The Terrific Twos

My mother in law sent us a card the other day and the note enclosed said "Enjoy the Terrific Twos!"

Terrific??

Doesn't she mean terrible? Torturous? Tormenting? Wanna-pull-out-all-of my-hair-and-then-stick-sharp-objects-in-my-eyes-rather-than-dealing-with-another-one-of-these-tantrums??

Hmmm.. maybe not. Caleb has been, uh, testing his boundaries the over the past few weeks since we crossed the threshold into toddler hood. For instance, he will no longer eat with plastic cutlery unless he is eating yogurt (go figure?). He insists on having metal knives, spoons and forks at the table, as well as multiple paper napkins and stoneware for plates - none of that baby plastic or melamine! Scott and I have found this interesting, particularly when we are eating finger foods like pizza or chicken fingers.

"Look Cay, you can use your fingers like Mommy."

"No Mommy!" (a brief pause) "Dippers?"

Have I mentioned that the child will eat anything with a sauce? Seriously, he even tried asparagus, which I do not think of a particularly kid-friendly vegetable, because Scott had made a lemon butter sauce to go with it. The asparagus did not last long, and quickly became a means for him to get the sauce off the plate while sucking it off the asparagus. What are you going to do, right?

Another mealtime drama has been our inability as parents to keep him seated during the meal. I know that kids are bound to squirm, but standing on the chair is unacceptable, even if you are just two. Until the recent time change, we had an advantage. Caleb could see himself in the dining room window and we would say "Tell that boy in the window to sit down." And he would, all the while demonstrating the skill himself. Now that there is more light, he has discovered his reflection in the lovely brass light fixture over our dining room table. He stands up on the chair periodically to wave to the boy in the fixture, but cannot see him if he is sitting down so our little "window" trick isn't working any longer.

While meals have been challenging, it has been interesting watching him develop his preferences. He loves fish and seafood, ham and chicken. We haven't found any winners in the vegetable aisle aside from sweet potatoes, but so far, there aren't too many fruits he won't at least try. His father has him addicted to chocolate milk, but fortunately we can put 1/3 chocolate and 2/3 regular milk in a cup and he is none the wiser. Oh, and the kid would do a head stand for raisins or fruit snacks, particularly those shaped like Nemo ("Momo"), sharks, or tractors.

Our next challenge, food-wise, is going to be transitioning him from a sippy-cup to a real cup. I think I might need to invest in a Sham-wow!

to be continued.....

Sucked into the underside

My friend Daphne was the first of my friends to begin blogging. Her blog began with a purpose: she was undergoing medical testing and the blog was the easiest way for her to communicate everything that was going on. Her blog later transitioned as a way for her to communicate the emotional roller coaster that she was on while in the throws of international adoption. Good reading, right?

Next, my friend Heather began using her blog as a way to communicate with friends and family about the testing that her young son was undergoing. She was frank with her emotions and there was a rawness to her early entries that made it a compelling read.

Soon, I got into "creeping". Looking at blogs of friends of friends - some wonderfully written, others filled with vivid photographs, and some unique gems that had both. It was intriguing - this way of looking into other people's lives, hearing about other peoples tribulations with parenting, loss, and marriage. I was hooked.

There were days that I would check a friend's blog obsessively (Ben's first court date, Jack's medical appointment in Boston) and there are other friends that I peruse on a weekly basis. Not that I wasn't interested in their lives, but if something significant were to happen, surely it would be on Facebook, right?

I don't consider myself that interesting, nor do I consider myself a great writer. I occasionally take a picture that I am proud of. I HATE to be in pictures. The one thing that I have going for me is that I have a two year old, and believe you me, there is a new adventure everyday!




I hope that if you come across this site by chance that you aren't bored to tears. But, I really hope that you find this an amusing peep into our everyday lives!