Parry family update
My posts are sporatic and today's post is well overdue. So whats new with the parry clan. Well lots of exciting stuff going on...
First the most exciting news: Kian is walking! My little moosh moosh is chuggin along all over the house, making it known that he's now a fully functioning WALKER! He gets frustrated when I try to push him to sitting position and he gets so excited sometimes he stumbles (and cries). I'm not sure how Leonidus feels about his little brothers new found ability. He has mixed emotions. Sometimes I see him excited and say "LOOK KIAN IS WALKING" and other times I catch him pushing him (or trying to get him to crawl). I guess its natural to feel confused but I find my boys interactions to be oh so fascinating (and sometimes frustrating).
In other news I am still trying to learn how to cope and emphasize with a growing, active and opinionated 2.5 year old toddler. Leonidus is a fun-loving toddler boy most of the time. I absolutely LOVE this stage (we'll get to the reasons why it also sucks later). I love his stutter (which is especially bad when he gets stuck on the W's and L's) and I love his sense of humor and AMAZINGLY VIVID imagination. His passion for sports, trains, cars and bikes is fascinating to watch, in particular the way his imaginative play is expanding. I love it when he tells me "Mommy I love you" and I love our elbow, nose, ear, mouth, cheek, forehead and eyebrow kisses! with all that said, toddler-hood comes with some crazy dramatic times. The tantrums I see are INCREDIBLE and earth shattering at times. FOR EXAMPLE... The other day I took LJ out of the shower (we alternate between SHOWER and BATH nightly) and tried to put a diaper on him for bed. OH MY GOD! He didn't want to put on a diaper. He was SCREAMING and kicking and mind you, he's a strong sturdy little guy... I was trying to hold him down but he lost his noodles and was being insane. I tried EVERYTHING to calm him down. Nothing WORKED AT ALL. Finally I let him be in his room, naked, and let him cry until he was ready to come out. This tantrum event lasted for about 15 minutes but it felt like forever. As Kian and I waited in the living room for him to settle down, I started at Kian and held him in my arms. Trying to enjoy the time of infancy... I sometimes miss my babies being babies!!
With all that said, I have started doing my fair share of GOOGLING "toddler tantrums" and methods on how to best deal with them. I don't like to read much (I'm trying to work on that) but SELF HELP BOOKS for raising kids are my THING!
I recently ordered a book that came highly recommended called "Happiest Toddler on the Block". I've just started reading it but so far I find the book and method of dealing with toddlers fascinating. Bribing no longer works for me. Timeouts - a big NEGATIVE 80% of the time. Distraction method - hardly works now since the tantrums are so nutty sometimes. This book refers to toddlers (mainly ages 1-4) as them being much like cavemen. I don't want to start talking about the book in depth but I am very much looking forward to applying some of the teachings of the book on my boys to see how they work. One thing is certain is that I'm not alone and the benefits and JOYS of being a mother of a toddler significantly outweigh and overshadow the not so pleasant times. First the most exciting news: Kian is walking! My little moosh moosh is chuggin along all over the house, making it known that he's now a fully functioning WALKER! He gets frustrated when I try to push him to sitting position and he gets so excited sometimes he stumbles (and cries). I'm not sure how Leonidus feels about his little brothers new found ability. He has mixed emotions. Sometimes I see him excited and say "LOOK KIAN IS WALKING" and other times I catch him pushing him (or trying to get him to crawl). I guess its natural to feel confused but I find my boys interactions to be oh so fascinating (and sometimes frustrating).
In other news I am still trying to learn how to cope and emphasize with a growing, active and opinionated 2.5 year old toddler. Leonidus is a fun-loving toddler boy most of the time. I absolutely LOVE this stage (we'll get to the reasons why it also sucks later). I love his stutter (which is especially bad when he gets stuck on the W's and L's) and I love his sense of humor and AMAZINGLY VIVID imagination. His passion for sports, trains, cars and bikes is fascinating to watch, in particular the way his imaginative play is expanding. I love it when he tells me "Mommy I love you" and I love our elbow, nose, ear, mouth, cheek, forehead and eyebrow kisses! with all that said, toddler-hood comes with some crazy dramatic times. The tantrums I see are INCREDIBLE and earth shattering at times. FOR EXAMPLE... The other day I took LJ out of the shower (we alternate between SHOWER and BATH nightly) and tried to put a diaper on him for bed. OH MY GOD! He didn't want to put on a diaper. He was SCREAMING and kicking and mind you, he's a strong sturdy little guy... I was trying to hold him down but he lost his noodles and was being insane. I tried EVERYTHING to calm him down. Nothing WORKED AT ALL. Finally I let him be in his room, naked, and let him cry until he was ready to come out. This tantrum event lasted for about 15 minutes but it felt like forever. As Kian and I waited in the living room for him to settle down, I started at Kian and held him in my arms. Trying to enjoy the time of infancy... I sometimes miss my babies being babies!!
With all that said, I have started doing my fair share of GOOGLING "toddler tantrums" and methods on how to best deal with them. I don't like to read much (I'm trying to work on that) but SELF HELP BOOKS for raising kids are my THING!
In the last bit of news, we have Leonidus starting preschool come Sept 6. We are VERY thrilled for this milestone and feel that he is 100% ready to rock and roll. He will be going FullTime and mommy and daddy tested him out at his school for 1-week of summer session. He loved it.A recommendation from me to you: If you are looking for a school for your kids and you care about their happiness, RESEARCH RESEARCH VISIT AND ASK QUESTIONS! When we first moved to Sacramento, we enrolled him into the school right across the way from our house. a private school which came with lots of acclamations and positive online reviews. I did not do my due diligence and research other schools and ask the right questions (forgive me I was a newbie) and WE (Leonidus and Mommy/Daddy) all hated the school. HATED!!! I took him out after 2 weeks and visited 9 schools in person, got on 3 wait lists and finally GOT ACCEPTED into our top PRESCHOOL we had selected. I busted my butt to make sure we found the most suitable school that met some of our criteria: (a) our parenting style (b) LJ's personality and (c) our education/playtime requirements and (d) 2nd language offerings. I will send everyone updates from time to time on how our boy is transitioning but for now, its good. I hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday and hope to post again soon!
Comments