Good Job Joshua!

Joshua has been going through a bit of the terrible twos so we have been trying new things to try to encourage good behavior. I think most of his outburst come because he is either hungry, tired, or hasn't been given enough attention. So obviously keeping snacks available and encouraging sleep is something we are naturally doing. However, since Caleb has arrived it's hard to always give him all the attention he wants so I've been trying to make sure to fill his "attention meter" with a little one on one time before I have to do things like nurse, bath, clean, etc. It's really working out great but we still have other times that we need better behavior.

So I decided to try a good behavior chart and am focusing on 3 key things at a time. I added one item (cleaning up toys) that he already does pretty well so that he could see the benefits of the chart. The other 2 items we definitely need him to work on. He is proud of his chart and already thrilled to get his dinosaur sticker. He gets to put one sticker on the chart and one on himself for accomplishing anything on the chart.

Do you guys do anything similar? I'd love to hear about it!

Heard at our house

If you were listening to a conversation at our house...these are a few lines you might just hear...

• No, you may NOT poop in the grass. (John has taught Joshua how to pee in the grass and of course, as a 2 year old - he wants to take it a step further and poop - like the dog does - in the grass.)


• NO MORE Puppy dog kisses! (Joshua's little puppy dog kisses - a little lick - use to be sweet, cute and innocent. Now they have turned into slobber baths!)


• Turn your music down. (Yes, even at two years old - Joshua loves to go in his room and turn on his kiddie music as loud as possible. Which as I mentioned earlier he calls - fast music.)


• It is not funny to say you are going to pee on...mommy, daddy, cat, dog...etc. (this should be a given.)


• Where did your shorts, pants, shirt, socks, etc...go? (We have a nudist)

Potty Training

Potty training continues to go fantastic! Joshua hardly if ever has any accidents. We did revert back to the pull ups which I heard most kids use just like diapers - but Joshua is not. He is treating them like big boy underwear and ALWAYS tells us when he has to poop and is starting to tell us when he has to pee. He needs to be a little more consistent on telling us he has to pee but all in all is doing just great. We still go try to go potty every 30 minutes which is tiring but it's working.

However, with potty training comes the need for some wardrobe changes. So we have been busy collecting things like 2 piece pajamas, underwear and no longer using onsie type shirts. My big boy is growing up so fast!

Potty Training Continued...

So potty training is going much better than it was on Monday. I decided to use pull ups this week and go back to underwear starting tomorrow - if all goes well today. This is to get Joshua in the habit of using the toilet and to perserve my sanity. We still go every 15-20 minutes even if he doesn't want to. So far he has had few to no accidents in the pull ups. He isn't really telling me he needs to go but I understand that takes a little more time and I'm already making him go so much he might never really need to. He is doing great while we are out which I'm REALLY impressed with. I am making him use every public bathroom we pass just to get him in the habit of remembering that just cause we are out doesn't mean he doesn't have to use the potty. I've had a lot of friends tell me they give rewards and I'm not really doing that at all. I cheer for him and let him flush the toilet which seems reward enough for him.

Potty Training...

So yesterday went really well, maybe it was the excitement of something new. This morning - not so much. It's 10am and we've had 5 accidents already. I don't know if we have enough underwear to make it through one day. ;) Joshua is still very young to potty train according to my pediatrician but we thought we would give it a try. I'm not giving up yet. We will see how the week continues to go. My fear is that Joshua just doesn't hold his pee long enough. We have been going every 15 minutes and he goes every time but yet still has accidents in between. Lord give me strength!

Little blessings....literally!

Teaching our son good manners is something that I strive for but don't always know that I'm getting through. But this morning when I sneezed, Joshua, who is across the room playing with his toys, stopped and said, "Bless you mommy". Be still my heart - my boy does have manners!! He still thinks that it's funny to burp and toot but today that is ok because it's those "little blessings" that make motherhood so wonderful!!

Naptime

Naptime at my house starts at 2ish. Joshua gets to pick out a few toys to bring to bed and then he does this fancy flip to get in his bed that signifies the beginning of naptime. (It's a flip over his bedrail - pretty fancy really. :) ) Anywho, he then proceeds to sit in there and play anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour before finally falling asleep. IF he falls asleep. I have the joy of listening to his little mind at work during this time. It's hilarious to hear him talking to his toys cause he talks NON-stop in there. I always know it's about time for him to fall asleep when he starts telling all his toys one at a time that he loves them but bye-bye and then I hear a CLUNK as he throws the toy out of the bed onto the floor. It really is so sweet - but I guess he is practicing tough love - you were a good toy but you have to go. "Love you little red car, bye-bye little red car"...CLUNK.

Unauthorized Activity

I hear and see Joshua playing under the coffee table. and it sounds like he is coloring...but I keep thinking I know he doesn't have anything to color with. So it's finally driving me crazy so I crawl under there to look and he has sidewalk chalk and he was coloring the underneath of my coffee table. Here is a picture of him showing me his 'artwork" and a picture of him bouncing up & down on my stomach as I laid on the floor trying to take more pictures. That is the most amount of coloring he has EVER done in one spot at one time. I thought it was super cute...especially because it wasn't on my walls. :)

Movie

I was just talking with some friends this morning about the fact that I think this holiday we will try to bring Joshua to his first movie - especially if there is a cute one out at the theatres. In this conversation the movie coming out with Nicole Kidman called The Golden Compass was brought up. (There are all sort of emails going around about it.) Apparently it's a children's movie based on books that are similar to the Chronicles of Narnia except about killing God. It is written by an atheist and will be coming out around the holidays. I hate to even write about it because I feel like giving it any publicity is giving it more hype than it deserves but I'm just really sad to hear about this and want to make others aware. I think this is something everyone will need to form their own opinion on and from my understanding the movie hides the religion part of it pretty well but the fear is the publicity it will bring to the books which the author flat out quotes is about killing God. You can find more info on it here at Snopes.com.

Time Out!

We practice 'Time Out' at our house and while I'm still debating it's effectiveness, Joshua has gotten really good at sitting there when we tell him. Well, tonight I was so tired of bringing him to the time out corner that I said, 'Go put yourself in time out' not really thinking he would. Imagine my shock when my little 18 month old son went over to the corner and sat down.

Now, originally 'time out' was effective because it really seemed to be a punishment. Now, he just sits there and looks all cute and repeats, "Don't Touch" since that is the usual offense that gets him there in the first place. But the second he gets up he just goes back to doing what he wasn't supposed to. The scariest thing is how much my son reminds me of all the stories I've heard about my husband growing up. Like John being told he was going to get his mouth washed out with soap and he would say, 'Lava please'. Well, that is what my little precious son is doing, acting like 'time out' is just another place in the house to sit and not seeming to care at all that it's a punishment. ***Sigh*** And we aren't even to the terrible two's yet! ;)

P.S. If you have more creative & effective punishment techniques for an 18 month old...I GLADLY welcome them all!!

Attachments...

This is the age in which a lot of toddlers start to attach themselves to something for comfort...like a blanket or teddy bear. Our son has decided his attachment is to a ball. He now sleeps with a little mini-basketball under his arm and will cry if it falls out of his crib. The funniest thing is to see the PURE JOY that lights up his face when he snuggles up with his ball. He also talks to his ball as he falls asleep. It sounds like...."asberberdy do dah ball, ball, ball". Yet another adorable trait of our little cutie!

Another sign that Joshua is growing up....

Joshua can now even hold onto the big swings at the park - it's just soo sooo soooo cute to see his little legs hanging off the edge of the seat and him holding on. He isn't fantastic at it yet...but he is trying. What a big boy!!

He also doesn't quite understand that not ALL balls can fit in the basketball hoop...hmmm..

Baby stuff I love...

When I like good products - I think it's good to spread the word...so I wanted to share about a few things I really like...

1. Boudreaux Butt Paste - Yes, that is the real name. It is absolutely the BEST diaper rash cream around. I've tried all the rest - and nothing comes even close.

2. Kindermusik - I can't believe how great these classes are. I really love them and more importantly Joshua REALLY loves them and I feel like he has learned so much from the classes...I HIGHLY recommend them.

3. Baby Einstein & Elmo - All in all they are both great. Elmo is just adorable and nothing entertains Joshua so I can get a break like Baby Einstein.

Ok - that is it for now...I'm sure I'll think of more to add.