No Average Mom

There are so many things I love about raising little people. One thing I especially appreciate at this time of year is shopping for them. Those of you who are raising young children can appreciate this statement. It is so nice not to worry about finding Seiko watches or Wii accessories. Two year olds are just as happy with a cardboard box to sit in as they would be if you gave them the latest technological gadget. In fact most two year olds that I know are more fascinated with the Christmas tree than any other aspect of Christmas. I wish everyone on my shopping list had a little bit of the “two year old” gift spirit in them!

The young mom I posted about a couple of weeks ago passed away shortly after my post. Although I didn’t know her personally I feel so very sad for this family and situation. It just breaks my heart to think of this first time mother dying without getting to enjoy the little person she brought into the world. I pray daily for her husband and family because I can’t fathom what life must be like for them right now. How do you begin to grieve the loss of your wife while going about the process of raising a newborn? Every night I squeeze my kids a little extra just because I feel so blessed to be able to be here to do it.

Technically my son is the owner of the new puppy in our house. For the most part he is taking this responsibility extremely serious. He has taken the dog outside almost every time that she has needed to go. The three books he was given about this breed of dog have already been read within hours of getting the dog. A strict feeding schedule has been adhered to and grooming tools purchased. It is so encouraging to see this side of my son who usually is so wrapped up in his world of books. I can just see him in 20 years taking care of his own children with the same earnestness.

The new little puppy in our house is a real snuggle bug. It is funny how some pets evoke the same feelings in us that our children do. This little puppy seems to breathes so fast sometime I wonder just how many bpm is normal for a puppy? She was just at the vets office and was deemed healthy so I am sure it is just my motherly instincts kicking in. It seems to be something that only occurs occasionally but it does freak me out to watch her little lungs work so much while she is just relaxing.

As soon as we got in the door today my youngest son begged to watch a Thomas The Tank Engine movie. In order to get things done I thought this was a splendid idea. The thing was that at some point during our trip our tv decided to develop this incredible humming sound. How this happens when no one is watching it is a wonder to me. The sound is so loud you can barely hear the audio that is supposed to be coming from it. I suppose this is what I get for complaining about my kids watching too much television. When I want them to watch it it doesn’t work. Fortunately, my son really doesn’t sit and listen to the video and more or less like it to accompany him while he plays.

What do you do with a toddler who thinks everything in the house was meant for him to climb on? The littlest boy in our house is always on the move. The child never stops moving from morning until night he goes and goes just like the Energizer Bunny. He is always on the hunt for new things to climb on. It is as if every piece of furniture is a mountain that he must scale. Today’s project was to sit on top of the television. His fascination with climbing on the television waxes and wanes. Today he simply could not let go of the idea that it would be good to sit on the television. I have tried everything from stacking crates around it to blocking it and he stills manages to wiggle around stuff and start his journey to reach the summit. I really wish there was something along the lines of a plasma tv mount for regular old televisions that didn’t look ridiculous. I can just imagine our big old television sprouting off the wall! Maybe tomorrow he will choose something easier to climb and less dangerous like the toy box.

One of those miraculous times in childhood is creeping up on us. It is becoming very clear that my almost two year old son will without a doubt test the limits in every way possible. This includes stretching the limits of the “terrible twos” as much as possible. For the last three days he has had a tantrum over something. These are brief little bouts of pouting but full out screaming for 1 hour or more. Finally, when nothing else would soothe him I popped in a movie and sat down next to him and waited it out. Thank goodness for closed captioning! It was definitely made for mommies of two year olds.

If there is something to climb on or into my youngest son will find it lately. This weekend he fell and hit his head three times in a row. Our home is as secure as I can possibly make it yet he still finds a way to get into trouble. This weekend he decided that dancing on the television stand was a good idea. I caught him just in time before he tumbled to the ground. I don’t know if a tv lift cabinet would solve the problem but we have to do something. Almost every piece of furniture has been removed from our living room because he either climbs on it or stacks something on it in an attempt to reach something else. Short of sitting on the floor there isn’t much left to be removed. I love to see him test his abilities and problem solve but there has to be a better way to go about it.