One of Those Not-So-Great Mommy Days

I hate having days like this.

For the most part, it was a great day. I have to say that to start off with. :)

But, the past few nights have been tough for LBB...he's fought sleep, been having issues with getting scared, woke up in the middle of the night, and only would go to sleep if we balanced on one toe while singing Old MacDonald backwards and spinning a plate on a bowling pin. OK...so that last part is a bit of an exaggeration, but that's what it felt like. Haha.

So, mix lack of sleep, a cranky toddler, and a fight whenever the word "nap" or "bedtime" is mentioned, and it led to today's Not-So-Great Mommy day.

See...when LBB gets tired, he doesn't just get a little cranky.

When LBB gets tired, he turns into a little warrior. On the warpath and angry at everyone he sees. :) So, if you say, let's change your stinky diaper, and he's overtired and exhausted, you can bet you'll be the target of an onslaught of arm-flailing smacks. If you tell him "No" he yells it right back. And, if you happen to be a sweet, innocent, Cat #2, you are just the perfect candidate for being smacked with a Hot Wheels track or having a ball thrown at your head. :(

Now...before you think I've got some maniac living in my house (well, it sure sounds like it from what I described, but I promise I don't), you have to know that this mostly only happens when he's tired. :) He has his moments, sure, but all in all he is a great kid who does pretty well with controlling himself. All in all. :)

Anyways...all this led to a Mommy who lost her patience, snapped a bit, and just in general, got a little flustered.

And as I sat there telling LBB that his attitude was downright stinky (ok, I wasn't telling, I was snapping), a little voice popped in my head.

"Your attitude isn't much better right now."

What? But, LBB's temper is just...

"Your attitude isn't much better right now."

Ah. Got it, God. :) Not really a little voice, but I suppose when it's coming all the way down from the Heaven's, it's not going to be loud and booming. :)

So. I dropped the attitude. Sat on the floor in front of LBB. And apologized.

Yes, I know. I apologized to a toddler who was acting just as (if not more) deplorable as me. But, here's the thing.

I'm the adult. I can control my temper. And I should be able to have keep my calm even when the 18 month old in the house is not. I am responsible for every action I make, and while he is in the process of learning that he needs to behave and have pleasant manners, I have learned those lessons already.

And it is only through my actions that he learns.

By the grace of God, I've been blessed with that wonderful 25 pound blessing. It's not something I ever take lightly, and sometimes it's easy to let the exhaustion and worry take over. But, thankfully tomorrow is another day.

Another day to wake up.

Smile.

Hug my LBB.

And start the whole adventure all over again.

But...this time watching how I react to those volatile toddler moments.

*Interesting footnote...I read an article or something a while back, and they were talking about the cause of temper tantrums and hitting and all that. The one thing that really stuck with me was the fact that toddlers are at a point in their lives where they are developing feelings of anger and frustration, but since they don't know how to vocalize it, they throw tantrums and hit and such. I just thought that was interesting...it explains LBB's temper and such. He hits when he's tired, but since he doesn't know how to vocalize it, and really doesn't want to admit that he is, he hits out of frustration. There's so much energy packed into that little frame that it has nowhere to go but out.

I'm Blessed

Just a forewarning, but I'm going to ramble about my hubby. :)

Dear Sweet Hubby came home from work today, and in his hand had a nice cold Pepsi for me and a Strawberry Kiwi juice drink for LBB. You should have seen LBB's face. He's normally ecstatic when his daddy gets home, but today, even more so...I think the smile on his face could have lit up a dim room.

And then, upon hearing of how spirited little man was today, Dear Sweet Hubby took him to a boy store and let me have some quality, quiet Mommy time at the scrapbook store. My hubby is nothing short of awesome. :) And while at the boy store, he bought LBB a Hot Wheels truck since they were picking up their truck at PaPa and GiGi's house. LBB held it all the way home after they got in the truck.

Which brings me to the last part...LBB and Dear Sweet Hubby had a boy's night out driving in the truck, partly because LBB loves their truck, and partly because my Dear Sweet Hubby wanted me to be able to turn my music up loud on the way home. (It's my therapy. HaHa!)

My husband rocks. :)

A Serious Case of the Grumpies

LBB has been having a grumpy week. I bet you couldn't tell from this picture. :)

But, amidst the grumpies, there have been wonderful moments of cuddling, laughing, and just plain fun, so this Mommy can't complain. All I can do is brace myself when I hear him start huffing (yes, like the big bad wolf), and get ready for the next tantrum.

Ah, the joys of toddlerhood. :)

Observations from the Mommy of a Nick Jr. Addict

image courtesy of lbb

Despite my best efforts, LBB has an addiction to Nick Jr. So, on a daily basis, he wakes up at the crack of dawn (literally) and with Bearemy in tow, toddles out to the living room pointing at the tv.

And I'm the mom who said I wasn't going to let him watch tv till he turned 3. :) Funny what happens when you need a few minutes to unload the dishwasher without having to constantly tell a toddler no. (I justify myself by reminding myself that I do control the tv time, so there we go.)

But...as the Mommy who gets to hear countless shows on Nick Jr., here are some observations I've made.

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  Yo Gabba Gabba's creators must be on some pretty hardcore drugs, because their show rivals the music videos of classic rock bands in the 70's.





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  I never needed to see Jack Black in a bright orange jumpsuit similar to DJ Lance's from Yo Gabba Gabba. But I did, and the image is burned into my eyes. I dvr'ed the episode just so I could share the joy with Dear Sweet Hubby. I shouldn't be the only one stuck with that in my head.





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  I'm not sure why Ming the Duck on Wonderpets has a speech impediment. He sounds like an aviary version of Elmer Fudd. And now that I'm a mom, it drives me crazy when the characters my LBB watches don't speak correctly. Won't he grow up thinking it's okay to turn his "R"s into "W"s?





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  And I also think it's ironic that Ming the Duck, after eating a big meal, said he's as stuffed as a Thanksgiving turkey. Morbid.





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  At the beginning of each episode, Kai-Lan (from Ni-Hao Kai Lan) says that to wake up the sun, they need to tickle it. WHAT?!?!? That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard...even for a kid's show!





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  There's this show called Bubble Guppies...apparently they are merchildren that live in the ocean. And yet they can have things like a barn and a regular cow. I don't get it.





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  And, although it is Colt's second favorite show (and a pretty good show I must admit), I can't understand why Dino Dan can pick up a baby Brachiosaurus when there isn't trouble, but as soon as a meat eater comes around he won't pick the baby up.

I really could go on. And on. :) And I'm not complaining...I love those snuggle times when LBB and I watch a little TV. But these are just some of the random little things that fly through my brain while I watch the same episode of Yo Gabba Gabba for the 11th time. :)

But...as a Mommy, you just suck it up, enjoy it, and savor the fact that 15 years from now, he may not want much to do with watching TV with his Mom and Dad.

But oh, how I hope he does.

*And please excuse the goofy spacing on this post...blogger doesn't like me tonight. :)

Playdate!

LBB had his first playdate on Monday, and it was a complete success! His new little friend is about 3 months younger than LBB, so it was a blast seeing them interact. :)

They colored (and LBB showed Friend his pointillism coloring techinique, which Friend thought was pretty darn cool and soon copied LBB).

They had snack and sippy, which was ironically the only thing they wanted to share. Go figure.

They played with trucks. Goofed around with Mr. Potato Head. And played a few games of ball with each other. LBB loved showing Friend his room and play area, and they even got to watch a little TV together.

At the end, LBB was very sad to see Friend go, and even cried after he waved bye-bye. :( It went so well, we are going to plan one for next week too. I have to say, I was one super-proud Mommy seeing how well LBB played with his new friend...it made my heart melt.

Oh...and the picture below shows what happens when you try to get a photo of two new toddler friends without a sippy in their mouths. Too funny.

18 Months...nearly

Last night I read an article about how around 18 months, you'll see an "explosion" in your child's vocabulary.


Sure thing, article that doesn't know my stubborn boy. :)

But then, this morning, just a little over two weeks from LBB's 18 month "month-day", LBB proved them right. He's been a regular chatterbox today. He was sitting on my lap and turned to me and said, clear as day:

"Hey, Mom."

Uh. That's a bit strange.

Then he was playing with THIS puzzle, and I held up the cow and said "This is a cow. Can you say cow?"

And guess what he said.

Yep, that's right. "Cow." So I asked him again to say cow. And he did. Then I held up the cow and said "What is this?" And guess what he said.

Yep..."cow." (Granted it sounds a bit like "caw" but we're getting there.)

So, then I asked Mr. Smartie Pants what sound cows make. And guess what he said.

"Baa." :) Close. But no cigar.

And in other amazing, my-kid-is-a-smartie-and-I-have-no-shame-bragging-about-him-on-this-little-bitty-blog, news, we picked up THIS toy last night, and by this morning, LBB was already able to get all but THREE off the blocks on the right color pegs. Isn't that awesome? And he was also able to get all the pieces in the right place on his little barnyard puzzle, too. It was a very exciting day for us! :)

And just for the record...we adore these Melissa & Doug toys. They are hands down the best toys. Ever. Our wish list of toys from them is growing nearly everyday. ;)

My Little Vegetarian

Much to my hubby's dismay, our LBB has taken quite an aversion to meat. (Dear Sweet Hubby loves steaks, burgers, chicken...you name it.)

And thusly, I've been having a little bit of difficulty finding things to feed him besides pasta, pasta, and more pasta. :) But today for lunch, he finally ate a healthy meal of Strawberries, Rice Balls (I'm going to post the recipe in a bit), and shelled edamame.

It was LBB's first time eating edamame, and to be honest, I wasn't expecting a lot, but surprisingly, he ate! Woo Hoo! Score one for Mommy!

And it's crazy because this little guy can find a tiny shred of pork mixed in with his tomato salsa when we eat at Chipotle! He'll sit there, put the tomato in his mouth, and pull the little tiny nearly invisible piece of pork out of his mouth. Craziness.

So, needless to say, in an effort to eat better, get LBB to eat, and honestly, save some money, we are starting to eat more vegetarian meals. We still have meat twice a week...one night red meat, another night white meat. It's working out pretty well, and we're all learning to get accustomed to new foods.

And here's the recipe for Rice Balls...we made them with our spaghetti the other night, but to be honest, these are delicious even by themselves! LBB and I had the leftovers for lunch today...yum yum yum!

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SPICY RICE BALLS

2 C cooked white rice
1/2 C quick-cooking oats
1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 C)
1/4 C dry bread crumbs (although I did increase this to make it all stick together)
1/4 C milk
1 TBSP chopped fresh or 1 tsp dried basil leaves
2 tsp chopped fresh or 1/2 tsp dried oregano leaves
1/4 tsp ground red pepper (cayenne)
1 large egg, beaten
1/2 C wheat germ
1 TBSP vegetable oil

Mix rice, oats, onion, bread crumbs, milk, basil, oregano, red pepper, and egg. Shape mixture into 12 balls. Roll balls into wheat germ. Heat oil in 10-inch skillet over medium heat. Cook balls in oil about 10 minutes, turning occasionally, until light golden brown.

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These are seriously so yummy, and so simple to make! The rice does get sticky, and I ended up having to wash my hands a few times in between just so I could roll the balls without having issues. :) But that was my only issue with the recipe, and I've gotta say, Dear Sweet Hubby even loved them...and gave the A-OK for making these the majority of the time when we have Spaghetti and "Meatballs". Yep, they were THAT good.

Funny Puppy

A few weeks ago, I was clipping coupons when I saw this cute little ad for DentaStix dog treats. Knowing how much LBB loves puppies, I cut out the picture and handed it to him.

And he carried it around here and there for a day or two.

Then I asked him..."Where should we hang this picture?"

And he led me straight to the corner where the kitty bowls are, laughed, and pointed at the wall. Ah. I love it...my LBB is nearly 18 months old and he already has a witty sense of humor. :)

Ironically, this little corner is right next to our front door, so whenever we go anywhere, we pass right by the funny puppy. And now, my LBB has the most adorable little routine when we are leaving:

He leans in. Quietly whispers tot-speak to the puppy. Laughs a bit. Waves bye-bye. And the best part?

Leans in and gives the puppy a sweet little goodbye smooch. :)

This Mommy's going to have to laminate that puppy picture before it gets too soggy. :)

Delicious.

I just have to share this recipe before I forget. :) If you want the yummiest, gooiest, sweetest apple crisp recipe ever, click HERE. I made this for Dear Sweet Hubby and I the other night, and oh my goodness gracious, it was amazing! Dear Sweet Hubby said "This is easily one of the best things I've ever tasted."

It was that good.

And I love apple crisps, but I usually prefer the topping to anything else and end up leaving the filling...but not this time. I ate it all right up. Along with seconds. And a serving for breakfast the next morning. :) And LBB loved it too...but he loves fruit and sugar, so I wasn't surprised. :)

Short Walks in the Rain

I love rainy days. And I love walks in the rain...

...especially with this cute little guy. :)

And luckily, LBB loves walks in the rain just as much as I do, so today we put on his rain coat and went for a short walk across the street (to get a snack and soda.)

As we were walking over, I asked my sweet little boy if it was raining, to which he happily and enthuasitically nodded "yes." Than I asked him "Where does rain come from?"

And my sweet boy pointed to the parking lot. :) Not quite. (A few weeks ago I asked him where wind comes from and he pointed straight up at the clouds. Smartie.)

He giggled as rain lightly fell on his face. He talked to the blue jay that was hopping around in the grass. And he laughed hysterically when the blue jay flew up in the tree.

Ah. Rainy days are so much better now that I'm a Mommy. :)

Biffed It

That's exactly what little man did yesterday. :)

True to his "Never Slow Down" mantra, LBB went running after a big bouncy ball yesterday...lost his footing...and used a patio stone as a landing strip. :( He originally had a chance. He used his hands to slow him down, but all the momentum that was built up in his little toddler self had nowhere to go but forward, and forward he went.

I've got to tell you...there's nothing more heart stopping than seeing blood coming out of your little one's mouth and streaking down his cheeks for the first time. But, once we got him cleaned up and all the dirt and muck off his face, LBB was no worse for the wear minus a patch of scrapes right by his eye. My parents and I were thinking he might get a black eye from it, but today he woke up just fine and no swelling or anything. Phew.

And I have to add...this time last year, if anything happened to LBB, I'd immediately start trying to figure out who was to blame and all that stuff. (You know...overprotective new mommy and all.) But...I'm so proud of myself because in the midst of it all, I got him cleaned up, made sure he was ok, and could honestly acknowlege that it was an accident.

And accidents happen.

And this is not going to be the only one that my active LBB gets into.

And...most importantly...that as Mommy, all I can do is clean him up. Check his boo-boos. Give him a kiss and some comfort. And give the rest to God.

Maybe I'm getting this Mommy thing down pretty good after all. :)

I Jinxed Myself...

Back in THIS post, I made a comment about how a can of Chef Boyardee Mini Beef Ravioli may become my best friend, remember?

I jinxed myself. Today at lunch, LBB took one bite, made a look of extreme displeasure with the ooey, saucey, pasta-ey (not a word, I know) bowl that was placed in front of him. Then he spit out his noodle.

Oy.

What is a Mom to do? This boy won't eat a thing!!!! I know, I know. Toddlers can be picky. Kids can be picky.

I don't think you understand. :)

This goes beyond picky. This is the far end of the spectrum picky. Sigh. My mom said something funny tonight:

"I kind of thought it'd be funny if you got a kid as picky as you were, but I didn't think this picky." Not word for word, mind you, but that was pretty close, right Mom? :)

So, as we talked about it at dinner at my parents' house this evening, my sis mentioned that if we ever had someone other than them babysit that we'd have a very long list of the food he won't eat. I suggested that it might be easier to just make a list of foods he does it. Here goes:

• Bread. But not french bread, crescent rolls, and whatnot. Just white. (Preferably Sara Lee Smooth Light) And Cinnamon Chunk from the grocery store


• Pinto Beans. But only from Chipotle.


• Rice. Any kind really. He likes rice.


• Bananas. Bananas. And more bananas.


• Strawberries.


• Black Berries


• Graham Crackers


• Cheese Quesadillas


• Corn. Corn. And more corn.


• Ritz Crackers.


• Gerber Puffs


• Target's Archer Farms Fruit Strips

I'd love to say there's more. But there's not. Isn't that sad? He's about as picky as they come. Sigh. At least it makes grocery shopping easy. :)

And I am crossing my fingers that I don't jinx myself again...I don't know what I'd feed him then.

Dedication

This past Mother's Day weekend, we had LBB's baby dedication at our church.

Dear Sweet Hubby and I have never been "keen" on baby baptism...mostly because we feel it should be LBB's choice to be baptized when he knows what it means. But...this baby dedication is exactly what we believe, and we are so blessed to have our church feel the same way.

If you want to read our church's view on the subject, click here. :)

Right before we got up on the stage, they played the sweetest video about children and dedication and raising them in the way of the Lord, and my overly-emotional Mommy-self came out and I had to fight back the tears. As I held my sweet little boy, all dressed in his dapper suit that was a gift from PaPa and GiGi, all I wanted to do was hug him and give him kisses on his little forehead...but since we were first in line, I had to be content just holding him tight. :)

And then during the ceremony, I couldn't help but feel my heart be filled with God's love and support as our Pastor talked about the dedication and what it meant...it's an amazing thing.

God blessed Dear Sweet Hubby and I with the profound gift of raising this little boy into a man who lives for God. God has given us a few basic tools...the Bible, prayer, and lots more prayer. And with those tools, we get to have a hand in teaching LBB the love of the Lord. What it means to be saved. And how to live his life for Christ.

What a big responsibility for two plain, simple humans, isn't it? And we're all like that. We're all given that responsibility as parents...children are a gift from God, and it is straight from the Bible that we are to raise them up in His name. And just when you think..."This is quite a daunting task. Where do I even start?"

God gives you a hint.

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up." Deuteronomy 6:5-7

Well...maybe not so much a hint. Maybe more of a smack on the forehead. :) God's pretty awesome at knowing what I need to read when I need to read it.

There's going to be struggles. There's going to be questions. There's going to be that nagging feeling of "Are we even doing this right?" But that's why God is there. That's why the Bible is our go-to guide. That's why He blessed us with family, friends, and a church family that is there to support us.

And that's why He gave us knees...because, goodness, they are going to get a lot of wear and tear over our lifetime as parents. Especially with that spirited little guy that God blessed us with...but the amazing thing is...even when LBB has a rough day, I know that God has great things in store for him.

And that, as a mom, is an AWESOME feeling.

Back When I Knew It All

When I was pregnant, I had all these beautiful visions of me and my little one enjoying trouble-free days, never watching tv, having fresh baked goodies on a regular basis, and making delicious dinners that could have their spot on Food Network.

And then I had LBB.

Trust me...I might as well have been having visions of hopping around a flower field with a lollipop in my hand.

There are moms out there who can do it...and I applaud them. Moms that can make gourmet, organic, all healthy meals that have never seen the inside of a canning factory. There are moms out there who can serve warm, fresh bread on a regular basis to their loving family, all while looking like they just stepped out of a 1950's Good Housekeeping Magazine.

I am not one of those moms.

In fact, I really think those moms are few and far between...figments of our pre-baby imagination where our little ones always listen, never throw a toy, and always eat their meals. That whole thinking that "When I have kids, I'm not going to feed them applesauce that isn't homemade" and "When my kids are the same age as that mother's, they are not going to throw a tantrum everytime I put them in the cart at Target." Trust me...if you don't have kids of your own yet, I know you're thinking those thoughts. :) I thought them. All. The. Time.

But...then you'll have kids.

And you'll realize that in the whole process of waking up, getting them ready, squeezing in a quick shower for yourself, and then chasing their active little bodies around all day, that somewhere in the middle...

They throw a fit.

They scream at the store.

They refuse to eat their dinner.

And a can of Chef Boyardee Mini Beef Ravioli's may very well become your best friend.

And that, my friends, is the wonderful thing about motherhood. It catches you off guard, in such an amazing way. When you invest long hours being awake in the middle of the night while your little one cries because of a tooth coming in or when you've had the day from *fiddlesticks* because your toddler decided to push every limit he could imagine, those "perfect" things just don't matter.

It's the bedtime kisses at night and being put in charge of watching his baby Anklyosaurus when he goes to bed that make you a good mom.

Nothing else matters much...although it would be pretty awesome to go hopping through a flower field.

Hello?

I'm at a crossroads...I'm not sure if I want to keep writing in this blog...I know I don't have a lot of readers, although that's not why I do it. If I wanted more I could always make it public, but it's more for friends and family to keep up with us...and even more importantly, a way to journal and document our life. I keep saying that someday I'm going to print the entries out on a regular basis and keep it for my LBB, but I'm thinking it might be more effective just to start writing in a journal and keeping it for him.

I love this outlet of writing, but sometimes I feel like I'm just talking to myself. Does this all sound whiny? It's really not meant to be. I'm just putting this question out there...how much does reading my little old blog mean to my readers? I'm starting to question if the effort that goes into writing in here and trying to stay current is really worth it? Are my blog entries boring or interesting? Is there any point to me doing this little blog?

Let me know what you think...