Diary of a Busy Toddler

Sweet Boy

4/22/2009
I awoke this morning to a one year old in my bed. His pudgy toe was crammed into my eyeball and his face was on my belly. How he got there, I do not know. I watch him and smile... he is so calm and peaceful. This is the only time he is calm and peaceful... I need to enjoy it while I can.

This child of mine is accident prone. He walks (staggers) like he has had one too many. He trips frequently and is the victim of a brutal floor beating at least 6 times a day.
Floor - 6  Fourteen Month Old - 0

He careens into furniture which results in bruises and bloody bumps on his head. He is a tough one, my dear, toe-headed boy.  He only cries for a second, Mommy wipes off the blood, and he is back for more.

Kitten

His current hobby is chasing the kitties. He corners them and then grabs their tails just to hear them yowl. Then they bat at him either inflicting a painful scratch (like the one down his nose) or they bite him. I try to save the cats but they are rather stupid and go up to the drooling child as if daring him to try something... and he always does. I think he is a thrill seeking baby. Not much phases him and he seems to enjoy pushing his limits.

Our oldest son was/is vastly different. At Toe-Head's  age he would play in one spot, organize his toys in a row or read books. Little Toe Head has yet to sit still, enjoys destroying anything in a row, and eats books.

Our six year old obeys all the rules and tries to enforce the rules on others begging them to follow the "law" too. Little One makes new rules, breaks old ones, and encourages mass chaos wherever he goes.

Our oldest would pick up his toys at a young age and place them in the toy bin. Our second born grins at me and throws his toys down the kitty door which leads to the basement stairs.

When Big Brother was younger he would color/scribble on a piece of paper and hand me the crayon when he was finished. Little Brother looks at the crayon, makes a line, and then eats the crayon.

For ages people have always said "No two children are the same". WOW! Yuppers to that one.

I am thinking of asking for a stun gun for my anniversary gift... I will let you know how it works out. :)

7/8/2009
I overslept this morning and woke up around 6:30am. I followed the scent of shaving gel to the bathroom where I found my adorable husband shaving over the bathroom sink. I gave him a smooch and headed downstairs. It is Wednesday morning, hubby has already put the trash out by the curb and last night's dishes are taunting me from the sink. I was too tired to wash them after dinner so I put them off till the morning.  Ugh.
I proceed to make my darling his lunch. I whip up some tuna fish only realizing after placing the drained tuna in a mixing bowl that I forgot to make mayonnaise yesterday - hmmmm... grabbed some relish and sprinkled some pickle juice in and called it good. Good thing my man isn't picky. :)

I kissed hubby goodbye and googled "homemade mayonnaise" when the pitter patter of little feet overhead caused me to rise up out of my chair.

Curious Toddler

Pound. Pound. Pound.

Little Toe Head was slamming his chubby fist upon the upstairs gate.

"Aaaaaaa", when translated means "Get me now or I will throw an object down the stairs at you".

I did the "Fe, Fi, Fo, Fum" routine and met my little one at the top of the stairs. He thinks waking up is a game so he runs back to the comfort of my bed (where he ends up sleeping most of the night... so not restful for Momma.  It's like sleeping with a thrashing alligator.) and squiggles his pudgy body under the covers. I turn the lights on and sing our "Wake Up" song while making the bed around him. When the bed looks tidy except for a slight bump up by the pillows my sweet boy bursts forth saying "weee". Then I tidy up the bed, change his diaper, give Big Brother the wake up call and we are off downstairs.

I set Little Brother on the futon with his milk so I could go back to the mayonnaise recipe hunt but that did not slow him down for long. Two minutes into it he was asking for "re-re's" a.k.a. raisins, so I fixed breakfast. He scampered off to the dining room while I grabbed the chocolate chip zucchini muffins I made yesterday. When I came back into the dining room I found him already in his high chair waiting for me. His high chair is HUGE... I mean, tall. For a 16 month old to scramble that fast up into his high chair is kind of scary. He was pretty proud of himself though. Smiling and laughing and saying "E...E..." which means "eat" and then "pease"... of course he has to squeeze the good manners in.
So that is where we are at currently. Little Toe Head is covered in chocolatey muffin and I am typing on my laptop at the table still looking for that perfect mayonnaise recipe.
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Little Brother is peering out the window  as the cars go by... his nose against the pane like a puppy. Raisins are lined up in a row on the sill waiting for the drooling monster to devour them. I hear the clomp, clomp, clomp of Big Brother descending from his sanctuary as Little Brother tears apart the morning newspaper. I peer into the two sweet, chocolately faces before me and think to myself "today will be bath day" as uttering such words aloud would start a coup in a household of boys.

Vintage Baby in Tub

Whatever brave tasks you do today... whether you are bathing your children or trying to make homemade mayonnaise, know that I am here with you.


7/23/2009
It was a long day. Awoke early to greet the misty morning with a smiling face and head off on a pleasant walk. Upon returning home I prepared 6 loaves of honey wheat bread and set them to rise while I woke the kiddos up. Once the kids are up the peaceful home becomes a chaotic house. Hmmm, let me rephrase that, once child number two is up the peaceful home becomes chaotic. He is pure energy.  He wakes up from a dead slumber all chipper with sparkling eyes that are just waiting to destroy something.

Today's Child Number Two Moments include the following:

*I use A LOT of flour so I buy it in 50lb bags at a local health food store. I opened a new 50lb bag and had it propped on my thigh so I could muckle onto it with both hands while pouring it into the flour bin. Little Brother took advantage of this opportunity and looked at me while grabbing fistfuls of flour and threw little, puffy, white clouds around the kitchen and then booked it when I put the bag down.

*I was making salad dressing and Little Brother was playing with toys on the floor behind me. I heard him say "oooohhhh" and when I turned around he was sitting in the middle of a two foot circle of hot cocoa powder. He had opened the canister and sprinkled/dumped it on the floor. I think he has a stealth mode because I did not hear any of this. He then proceeded to lick his hands and rub them all over the powdery mixture thus making a thick, gooey, chocolatey slime on his hands. Of course that went all over his face, clothes and hair... not to mention my floor. ( Yes, I video taped it and took pictures as proof that "Grandma's little angel" has fallen.) Bath, vacuum, mop... all in that order.

* Little Brother threw  yarn balls from my knitting all over the house. As I was gathering them up he had set one aside and wrapped his little body in it as if he were a fly in a spiderweb. He sure is creative!

* Milk art! He likes to draw with his sippy cup on the coffee table. Apparently my great idea of going to the bathroom by myself today was not so great.

* Brought Little Brother in with me during my second bathroom break and gave him a snack of raisins to keep him from unraveling the toilet paper roll. Instead he threw the raisins in the tub which was still wet from Big Brother's shower.

Well... I am tired now. So off I go to rest up before it all starts again tomorrow.

G-nite.

I'd love for you to share your busy toddler moments with me below... we are in this together, right?! :)