Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Cracking the toddler code

I often wonder, as Kaitlyn talks toddler to me, if other toddlers understand what she is saying. I mean, beyond the obvious words like "MINE!" and "SHARE!", which are pretty universal, do they know when she says a string of syllables and consonants, what that means? Or do they act like miniature adults and smile and nod? For Kaitlyn's part, it seems like she grasps a new concept or word each day. She is confident in what she is saying and her poor parents can only hope to keep up with it. To wit, here are some of her new words.
"Cuppy" - and no, she's not asking for her cup, she's asking if we want coffee.
"Gurdy" - could she want to engage in a little hurdy gurdy? Nope, her hands are dirty.
"Glah" - maybe if mommy can see better, she can understand toddler requests better! here mommy, have your glasses.
"Poohwup" - Sounds adorable each time she says it, I wish she ALWAYS wanted a pullup.

Those are only a few words out of the Kaitlyn dictionary. I feel smug each time I am able to decipher what Kaitlyn is saying. I feel sure that when I meet other toddlers, I will be able to decipher them too. Except when I do meet them, and they have their own version of "Gurdy" that I don't understand, both the toddler and the parent shoot me a look like I clearly should have picked up on what was just said! I think the toddler code cracking is specific to the individual toddler and cannot be applied globally. Just my experience, but then, it could be that raising a toddler has zapped my last living brain cell, rendering me incapable of coherent thought beyond "MINE!" and "SHARE!".

Beyond just the language, the hijinks in the house are ever entertaining. Or terrifying. Depends on which view you take when raising children. Yesterday, my two and a half year old cut herself shaving. *collective gasp* However, she didn't cut herself shaving the parts mommy shaves (a bandaid on the leg would have been FAR easier to explain away). No, no, she cut herself shaving the way daddy shaves. Imagine my dismay, when Toddler in Chief comes down the stairs, minus the temper tantrum worthy shorts (not a shock in the least) but blood smeared everywhere grinning a maniacal grin. Knowing the tools for animal sacrifice were locked safely away (just kidding....we leave 'em out in the open...no, seriously, we don't have any animal sacrifice tools), the next logical conclusion was that the blood was coming from TIC herself. Closer examination revealed that TIC had performed a classic rite of adolescence and had cut her lip shaving. A Dora bandaid made everything better (not that she was crying anyway!! and she was suspiciously compliant when I put her shorts on) if not an awkward story to tell when we got to day care. Fortunately, the day care is full of moms who have their own razor stories and my "Bad Bad Mommy" burden was lifted.

One of these days someone in our house is going to go certifiably insane and someone else is going to wind up in a straight jacket. Wonder if they make 'em in toddler sizes...

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Sharing is caring

So, how do you teach a two year old that it's important to share, but then tell her that she should keep her stinky, yucky cold germs to herself? You can't. They aren't old enough to make the distinction. Which is how mommy is a heckuva mess and TIC is off playing happily with her friends. That's right, momma is sick, TIC is fine and daddy is apparently immune. Despite my best efforts to breathe all over daddy, he's been able to skate by without so much as a sniffle! Lucky lucky man.

Cute little Kaitlyn-ism. With the school and the interactive singing and playing that they do, Kaitlyn has been singing more nursery rhymes. I guess a fan favorite at school is "The Wheels on the Bus." Stubborn, just like her momma, Kaitlyn won't sing on cue, but if you're listening very carefully and very closely you'll hear:

"mumblemumblemumble
uppydown, uppydown, UPpydown
mumblemumble mumble
all tru da towwwwwwwn"

Our next stop will be on "America's Got Talent" cuz clearly, American ain't seen nothing like my kid!!

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

2 is the new 12

Well, last week, Kaitlyn started her new daycare. It's been rough for both mommy and baby. Kaitlyn misses Lida and it shows. I think she misses the comfort of Lida and the kids at Lida's. Once I leave, Kaitlyn is fine and settles into the daily routine. How do I know this? It's got webcam!! And my productivity shows it. LOL

Kaitlyn does know when we are going to "'cool" as opposed to Lida's now and will ask to go to Lida's. This is how the conversation went this morning:
"I want Lida's"
"No Lida's baby, okaaay?"
"Okay." sniffle...
"Momma, I want shopping."
"Baby, you want shopping?"
"Yeah" (all pitiful like)
"Okay, we'll go after school, okay?"
"Okay."
Kaitlyn sees we are turning into the school and starts sobbing.
"Kaitlyn!"
"What?"
"What kind of shopping do you want to do? Food or clothes?"
"C'othes"
"Okay, baby, clothes shopping."
By this time, we had arrived at the school and the crying stopped until we reached the classroom. My crying started once I left. If she's this into shopping at 2, what are we going to do when she's 12 and actually has an opinion on what she wears??? Momma is in a whole heap of trouble!

Some exciting news on the Brent front. After this weekend and an obligatory Christmas dinner in December, no more military obligations for him! It's weird to be discussing retirement when you're not yet 40, but there you have it. We're both excited to put military obligations behind us and not have to worry about scheduling around military weekends. Now...about that "honey do" list....;-)

Friday, May 28, 2010

Mommy's in the Doghouse

Oh, sweet, docile child of mine, where did you go? Are you hiding? Were you switched at daycare? Surely the terrible twos CANNOT be this bad...can they?

We'll start with, mommy got a new job and the commute for mommy has tripled. This means no more lazing about in bed until 8:30 am (7:45 am for Toddler in Chief), no more leisurely mornings as mommy putters around the house and even less time to watch Curious George. Kaitlyn is much like her momma in that she likes her sleep. She doesn't like to go to bed on time, but she likes to make up for the deficit on the backend. With mommy's new job, EVERYBODY has to get up earlier, dogs, babies and mommy alike. This has created some epic meltdowns in the house. Mommy's emotions go from smug patience to exasperation to just being emotionally drained. Toddler in chief's emotions range from "I love you mommy, mwah mwah" to "I don't wanna (insert action, article of clothing, food item, really anything here)!" to meltdown of atomic proportions. Monday, my first day of work, witnessed such a meltdown. I knew the cause, worked on the solution and we sailed along fairly well until today.

Kaitlyn doesn't fully know how to express what has upset her. Instead of "Daddy won't let me have another piece of cake", when daddy takes away the desired item, it becomes "MOMMY! Daddy HIT me!" As the other parent is witness to the non-hitting, the statement is generally shrugged off. This morning, my crime in the TIC justice system, was to force her to get dressed. An earlier than normal wake up time threw TIC off her game just enough that we went from Meltdown City to Meltdown Nation.

This is the hilarity that ensued:
I finally got Kaitlyn's last shoe on. To lighten the mood of "I don't wanna", I tickled her. This was BEYOND unacceptable as she dove into the cushions to get away from me. TIC came up for air, crying hysterically. She spies the nearest dog and says "Tinooooooooooooo....mommy hit me!" 'Tino, who is just trying to get comfy for his morning nap, is completely disinterested in the entire exchange. Kaitlyn, seeking any kind of comfort she can get, wraps her arms around 'Tino and hugs him. By this time, 'Tino is thoroughly confused. He's not really sure what he's supposed to do in this situation. Mommy has dissolved into giggles as this is really the cutest thing she's ever seen. I try to give Kaitlyn the comforting hug she seeks and am shunned. She goes back to clutching 'Tino for dear life, which in turn, causes him to shift away from the drama (I would have too, quite frankly). Finally, I'm able to give her a hug and we make our way out the door with more tears and more hysterics.

All this before 8 am! I'm amazed I was able to stay awake after all that! Talk about an energy zap! Mothers of children under 2 let this be your public service announcement. When you look at your angelic child and think NO WAY will the terrible twos be terrible for you, think again. We're living proof! But, we have lived to see yet another day, and all in all, I consider that a HUGE success.

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Celebration of Independence

This morning, as with many mornings recently, I casually opened Kaitlyn's door as I went downstairs to let the dogs outside. I heard her happy chatter as she came downstairs and cabe back to the stairs to greet her. What I saw was beyond description. The pajama pants she went to bed with were not in sight. Okay. Not a new phenomenon, we can roll with it. Oh, hey look! Kaitlyn put her shoes on. Awesome, they are even on the right feet! Then my eyes moved up to see that she was wearing her Dora the Explorer bathing suit. Not only was she wearing it, but she put it on the right way. I know grown women who can't even put on their bathing suit and I personally struggle with which side is the front and which side is the back. Kaitlyn's ingenuity is just beyond comprehension....especially at 7:30 in the morning! Seriously, if I could bottle her energy and sell it, I'd be a rich woman!

There are some big changes coming up in the Shoup House. Momma Shoup starts a new job in Arlington next week. I'm looking forward to the new opportunity, but sad about the people I'm leaving behind. I've met and worked with some amazing people who have pushed me to acheive more than I had ever imagined. But ultimately, the title I hold doesn't fit as well as it once did and I'm ready to move my career in a different direction. My greatest hurdle is the three hour round trip commute. I'm definitely not looking forward to that. I'll just take it one day at a time and appreciate the opportunity I'm being given.

The next big change is Toddler in Chief is moving from an in home day care to a day care center. It's a really nice center not far from home. It was not an easy decision to make. She loves Lida, Lida loves her and she's comfortable where she is right now. But the goal was always to transition her to a center and I think it will be really good for her to experience new people, new things and endless learning opportunities. And hopefully, there will be minimal tears shed by me the day she starts her new school.

Finally, Brent is officially done with military duty. He's got a couple of days here and there that he will be doing, but he turned in all his gear last weekend. I know he's happy to be done with it and we're happy with the flexibility of not having to plan around drill weekends. It will be interesting to see how long he lets his hair get. Maybe I'll take a picture each week so we can see the progression. In other big acheivement news for Brent, he completed the Capon Valley 50K a couple of weekends ago. It was a brutal race, but he's got another state done. The next race is currently in the works, so stay tuned for details.

That's all folks...until next time!

Friday, May 7, 2010

Who's in charge here?

Early wake ups. We've all been there. The ones where you groan, roll over and hope the crying baby is either a) a figment of your imagination or b) part of your dream (nightmare, same thing). When you realize that it is a part of your reality and you need to address it posthaste, then there are delusions of delaying the inevitable. This was the scene in my house this morning.

6:15 am Toddler in Chief wakes up sobbing. As she had woken up twice in the middle in much the same state, I got up and rushed down the hall to see what was wrong. No obvious damage to the furniture, so I'm thinking she wants some snuggle time. Trying to delay the inevitable, I enticed her with a "Hey, Kaitlyn, wanna get in Mommy and Daddy's bed?" She snagged her blanket and off we went.

6:20 am Well, that was fun and very short lived. Kaitlyn is no longer content to be in mommy and daddy's bed and would rather be back in her own. Awesome. The sleep fairy smiles contentedly upon us and I look forward to returning to bed.

6:21 am SIKE! We're back in mommy and daddy's room, in mommy and daddy's bed with TIC screaming "DON'T WANT" when I try to cover her up with our covers.

6:25 am TIC has had enough and gets out of bed. I pleadingly ask her if she would like to get back in bed. "All done nigh night, Momma, ALL DONE!" Even I can take a hint. I ask one more time if she wants in mommy and daddy's bed and hold out my hand. At this point she attempts to pull the covers off and pull me out of bed. She gives up and goes to her room saying something about "I NOT!" I groan and sink back into the pillows.

6:27 am "Momma?? Mommaaaaaaaaaaaaa? MOMMA??? 'ere ARE youuuuuuuuuuuuu?? Momma??" I thought this was just a game at first but quickly realized she really didn't know where I was! I mumble "Kaitlyn" and she has just discovered the greatest toy ever!

6:32 am I'm up. I'm done, we're done, we're going downstairs.

So, between this morning and Kaitlyn trying to make sure I got dressed in a timely fashion yesterday, it's clear that if TIC wasn't around, MIC (Mom in charge for those unfamiliar with the "lingo") would get nothing done.

I am happy to report that I completed all 39.3 miles (and then some probably...I think the hills of Georgetown should count for double distance) this weekend. I had some great motivational support from my walking partner. I did not come out of the weekend unscathed...I have a "soft tissue" injury (ie We don't know what you did but we're sure it hurts) that is on the mend. It was a scorcher both days, but it was for an excellent cause and I'm glad I did it. When you walk and you see the survivors of breast cancer walking with you, it's a pretty awesome feeling.

This weekend is Mother's Day. Make sure you give thanks to the good Lord in heaven above for the mother that brought you into this world. She may not be around, she may be in the next town, but no matter what, you wouldn't be here today without her. Shout out to the MOMS!!!

Thursday, April 29, 2010

Mommy's, Daddy's and Baby's

Well, those of you who have children know that the first two don't really apply. In the eyes of the child, it is ALL theirs. As sweet and nice as she is, Toddler in Chief is a strong supporter of the "MINE" principle. Especially when it is in her principle residence.

Some examples to support my statement:
Conversation while on the potty:
TIC: "My towel"
Mommy: "Okay. "
TIC: "My potty"
Mommy: "Okay."
(this is the part where mommy starts egging Toddler in Chief on)
Mommy: "My 'Tino"
TIC: "No, MY 'Tino"
Mommy: "My 'Tino"
TIC: "MY TINO!" She proceeds to lay a hand possessively on 'Tino who is oblivious.
Back and forth three times more
Mommy: "My Wellie."
TIC shakes her head and says something to the effect of I can have Wellie cuz she doesn't like her anyway (That was my interpretation...take it as you will)

Second incident:
Mommy has a ring box at toddler eye level (which will be rectified TONIGHT) that has been the source of debate as to the rightful owner. In it, I keep several rings and a couple pairs of earrings. TIC pretty much has access to anything in the bathroom while I get ready in the morning and today was no exception. We are all set, ready to walk out of the house when Kaitlyn starts to load up her "BOCKPOCK" (backpack for those of you not familiar with the TIC lingo). Once she has loaded up the items from the family room that she felt were essential for Ms. Lida's, she started emptying her pockets. Guess what was in her pockets? Yup, all of my rings and half of each set of earrings. She was just going to take them to Ms. Lida's with her. When I snatched them up from the floor where she had dropped them, the ensuing "My rings" "Mommy's rings" conversation ended with me as victor and TIC in meltdown mode. All I could think was, we moved up from the penny ante stuff (change from someone else's house) to full blown HEIST in the span of a couple of weeks. What do you do with that kind of talent???? Thinkin' a trip to Tiffany might be in order!

This is my last post before the Avon Breast Cancer walk. Daddy and bebe are on their own once again, but this time, they can come cheer mommy on! YEAY! Wish me luck, peeps! I'm gonna need it. I got all the tools, it's time to put my mouth (and legs) where the money is! If you haven't already added me, follow me on Twitter so you can catch all the hilarity.