Bouncin' and Misbehavin'

J has been extremely hyper lately. We don't know quite why. But he's totally bouncing off the walls.

J's favorite word is "NO"! So much so that he came home from daycare one day last week with a note to this effect. He is most uncooperative. Time outs are frequently occurring in our household these days.

Today, J came home with a note to advise us that he was hitting his friends and throwing toys. Around here, hitting is promptly remedied with time outs. Throwing toys results in the toys being taken away and locked in the closet for a long time ... like weeks or months. But daycare can't implement the same punishments that we can at home, so they try other things.

Apparently, J hit one of his friends. He was reprimanded by his teachers. J responded by apologizing to the little boy, and giving him a hug and a kiss. Sounds sweet, doesn't it? And it would have been sweet. Except that J then continued to hit the little boy so that he could follow up with hugs and kisses. My little 2-year old appears not to understand that he can hug and kiss his little friends for no apparent reason, and thinks this is some kind of game.

I don't want J to bully his friends!!!!!

J was super-grumpy tonight. He was sent to bed early, since he clearly needed the sleep. And we attempted to explain to him at some length that he is not to hit or throw toys. Of course, he's only 2 years old, and I just don't know that he understands these concepts yet. All we can do is try.

On another note, J now has a nightlight. He still doesn't enjoy bed time, but he is not panicked about being in the dark any longer. So ... score!

Pants

J spilt something on his pants while he was at daycare today. His teachers tried to change him into his spare pants.

His spare pants are favorites of ours. They're faded brown jeans with a small red bear iron-on on one leg. They have pockets in the knees where J can put all his little treasures - rocks, marbles, and the like. Very cute. Very practical. Very boyish.

Of course, J refused to wear them. He told the teachers that they were "girls' pants", and he wouldn't put them on. So he ended up dressed very warmly, in his ski pants, for the rest of the day.

H and J are now on their way to L&P's for "Fat Tuesday". While they are there, H will try to convince J to wear his regular pants.

A J never sleeps

J has decided that he wants cuddles before bed. He's suddenly developed a fear of the dark, and he doesn't like being left alone for bedtime.

J doesn't enjoy bedtime. He argues about it. He delays it. He demands cuddles and a sippy-cup of milk. J hasn't had a sippy-cup in many months, but we've had to dig this old relic up once more for his new night-time ritual. Usually, he wakes up several times a night and wants cuddles.

Last night was particularly dreadful.

I'd spent the weekend at the hospital. Everything is pretty well fine, but I've added kidney stone to the list of pregnancy problems, and I needed to spend some time at the RAH. It was not a great weekend. But they released me Sunday afternoon and let me come home. I'm trying to stay hydrated and rested, and hoping to manage this at home. But if the nights are like last night, ... well ...

J awoke.

"I wanna cuddle for a little bit"
"Upp-ie!"
"I wanna cuddle!"
"I WANNNNNNAAAA CUUUUDDLLLE FOR A LITTTTTLE BIIIIITTTTT!!!!"

Minutes pass ...

[Sing-song]
"Soccer ball, soccer ball
Soccer ball, soccer ball
Soccer ball, soccer ball"

Minutes pass ...

"Froggie is stinky. Poopie Froggie? It's ok, Froggie. I'll change your bum."

Narration of the diaper change being performed on J's stuffed Froggie ensues ... followed by a diaper change on Cow ... and one on Big Bad Wolf, who was presumably so poopie that he needed toilet paper ...

Minutes pass ...

"Mommy, can you turn on Treehouse?"
"Shrek the Third?"
"Treehouse?"

Minutes pass ... Mommy gets up for her ritual 3:00 a.m. hurl ...

"Mommy's vomiting in the big potty. She's vomiting in the big potty"

Followed by narration ...

"She vomits ... again ... and again ... and again ... and again ..."

Minutes pass ... J falls out of bed ... We put him back in bed ...

"Can you cover me up, Mommy?"

Mommy obliges. Minutes pass ...

"Can you cover me up, Mommy?"

Daddy responds ...

"No! Mommy!! Can you cover me up, Mommy? I WANT MOMMY!!!"

An argument erupts over whether or not Daddy is as good a cover-upper as Mommy ...

Eventually, J went back to sleep. I am tired. But I must stay up and drink lots and lots of water. There are still kidney stones to flush out of my system. Fun for the whole family!

Linkage

I've been a fan of Brian Braiker's writing for some time. He used to write the Mr. Nice Guy blog. It was a parenting blog, but then became a bit more multi-purpose. Always good for a few laughs.

I haven't updated my blog links in some time ... and I'm not sure when I will get around to it. So until I do, here is the link to Brian's new parenting blog, I, Breeder, which he is writing for Newsweek. His writing style reminds me of our own darling curmudgeon, pioneer of the Retail Rant.

Enjoy!

A minor pregnancy annoyance

Cravings.

I get cravings daily now. Generally, around noon. I crave different things each day. None of the things I crave are in our regular diet, so we never have them in the house. And since I'm still on bedrest, I can't go out and get what I want when I want it. Nothing else sounds appetizing until the cravings have passed.

I still have morning sickness, but it is inaptly named, since it becomes worse in the evenings. So by the time H is off work and could pick up food for me, not only are the cravings gone, but the nausea is so pronounced that I can no longer eat anything at all. And since the cravings vary from day to day, I can't even anticipate them for the next day.

It would be infinitely better if the cravings occurred in the evening. But I have no say in the timing of this little annoyance.

Words to live by

J has a hobby horse. It was a gift from Memaw. J loves to put the stick between his knees and gallop around the living room on his horse. It is J's only horse toy, and he adores it.

Grandma: Hold your horses, J!
J: My one horse is at home, Grandma.

In addition to correcting the obvious errors of others, J has also taken to quoting the wise words of others:

J: Well done, your Highness. That's what Shrek said.

J: Daddy, remember: Do what the Do-Wops do ... Do what we do.

Goodnight, J. Sleep tight. Harvard is waiting for you.

Where's Mommy?

J and I went to Edo for lunch today. We were both feeling under the weather, so we thought their Udo Chicken Soup would be good for what ailed us. T, who continues to be on bed rest and suffer from morning sickness, stayed home just as she should.

The staff at the Edo were very taken with J. They told him that he looked just like Santa in his little red coat. Despite his being somewhat shy at first, the Edo staff pressed to carry on conversations with him. Conversations such as:

Edo Employee: Where's Mommy?
H: She's at home, sick.
Edo Employee: Oh. Does she have the flu?
J: She vomits in her pot.

Things you never thought you'd hear yourself say

"Snuggling does not include umbrellas."

Quick baby update

Saw the obstetrician today. I'm still on bed rest - at least until my next appointment, mid-January. And I've had morning sickness so bad that I have actually lost 4 pounds while pregnant. Unless things change quite dramatically, I will be on bed rest until baby is born. At best, I may at some point prior to baby's arrival be allowed limited activity, but it sounds like it would be very limited. The prognosis isn't great just now. We hope baby doesn't come too early. I'm staying very still.

At least baby's growth is on track, and things seem to be going well from that end. My body is creating the problem. But there does not appear to be any problem with our child. So we sit tight and hope that I can hang on.

Things have been quiet here lately

I am aware. Time for a few updates.

I'm about 16 weeks pregnant with #2 now. Already on bed rest, and have been for over a month now. I'm bed resting until at least 20 weeks, and we'll see from there. There are complications and, if they do not resolve, I'll likely be on bed rest until delivery. I'm due end of May. Bed rest is boring. There's not much that I can do. I miss work. It's hard to get to the computer. It's tough to blog. The worst part is that I can't pick up J. I miss cuddling my little boy. Thankfully, I have a supportive husband who has been taking good care of me and J. I just wish I could contribute. But I can't.

We went to Maui for a week in September. That's where we learned that we were expecting #2. It was a fantastic trip! Thankfully, the morning sickness didn't start until we returned. It's been pretty bad, though. I can't keep down even my prenatal vitamins. I'm concerned about proper nutrition for baby. But I'm doing my best.

On the J front, potty training is going well. J is rewarded with a sticker for sitting on the potty, and he receives an extra sticker for peeing. He usually gets two stickers. But he's not yet telling us when he needs to go, so he's generally wet between trips. I hope he will be trained soon. It would be helpful.

Also, we have managed to wean J from his "Ne-naw" (aka soother). He was only having it during naps and night. But we explained to him on Monday that Ne-naws are only for little tiny babies, and he's a little boy now and much too grown-up for a Ne-naw. He barely even squawked about it. Honestly, it was more tragic for me - my baby is growing up!!! But it needed to go, so it is gone.

J likes all kinds of books and toys now. He will often play with things that aren't really his toys. We have to monitor for safety. He has claimed one of our Halloween decorations - a silver skull - as one of his new toys. Apparently, J does not find this gross-looking thing particularly scary. We are having trouble getting it back into storage, since J keeps hiding it among his other toys. J also loves the design that is on the back of one of our rocking chairs. He thinks Design looks rather like a face, and he has conversations with it, shares toys with it, etc. Ah well, a couple of imaginary or inanimate friends never hurt anyone.

J enjoys singing. His favorite song is still "Mighty Machines", but he also enjoys "Jingle Bells" and "Mister Golden Sun", among other little tunes. He prefers to sing in a gruff and grumbly voice rather than his usual sweet little voice. He sounds rather like a Sesame Street monster when he starts up, I swear. But it's very cute.

Now, onto the school front: I'm almost through my stats class. Thankfully, when I was put on bed rest, the teacher turned it into a distance ed class for me, and I have managed to get good grades while lying still on my couch. It has not been a really tough class. I've got enough marks to pass the class already, and a couple more projects to complete still. Hopefully I'll be able to complete them. I've gotten doctor permission to take a winter class also, provided it too is distance ed and can be completed while I lie down. So I'll be taking Finance next. It's a long process to get my designation, but I'm sure it will be worth it once it's all done.

I'm tired. I'm bored. Send emails. Phone me. Whatever you've got to do. I'm relying on others for entertainment now. So go on ... entertain me!

I will now end this post with a things you never thought you'd hear your child say:

J: Kitty is eating my skull!!