"MINE!"
Yep, it's started already. Somewhere, somehow, Monkey learned to say the word "mine." And I can guarantee you it was not from me or my husband!
So I casually raised the question at day care this week.... "So, I'm just curious... have the older kids been saying 'mine' a lot lately? Because we noticed Monkey saying it at home, and aren't sure where he picked it up..."
GUILTY!
On the downside, not only is this apparently the word du jour with the one-year-old set, but their teachers taught it to them! In their defense, their thought was to give the kids a word to use when another child took a toy from them. Apparently they didn't consider that the children would naturally start declaring everything to be theirs. Plan backfired.
On the one hand, I can see their thinking. But on the other hand, there's this little voice in the back of my head (actually, two voices, sounding remarkably like Seth Myers and Amy Poehler), aaying "Really? You didn't think that teaching toddlers to say 'mine' could backfire on you?? Really???" But, alas, what's done is done.
What I really want to know now is this: What, exactly, is the succinct, fail-proof comeback that a parent uses to respond to a child who declares that an object is "mine," while maintaining a death-grip on said object and refusing to turn it over (let's say, just for a crazy example, a toothbrush that said child has been sucking on for over five minutes without actually "brushing" his teeth)? Acknowledging that the object is, in fact, theirs doesn't seem to do the trick. And denying it would seem to be (a) lying, in many cases, and (b) likely to lead to a lovely debate along the lines of "is not," "is too," etc., etc.
So please, if any of you have come up with a snappy comeback to respond to this adamant declaration, the comment section is below - please use it!!
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
My name is klalaw, and I'm an addict...
Wow, you must be thinking, this is a pretty serious post for a relatively non-serious blog!
It's true, I'm an addict. I received official notification of it yesterday.
What kind of addict, you ask, and how does she care for Monkey in her condition?
A posting addict.
Yep, that's right - as of yesterday, I have officially received "posting addict" status on a pregnancy and parenting bulletin board that I frequent. Well, I guess I more than "frequent" it, under the circumstances - I pretty much live there! :-)
What this means is that I have made a ridiculous number of posts since shortly after learning that I was pregnant with Monkay (or about two years ago). I have to stop and wonder, do I really have THAT much to say??
Of course, some of these posts are a simple "thanks" or "oh, he/she is adorable," whereas others are mini-novels with my theories of various aspects of child-rearing, and others are dumb questions that are best asked in a semi-anonymous forum. And it's not as if I'm posting in a vacuum - there are a lot of great ladies on my board, many of whom are addicts like me, and others who are well on their way.
I doubt there's a 12-step program to cure this addiction, but that's OK, because I love my board. I'll admit, there was a bit of excitement as I neared "addict" status, but now that I'm there, I've reached the end of the line, as far as status is concerned. Once an addict, how much farther can you really go? A "serious posting addict," a "posting addict who seriously doesn't know when to stop," or perhaps a "former posting addict who is seeking help and thus doesn't really post very much anymore"? It gets kind of depressing at that point, doesn't it? So, I'll have to just be happy with my addict status, and try to live up to the name, without neglecting my real-life family and friends in the process. :-)
It's true, I'm an addict. I received official notification of it yesterday.
What kind of addict, you ask, and how does she care for Monkey in her condition?
A posting addict.
Yep, that's right - as of yesterday, I have officially received "posting addict" status on a pregnancy and parenting bulletin board that I frequent. Well, I guess I more than "frequent" it, under the circumstances - I pretty much live there! :-)
What this means is that I have made a ridiculous number of posts since shortly after learning that I was pregnant with Monkay (or about two years ago). I have to stop and wonder, do I really have THAT much to say??
Of course, some of these posts are a simple "thanks" or "oh, he/she is adorable," whereas others are mini-novels with my theories of various aspects of child-rearing, and others are dumb questions that are best asked in a semi-anonymous forum. And it's not as if I'm posting in a vacuum - there are a lot of great ladies on my board, many of whom are addicts like me, and others who are well on their way.
I doubt there's a 12-step program to cure this addiction, but that's OK, because I love my board. I'll admit, there was a bit of excitement as I neared "addict" status, but now that I'm there, I've reached the end of the line, as far as status is concerned. Once an addict, how much farther can you really go? A "serious posting addict," a "posting addict who seriously doesn't know when to stop," or perhaps a "former posting addict who is seeking help and thus doesn't really post very much anymore"? It gets kind of depressing at that point, doesn't it? So, I'll have to just be happy with my addict status, and try to live up to the name, without neglecting my real-life family and friends in the process. :-)
Hello, Goodbye...
I posted a while back about Monkey's speech development (or my concerns about the potential lack thereof), and thought it was time for an update...
Monkey is still a HUGE fan of the word "uh oh," although he refuses to recognize that it does NOT apply when he drops things on the floor on purpose. :-) In the past few weeks, however, he has definitely added a few new words to his vocabulary, words that are very clear and spoken with purpose, so that's encouraging.
Yes, Monkey has become a greeter, and also the guy in our house most likely to show you to the door. These days it's all about "hi!" and "bye-bye."
The "hi"s are adorable - they're usually spoken at a loud, enthusiastic volume, such as when I first go in to get him up in the morning, and you can't help but smile and shout "hi!" back...
The "bye-bye"s are pretty funny. Sometimes they're right on cue, like when I show up to pick Monkey up from day care, and he turns to his teacher, waves, and says "bye-bye," as in "it's been fun, but I'm outta here!"
Other times, they're a bit, um, rude? Like when my mother-in-law shows up, Monkey realizes that probably means that Daddy and I are going somewhere, and so he brings her her shoes and tells her "bye-bye," as in "take a hint - I'd rather hang with Mommy and Daddy, thanks." And our poor dog... Every time he goes out to do his business in the back yard, Monkey runs over to the open door, where either my husband or I is standing, and tries to slam the door, saying a loud "bye-bye" to the dog! He also says good bye to trash when he throws it away, food in the pantry and/or the fridge when he closes the door, clothes in the dryer when he's "helping" with laundry... you get the idea.
But he's also getting smart about when it's time to go bye-bye - if I so much as reacch for my coat, scarf, or purse, Monkey starts asking "bye-bye?" and trying to figure out if he gets to go along for the trip, or if he's going to be left behind. If he's lucky enough to go with us, he races to the freezer, where we keep our special treats for the dog when he has to be crated, and he loves carrying it over and throwing it in the crate, and then closing the door. He's also a huge fan of working the garage door opener, and is the first to race to the dog's crate and let him out when we get home (which sounds sweet, but is a bit less so when he promptly steals the dog's chew toy and begins to taunt him with it...)
Such a little personality - It's amazing!
Monkey is still a HUGE fan of the word "uh oh," although he refuses to recognize that it does NOT apply when he drops things on the floor on purpose. :-) In the past few weeks, however, he has definitely added a few new words to his vocabulary, words that are very clear and spoken with purpose, so that's encouraging.
Yes, Monkey has become a greeter, and also the guy in our house most likely to show you to the door. These days it's all about "hi!" and "bye-bye."
The "hi"s are adorable - they're usually spoken at a loud, enthusiastic volume, such as when I first go in to get him up in the morning, and you can't help but smile and shout "hi!" back...
The "bye-bye"s are pretty funny. Sometimes they're right on cue, like when I show up to pick Monkey up from day care, and he turns to his teacher, waves, and says "bye-bye," as in "it's been fun, but I'm outta here!"
Other times, they're a bit, um, rude? Like when my mother-in-law shows up, Monkey realizes that probably means that Daddy and I are going somewhere, and so he brings her her shoes and tells her "bye-bye," as in "take a hint - I'd rather hang with Mommy and Daddy, thanks." And our poor dog... Every time he goes out to do his business in the back yard, Monkey runs over to the open door, where either my husband or I is standing, and tries to slam the door, saying a loud "bye-bye" to the dog! He also says good bye to trash when he throws it away, food in the pantry and/or the fridge when he closes the door, clothes in the dryer when he's "helping" with laundry... you get the idea.
But he's also getting smart about when it's time to go bye-bye - if I so much as reacch for my coat, scarf, or purse, Monkey starts asking "bye-bye?" and trying to figure out if he gets to go along for the trip, or if he's going to be left behind. If he's lucky enough to go with us, he races to the freezer, where we keep our special treats for the dog when he has to be crated, and he loves carrying it over and throwing it in the crate, and then closing the door. He's also a huge fan of working the garage door opener, and is the first to race to the dog's crate and let him out when we get home (which sounds sweet, but is a bit less so when he promptly steals the dog's chew toy and begins to taunt him with it...)
Such a little personality - It's amazing!
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
I've got a clever one on my hands...
I'm beginning to think Monkey is a bit too smart for his own good...
Take this example from this weekend:
My mother-in-law was watching Monkey while my husband and I were out running some errands. They were playing in the family room, and Monkey would periodically go around the corner into the hallway, where we have this giant cigar-store Indian statue thing (a pre-me purchase by my husband), and would touch the statue. My mother-in-law was worried that he would knock it over and get hurt (little did she realize at the time, but that thing ways about a ton and is almost impossible to budget), so she started telling Monkey "no." Well, a simple "no" doesn't accomplish anything with Monkey anymore, so she started gently swatting him on the hand as she said it, hoping this would have more of a deterrent effect. Not so much... So on it went, with Monkey touching the statue, and Grandma telling him "no" with a little swat. Until...
Monkey reached out to touch the statue, and then, without missing a beat, held out his hand for Grandma to smack it! :-o
Needless to say, Grandma had quite a time hiding her laughter from Monkey! And I suspect we're in for a world of trouble with this little guy!
Take this example from this weekend:
My mother-in-law was watching Monkey while my husband and I were out running some errands. They were playing in the family room, and Monkey would periodically go around the corner into the hallway, where we have this giant cigar-store Indian statue thing (a pre-me purchase by my husband), and would touch the statue. My mother-in-law was worried that he would knock it over and get hurt (little did she realize at the time, but that thing ways about a ton and is almost impossible to budget), so she started telling Monkey "no." Well, a simple "no" doesn't accomplish anything with Monkey anymore, so she started gently swatting him on the hand as she said it, hoping this would have more of a deterrent effect. Not so much... So on it went, with Monkey touching the statue, and Grandma telling him "no" with a little swat. Until...
Monkey reached out to touch the statue, and then, without missing a beat, held out his hand for Grandma to smack it! :-o
Needless to say, Grandma had quite a time hiding her laughter from Monkey! And I suspect we're in for a world of trouble with this little guy!
Monday, December 8, 2008
It was fun while it lasted!
I am sorry to report that my fantasy football season is over...
I blame it on my cockiness and gloating around week 4 - it seems like that's when things started going downhill. My good, high scoring players started being totally unreliable. A few players got injured, and I had to trade them for other players, when the pickings were slim. I managed to stay in the top 4 based on my record, but, sadly, I think that's only because I got the luck of the draw each week and managed to play the few teams worse than mine!
This week was the playoffs, and I got about HALF the score of my opponent. Quite sad... And, unfortunately, unless there's a miracle tonight, my husband is about to lose as well, so we won't be sharing any prize money.
Ah, well - fun while it lasted. We'll see if I decide to give it another shot next year...
I blame it on my cockiness and gloating around week 4 - it seems like that's when things started going downhill. My good, high scoring players started being totally unreliable. A few players got injured, and I had to trade them for other players, when the pickings were slim. I managed to stay in the top 4 based on my record, but, sadly, I think that's only because I got the luck of the draw each week and managed to play the few teams worse than mine!
This week was the playoffs, and I got about HALF the score of my opponent. Quite sad... And, unfortunately, unless there's a miracle tonight, my husband is about to lose as well, so we won't be sharing any prize money.
Ah, well - fun while it lasted. We'll see if I decide to give it another shot next year...
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
My Christmas Wish... The Gift of Patience!
Anyone who knows me would NOT list patience as one of my traits. I suppose I'm not the most IMpatient person in the world, but I tend to get annoyed pretty easily - more easily than I would like.
Thus, you can imagine that I am being put to the test right now as the mother of a toddler! Moreso than at any point until now, Monkey is testing my nerves on a daily basis, and I know it's not his fault, but it's hard not to get frustrated and short with him. :-(
For starters, Monkey knows what the word "no" means, but refuses to listen to it if it is spoken just once. There's some evidence that three is the magic number, but sometimes even that doesn't seem to do the trick, and he requires physical movement in his direction to get the desired behavior. Thus, he is constantly standing on his chair, standing on his Leapfrog table (which is now legless, because of prior climbing attempts), climbing on the dog's cage, running around the dining room table, shaking the stair gates, and countless other taboo, potentially unsafe activities. I'm becoming that mommy that sounds like a broken record, saying "no," "stop," "Mommy said no," and "did you hear me?" until I'm blue in the face.
Mealtimes are still a challenge as well. If I were to list every food that Monkey will eat, he'd seem like a pretty well-rounded eater (although still with his quirks). But the thing is that I can't depend on him to eat any one of them on a given day - his appetite, likes, and dislikes seem to change on a daily, if not hourly basis, and some foods are apparently ONLY appetizing if they are served on MY plate, not his...
I think my frustration has been exacerbated a bit because we've been "off" our routine for about two weeks now. We took a trip out of town, then less than a week later had family here for Thanksgiving. We've done our best to stay close to mealtimes, naptimes, and bedtime, but I think Monkey is just plain overstimulated at this point, and we need to get back into a more consistent, less overwhelming daily routine. Sadly, that won't happen this week, as we're back on the road on Thursday. But maybe the week after that, although that's only two weeks before Christmas, and more travel.... Sigh.
So, if anyone knows where I can pick up some extra patience, it would sure come in handy over the next few weeks, months, and years!! :-)
Thus, you can imagine that I am being put to the test right now as the mother of a toddler! Moreso than at any point until now, Monkey is testing my nerves on a daily basis, and I know it's not his fault, but it's hard not to get frustrated and short with him. :-(
For starters, Monkey knows what the word "no" means, but refuses to listen to it if it is spoken just once. There's some evidence that three is the magic number, but sometimes even that doesn't seem to do the trick, and he requires physical movement in his direction to get the desired behavior. Thus, he is constantly standing on his chair, standing on his Leapfrog table (which is now legless, because of prior climbing attempts), climbing on the dog's cage, running around the dining room table, shaking the stair gates, and countless other taboo, potentially unsafe activities. I'm becoming that mommy that sounds like a broken record, saying "no," "stop," "Mommy said no," and "did you hear me?" until I'm blue in the face.
Mealtimes are still a challenge as well. If I were to list every food that Monkey will eat, he'd seem like a pretty well-rounded eater (although still with his quirks). But the thing is that I can't depend on him to eat any one of them on a given day - his appetite, likes, and dislikes seem to change on a daily, if not hourly basis, and some foods are apparently ONLY appetizing if they are served on MY plate, not his...
I think my frustration has been exacerbated a bit because we've been "off" our routine for about two weeks now. We took a trip out of town, then less than a week later had family here for Thanksgiving. We've done our best to stay close to mealtimes, naptimes, and bedtime, but I think Monkey is just plain overstimulated at this point, and we need to get back into a more consistent, less overwhelming daily routine. Sadly, that won't happen this week, as we're back on the road on Thursday. But maybe the week after that, although that's only two weeks before Christmas, and more travel.... Sigh.
So, if anyone knows where I can pick up some extra patience, it would sure come in handy over the next few weeks, months, and years!! :-)
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