KISSES!!!!!!
Monday, June 3, 2013
No, No, No! Don't Touch! Be Careful! Watch Out!
I've decided to start training William this week on the word NO. He loves electronic cords of every kind. AND Isaac has cords sticking out of every outlet in our big house. I have escaped training William for 2 weeks because we were out of town and there were so many boxes everywhere, I conveniently placed them in front of every outlet. Well, this week I unpacked most of our boxes and now around every corner there is an outlet full of cords calling to William. I thought about continuing to put things in front of the outlets, but it occurred to me that William is always going to be around cords, just like Daddy is always going to be putting cords everywhere. So he might as well learn now not to touch them.
Oh, but Will makes me laugh. This morning he went around the whole living room trying to touch each outlet. We went through the whole process of training each time before he moved on and tried another outlet. It was hilarious. :) This poor kid is going to be just like his daddy ... into electronics at an early age and able to dissect all things electronic by the time he is an adult.
William has also been getting hurt like crazy since he started crawling. I lost count of how many times I picked him up, just yesterday, crying from yet another fall. He also likes to bang things, so when he gets a hold of something slightly heavier, he inevitably bangs it on his legs or hand and the crying and comforting starts all over again. Oh, and he tries to pull up on everything!!! Last night he pulled up on a small chair and made it crash down on top of him. I think he might get a blue eye from that one. How are we even going to make it to his 1st birthday at this rate????? He might not even make it! Gosh, and I go back and forth from feeling like a bad mommy by not staying by his side constantly (and I mean CONSTANTLY) to avoid these owies and borderline melting down and crying with him because I feel so bad for him. Yeah, I guess I laugh at the falls too. He really falls so darn often!! What can I do?
He needs to learn some really hard lessons about gravity, gentleness and the word, NO.
Oh, but Will makes me laugh. This morning he went around the whole living room trying to touch each outlet. We went through the whole process of training each time before he moved on and tried another outlet. It was hilarious. :) This poor kid is going to be just like his daddy ... into electronics at an early age and able to dissect all things electronic by the time he is an adult.
William has also been getting hurt like crazy since he started crawling. I lost count of how many times I picked him up, just yesterday, crying from yet another fall. He also likes to bang things, so when he gets a hold of something slightly heavier, he inevitably bangs it on his legs or hand and the crying and comforting starts all over again. Oh, and he tries to pull up on everything!!! Last night he pulled up on a small chair and made it crash down on top of him. I think he might get a blue eye from that one. How are we even going to make it to his 1st birthday at this rate????? He might not even make it! Gosh, and I go back and forth from feeling like a bad mommy by not staying by his side constantly (and I mean CONSTANTLY) to avoid these owies and borderline melting down and crying with him because I feel so bad for him. Yeah, I guess I laugh at the falls too. He really falls so darn often!! What can I do?
He needs to learn some really hard lessons about gravity, gentleness and the word, NO.
9 Months Old
My Dear Son,
I love this age with you! You are mobile and I don't need to carry you constantly anymore. You can go get your own toy or paci. You stand up on everything and I really appreciate that you learned quickly how to get back down again. Every time I see you almost fall, but end up figuring it out in time, I make sure to praise you. It is a relief to see you be smart and safe even as you are taking huge chances. You are so fun to interact with also. You started repeating sounds to me and you play peek-a-boo with a blanket over your head. :) I think you may have even started clapping your hands ... although you do so by grabbing your own hands and moving them up and down excitedly. You will get it soon enough. :) Everyone around loves you and tells me that you are such a cute baby. They love your quick smile. You also give me hugs and kisses and they are so precious to me.
Having said that ... I also don't really like this age. You are into EVERYTHING and you think that I all the things I tell you not to touch are the most desired. I feel like I have brought out the sinner in you by telling you "No, don't touch." The bible says we wouldn't know we were sinners if the law didn't tell us we were. Laws make us want to disobey. And that is really sad. You are very hard to control. You don't believe in boundaries and you don't trust me when I tell you not to touch something. I don't like being so mean and telling you "no" but I have to. One day you will be in danger and you will need to respond right away to me calling you or telling you no.
On the other hand, I am afraid that if I just give you rules all the time that you will grow up trying to be a rule keeper. And that is dangerous too for your heart. Mommy is like this and I am afraid of making you be like me. Our hearts need Jesus and His grace and sacrifice for us. Only Jesus can make us good, not our rules and obedience. I hope that I can communicate this to you as you grow up. You must learn to obey, but your struggle with obedience should always make you need Jesus more.
I am praying for you and I love you very much my willful son!
Your Mommy
I love this age with you! You are mobile and I don't need to carry you constantly anymore. You can go get your own toy or paci. You stand up on everything and I really appreciate that you learned quickly how to get back down again. Every time I see you almost fall, but end up figuring it out in time, I make sure to praise you. It is a relief to see you be smart and safe even as you are taking huge chances. You are so fun to interact with also. You started repeating sounds to me and you play peek-a-boo with a blanket over your head. :) I think you may have even started clapping your hands ... although you do so by grabbing your own hands and moving them up and down excitedly. You will get it soon enough. :) Everyone around loves you and tells me that you are such a cute baby. They love your quick smile. You also give me hugs and kisses and they are so precious to me.
Having said that ... I also don't really like this age. You are into EVERYTHING and you think that I all the things I tell you not to touch are the most desired. I feel like I have brought out the sinner in you by telling you "No, don't touch." The bible says we wouldn't know we were sinners if the law didn't tell us we were. Laws make us want to disobey. And that is really sad. You are very hard to control. You don't believe in boundaries and you don't trust me when I tell you not to touch something. I don't like being so mean and telling you "no" but I have to. One day you will be in danger and you will need to respond right away to me calling you or telling you no.
On the other hand, I am afraid that if I just give you rules all the time that you will grow up trying to be a rule keeper. And that is dangerous too for your heart. Mommy is like this and I am afraid of making you be like me. Our hearts need Jesus and His grace and sacrifice for us. Only Jesus can make us good, not our rules and obedience. I hope that I can communicate this to you as you grow up. You must learn to obey, but your struggle with obedience should always make you need Jesus more.
I am praying for you and I love you very much my willful son!
Your Mommy
Sunday, May 5, 2013
Mommy Guilt
I need your advice ...
Last week I was in the grocery store. William had been trying to get my pen and paper the whole time I was grocery shopping and I was finally tired of taking it from him or keeping it out of his reach. So I retracted the pen and let him play with it. Well, he is a baby and being such he put the pen in his mouth. But as we were just finishing up our shopping a man saw William eating the pen and freaked out, pointing it to me as if it were a great danger. In his defense, if I noticed a baby doing this same thing and the mom didn't notice I would probably point it out too. However, after I told him that I was aware of it and that the pen was retracted so he couldn't eat any ink, the man didn't give up. He kept talking about it and went so far as to offer to buy him a teething toy for me.
The fact that I am writing about this incident is proof that this accusation that I am not taking care of my child is still bothering me. It is really bothering me! Was I wrong to give William the pen? If it was a marble of course I wouldn't let him have it because he could swallow it faster than I could take it out of his mouth. But the fact is, William couldn't swallow a pen. He might stick it too far in his mouth and make him gag on it, but then he would learn to not do that again. I was watching him and could take it away anytime if I thought he could hurt himself. The truth is that William doesn't like toys so I give him keys (another thing he could gag on), old phones, remotes, papers (until they become too soggy and he could actually swallow them), combs and anything else I think might entertain him and allow him to explore the world. There are too many actual dangerous things that make semi-dangerous things seem fine for him to figure out.
I read in a parenting book that it is wrong for mommys and daddys to try to please people around them when they are parenting. You should do what is best no matter what others think. But is there something to being more cautious in public? What if that man called social services? He was really concerned that William had that pen!
What would you do? And why?
Last week I was in the grocery store. William had been trying to get my pen and paper the whole time I was grocery shopping and I was finally tired of taking it from him or keeping it out of his reach. So I retracted the pen and let him play with it. Well, he is a baby and being such he put the pen in his mouth. But as we were just finishing up our shopping a man saw William eating the pen and freaked out, pointing it to me as if it were a great danger. In his defense, if I noticed a baby doing this same thing and the mom didn't notice I would probably point it out too. However, after I told him that I was aware of it and that the pen was retracted so he couldn't eat any ink, the man didn't give up. He kept talking about it and went so far as to offer to buy him a teething toy for me.
The fact that I am writing about this incident is proof that this accusation that I am not taking care of my child is still bothering me. It is really bothering me! Was I wrong to give William the pen? If it was a marble of course I wouldn't let him have it because he could swallow it faster than I could take it out of his mouth. But the fact is, William couldn't swallow a pen. He might stick it too far in his mouth and make him gag on it, but then he would learn to not do that again. I was watching him and could take it away anytime if I thought he could hurt himself. The truth is that William doesn't like toys so I give him keys (another thing he could gag on), old phones, remotes, papers (until they become too soggy and he could actually swallow them), combs and anything else I think might entertain him and allow him to explore the world. There are too many actual dangerous things that make semi-dangerous things seem fine for him to figure out.
I read in a parenting book that it is wrong for mommys and daddys to try to please people around them when they are parenting. You should do what is best no matter what others think. But is there something to being more cautious in public? What if that man called social services? He was really concerned that William had that pen!
What would you do? And why?
Thursday, April 25, 2013
Rachel and William
Rachel, here are the photos from the other night. I can email any one of them to you if you want. These were probably the best of what I took, but I'd love to get better ones when you come visit me. ;)
For those of you who read every post. Rachel is William's second mom. She helped me in labor and I will forever be grateful to her ... But more importantly, that act knit her to my family like nothing else could. As far as I am concerned William is partially hers and she is partially his. We love you, Rachel!
For those of you who read every post. Rachel is William's second mom. She helped me in labor and I will forever be grateful to her ... But more importantly, that act knit her to my family like nothing else could. As far as I am concerned William is partially hers and she is partially his. We love you, Rachel!
