to justify it saying Alex was playing contentedly in his room and Steve didn't think he'd get up. I then told him I was only going to be upstairs for one minute and didn't think it was an issue since Alex was with Steve when I started upstairs. The bath was going to last at least 10 minutes and he likely fell all the way down not just 2 steps. I told him Alex falling in his care was way worse than when I was home. We were actually joking during this and not truly accusing each other since Alex was really ok and both boys do fall - it's part of growing up and as long as they are ok, we kiss the boo-boos and continue on. Some boo-boos are bigger than others (like a bloody nose & fat lip) but Alex was happy so that's all that was important. We were even laughing during our exchange.
We were headed to Old Chicago Pizza for dinner during all this. After 5 minutes of our banter, Ethan interrupted saying, "Mama, don't make me mad before we go to Old Chicago. Dust don't make me mad at Old Chicago cause I'll dust be mad." I looked at him and said, "you'll be mad, huh?" with a smile on my face because his tone had been as light as my & Steve's - he'd caught on to the banter aspect. He then said with a twinkle in his eye, "you can dust wait till we go home and then make me mad. It's ok after we get home for you to make me mad." He had the cutest twinkle in his eyes and was laughing by the time he finished saying this. I'm not sure where it came from - where that idea about making him mad later or any of it originated but he apparently wanted to join in the banter and he had the exact same twinkle in his eye that Steve has when he does that. It was unreal the resemblance and it was just so darn cute.
That morning Alex tried to follow me upstairs as I ran to get my cell phone before leaving for work. He ended up falling down on the 2nd step. He bit his lip in the process and cried until I soothed him with kisses and his paci. Steve harassed me for this asking why I hadn't put the gate up - "that's what it's for." Fast forward several hours, Steve was giving Ethan a bath while Alex played in his room - all upstairs. (NOTE: I was at work and cannot be held accountable for what happened next.) All of a sudden Steve heard thump, thump, thump followed by instant crying. He ran to check and Alex was screaming at the bottom of the stairs - his paci was apparently on the 4th step. Steve has no idea how far he fell but it's likely he was at least 4 steps up as Alex wouldn't have left the paci mid-trek. This time he got a bloody nose and a fat lip (he only bit it that morning and the fat lip hadn't formed).
So this is why we were giving each other a hard time. Alex was fine and laughing and other than the fat lip, had no lasting side effects from either fall. I said in a mocking tone as I got in the car, "why didn't you put the gate up - that's what it's for?" He then tries to justify it saying Alex was playing contentedly in his room and Steve didn't think he'd get up. I then told him I was only going to be upstairs for one minute and didn't think it was an issue since Alex was with Steve when I started upstairs. The bath was going to last at least 10 minutes and he likely fell all the way down not just 2 steps. I told him Alex falling in his care was way worse than when I was home. We were actually joking during this and not truly accusing each other since Alex was really ok and both boys do fall - it's part of growing up and as long as they are ok, we kiss the boo-boos and continue on. Some boo-boos are bigger than others (like a bloody nose & fat lip) but Alex was happy so that's all that was important. We were even laughing during our exchange.
We were headed to Old Chicago Pizza for dinner during all this. After 5 minutes of our banter, Ethan interrupted saying, "Mama, don't make me mad before we go to Old Chicago. Dust don't make me mad at Old Chicago cause I'll dust be mad." I looked at him and said, "you'll be mad, huh?" with a smile on my face because his tone had been as light as my & Steve's - he'd caught on to the banter aspect. He then said with a twinkle in his eye, "you can dust wait till we go home and then make me mad. It's ok after we get home for you to make me mad." He had the cutest twinkle in his eyes and was laughing by the time he finished saying this. I'm not sure where it came from - where that idea about making him mad later or any of it originated but he apparently wanted to join in the banter and he had the exact same twinkle in his eye that Steve has when he does that. It was unreal the resemblance and it was just so darn cute.
Brotherly Love
I think I've mentioned before that Alex likes what we call "Mama time" where he'll sit with me in the recliner & snuggle for a bit. Lately, Ethan has decided he wants to do this, too, only he calls it "snuggle time."
"Can I have some snuggle time wiff you, Mom?"
"Sure"
Sometimes, he wants to join Alex & we'll have group snuggle time - good thing the recliner is sturdy.
Well, Ethan has one of those Cars chairs that looks like a mini-couch that also folds out into a small bed. The other day he was having snuggle time with me in the chair & Alex was fully enthralled with Ethan's chair/couch. Ethan started to climb down & said, "I dust want some snuggle time wiff Owix. I'm dust gonna snuggle wiff him." At this point Alex had left Ethan's chair and was dragging his blankie back and forth around the living room.
Ethan went to his chair saying, "come heah Owix. Dust come ova heah & have some snuggle time wiff me. Let's dust snuggle. Come on. Come on, Owix." As Alex came to join him, Ethan sat to one side leaving a spot for Alex. "Right heah. Theah you go Owix. Now let's snuggle." He then put his arm around Alex, who happily laid his head on his brother. They sat contentedly for about 2 minutes before they both lost concentration. However, they did repeat this a few more times & per Steve, the next day, too.
"Can I have some snuggle time wiff you, Mom?"
"Sure"
Sometimes, he wants to join Alex & we'll have group snuggle time - good thing the recliner is sturdy.
Well, Ethan has one of those Cars chairs that looks like a mini-couch that also folds out into a small bed. The other day he was having snuggle time with me in the chair & Alex was fully enthralled with Ethan's chair/couch. Ethan started to climb down & said, "I dust want some snuggle time wiff Owix. I'm dust gonna snuggle wiff him." At this point Alex had left Ethan's chair and was dragging his blankie back and forth around the living room.
Ethan went to his chair saying, "come heah Owix. Dust come ova heah & have some snuggle time wiff me. Let's dust snuggle. Come on. Come on, Owix." As Alex came to join him, Ethan sat to one side leaving a spot for Alex. "Right heah. Theah you go Owix. Now let's snuggle." He then put his arm around Alex, who happily laid his head on his brother. They sat contentedly for about 2 minutes before they both lost concentration. However, they did repeat this a few more times & per Steve, the next day, too.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Wishing
Yesterday we spent some time in Louisville. Steve had gotten a speeding ticket just across the river from Louisville in Clarksville, IN, the last time we went to Illinois. He opted to go to traffic school and was scheduled to go yesterday. [Side note: if you have to do traffic school, do it on Superbowl Sunday - a 5 hour class was 3 hours 45 minutes because the instructor wanted to go to a party.] The boys and I didn't want to just stay home so we dropped Steve off and went to play at the Malls in Louisville.
With our brand new Sit 'n Stand Double stroller, we first headed for Oxmoor. We ate lunch, got Alex his first pair of tennis shoes courtesy of Stride Rite, checked out the Disney Store and then ventured around "just to see" what was there. We happened upon an indoor water fountain and Ethan asked why the money was in there. I told him you can throw pennies into the fountain and make a wish. He thought this was a GREAT idea.
I happened to have 2 pennies. Ethan threw in the first one and I asked what he wished for. He mumbled several times before I could make out what he was saying. You see he was so excited that his wish would come true; his wish "to be a Superman" was going to come true because his penny went into the fountain. He was sooo excited. I said, "you want to be Superman." He said with eye brows bouncing and sheer joy on his face, "oh yes! I wish to be Superman."
He immediately asked for another penny to make Alex's wish. Since Alex was fully enthralled in his dried mangos in his new snack cup, I didn't think he'd mind. Ethan threw in Alex's penny and then told me that "Owix wished for a princess." Me: "He wants a princess?" E: "He wants to BE a princess." Me: "Oh. OK. Well, let's see what else the mall has." E: "But wait. What's Daddy gonna wish for?" Me: "Well, I don't know. I guess Daddy will have to make his own wish because we're out of pennies." E: "OK. I'll tell Daddy to make his wish."
We window shopped a bit more and headed for the car to go check out what the Mall at St. Matthews had to see. First stop - the cleanest family restroom I've ever been into and I've see pretty much every family restroom in Lexington and several others. This bathroom was cleaner than well, a really clean person's bathroom (not mine, because I don't clean nearly as often as I should.)
What did we find when we ventured a bit further? That's right, another wishing fountain. Ethan was downright giddy. We had reloaded on pennies - somehow we only 2 again but that's enough. I asked Ethan who he was wishing for. He was wishing for himself again. Me: "Ok. What did you wish for this time?" E: "I wish to be Superman again. I want to be Superman two time." Me (chuckling at his excitement): "Ok - you can be Superman again." E: "Now I need to wish for Owix again." Me: "OK. But this is our last penny." E (throwing the penny): "Owix wishes to be another princess." (He is only 3 - he doesn't quite understand the difference between a prince and a princess - they are all the same to him.) Me: "OK - Alex can be a prince again, too." E: "But what about Daddy's wish again?" Me: "Daddy will have to fend for himself again, I guess." E: "Yeah, I guess, too."
After a bit more strolling around, we left, picked up Steve and headed for home. We went out to eat back in Lexington and Ethan remembered to tell his Daddy one important thing. "You'll dust have to make your own wish, Dad. We dinint have another penny."
With our brand new Sit 'n Stand Double stroller, we first headed for Oxmoor. We ate lunch, got Alex his first pair of tennis shoes courtesy of Stride Rite, checked out the Disney Store and then ventured around "just to see" what was there. We happened upon an indoor water fountain and Ethan asked why the money was in there. I told him you can throw pennies into the fountain and make a wish. He thought this was a GREAT idea.
I happened to have 2 pennies. Ethan threw in the first one and I asked what he wished for. He mumbled several times before I could make out what he was saying. You see he was so excited that his wish would come true; his wish "to be a Superman" was going to come true because his penny went into the fountain. He was sooo excited. I said, "you want to be Superman." He said with eye brows bouncing and sheer joy on his face, "oh yes! I wish to be Superman."
He immediately asked for another penny to make Alex's wish. Since Alex was fully enthralled in his dried mangos in his new snack cup, I didn't think he'd mind. Ethan threw in Alex's penny and then told me that "Owix wished for a princess." Me: "He wants a princess?" E: "He wants to BE a princess." Me: "Oh. OK. Well, let's see what else the mall has." E: "But wait. What's Daddy gonna wish for?" Me: "Well, I don't know. I guess Daddy will have to make his own wish because we're out of pennies." E: "OK. I'll tell Daddy to make his wish."
We window shopped a bit more and headed for the car to go check out what the Mall at St. Matthews had to see. First stop - the cleanest family restroom I've ever been into and I've see pretty much every family restroom in Lexington and several others. This bathroom was cleaner than well, a really clean person's bathroom (not mine, because I don't clean nearly as often as I should.)
What did we find when we ventured a bit further? That's right, another wishing fountain. Ethan was downright giddy. We had reloaded on pennies - somehow we only 2 again but that's enough. I asked Ethan who he was wishing for. He was wishing for himself again. Me: "Ok. What did you wish for this time?" E: "I wish to be Superman again. I want to be Superman two time." Me (chuckling at his excitement): "Ok - you can be Superman again." E: "Now I need to wish for Owix again." Me: "OK. But this is our last penny." E (throwing the penny): "Owix wishes to be another princess." (He is only 3 - he doesn't quite understand the difference between a prince and a princess - they are all the same to him.) Me: "OK - Alex can be a prince again, too." E: "But what about Daddy's wish again?" Me: "Daddy will have to fend for himself again, I guess." E: "Yeah, I guess, too."
After a bit more strolling around, we left, picked up Steve and headed for home. We went out to eat back in Lexington and Ethan remembered to tell his Daddy one important thing. "You'll dust have to make your own wish, Dad. We dinint have another penny."
Friday, February 5, 2010
Small Bites Don't Count
If you've been around Alex much, you may have realized - he'll eat anything. In fact, I've come to believe he thinks if he's awake, he needs to be eating. Sadly this means that he has the paci more often than I'd like because if the paci is in his mouth, it means most other things are not. It's the best way I've found to keep him from eating the entire time he's awake. And before you say it, it doesn't matter if we've put all actual food away out of his reach. The child will dig through the trash can or try to take the rabbit food (which could get him bitten as the rabbit is pretty selfish with his food) or just find something he stashed 3 days ago that is now petrified. So for now, the paci is the "plug" with which we can temporarily block out other food.
This does mean, though, that at meal times, Alex is all about the food. You don't need to tell him twice to eat. In fact, if you dare to put him in the chair before the plate is in front of him - he'll let you know rather quickly that that behavior is unacceptable. His brother, on the other hand, is not so compliant when it comes to eating.
Ethan is usually way too busy talking (yes, I know - he's my child) or playing or debating even, to be bothered with food. He'll eat when he wants to but that doesn't really work for us. We have a good kitchen table and have had for about 6 months now and so have tried to do real "family" dinners and get the boys in the habit of eating at the table, etc. Rather than an enjoyable relaxing way to get good family time, Ethan makes dinner a dreaded event.
Until recently that is - I've developed a tact to get him to eat more easily. It isn't that he doesn't like the food; he does. He just doesn't want to take the time to eat it (it's like he wants to eat via osmosis or something - if he sits there long enough, it'll just be in his belly with no effort on his part). So now, he's gotten to the point of saying, "I'm done" after 2 or 3 bites. I tell him he's not done yet and he'll eat another bite. If he's close to being done, I'll let him do the "3 more bites" thing I'm sure you've all done. "You can be done if you eat 3 more bites." He counts with me - but only the big bites count. "One....nope, that one was too little, it doesn't count....two.....just one more.....no - has to be a big bite....ok....three....now you can be done. Please scrape your plate and put it in the sink."
Two nights ago Ethan said to me as he sat down to eat, "Mama, I want you to count with me." Me: "Ok but it has to be more than 3 bites because you haven't eaten anything yet. So let's see how many bites it takes to finish your dinner." This idea was a huge hit. We counted. I was getting Alex a drink when Ethan took a bite and he wanted me to count it. I told him I hadn't seen the bite - was it a big one? His response? He opened his mouth to show me how much was there. Nope - that one doesn't count, there's not much in your mouth. He'd put more on his fork and ask "is this a big bite, Mama?" Me: "No, a little more." He'd get the right size bite and then we'd count. We counted 20 bites - he likely ate 40 or so but he ate every single bite and with a smile on his face.
Last night, we weren't counting but he still looked at me after eating a bite and said, "that bite doesn't count, Mama, it wasn't a big bite....is this one a big bite?" with the next bite at the ready. Pretty smart kid. He's learned this concept pretty well. Lucky for me, he hasn't yet realized that I judge how much food is left on his plate and how far I'm counting to determine if the bites are big enough. "3 bites" can be more like 10 based on how much food he has left & how much he started with but as long as he doesn't realize that, dinner time can be less of an ordeal and maybe we'll learn to count in the process.
This does mean, though, that at meal times, Alex is all about the food. You don't need to tell him twice to eat. In fact, if you dare to put him in the chair before the plate is in front of him - he'll let you know rather quickly that that behavior is unacceptable. His brother, on the other hand, is not so compliant when it comes to eating.
Ethan is usually way too busy talking (yes, I know - he's my child) or playing or debating even, to be bothered with food. He'll eat when he wants to but that doesn't really work for us. We have a good kitchen table and have had for about 6 months now and so have tried to do real "family" dinners and get the boys in the habit of eating at the table, etc. Rather than an enjoyable relaxing way to get good family time, Ethan makes dinner a dreaded event.
Until recently that is - I've developed a tact to get him to eat more easily. It isn't that he doesn't like the food; he does. He just doesn't want to take the time to eat it (it's like he wants to eat via osmosis or something - if he sits there long enough, it'll just be in his belly with no effort on his part). So now, he's gotten to the point of saying, "I'm done" after 2 or 3 bites. I tell him he's not done yet and he'll eat another bite. If he's close to being done, I'll let him do the "3 more bites" thing I'm sure you've all done. "You can be done if you eat 3 more bites." He counts with me - but only the big bites count. "One....nope, that one was too little, it doesn't count....two.....just one more.....no - has to be a big bite....ok....three....now you can be done. Please scrape your plate and put it in the sink."
Two nights ago Ethan said to me as he sat down to eat, "Mama, I want you to count with me." Me: "Ok but it has to be more than 3 bites because you haven't eaten anything yet. So let's see how many bites it takes to finish your dinner." This idea was a huge hit. We counted. I was getting Alex a drink when Ethan took a bite and he wanted me to count it. I told him I hadn't seen the bite - was it a big one? His response? He opened his mouth to show me how much was there. Nope - that one doesn't count, there's not much in your mouth. He'd put more on his fork and ask "is this a big bite, Mama?" Me: "No, a little more." He'd get the right size bite and then we'd count. We counted 20 bites - he likely ate 40 or so but he ate every single bite and with a smile on his face.
Last night, we weren't counting but he still looked at me after eating a bite and said, "that bite doesn't count, Mama, it wasn't a big bite....is this one a big bite?" with the next bite at the ready. Pretty smart kid. He's learned this concept pretty well. Lucky for me, he hasn't yet realized that I judge how much food is left on his plate and how far I'm counting to determine if the bites are big enough. "3 bites" can be more like 10 based on how much food he has left & how much he started with but as long as he doesn't realize that, dinner time can be less of an ordeal and maybe we'll learn to count in the process.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Shiny New Snaggle Tooth
Ethan has his sedation dentistry appointment today to fix his snaggle tooth. I didn't go to sleep till almost 3:00 last night because I was worried. I had all kinds of scenarios in my head - none of them good. Since the plan was to give him an oral sedative mixed with Sprite just to calm him enough to do the procedure, not to knock him out - I realize that all my worrying was WAY over-the-top, but this is my baby boy and I was freaking out. I was fine right up until yesterday actually and then all the worry set in.
We took Alex to daycare this morning so he could play with kids while we were at the dentist. I was actually worried about how Alex would do at daycare by himself since he's only ever been there with his brother & protector & best friend. That was misplaced worry as well - he went right in and started playing and was just as happy & fine when I picked him up. He did fall and hit his chin on the coffee table and apparently bled pretty badly from the cut on his lip that resulted which scared them. But given how tired he was this morning, and the fact that it wasn't the first time he's fallen and it's usually in my presence (he has my gracefulness), this seemed somewhat normal to me.
At the dentist office they have a Mario video game with 2 controls - one works and one doesn't. Ethan doesn't know which is which so to keep him occupied, I had the one that works and he had the other one and was so excited when he kept thinking he was getting the coins and stomping the guys then he'd get excited for me when he thought I was doing it. We were both moving the same guy in his mind but some of the time it was me and some of the time it was him - we worked it together. Great way to occupy him and keep him calm. When it was time to go back and take the sedative, the dentist used that to her advantage. He started to take it and then didn't want to because it was "yukky" - she told him to go ahead and finish, it was just a little bit more and he needed to finish so he could go back out and play the game before the other kids got here and started playing. Worked really well - he took it; no problem. She told us to keep an eye on him for a little bit as he'd get wobbly as the medicine took effect so he could fall or trip more easily, etc. This was no problem - he went right to the game to start back where we left off. He seemed really animated to both Steve & I though so we weren't sure it was working. Until, that is, the dentist came out to get him. At that point he turned to look at her and we could see that he was blinking a lot to focus - the animation was all due to being focused on the screen. The meds were definitely working from the look on his face and the way he weaved when he walked - even with the dentist hold both of his hands to help him. He went with her though - without much hesitation at all. I, on the other hand, wasn't so calm.
They should really give the mom some sedative, too, when they do this. I sat anxiously in the waiting area with Steve. I was severely nauseated and just wanted to cry. I didn't cry though because Steve was poking fun at me the whole time like this was no big deal. That was all a front though. How do I know? Because Steve had an appointment for a physical this afternoon which is required in order to renew his drivers license, which is due, because he's still got his CDL. His BP was 170/104 or something like that - his doctor has told him that they typically put people in the hospital for that. However, when Steve explained the stress from our morning; the doctor gave him the benefit of the doubt - put him back on BP meds he'd been off for a while and scheduled him for a follow-up to recheck in a couple weeks. They also rechecked before he left and he had gone down a bit but not enough to cancel out the follow-up. So see - it wasn't just me that was worried.
About an hour and 15 minutes after Ethan went back, they called to tell us he was ready to go. She told me as she showed us the new x-ray which showed what they had done that he was really good through it all and was just picking out his prize. He came up and was trying to smile and half his lip wouldn't move because it was numb - it was really cute, that little half grin. He was slurring a bit telling us he got a little yo-yo. The dentist thanked him for helping her and being so good. He has to go back in 6 months because they'll want to continue to monitor it. They gave us the sheet telling us dos & don'ts for the day and we headed off to get Alex.
My stoned little boy was totally focused on his yo-yo. Excitedly: "Look at my yo-yo. I've got a yo-yo." 1 minute later, crying: "My yo-yo, Mama - where's my yo-yo." 1 second later, excitedly: "oh, hea it is. It dust fell on the seat. I got it. I got my yo-yo." 30 seconds later, crying: "my yo-yo, Mama - can you fix it? Can you roll it back up for me?" Talk about a yo-yo - it was perfect symmetry - his mood & the yo-yo.
When we got home, I got to check out the dental handy work. What was just this morning a snaggly black encrusted tooth, is now shiny & clean. All nice and white with enamel filling to match his other teeth and filled in the cracks so it's smooth around which will help us to keep it cleaned out with normal brushing. They did have to do a complete pulpectomy on both teeth because the decay was down to the nerve. They filled that with a medicated paste and then the enamel so it should keep it free from infection while it heals. I was a bit worried about what would happen when he came down off the sedative but he really seemed to do OK. After a nap this afternoon, which I thoroughly enjoyed with him as I was totally exhausted by now, he did have a little sensitivity on the tooth. I tried to touch it to feel the texture & make sure it was smooth around and he said it hurt a little. One dose of Tylenol though and he seemed completely fine. Even ate dinner tonight with no problems - numbness gone.
So we now have a shiny new snaggle tooth - still deemed a snaggle tooth because cleaning it out, didn't alter the fact that it is still 2 fused teeth with a 3rd one that sprouted onto them - it's just a lot smoother now. I have survived my first experience being on the waiting end of a sedated child undergoing a procedure and he survived it, too. I'd like to not have any other experiences with it but I think that's a pipe dream as I'm sure in the course of their lives, at least one of them will have at least one other procedure requiring partial or total sedation and I'm sure I won't be allowed in those rooms either. It could even happen soon if Alex ends up with another ear infection sometime soon (he could even have one now). I'm sure I'll still freak out about it but I'm hoping all that works out very similarly to how this experience went.
We took Alex to daycare this morning so he could play with kids while we were at the dentist. I was actually worried about how Alex would do at daycare by himself since he's only ever been there with his brother & protector & best friend. That was misplaced worry as well - he went right in and started playing and was just as happy & fine when I picked him up. He did fall and hit his chin on the coffee table and apparently bled pretty badly from the cut on his lip that resulted which scared them. But given how tired he was this morning, and the fact that it wasn't the first time he's fallen and it's usually in my presence (he has my gracefulness), this seemed somewhat normal to me.
At the dentist office they have a Mario video game with 2 controls - one works and one doesn't. Ethan doesn't know which is which so to keep him occupied, I had the one that works and he had the other one and was so excited when he kept thinking he was getting the coins and stomping the guys then he'd get excited for me when he thought I was doing it. We were both moving the same guy in his mind but some of the time it was me and some of the time it was him - we worked it together. Great way to occupy him and keep him calm. When it was time to go back and take the sedative, the dentist used that to her advantage. He started to take it and then didn't want to because it was "yukky" - she told him to go ahead and finish, it was just a little bit more and he needed to finish so he could go back out and play the game before the other kids got here and started playing. Worked really well - he took it; no problem. She told us to keep an eye on him for a little bit as he'd get wobbly as the medicine took effect so he could fall or trip more easily, etc. This was no problem - he went right to the game to start back where we left off. He seemed really animated to both Steve & I though so we weren't sure it was working. Until, that is, the dentist came out to get him. At that point he turned to look at her and we could see that he was blinking a lot to focus - the animation was all due to being focused on the screen. The meds were definitely working from the look on his face and the way he weaved when he walked - even with the dentist hold both of his hands to help him. He went with her though - without much hesitation at all. I, on the other hand, wasn't so calm.
They should really give the mom some sedative, too, when they do this. I sat anxiously in the waiting area with Steve. I was severely nauseated and just wanted to cry. I didn't cry though because Steve was poking fun at me the whole time like this was no big deal. That was all a front though. How do I know? Because Steve had an appointment for a physical this afternoon which is required in order to renew his drivers license, which is due, because he's still got his CDL. His BP was 170/104 or something like that - his doctor has told him that they typically put people in the hospital for that. However, when Steve explained the stress from our morning; the doctor gave him the benefit of the doubt - put him back on BP meds he'd been off for a while and scheduled him for a follow-up to recheck in a couple weeks. They also rechecked before he left and he had gone down a bit but not enough to cancel out the follow-up. So see - it wasn't just me that was worried.
About an hour and 15 minutes after Ethan went back, they called to tell us he was ready to go. She told me as she showed us the new x-ray which showed what they had done that he was really good through it all and was just picking out his prize. He came up and was trying to smile and half his lip wouldn't move because it was numb - it was really cute, that little half grin. He was slurring a bit telling us he got a little yo-yo. The dentist thanked him for helping her and being so good. He has to go back in 6 months because they'll want to continue to monitor it. They gave us the sheet telling us dos & don'ts for the day and we headed off to get Alex.
My stoned little boy was totally focused on his yo-yo. Excitedly: "Look at my yo-yo. I've got a yo-yo." 1 minute later, crying: "My yo-yo, Mama - where's my yo-yo." 1 second later, excitedly: "oh, hea it is. It dust fell on the seat. I got it. I got my yo-yo." 30 seconds later, crying: "my yo-yo, Mama - can you fix it? Can you roll it back up for me?" Talk about a yo-yo - it was perfect symmetry - his mood & the yo-yo.
When we got home, I got to check out the dental handy work. What was just this morning a snaggly black encrusted tooth, is now shiny & clean. All nice and white with enamel filling to match his other teeth and filled in the cracks so it's smooth around which will help us to keep it cleaned out with normal brushing. They did have to do a complete pulpectomy on both teeth because the decay was down to the nerve. They filled that with a medicated paste and then the enamel so it should keep it free from infection while it heals. I was a bit worried about what would happen when he came down off the sedative but he really seemed to do OK. After a nap this afternoon, which I thoroughly enjoyed with him as I was totally exhausted by now, he did have a little sensitivity on the tooth. I tried to touch it to feel the texture & make sure it was smooth around and he said it hurt a little. One dose of Tylenol though and he seemed completely fine. Even ate dinner tonight with no problems - numbness gone.
So we now have a shiny new snaggle tooth - still deemed a snaggle tooth because cleaning it out, didn't alter the fact that it is still 2 fused teeth with a 3rd one that sprouted onto them - it's just a lot smoother now. I have survived my first experience being on the waiting end of a sedated child undergoing a procedure and he survived it, too. I'd like to not have any other experiences with it but I think that's a pipe dream as I'm sure in the course of their lives, at least one of them will have at least one other procedure requiring partial or total sedation and I'm sure I won't be allowed in those rooms either. It could even happen soon if Alex ends up with another ear infection sometime soon (he could even have one now). I'm sure I'll still freak out about it but I'm hoping all that works out very similarly to how this experience went.
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