What Month is it?

Really need to work on that brain-blog hook up. Or vox needs to play nicely with my iPod touch. 

1. SkyWalker loves school. Loves the bus. There's supposedly a bully on it, but he wants to ride everyday and gets annoyed if we have to pick him up for doc visits. He's reading to us at bedtime and is so much better behaved. I think it's a combination of him not being bored anymore and me not having to deal with it all day long. Craziness at 5 pm is much easier to handle when you haven't been dealing with it since 7 am!

2. The Princess misses him a lot but is doing really well without him. She's doing better on the potty since he is not home to distract her. She is so good about entertaining herself. And she makes much fewer and smaller messes than he does... She's definitely getting her 2 year molars and one of them is a bit bloody and has a big flap of gum. This does not please her. But I would say for 90% of the day she is happy and pleasant and funny and a joy to be around. She is "farting" with "my mouth" on my arm right now--blowing raspberries is farting in her mind.

3. Chewie is happy and done with her screaming. I think she's going through a growth spurt right now, but for the most part she sleeps all night. She does not like to nap when we go out. She doesn't scream and cry, she just doesn't sleep. It's not a problem until we get home and then she's overtired. Because of this I need to stay home at least 2 days a week. We have storytime on Weds and gymnastics on Fridays so I *really* need to force myself to stay home on Tues/Thurs. Luckily my every other Thursday preschool group is cool with always doing it at my house. It is so hard juggling the needs of a toddler with the needs of an infant. 

4. I started running again--sticking with week 2 although at a faster speed. I hope to get up to week 3 soon. 

5. I've been thinking a lot about the type of parent I want to be. This deserves a bigger post. But in short: my big problem has always been wanting SkyWalker to listen--which really means I want instant obedience. But now that he's in school I'm starting to feel differently. Do I really want him to just automatically do what's he's told--whatever he's told? No. I want him to make good choices and decisions. I'm focusing on him but really this extends to all my kids. So I have been trying very hard to not just bark commands and give orders but instead to treat my kids with a little more respect than that and try to help them understand WHY I'm telling them to do things. Instead of shouting "get in your seat" I'm saying "please get in your seat so we can eat dinner now." And I'm trying to pick my battles--there are some things that are really important--don't touch the stove, hold my hand in the parking lot, don't run away, etc. And there are some things that are not important--going to wash hands, putting away toys, etc. I want to raise smart thinking adults--not sheep who follow orders. I want to be a parent, not a drill sergeant. This is only remotely related, but I'm also trying not to focus on little things just because everyone else does. My son can say "More milk" in a nice respectful tone. Does he really have to say please? He's saying it with his tone. I'd rather have that than have him say please but in a rude way. My husband can make the words "Excuse me" sound like "Get the hell out of my way" just with his tone of voice--I'd rather him say "move" but say it nicely. But society has hammered the please and thank you in our brains and we think we have to go along. So I'm trying to really focus on my kids and listen to them and not do things just because someone else decides it's a good idea.

6. Pediatrician visit yesterday: SkyWalker is now 35 pounds, 42 inches. Chewie is 12 lbs, 5 oz and 24 1/2 inches. The Princess did not get weighed since it was not her checkup. 

7. I need to click on the arrow to see what happens with Elmo next.

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