J wins Round 1

I've decided that perhaps the bedtime battles (at least with my kids) just begin at about 2 years, 3 months. Emma fought it for 10 months after her 2nd birthday and J seems to be following suit. We thought the bedtime battles began with E because we moved her out of her crib into a real bed. But J is still in his crib. We did get rid of the pacifier but he doesn't seem to need them to go to sleep. He's begun stalling (just like E) to prolong bedtime. He was a fantastic bedtime kid until around the beginning of May. Read a story, sing a song, say a prayer, put him in the bed & walk out. Done. Ask our babysitters. They were astounded at his pleasant bedtime demeanor. No more pleasantries. We've cajoled and bribed and rocked and sang and done everything to try to lull him into going to sleep on time and peacefully but no dice. He's as manipulating as Emma - even worse to a certain extent.

So tonight we decided we'd let him cry it out. Day 1 of however many days it takes.
Time Clock: 1 hour, 4 minutes of crying, yelling, etc. before final silence.
Stages covered: 7 different stages (listed below) with 5 minute calm period between each intended to fake us out into thinking he's done.
1) pitiful crying - intended to illicit sympathy and another bedroom visit
2) sobbing - intended to make parents think he'll hyperventilate
3) angry-baby "cussing" - intended to make us respond with anger which would get us back in the room
4) periodic screeching - punctuated with wall-kicking
5) silence - fake out hoping we'll come check on him and realize he's still awake
6) requesting a drink - classic stall intended to make parents worry about dehydration from crying
7) screaming parents' names with blood-curdling volume - last ditch effort; 1/2 angry - 1/2 desperate attempt to get us back in the room

These 7 stages are followed by periodic murmuring as he finally accepts defeat and lies down to go to sleep. Hopefully these stages will decrease in length until the boy realizes we are seriously not coming back. Stay tuned for tomorrow night's episode recap.

Concrete sequential?

For Christmas Aunt MK and Uncle Scott gave Emma a set of Family Dinner Games. It's basically a set of 50 cards in a box. On each card there's a game to play with your family while you're eating dinner. The games are to keep the kids engaged and seated during dinner. Some of the cards say things like, "On the count of 3, everyone at the table give a thumbs-up or thumbs down; odd man out has to take a drink or a bite." They're all pretty fun, Emma likes them and it keeps her seated after she's done eating while the rest of us finish. Tonight the last game we played read as follows, "Go around the table and everyone tell his favorite thing about bath time." Emma promptly got up, walked around the table, stopped next to me and said, "I like reading a story." Yep folks, she went around the table. Ahhh, 5 year olds.

Things you never want to hear...

Tonight as we were preparing for dinner, Emma made the following comment for no reason in particular - just make the PSA to the family.
E: Daddy, I don't want you to die first. I want Mama to die first. I don't want to have to live with just Mama.

Hmmm. Really. Pretty sure that tops the burp comment from Monday.

But then, bath time made up for any irritation I may have felt. There's nothing like a little boy belly-laugh. Apparently, my inability to keep hold of the soap is hilarious.



Since I have actually downloaded some photos - here are a few related to previous posts and other life events that I may have or may have not posted about. But they're good pics anyway.

Prom decorations.
We also had 14 tables with a different theme for each table. My partner, "Kis", took those photos. If you're really interested you can email me. But it looked awesome.

This was Jackson's first meeting with a Snickers.
And that's about it. I have the boy's bday photos loaded finally and another bday party for one of E's friends at the Painted Pony Ranch. Again, if interested email me. Mimi & Grandma - I'll make you a CD.

Books - of course

For several months now I have been listening to books on my iPod while I work out. My friend Kat turned me on to it and I love it. Why did I not think of this before? Anyway, she and I have discovered a disheartening pattern. Narrators for YA books seem to leave a little wanting in the way of totally committing to the narration. Most adult books I've listened to have been pleasantly and believably narrated. The narrator of the Sookie Stackhouse novels is amazing! But, a large percentage of the YA books I've listened to have seemed stilted and wooden. (Anyone remember the awful listening experience on the ride back from State game in Orlando: Bel-la! Bel-la!") So this begs the question: Do audio producers feel that YA books don't deserve the same level of excellence they insist upon for adult books? YA books have so much to offer to YAs and adults alike. They have been the step-children of the book industry for years and are finally getting the much deserved acclaim they deserve. Why, oh why, is this 2nd rate status still hovering around these books? It's so unfair. OK - thus endeth the temper tantrum. For now.

Dinner conversation

Tonight at dinner, we're halfway through our pot pies when the dinner conversation turns a little strange. Jackson begins to point out all his boo-boos and identifying when and how they occurred along with who was responsible.
A: What's that on your arm, Jackson?
J: Boo-boo. Scrape. Fall down. Jack-Jack did it. The other one.
(There is, in fact, another Jackson in his class. Apparently, since we call Jackson "Jack-Jack" sometimes, he assumes that all Jacksons are also called "Jack-Jack".)
A: What's on your knee, buddy?
J: Big boo-boo. Pushed down. Jack-Jack did it. The other one.
And, you see the pattern. Apparently The Other Jackson (henceforward referred to as "TOJ") is quite the bruiser. He also has 2 bite marks: one on his forearm and one on his chest. He has also attributed bumps, scrapes and cuts that I have witnessed occurring with my own eyes, to this young man. So, the only conclusions are (1) TOJ is really sneaky and sometimes invisible or (2) my Jackson is a a pathological liar. Either that or he's just two.

Also - right after this, Emma leaned over to Andy, belched in his face and said, "Daddy, smell my burp."

Living the dream, people.

Mother's Day

Today was a wonderful day. Andy let me sleep in, which as most of you know, is my most favorite activity besides reading. Then I got to go to a wonderful church service where Mark reminded us that God is in control. Strange that we need reminders about that but it was a good message to hear. Then I got to go spend a few hours shopping with a friend. Finally, the day was topped off with a trip to the movies with my girl. Andy doesn't really like to go to the movies as much as I do and they're too loud for J. We went to see How to Train Your Dragon which was cute. Emma and I both enjoyed it. On the way to the movie, I asked E what she and Andy did while J was napping. She said she played her video game while Andy cleaned the house. She said he cleaned the bathroom and mopped the kitchen. I said, "We have a good Daddy, don't we Emma? He cleans and cooks dinner and washes clothes. That's pretty awesome, huh?" Emma said, "Yeah, Mama, he does a good job. It's good too because you don't do those things very often." Hmmm. So, I'm teaching her well - find a man who will do these things BUT apparently I need to help out a little more so I don't give her the impression that she doesn't have to help her partner. But on second thought...maybe that's not such a bad thing?