A Three Day Weekend!

We had a busy weekend. Saturday morning started with a snuggle in bed with all three of us. Then Aidan and I went off to Starbucks before the Little Gym so Christianne could get back to sermon writing. After the Little Gym, Aidan and I went to the Dallas Museum of Art and played around there. They have a kids space where they can do texture rubbings and crafts and things. Aidan was most interested in moving the crayons for the texture rubbings from one can to the another - and coloring the seashells. Oh well. We ate in the cafe at the museum (fish tacos with rice) and made a huge mess. She was asleep in the car before we had gone 2 blocks. After a nap, we all played and then went to Applebee's for dinner.

Sunday, we church. Aidan and I watched the nursery while Christianne did her preaching thing. Then we had a quick lunch and home for naps for everyone - until Christianne got paged for work. Too bad. When Christianne went back for evening church, Aidan and I headed to the splash park. She had great fun running around in the water. A little time at the regular park was fun too. Aidan managed to mooch 2 oranges off of some nice women who were sitting nearby. They were eating an orange and Aidan just walked right up and stared at them. They offered her an orange and Aidan practiced her Spanish by saying Hola and Gracias. She went back after she finished her first orange and asked for another. This time we added "Adios" to the list and packed up and left. They were very sweet to her. We met Christianne at Fat Daddy's for a very unhealthy dinner and went off to home. Aidan was so wired from her day that she had trouble going to and staying asleep. I think we overloaded her brain.

Monday, we went to the Dallas Zoo. That was fun, but we didn't see too many animals because it was so hot and they were all sleeping. But we did see the tigers, which was neat. Aidan got to play in the stream and had a great time running around and splashing. She fell asleep in the stroller before we even got to the car. After nap, we painted and played with play-dough. And she has become obsessed with "The Little People" DVD we have. She must have asked to watch it 5 times yesterday.

This morning, Aidan was inspecting some pretend food we bought her. She pulled out this twisted french fry looking thing that was white and orange. Christianne asked her what it was and with all confidence Aidan said, quite clearly, "Cheeto." Now, we don't keep cheetos in the house as a rule and I can't remember either one of us ever giving her a cheeto. I asked Miss Rachel about it this morning and she fessed up that she gives Aidan cheetos on Fridays. All those early days of making her eat veggies.... At least she'll still eat beets and broccoli.

Aidan had a difficult time going to school today. After 3 days with both Mommies, it was a hard transition. But I'm sure 5 minutes after I left she was hugging on Miss Lillie and having the time of her life.

More pictures to share

Here are some more pictures of Aidan's adventures.

Planting flowers with Mama:



First frozen custard trip:



Eating corn on the cob:



Cute hair styles (she has hair now!)



At the arboretum again:



General cuteness:

(She took the pillow out to the couch and climbed up all on her own and then asked for the blanket)
(Thanks, Grandma, for the cool dress!)

How I found her sleeping one night:

Bragging on our little girl

Yesterday, after a very long (to Aidan) open house at her school, we went out to eat. Aidan was a little wound up, but managed to settle after a little walk outside with Mama. At this cafe, they have etch-a-sketches for the kids to play with. Aidan thought this was SO COOL! After dinner, as we got ready to go, she hugged it to her chest and said, "MINE!" This is toddler short hand for "This is the coolest thing I've ever seen and I would really, really, really like to take it home and have it forever....PLLLLLEEEEAAASSSEEEE???" Christianne and I calmly explained that we had to leave it at the restaurant because it didn't belong to us but we would come back again so she could play with it. I asked her to put it in the basket with this other ones. And here's the bragging part: Our little girl bravely marched over to the basket (without help), her little lip starting to tremble, and put the toy back (and didn't grab it or any other toy back out again). She then promptly burst into tears. We gave her lots of praise for doing the right thing even though she really didn't want to and what a big girl this makes her. It was really a moment in which I could see her make a choice to do what she knew was the right thing to do (listen to her mommies) even when everything in the 20.5 month old body was telling her to grab and run the other way. We really are proud of her.

It struck me as I was thinking about blogging this little moral milestone this morning that blogs are the Gen X and beyond baby books. These are all things the Boomers would have recorded in a lovely book somewhere. Our lovely book is somewhere, but on this blog are most of Aidan's major accomplishments, her growth stats, pictures, and descriptions of major events in her life. I hope you all enjoy sharing in the chronicling of her life. And, I know, more pictures! :-)

She is growing up so quickly and developing a lovely balance of sweetness and spitfire. (The morning, she took off running across the parking lot a daycare - should have seen me shed my high heels and take off running - that was a spitfire moment.) She started this sweet thing of when I ask her to say she's sorry for something, she says, "Sor-ree" while gently patting the side of the person's face. It is so sweet.

The other day, another mom from daycare told me that Aidan gave her daughter a hug when she arrived at daycare for the morning and must have hugged her for 30 seconds. Fortunately, the other child didn't seem to mind. It sounded like it was very sweet and pretty funny. Aidan seems to be loved and adored by nearly everyone at daycare - children and adults alike. Everyone seems to know her name and be excited to see her. I hear that she greets all of the after school kids when they come in the afternoon with a big "HI!" Last night at the restaurant, she said hi to everyone who walked by the window. Such a little extrovert!

We'll upload more pictures soon.

Much better weekend

Aidan had a much better weekend this go around. Only one time out yesterday. And a bedtime lesson. It was so sad, I almost didn't have the heart to go through with it, but it worked. Aidan has two things she has to do at bedtime on her own: 1) put her shoes away and 2) put her clothes in the hamper. She decided that she wanted to do everything but those two things, so Christianne and I said, "We are going to leave and when you have put your shoes and clothes away, we will come back." Aidan started crying really hard when we left and we stood outside her room and out of sight. Soon we hear footsteps (along with sobbing) and, sure enough, she is putting her shoes and clothes away. We came back in, just as we had promised, and gave her lots of hugs. It is so much better than fighting with her, but I sure hate to upset her like that.

We learned this morning that the Pacifier Fairy really does exist. I got Aidan out of her crib this morning and asked her if she wanted to snuggle for a few minutes in the big bed. She was leaning over my shoulder as she said, "OK" (her new word). The next thing I hear from her is "Oh no!" and her pacifier is not in her mouth. We get on the floor and look under the crib and under the big bed and around on the carpet (her room's not that big!) and I can't find it anywhere. I can only conclude that the Pacifier Fairy swooped in and took it away to a little newborn who needs it. We only have one pacifier because we are getting ready to give them up anyway and I didn't want to buy more. I'm not sure what we'll do tonight. Maybe the Fairy will bring it back tonight, or Aidan will use another one of her new words, "Sad."

Sing, sing a song

Aidan has really started singing in the last few weeks. She knows the tunes to several songs, most of the hand motions, and key phrases. It is really cute! Today, on the way home we sang our standards:

• The Wheels on the Bus
• Twinkle Twinkle Little Star
• If You're Happy and You Know It
• The Itsy Bitsy Spider
• The Farmer in the Dell

Now, the farmer only had cows and ducks on the farm, since Aidan got to choose the animals, but it was fun. After making it through all 5 songs, I started over and Aidan declared singing time over by saying, "Noooo..." after I started each song. She was on to anticipating seeing Mama when we got home and nothing would distract her from that. So, sing, sing a song!

A short summary of our weekend

For those who are interested, here is a quick summary of a weekend in the life of a 20 month old.

Mommy? I love you! You are the best! Mommy move! No! (Pushes mommy away or locks mommy in her bedroom after exiting herself - mommy goes away.) Waaaa!!! Mommy!!!! (Grabs mommy's hand to let her out of the room and then lets go and ignores mommy.) Mommy! Play with me! Can I watch "Sprout"? No? Mommy, I hate you! Mommy? Here's a hug for you!

Mommy? What are limits? Is hitting a limit? It is? How about pinching? That too? What about biting? I know it is at school, but what about at home? Here too? OK, what about screaming "MINE!!!!!!!" and trying to grab things off your plate? Really? That doesn't seem like it should be a limit too... OK, what about running away from you? OK inside when we are playing chase, but not OK outside? Hum...what about if I'm trying to keep something that you want me to give to you? Is it OK to run away from you then - even if we are outside? No? Well, that doesn't seem to be very fair. How else am I going to keep the things I want to keep? Can I run away when I get tired of being in time out? Is that a limit? What? I have to wait in one spot the entire 90 seconds? That doesn't seem fair! If I don't sit, you'll sit with me in your lap? Wow. That makes me mad! I guess biting is still a limit - AND I get ANOTHER time out for it? A kid could end up in time out for 4 and a 1/2 minutes between running away twice and attempted biting. OK...what about throwing things on the floor while we are eating? Even at a restaurant? They have people to clean up after us after all. What about taking the straw out of my drink and pouring the milk on the table? You don't want me to do that either? All I get to do is color while waiting for my food - and you don't like it when I eat my crayons. You are no fun! Mommy? I hate you! Mommy? Don't leave me! I love you! Now, when you say it is time to get ready for bed...does that really mean putting away my clothes and shoes and putting on my PJ's? Are you sure it doesn't mean running around my room like a maniac? Because I think that is more fun. Oh, and Mommy? Why can't I eat 3 bananas in one afternoon - and have juice too? Oh, and Mommy? About bath time...is it a limit when I splash so hard that the water goes across half the bathroom and your shirt and pants get all dark colored and wet? Would that be a limit? How about standing up in the bathtub and practicing my jumping? Can I do that? I know I bumped my head, but I think it is worth it. Mommy? NO!!!!! Mommy? Hug me!

Oh, I forgot. What about pulling the cat's tail? That's a limit too? But it was just there, twitching. What's a kid to do? How about jumping on the dogs? No? Well...Oh, I know, is it OK to hit my plate with my fork so hard the corn goes flying across the table? No, not that either?

Mommy? How come last night when Mama was reading me stories, you said, "Mommy is going out. I'll be back later. Mommy needs some personal time"? Mommy? What's personal time and why do you need it? You'll be happy to know I used my time with Mama is see what kind of limits she has. Strange. They are a lot of the same ones you have.

Mommy? I love you. Thanks for letting me paint today. It was fun.

Oh, and Mommy? Remember you'll have to distract me with TV in the morning in order to get my PJ's off and real clothes on. I didn't want you to forget.

Aidan.



I wouldn't trade this sweet girl for anything in the world, and I am grateful for these struggles because I know some moms wish for nothing more than to feel tested by their child in every way and their children aren't capable of testing things like Aidan. And it is good to know she is developmentally on track, but, wow, what a weekend! And she's only 20 months. I hope consistency now will lead to an easier time during the heart of rapproachment. I can hope, right? Loving limits. Loving limits. Avoid power struggles (like wresting the pacifier out of her mouth the other morning - not a proud mommy moment [I apologized for that power-over parenting approach later]). Loving limits and lots of love.

I'm going to go eat some chocolate frozen custard.

Ta ta.

Presiding Bishop's visit

As promised, here are some pictures from the Presiding Bishop's visit.

Cute pictures of Aidan:



Pictures from the blessing of the community garden:

Do you need a time out?

We've been implementing time outs since Aidan was about 18 months. These are usually reserved for significant things like hitting or biting. But I've also been using them when Aidan runs away from me when we are outside and doesn't respond to my request to "Wait!" I think this deserves a time out because she is often running toward traffic or the parking lot. And I try to be really consistent with it.

So, this morning, we were headed to the car to go to school and Aidan decided she was going to run off through the backyard. Here's our conversation:

Mommy: "Oh-oh! Are you not listening to Mommy?"

Aidan: Stops to consider the question.

Mommy: "What happens when you don't listen to Mommy?"

Aidan: Appears to ponder this question.

Mommy: "Do you need a time out?"

Aidan: "Yeah." And walks over to sit on the back stairs, gathering her blankets and stuffed animal around her.

Mommy: "Okay. I'll tell you when time out is over."

She sat there almost the entire 90 seconds with only one reminder that she was in time out and a few tears. We then reviewed that she was in time out for not listening to mommy and running away from mommy while we are outside. Then off to the car we went.

It is amazing when it works. :-)

Hopefully we are on a learning roll.

Pictures soon, I promise.