The Troubles Of A Two-Year-Old

My boys have a pretty amazing lives. Unless I am seriously missing something, they are not lacking in many areas of life. Although we allow them to be boys - adventurous, messy, a little crazy, sometimes loud, and even almost dangerous at times, we provide everything they need and love and care for them with all we've got. Their lives are secure.

Despite this security, unconditional love, and comfort in life, they still have their own brand of troubles. Ben hates confrontation. He hates it when someone - anyone - is unhappy or upset. He is a secret perfectionist: doesn't, at first glance, seem terribly competitive, but is very tough on himself in reality.

Mitchell hates sharing food. If I take a bite of an apple, he won't come near it. If I take a pretzel out of his bag, he will pass on snack time. He loves physical attention and hugs and snuggles, but prefers not to be kissed. Even knowing this, I kiss him when I just can't help it. After every kiss, he wipes it off. He hates the idea of slobber, even when it is the driest kiss I can manage.

Jack, being the hilarious age he is, has the funniest troubles in life. Boogers. Jack cannot abide "boogies" Every morning, when I get him out of bed, he at some point rubs his nose, feels the crusties inside, and panics. "Mom! I have boogies! Get my boogies!" Try as I may, I cannot convince my youngest child to pick his own nose. This leaves me literally picking Jack's nose for him not just every morning, but multiple times throughout the day.

He also can't stand his socks being "crooked." I am not sure what this actually means, but often, I just don't quite put his sock on correctly, and his whole world falls apart. Until I tug and pull and twist and shift that sock sufficiently, life is unbearable.

One more thing he hates (and this is my favorite) is when his shirt gets shifted up at all. If we are playing or wrestling or... doing anything really and his shirt happens to come up above his belly button... oh man... STOP EVERYTHING! "Oh no!!! My belly is stickin' out!" He just hates his belly to show...

I may feel I have trouble in life, but at least I can pick my own nose, have no sock issues and my shirt isn't constantly ridin' up. Perspective...

Turn It Up!

It is winter break for my kids this week. Yes, we already had a Christmas break, but it was only a week long and now we are getting Christmas break, take 2, a couple months later. As I have all three boys home all day every day with me all week long, I think I will take this opportunity to share with you something that is driving me loony in my daily life.

Jack loves music. Jack loves to sing. He loves to dance. He wants music on no matter where we are or what we are doing. He will dance at home or in the car or in a store. He does a little boogy on the sidewalk when a car drives by with it's music blaring.

Jack also loves music LOUD. Listening to a song at a normal volume just isn't acceptable to him. This is most evident in the car. I take Jack everywhere with me and he spends some time running to and from things in the car with me every morning. That kid loves the radio and he knows many songs by name, and often it is cute. He will say "I like this song, mom!" or "turn it off! It's rubbish!" or "Don't like this one!" or "I know this song!" But no matter what his opinion of the quality of the song, he always has one constant command: "Turn it up! Loud! Louder! Super loud!"

I also love music and I like to listen to it in the car. I also have opinions on which songs are nice and which are rubbish. Jack and I often agree on such things. We DO NOT agree though, on how loud to listen to it! I hate loud music. I love all kinds of music, but I want it all at a volume that I can hear other things going on around me, or my kids trying to talk to me, or a car honking, or my husband trying to have a conversation, or my own mind thinking!

Jack, like his dad, wants to blast the music, then talk about something. I then turn the volume down so I can hear him, and he shouts/demands, "Hey! Turn it up! Need it loud!"

I have a fight over how loud is too loud in the car every single day and am daily left wondering why this little boy of mine is such a bossy-boots with insensitive ear drums. I am going crazy...

A Crooked Point of View

As I was dressing this morning, I actually took the time to look in the mirror. Most mornings, it is still dark when I dress and I am usually just throwing on some gym clothes, so no mirror necessary. This morning, however, I had already been to the gym and back and was dressing for the second time, so took a bit more time with it, including a glance into the mirror to make sure my shirt wasn't on backwards or something like that.

I just have to say, no matter how I decide I look in the mirror, I almost always have to smile at myself when I take the time to actually use one. I don't just stand there and look - I tilt my head to the side - every time! It is a habit I formed early on enough that I can't remember a time I did not do this. I remember my sister teasing me for it as kids and I can't tell you how often I think of her when I look in the mirror, not because we look alike in the slightest, but because her teasing words ring through my head as she laughs at my silly, lop-sided pose.

It really does help me look better! Perhaps I am not imagining this and it truly does help my appearance for me to be crooked in such a way and I should actually walk around in life with this pose!

Shtarting To Shound Shilly

So far, I am nothing but pleased with the school year.  The boys and I are quite happy with how things are going - they are learning, having fun, and making friends.

I only have one complaint so far, and while it isn't the school's fault, I'm not really sure who specifically to blame it on, so I just say, "he picked it up at school."  Mitchell, who is normally a very clear annunciator and only has a few words he routinely pronounces incorrectly, has picked up a lisp!  Suddenly, he has replaced his "s" sounds with "sh" sounds.  I will finish my entry in Mitchell's new language.  

At firsht, I jusht tried to ignore thish new development.  After all, it'sh not like he doeshn't know how to shay hish "sh's" and needsh to be taught.  I figured it wash shomething one of hish friendsh wash doing and he wash jusht trying it out.  Well, it hash been a week or sho now and it ish shtarting to get on my nervesh.  Sho now, not only ish he talking like thish, but I correct him every time he doesh it, making it doubly annoying for ush all!  Hopefully, thish ish going to be a very short-lived experiment of hish.  I may jusht end up doing it myshelf if he doeshn't quit shoon!