Shenanigans

Late yesterday afternoon, I made the decision to take my sleepy toddler swimming, thinking it would settle him down. What I forgot was the settling down happens AFTER he gears up into overdrive at the sight of the gallons of water in a hole called a pool. Add to that sleepy = tantrums and I'm not listening! I have no idea why I forgot this. Why did this slip my mind? I've been doing this Mother gig for two years and whatever else it says on my blog ticker says now (if its still there). But I did and I paid. Paid so much by the time I half dragged, half carried my screaming, hitting, and biting toddler out of the pool area my entire body was shaking.
Hayden has this thing about getting out of the pool, standing at the edge and jumping back in as I catch him to keep him from going under and coming back up. Well, I put him by the edge of the pool like always, expecting him to jump back in. Instead he made a beeline for the deep end of the pool. And I'm still in the water! Just looking at my toddler about to jump into the deep end of the pool, luckily some bystander on the side of the pool nabbed the top of his vest just as his one of foot left the edge. I actually stayed for about five long minutes of pulling, fighting, tantrums and another beeline for which I called it quits. My body was shaking so bad, I could have cried at the pool area and even coming home he was still acting up, not wanting to go where I directed him on his push toy. AARh! Sleepy toddlers!
No more swimming alone with Hayden and definitely no swimming when it's really naptime.

This post was supposed to be about the pool incident but in a day Hayden has so many shenanigans, I decided to write about some recent ones. I could have several posts on this little guy doing exactly what he isn't or sneaking about until caught then giving me an eye that makes me think: "Should I melt or stand firm?" Sometimes it seems as if he's playing me like a piano, killing me softly.
Ever since I potty trained Hayden, he's refused ANY thing that covers his nether regions. Yup, no pull ups, no undies, no diapers at night. He is a 2 year old nudist. He has come around to at least letting me put on undies - At least until I'm no longer looking then: "off!" This of course is cool around the house but it has been hindering progress! I have been working on getting down potty training outside. Going when I'm on the run or at a friends or even at night, hard when he wants naked. He has to learn to pull down pants, undies and pee. He doesn't say "pee, pee" or nothing when he goes, just goes up to it and pee. So I have to let him just go nude and break my back chasing him around my coffee table until I wrestle on undies or pull ups. And undies he knows not to pee in but pull ups he thinks are diapers and will wet in them, I have done away with diapers.

Hayden loves raiding the fridge for goodies between meals AND snacks. " There gots to be some candy I can get." This usually happens once I leave a room or am cleaning, he will run into it and bring me juice to pour him, a package to open and fruit (which he is crazy about he will take it over chocolate MISSION ACCOMPLISHED). Overall, it's annoying my fridge is disorganized, I wish to get Hayden fed on a schedule as he will be in school, and I also know he does it because he can! But the kicker is the way he runs when caught or the smile he gives so innocent, so mischievous, he kills me!

Life in the fast lane

So life has been going a million miles per hour and life has taken over and I have little inspiration to step into the blogging world - I am barely hanging on!
After much fear and even more confusion I picked up a ball of yarn ( no it's not for the cat that I don't have) and some crochet needles checked out a book in crochet and you tubed my life away until I could do a slip knot, a foundation chain, turn a Chain, do a slip stitch, a single stitch and a double stitch. I have just been practicing and memorizing stitches for the most part but I have a few squares and funky unrecognizable patterns. But it's uber fun. I am beside myself in excitement that I am really learning to crochet and knit! Knitting I have been doing shorter I just started last week and can cast on and knit and last night I learned to purl. Which i am happy about because it was intimidating at first but now I can knit fast.
With it finally getting hot and humid enough to choke baby kittens, I have taken Hayden to the pool twice and he is a fish. He can kick and paddle already I even can let him go and he will swim with the help of his vest. I am totally investing in this kid some swimming lessons he loves water!
I am gearing up also for some major toddler crafts, now that Hayden is the King of following direction now and can sit still for more than a minute.

 

Hayden and I are leaving yeah that's right. We are going to be traveling to L.A to visit family, sadly David won't be joining us until later when he can take some vacation. But we are going train, which absolutely heart. Especially since a certain toddler is big enough to appreciate it and call it exciting this time. Hayden and I have been on trips twice since his birth. He did super on both but you and both know now that the toddler years are here it will be ten times different! In fact I am nervous about keeping the little firecracker in his seat... Without tears! I wonder I can strap him in his car seat? I need major tips on traveling with a toddler- major! This will be an experience for sure.

A few words....

Hayden is becoming such a terrible delight to have around. Not that he wasn't a delight before it's just that now he can interact more and is just plain more fun. When I look at him now, I see a kid or toddler 100% in him - No baby at all! He is trying to do more stuff for himself, he can do more stuff for himself. He is back to himself in his "try, try, try again" mind state, which I love but when it comes to disobeying it can be killer on me to chase him around or have to continuously remove him. His tantrums, where he calmly lies himself down and begins to kick and scream, are narrowing down a bit, but he still has a hard time listening. Instead, I have to remove him and remove, redirect, or tell him "you can't play with this but that." They all never work all the time, but one out of all them usually works for him.
Hayden's persona is coming out more, and I'm really starting to see who he is. And truly love him for who he is. His interests are shaping, his moods are stabilizing more as I understand him more, his limits, boundaries, likes, and dislikes.
He enjoys instruments (so for his b-day I plan on letting it rain music), he is getting more artistic and drawing is one of our favorite together activities besides reading and singing. (I am gonna have to post a video of this kid singing, he totally has soul). He loves trucks and trains, so I'm thinking about maybe getting him that Thomas train track thing or maybe that village table.
And what I'm excited the most to share is: Hayden can talk! It started earlier in his 21st month with a few new words popping up about every so often, and now has peaked! He can say certain sentences, piece words together and has been learning between 1-2 words a day. I am so excited about him talking, I really am starting to become happy that he is growing up. VERY HAPPY. And here is a video of not even a fraction of the words he knows. Enjoy, I know I love videos

Daddy and son

I know I harbor Hayden all to myself most of the time he is my little boy and he's hard to share. And while David and Hayden have always had a great father/som relationship, it still melts my heart seeing them do their male bonding and have their things together that Mommy just can't seem to do as good as Daddy. It is wonderful to prepare dinner or load the dishwasher without worrying about Hayden all alone in his room getting into trouble because he is racing cars on Daddy's back.

I'm lovin' it.

The things Dr. Sears never told me...and other things about motherhood

That toddlers will refuse to eat food from the plate you served them instead expecting you to share with them from your plate. And when you try to direct them back, they throw you the most cutest eyes you've hear seen and says "share?"

That toddlers will politely get down on the floor, lay still for a second as if getting together themselves or pumping themselves up for the moment before kicking, screaming, and riving on the floor as dying from the flesh eating virus. And all you can do is look.

Or that your toddler will need a nap as you upgrade your phone to an Iphone, and your husband forgets his wallet, leaving you in the AT&T with a toddler as he darts clear across town to get it. As the toddler goes into overdrive, he chases another toddler around the store, who is afraid of him, darts behind the employee desks, laughing all the way HO-HO-HO, all with his mother trailing behind him. After she finally catches him, she attempts to hold him as he decides to do his best impersonation of spagetti, trying to slide through her arms. She takes business cards to distract him, which he promptly chucks at the associate with the arm of Barry Bonds. The cards miss the lady simply because she ducked.

Or that I would be THAT mom with THAT toddler in an AT&T store, who only can hold her toddler by the arm as he tries everything in his 3 feet 27lb arsenal to break her hold. Or that I would THAT mom with THAT toddler who gets the stares from hell as hes arched his back, melted to the floor, screamed, hitting notes that Whitney Houston could only dream of, like I was a serial killer.

Or that toddlers remember everything, watch everything even the things you don't think you do, and do it later. The good, the bad, and the ridulously cute. They are jacks of all trades with muliple personality disorder and a firm sense what they don't like and do like, and if they are confused they are going against you just to test you. And wrapped up in their chaos and daredevil ways is the best damn thing in the world: them.

or that I would love Hayden so much that he would become such a part of me not as just his mom but a friend, a playmate, someone to seek guidance from, to call when he is scared in trouble and everything else in between. And after not nursing for months now, still remember that breast have milk and try to sneak a nurse in the middle of the night.

2, two, and II

In 2 days Hayden will be 22 months, and in two months Hayden will be II.
Awe-see-mo-so!

Yup, and I am sad to report that for this tot as with early thing, the terrible two's have appeared,rearing their ugly head like a raging cat in heat with the stubborness of a bull. On good Hayden is filled with love, hugs, and Oscar winning tantrums and a smirk for the ladies. And on the bad ones, well, I just hang my head and hold on for the ride other wise I know I will be thrown off.

And its amazing because this still is my favorite stage.

What's for Lunch

We had

Cheese sandwiches and pineapples!

Hayden was less than enthused at first but after a bite from his sandwich, he set to work chowing down.



He is big on most fruit and pineapples are no exception. He simply adored them. They, like all fruit, were diminished before anything else on the plate.



He ate everything except for his crust - he has never liked crust just like his Mommy I just forgot to decrust the sandwich. After I had cleaned him up and released him, he came over to my plate (I am a slow eater) snatched one of my pineapples, blew on it and said "hot." I could have died laughing. A pineapple hot?

*Sigh*

Hayden today decided that chips go better on the floor than in your tummy



Rather quickly though I'm sure he realized the error of his ways


Because he sprinted for the hallway like his tail was on fire and gave me the most guilty- I'm sorry- look he could muster


And Mommy melted like butter of course...

Sigh...