Toddler Bed

In anticipation of a new brother we are trying to get the boys adjusted to new sleeping arrangements. We thought it would be easier for Jack to try sleeping in a "Big Boy Bed" in his room before moving him into Porter's room. Last night was our first night, today is our first nap. We put him to bed at the regular time and both Tom and I had to go in and sit with him for awhile while he tried to go to sleep. He was up out of his bed several times and just wandering around the room. He finally went down and slept, but woke up at 5:50 am instead of his usual 6:30. Which wouldn't have been a problem had he been in his crib instead of sitting next to his door screaming. He is currently supposed to be napping but he is up out of bed looking around his room.

We had a different situation with Porter. So this is new to us. We put Porter in a twin bed that was up on risers with guard rails on the side. There was no way he was getting down and was actually afraid to get down. It made it very easy to transition him. Then he went to a toddler bed. Now he has moved into a twin bed without any problems. I am quite nervous that Jack is going to get into Porter's room and all hell is going to break loose! We shall see.

We are praying for family and friends in Fargo and Bismarck during this ridiculous winter/spring. Flooding and winter storms are too much!

Mommy, me hate you.

Today at the Y we were struggling to get out the door to get home for lunch. Porter decided he did not want to work as a team and get his coat on, and Jack kept screaming about wanting to stay and play. So, I finally just sat down on a bench and Porter actually came to me, but he wanted me to give him food, not put his coat on. I said I would give him something after he put his coat on. Well he did not like that idea very much and said, "Mommy, me don't like you. Mommy me hate you!" Generally I just ignore him when he says that or I say, "I'm sorry to hear that." BUT TODAY, I said, "Well Porter, sometimes I don't like you either." Which actually broke the tension between the two of us and things were fine after that. Unfortunately a woman heard me say it while she was walking out the door and started to giggle and said, "probably a little too honest, just too honest." Now, I'm assuming she was talking about me saying that to my child, but she could have been giggling about the whole conversation. I guess I will never know. I do know that I love my kids, but sometimes I feel like being honest with them about my feelings helps them understand that it is okay for them to have the feelings that they have....

Oranges

I ate this entire bowl of cutie pie oranges in about 3 days.

Land of Nod

In my constant desire to make the boys' rooms look like a page out of Pottery Barn Kids or Land of Nod (when in reality it is really from the clearance isle at Target) I have finally painted their rooms (with a little help from a friend, thanks Jenn) and am starting to hang things. The baby's room is green with the Alphabet on cards all around it. Porter and Jack's walls are blue with black, blue and red furniture and accents. We had a very successful trip to IKEA and got these great round rugs to cover the paint spill (thanks to those that suggested that idea!) We also got the boys new beds. I can't wait to have them all set up in their room before the baby gets here. Now if we could just figure out what to do about the guest room!

This little alphabet project has been a thorn in my side for quite some time. I tried to get them to hang on the wall with tape, clear sticky things, hold anything foam things, etc. but they kept falling down. Then Jenn and I were browsing the Land of Nod magazine and noticed they had the same letters hanging from these wires that they had draped around the room. Of course, being married to the man that I am, I said, "I can totally make that on my own and not have to pay a bunch of money for it." So, off I went to Michael's to get the materials. Of course the materials were $40 and the little clothespins I had to spray paint myself, but the work is done. We will now see how long until each and every letter is on the floor or behind the dresser, or stuck to Jack's head when he wakes up in the morning...

Stairs and Trucks

We were walking to a restaurant this evening for a fish fry and Tom had Porter, while I carried the ever attached to my hip, Jack. Porter and Tom were walking a little bit ahead of us, and they saw a set of stairs. Here's the conversation:

Porter: Look at those big stairs.

Tom: Where do they go?

Porter: All the way to the top.


Love it! That's one of my favorite stories so far.

Today I tossed a truck towards the train table because Porter wasn't going to take it with him in the car. The truck sailed nicely through the air bounced off the train table and smashed into the window right behind it, sending a spiderweb of cracks through it. Not a pretty site. Yet another reason why I should not be allowed to do anything physical while pregnant. Seriously, who does that happen to? Oh, all this crap happens to ME! So, I lost it and started crying on our way to the Y. Porter was quite sad that I was sad and felt very badly for the poor window...

I think I need a day at the spa....

Where did my penis come from?

This was yesterday:

First of all, I'm currently listening to my boys playing together and actually laughing! Yippee! They can get along!

On a regular basis Porter asks me about his body parts. Today was no exception:

Porter: Mom, why did God give me a penis?

Me: Because he wanted you to be a boy.

Porter: How did he give it to me?

Me: Hmmm (still getting used to having to answer on the fly)... when you were in my tummy God gave you certain things that make you a boy, and a penis was one of them.

Then later:

Porter (while running around): God no, God no....

Me: Porter, what's the matter?

Porter: Nothing, I'm just asking God not to give me a penis.

Me: Why? Do you want to be a girl?

Porter: No way, I just don't want a penis.

Me: Sorry bud, it comes with the territory....

Porter: Okay.

THIS IS TODAY:

Spent the afternoon in tears because Jack won't go to sleep and all I feel like I've been doing lately is yelling at the kids. Some days I have no idea what I am doing being a mother....

Tummy trouble

When all the worlds align, funny things happen:

1) Today marks 100 days left of pregnancy - the little alien baby is starting to look a little less alienish.
2) Ellen happened to be on the television and Porter caught something that she and the guest were talking about.
3) Porter made a funny comment, but did not realize that it was funny.

The boys know that Gus is in my tummy and he will be coming out to play this summer. They are constantly touching my stomach and sometimes Jack will just sit next to me with his hand on my belly - very cute until he climbs on top and makes me pee a little....

So, on Ellen today there was a guest on that had pregnancy secrets of the stars. One of the items was a 'Belly Bandit'. Some sort of wrap that goes on seconds after you give birth to help your stomach and back regain their strength and return to your pre-pregnancy size quicker. So, Porter sees this thing and nonchalantly says, "Hey, you need that right now!"

I will be ordering a 'Belly Bandit' before I go into labor.

"Shooting thing"

Over the past few months I have been seriously struggling with the whole gun issue. Porter is constantly using random things as guns - vacuum cleaner extensions, wrapping paper/paper towel/toilet paper rolls, kitchen utensils, Buzz LightYear....he even found a plastic hook that a pair of socks came on and he turned it into a gun. He doesn't call his weapon a gun he calls it a "shooting thing". Although he watches movies - Cars, Surf Up, Madagascar, etc. it isn't on a regular basis and he only watches less than an hour of tv a day. How in the world does a three year old turn every single inanimate object into a weapon?

Part of me worries that he is going to start catching cats and torturing them and eventually turn into a serial killer....yikes...the mother in me cannot understand why my cuddly little boy who loves to read books, listen to stories that we make up on the fly, and dance to music on the kitchen counter, would want to play with guns...the counselor in me knows that this is an innate thing, he will grow out of it, and he will actually not turn into a serial killer or shoot fifty people in Target.

For a long time I have been fighting this issue and have talked with several friends and done some searching on the internet - one person said to tell him when he shoots someone that he is using a "love gun" and that shooting them makes them love him more...no thanks. But the most prevalent suggestion was to just let him be and then in time teach him about gun safety and the proper use/non use of weapons. We have agreed that he only gets to shoot bad guys - not me, daddy, Jack, the dogs, nor his friends and our neighbors. So, as of today I am quitting my obsession with guns and am going to ignore him when he shoots me with a spatula...