It’s Summer, Cut Me Some Slack Part 2

Here we go again, seeing how much an early two year old changes from an almost three year old.  This time? 

Makeup

CamCam has always LOVED getting into things.  But especially my makeup.  He is fascinated with it all.  He loves to open the little containers, see what’s inside.  Color with what’s inside.

I’m really hoping this is just a phase and not a way-of-life.

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Tuesday, December 29, 2009

HAHA, I Told You!

I think our house may just be a little bit too small. I really like my house, but it's becoming a bit tight. The biggest issue is that we all are sharing one bathroom. It wasn't such a big deal when we first built our home. The "Leader of the FabFive" and "Little Miss" were just little kids at the time. Preschoolers. It was convenient to have us all right next to each other and sharing the same bathroom.

But now they are older and need privacy. And then there's also the fact that there are a lot more kids. The Dada and I are now outnumbered. The drawers are being taken over by kids toothbrushes. "Little Miss" has an entire drawer devoted to her hair stuff. All the adult stuff is being pushed aside to make room.

And of course there's also THIS problem. The problem where I will walk into the bathroom and find this:

(To continue reading this post, click here )

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The other day I tried to put CamCam in for a nap.  He still needs naps, but he still is fighting them.  I thought this time we succeeded, as he had been in his room for quite a while and I hadn’t heard anything from him. 

I was in the hallway outside his room, when this little face peeks out at me:

Here we go again.

 

CamCam shares a room with “Little Miss”, and instead of napping he had been playing in her makeup. 

Specifically, a tube of rather dark lipstick.  To a two year old, lipstick is the BEST tube of finger-paint imaginable.  Every time CamCam’s played with makeup, I am surprised at how difficult it is to remove.  This time I had to remove it from CamCam, his clothing, Little Miss’ bedding, a wool rug and CamCam’s bed. 

This toddler bed was bought for our oldest son.  After him, I gave it to my cousin who used it for two of her sons.  My cousin leant it out to a friend of hers.  It found it’s way back to me for CamCam.  This bed survived 4 boys and none of them did anything to this bed that couldn’t be undone.  It took CamCam to paint it pink with lipstick and leave his mark on this bed forever.   I was able to remove most of the lipstick, but it’s pink hue remains all over the side of the bed.

    

The part in all this that made me really chuckle occurred when I was scrubbing the rug.  I looked over and saw the baby Mickey Mouse that “Mr. Trouble” and CamCam carry all over my house and take care of as if it was their own baby.  CamCam had smeared chunks of lipstick all over baby Mickey’s mouth. 

So, once again, for the official tally:
Getting into makeup a year ago
vs. Getting into makeup today:
No Change

As I get older, my shadow gets younger

 

Aren’t we all just a little bit nosey?  Don’t we all wonder about the people around us, wonder what’s going on in our neighbor’s homes?  Well, today I've decided to satisfy your nosey side and let you see a little bit more of me.  Here’s a little taste of my day:

Good morning!  Here’s the view I wake up to:

 

It’s time to eat breakfast!  Here’s who I eat with:

Now we’re getting a little more personal,  it’s time for me to take a shower.  Here’s my view:

 

Naturally, after my shower I need to get ready.  Here’s what I see while I’m doing my hair and makeup.

Obviously, with a family of 7, a lot of my day is spent in the kitchen.  I’m lucky because a lot of people do not have any help in the kitchen, but I ALWAYS have a helper.  Here’s what I see when I’m cooking:

 

And at the end of a very long day, who doesn’t like to relax in front of the TV?

 

Of course, more often then not, my view of the TV is a little more like this:

 

Whew, what a day!  I’m exhausted, and as much as I love my children, it’s time for me to have some kid-free time and some much needed rest.  Here’s my bed:

How Uncomfortable Must This Be?

Yesterday CamCam was angry at me for saying no to him for, ummm…… gosh, I don’t even remember what it was but I’m sure it was him wanting animal crackers since that’s what it usually is.  So he hit “The Baby”. 

Because that’s what the kids in my family do. 

Feeling anger?  Hit the person younger then you.

So I sent him to his room.  Ten minutes later I went up to check on him and this is what I found:

I SWEAR I do NOT make my kids live in a box!

I’m Being Outsmarted- Again

I recently decided that I was going to reinstate nap time with CamCam.  Everyday he starts to fall apart soon after lunch.  By 3PM I find myself wishing that I had put him in for a nap earlier, but by then it’s too late.  He’d be up all night if he went in at 3.  So I started feeding him an earlier lunch, and bringing him up to his bed a little after noon. 

The first time I did this, CamCam fell asleep very quickly.  One o’clock is when “The Baby” goes in for his nap.  Suddenly I had two hours with just one kid up.  I was amazed at the amount I was able to accomplish! 

It really was making a huge difference in the rest of CamCam’s day.  He woke up refreshed, and the number of afternoon meltdowns was greatly reduced.   

Obviously this is being met with great resistance.  And with each passing day, the resistance is growing.  CamCam kept coming out of his room and saying he didn’t want to go to bed.  I finally came up with a solution to this as well.  All morning I do laundry, and as it comes out of the dryer, I throw it into the hallway, which also happens to be right outside CamCam’s room.  Then, during his nap time, I sit there and fold laundry.  The first time I did this, he was pretty shocked to slyly open his door and peek out, only to see me sitting there already. 

However, CamCam must get the final word in.  I can put him into bed.  I can make him stay in his room.  But he says he “Don’t wanna go bed!” and he’s sticking to that.

 

What's the World Record for Number of Meltdowns in One Day?

Oh.


My.


Goodness.


What a day.  And it's not even noon.  CamCam has outdone himself.  I am declaring today official "Meltdown Day".


It all started right after CamCam woke up.  "Mr. Trouble" was playing with this little lego car, and CamCam had a FIT.  Apparently he felt it was his, and he wanted it.


Now.


CamCam was the last person playing with the car last night before bed, and to CamCam night time doesn't reset ownership of said vehicle, it just pauses it.  I told CamCam no, that "Mr. Trouble" had the car first.  "Mr. Trouble" looked at CamCam as if he was crazy, and handed over the car, and picked up another instead.   CamCam threw the lego car down the stairs and demanded the new one. 


I knew right then that this was going to be a very long day.


We headed out soon after that for an early appointment.  Someone PLEASE remind me to never again book an appointment for 9AM.  Anyways, I pull into the parking space, and tell "Mr. Trouble" to unbuckle himself and wait on the sidewalk for me.  I go to get out "The Baby", and CamCam has a fit.  He wants out, and is absolutely furious that "Mr. Trouble" is out of the van and not him.   I let him push the button to shut the van door and this makes him very happy.


We then get to the building's automatic doors, and "Mr. Trouble" is a bit ahead of us and so the doors open for him.  CamCam screams.  "I open, I open, I open!"   I never thought it would be possible for a child to fight over getting to open an automatic door.  I tell him he can go first for the next set, and just as we get inside, a group of people are coming the other way and "open" the door instead.   


Meltdown. 


I coax CamCam inside, telling him to hurry so he can push the elevator button.  He eagerly does this, and once inside the elevator I tell "Mr. Trouble" that it is his turn.  CamCam has a fit.  I still have yet to figure out why pushing a button is so much fun.  But I do know this- if I ever invent a child's toy, it will just be a tray of elevator buttons that light up.  I'd take it with me everywhere. 


I shall not bore you will the details of all the fits CamCam threw at our appointment.  Let's just say that toys were thrown, pretzels were dumped, and screaming ensued when the germ-filled pretzels were not allowed to be eaten. 


Once at home, it wasn't any better.  No matter what toy his brother had, CamCam wanted it.  Nothing pleased him.  Finally they went downstairs to color, and all I heard was nonstop screaming from CamCam.  I went down to investigate, and "Mr. Trouble" said CamCam was crazy. 


I figure an early nap may be in order for CamCam.  He's up there now, but I'm not confident any napping will occur.  All I hear is him knocking on the door and asking to be let out.  It sounds a little something like this:
OP!  (bang)  PEN!  (bang)  DOOR!! (bang)  NOWWWW!!! (bang, bang)


He's got to be tired though.  I don't see how all these meltdowns haven't zapped him of all his energy. 


I know they did me.

Random Sleepiness

CamCam has embraced the freedom his "big-boy" bed has given him. At the age of 2 years he is exerting his independence and has decided that he's no longer taking his nap. I can bring him to his room. I can put him in his bed. I can make him stay in his room. I cannot make him fall asleep. So instead of taking his much needed nap at 1PM, he is up playing. He likes to empty his toy box and climb into it. He likes to fill his toy box with everything in his room. Often I hear banging on the walls up there and don't know if I should go and check or not. On the one hand, he could be causing trouble and I should go and see. On the other hand, what if he isn't causing trouble, but then he would see me checking on him and throw a fit because he wants to get out. So I figure it's probably nothing.

So instead of taking his nap at a normal time, he is randomly falling asleep throughout the day. Usually it's very late in the afternoon and he sleeps for a couple of hours and then is up pretty late at night because of it. Or the worst case scenario, he falls asleep 5pm or later, takes his 2 hour nap, and then is up until midnight or later. Or sometimes he doesn't fall asleep at all and is pretty cranky in the evenings, but at least he goes to bed early.

He's falling asleep here....

Most obvious one, in the van

He's falling asleep here....

Rocking Chair is a very comfy place to fall asleep

He's falling asleep here....
This doesn't look very comfy

He's falling asleep here....

On the floor

He's falling asleep here....

Same outfit, same floor, different day

He's falling asleep here....

Between his bed and his brother's

He's falling asleep here....

Watching TV with his brother

But not here....

Simple Things

One of the greatest things about spending time with a toddler, is that they teach you to notice the world around you. There are so many things that we pass by everyday, and never even notice. Everytime we walk, we walk with a purpose. We're so focused on "getting there" and "getting it done" that we do not take the time to enjoy the process of doing. However, to a toddler, the walk to a grocery store is an adventure. Running out to get the mail is a chance to discover something new. Why hurry up and run to the playground when there is so much along the way to look at. Take a walk with a two year old and you'll see what I'm talking about. A flower, an interesting rock, ants, a cool leaf, a yucky looking pine cone, a plane flying overhead, a pretty butterfly, birds flying across the sky, all are things CamCam teaches me to notice and appreciate.

Just today, he showed me the joy in yet another thing I've failed to notice in a long time. Shadows. He was up in his room "napping" and I went to check on him. The door was open, and he didn't hear me coming. He was facing the wall, and looking at his shadow on the wall. He moved to the side, and his shadow followed and disapeared on the bend in the wall. He tilted his head to the left, looking for his shadow. He leaned back to the right and saw it reappear. He did this 4 more times, leaning to the left and looking for his shadow, back to the right and here it is again. He put his hand in the middle of it and moved, trying to hold his shadow in place. Then he reached out to the edge of the shadow, up high where the edge of his head was, and started to dig at it with his fingers. He was trying to peel it off the wall. I smiled as I realized that at this very moment, he was learning so much. He was figuring out what this "thing" on his wall was. He was discovering 2 dimentional and how it differs from 3 dimentional. What a wonderful moment to witness. I take for granted these gifts we've been given, assume that there is nothing new around me to discover. It took my 2 year old son to teach me to open my eyes and to start and appreciate the simple things around me.

Ok, Now What?

Nap time has become non-existant. But CamCam needs his naps. I need CamCam to nap. Yet it's a constant struggle with me to get him to take one. Just a couple of weeks ago I put the gate up for his room. It's an extra-tall gate, you know, the kind designed so that dogs cannot jump over them. The kind that's made extra-tall to go at the top of stairs so that way a child cannot climb over them and fall down the stairs. I'm quite sure that the gate making people do not want to get sued, so if your going to claim your gate is taller then regular gates and therefore safe to put at the top of stairs, I'm willing to bet they did TONS of tests to make sure this claim is true.

I remember the day I put the gate up. I was redoing our shelving in the entry closet, and CamCam kept opening his door and coming downstairs and getting into the paint, nails, tools, whatever was around. After about the twentieth time of putting him back into his crib, I remembered the gate that was being stored in my closet. I used it with his older brother for just this exact reason, and it worked beautifully. So he opened his door to see me screwing in the hinges on his door jamb.

"Hey," he said to me.

"Ha ha," I said. "Mommy finally got smart!" I walked away smiling to myself. Even if he didn't take the nap he so desperately needed, atleast I had an hour where I didn't have to worry about him getting into stuff.

Fast-forward to today. I'm sitting here, eating lunch, when who do I see coming down the stairs? I thought maybe I didn't hinge it correctly. Nope- this is what I find instead:

The little bugger outsmarted me and used this red bin to climb over. On a side note, is it really necessary to throw all his stuffed animals over the gate first???

So I take the bin out of his room and put him back to bed. Doesn't matter, out again, this time he found a small plastic container that was holding building blocks to climb up on. So I remove ALL containers from his room. There is NOTHING he can climb on to get out, except the toy box but I can barely move that, there's no way he's going to be able to.

I'm back downstairs, eating my lunch, when who do I see sitting at the bottom of the stairs all proud of himself?!?!?! I shouldn't be surprised he found a way out, but I am! His 4 year old brother, who's tall for his age, can't get out with the gate up, how on earth did he do it? I put him back in his room and tell him to come to me, because I've got to see this one for myself.

If you can't beat 'em, Join 'em

The best thing about a crib is that it's really just a cage to contain you little ones in, except that it's legal. I feel very lucky that it took CamCam this long to figure out how to climb out of his crib. But now that he's an "old pro" at getting out, the crib is no longer doing it's job and has instead become a safety hazard. He really does quite well at getting out, but the way he climbs in is he shimmies up his crib right in the middle, then when he reaches his belly, he bends forward and slowly starts to tip in. Suddenly he becomes top-heavy and just dumps in the crib. I've cringed every time that I've seen his little neck bend as he lands heavy on the mattress.

So today is the day that the crib leaves the bedroom and the toddler bed comes in. I'm glad I still have a baby so that I'm not getting rid of the crib completely. I would be very sad to do that. It's a very big event changing over to the toddler bed. It's as if I've finally admitted that he isn't my little baby anymore, but is, infact, a growing toddler. Toddler beds are actually the same size as a crib, but he still looks too little to be in one. He's so excited by his new "toy." I doubt he'll go to sleep any easier now, but atleast I no longer have to worry about him falling or bending his neck. Well, except that "Leader of the FabFive" taught "Mr. Trouble" and CamCam that if you put a blanket over the sunroof part of the bed, you can climb up and then drop down with the blanket and it's like a little ride. Good grief.

Coming in to see his room:

But how stinkin' cute is this???

Getting Things Started

CamCam will be two on August 23. I'm not sure who coined the phrase "terrible twos", but experience has taught me that this does not actually refer to a two year old child. The so-called terrible twos seem to start around 18 months, and continue until 3 1/2 years. So it should actually be called the "terrible two years". I'm currently drowning in this phase. Nothing on this planet can match the determination of a toddler who's made up his mind to do something. Never again will rage and anger be expressed so physically without any regard to the consequences. The world has suddenly opened up to this curious little mind, and they have no fear.



Everything was going ok until about 2 weeks ago. That's when CamCam taught himself how to climb out of his crib. Up until this point, I atleast had a 3 hour break mid-day while he took his nap. Not anymore. Now he doesn't nap, he trashes his room instead. He will not go to sleep at bedtime, he trashes his room instead. He doesn't sleep in, his brother wakes him up. I feel like a tornado has entered my home and I'm running around after it trying to pick up it's wake of destruction.


He's actually quite adorable though. His smile embaces his entire face, and has a bit of mischeviousness mixed in. You can't help but smile when looking at him. I love this little boy to pieces, but he sure is driving me crazy!



So here's the closet he and his brother share. Everyday he pulls down all their clothes onto the floor. Everyday I refold all the clothes and put them back on the shelves. I tried putting them up on the higher shelves, but he just climbed up the shelves to get to them. I can't shut the door because he taught himself to open doors. I had baby-proofing knobs on them, but he learnt that if he put his thumb in the hole and pulled down, it pops right off. His almost 4 year old brother can't get through a door with a baby-proof knob on it, but he can.





Results of nap time. If he didn't share a room with his brother, I'd just take all the toys and books out. But they do share, and that wouldn't be fair to his brother. However, I'd like to know why everyone seems to think stuffed animals make a great gift? They must have 20 or more stuffed animals in their room. I never see them playing with them. I try putting them on shelves to look cute, but they both just take them down and throw them everywhere. Is this the point of stuffed animals?