Time Out

Since E turned 18 months we have been trying timeout to help with her hitting. When she gets mad or frustrated she just reaches out and whacks someone or anything that is nearby. Unfortunately it is usually S. S is so easy going to he rarely reacts anymore, unless she happens to have something in her hand when she hits. I hate that S cowers when she raises her hand and that he so easily gives up what he has to her. She still sometimes hits me but that is becoming less frequent.

When we first started timeouts I had to physically hold her in the chair. She wouldn't stay and would try to squirm away. Now she sits in the timeout chair and talks to herself. From what I gather it sounds like she is telling the story about what happened and why she is there. Most of the time there is a lot of babble and then a "no, no". (I really should get it on video... it is pretty cute even though she is in trouble.)

I'm not sure timeout is really working. I know she needs to learn other ways to get rid of her frustration and since she is not REALLY verbal, like S, she doesn't really have the words yet. I know the timeouts are designed to help her regulate her emotions and to calm herself down. I like that it also makes it so she doesn't get what she wants when she is hitting S. I also know that this is likely a stage and she will grow out of it. I sure hope it is a stage...

We have tried redirection. We have tried telling her no and redirection, but she can be very difficult to redirect once she has her mind on something.

We have definitely moved to the parenting stage and it is hard to know if what you are doing is "right".  Tonight we had friends over for dinner, while both our husbands are away at outdoor ed.  She has two little girls.  One is five days younger than S and E and the other is five.  E started out with two timeouts for hitting almost right away.  After that she didn't have any trouble.  I have noticed that when she is hungry she has shorter fuse, if I want to call it that.  She is quicker to hit.  Most days I feel like it is getting better but I just wish it would go away completely.

Next we need to work on S and his throwing of EVERYTHING.

Midweek Confessions

with E, Myself and I

 

 

I always think I have a lot to confess until I get started then I can't think of ANYTHING.  We'll see what comes to mind.

 

• Last night I went to the grocery store.  Tuesday is my late night with the babysitter.  She drops the kids off with Mr. P when his practice is done and he watches them and lets them run around his classroom then takes them home.  Is it bad that I always pick up a donut or two...or three as a treat for myself when I'm at the store?  So much for free cookies for kids, how about free donuts for moms?
• Tonight I was sure I was going to make dinner.  Something good from Pinterest that I found yesterday.  Well I finally decided on these

http://www.bettycrocker.com/Tips/TipsLibrary/Cooking-Tips/Create-Your-Own-Signature-Mini-Pie

Well the recipe for the actual pot pies isn't there so I had to make it up.  In the meantime, while I was trying to decide to stick with a made up recipe or move on, my husband came home.  We had a quick what do you want for dinner discussion and he then headed out to get pizza.  Well I had already starting dinner so I finished it.  The dinner I made was ready before he made it back but we STILL had pizza for dinner.  On a side note mini pies aren't bad...

• Mr. P took S to get pizza and left me with my baby girl.  She doesn't get much alone time because she sleeps longer than her brother.  It is the few times I only have one kid that I realize that only having one is totally different than having two.  And I think to myself, "I could do this."  Then I remember that I will NEVER just have one child.  Not that I would want to get rid of one of mine just that I think I could handle it a little bit better.
• I've realized why teacher's kids are so bad.  After dealing with almost 200 kids a day between Mr. P and I, the two of us are all out of consequences and rules when we get home.  We need to work on that.  I don't to have THOSE kids.
• The babysitter is still amazing and my house is never cleaner than when I get home from work.  How does she do it?  Maybe she isn't as distracted during the kids' nap time as I am.
• We had our first swimming lesson on Monday.  We made it, on time... but with one mad little girl.  She cried through the introduction meeting and in the locker room when we were trying to clean up.  S wouldn't even let the swim instructor hold him and he about hit her in the face with the water ball a few times.  Man that kid has a good arm and unfortunate timing.

 

 



A Case of the Mondays

It isn't Monday yet but I already know that I'll have a case of the Mondays.  The end of the weekend is hard for me.  Some weeks are easier than others.  This weekend was pretty quiet but it was good.  The hardest weeks are when we have weekends like this past weekend.  I got to spend good quality time with my kids.  We didn't really have anything planned for Saturday or Sunday, we didn't have too many errands to run and our house is FINALLY to a point where we don't have to work on it every free moment.  I spend most of my time today sitting on the floor with a baby toddler (or two) in my lap or at least within a few inches.  We read books, we played with cars, we made things out of blocks and then we did it all over again.  There wasn't much fighting (except when I left the room for too long) and everyone was pretty happy.  E even ate the chicken we had for dinner.  Overall it was a success.  These are the days I imagined when I thought about being a mom.  Quiet, peaceful days full of reading, playing and little people walking in between my legs.

**Of course I am choosing to block out the 10 minutes yesterday when I went upstairs to change and when I came back down, Mr. P , who I thought was watching the kids, didn't know where they were and we found them in the study playing with my camera.  Needless to say I now need a new lens.

Transitions

Last weekend we put S and E into their own rooms.  Mr. P wanted to separate them as soon as we moved into our new house but I felt like they needed a bit more of a transition.  Throw in back-to-school and I thought it would be better for everyone if we waited a while. 

The thought was that in their own rooms the kids would sleep more soundly and longer.  Well, nothing much has changed.  The hardest part of having both kids in the same room was how to react when one was screaming their head off not wanted to sleep.  You really can't go in and put them back in and tell them it was night night time because they'd both be up.  The other issue was that little boy is an early riser.  He starts his morning by talking in his crib.  The talking would eventually wake up his sister.  One more I heard him calling her name, well the nickname he calls her.  It was really cute but I knew it was interrupting her sleep.

Well now they really haven't had any changes in sleep.  They usually go down to sleep easily and are waking up within a few minutes of each other... still.  S does walk by E's room and will say her name as in to ask where she is.  They don't seem to miss each other but they have a Jack-n-Jill bathroom so they can see each other through the bathroom.  Once they are asleep I close it to keep out the noise. 

Overall I think the transition was really hardest on me.  I was worried they would be lonely.  They never shared a crib because S had to sleep in a Tucker Sling at at least a 45 degree angle for the first few months he was at home.  It wouldn't have worked to have them both in there.  But E slept in our room until S came home and they have been in the same room every since.  I am glad that they seemed to adjust just fine.

Sleeping S in his sling in their old nursery (He is about 3 1/2 months old in this picture.)