Phew, the holidays are over. I love being with family and celebrating, and gifts...but with a newborn and a very spirited toddler-well chaos isn't far behind. In fact, I feel like I am either chasing or being followed by a little tornado. Everytime I pick up one mess, another is being dumped out behind me.
Spencer, so far, is an awesome newborn. He is now moving into the infant stage and seems to be getting more comfortable with life outside the womb. I am doing so many thing differently with him being the second child and all. Part of the differences are due to way in which he made his way into this world, many of them are because I am a more confident parent, and some are due to his easy going disposition.
I was convinced that Spencer was going to be a hyperactive kid who never slept. But, in fact, it is just the opposite. While we are 5 weeks in, he is a great sleeper both at night and naps. He is rarely fussy with the exception being when he has to poop—which so far is every 3-5 days. We have already had 3 poonami’s—which consist of him blowing his diaper, onesie, outfit and carseat out. He loves baths and seems to just melt into the tub whenever we place him there. He is starting the quiet alert stage—where he just looks around and takes in the lights and colors.
Elliott is still an amazing little kid. He continues to be great at sharing his toys and still has a compassionate side to him. He is becoming a very good conversationalist and has an awesome memory for names and details. Elliott loves all things trains, trucks, cars, diggers and airplanes. He seems to have a preference for things that GO. Although we spent over an hour last night together putting together puzzles (he only wanted to put together the train, drums, car and animals puzzles…go figure).
Our battle with potty training is ongoing. He was going pee in the potty with regularity and staying dry in between. I was just about ready to move him to underwear full time. He could even hold his bladder all night on most nights. He has however decided to assert his own variety of independence and now refuses to pee in the pot, and won’t hold his pee at night. His pull ups were getting so soaked through that 3 times they leaked. Pull ups are just not meant to hold that much pee… Plus, he now has a rash caused by the wet pull up and his refusal to pee in the pot (and our lack of changing it often enough). So, he is back to wearing diapers until he decides he is ready to pee in the pot again. We keep asking him, and we make him sit there still but it is a battle every time. It makes me wonder if it is a battle I shouldn’t be fighting. This is one of those areas where I am uncertain as to the ‘right’ thing to do. Should I force him to sit on the pot even though it causes him distress? Or do I just keep on keeping on, and hope that sometime in the future he will change his mind and decide he is ready? The potty training experts say that you shouldn’t go back, and once in pulls up don’t go back to diapers… But, he is a willful child and doesn’t like being told what to do. Yes, like his Mama, he already has an authority complex. The battle rages on.
I love being a Mom to two boys. I feel like I am adjusting well to life with two children, although it has its challenges. I had a small amount of free time with Elliott. I now feel like I don’t have any free time. Even something as mundane as a shower needs to be carefully scheduled and cleared with the hubby. I can see how this lack of ‘me’ time could build resentment and frustration if you aren’t communicating your needs often and clearly.
Speaking of needs—nap time if over and mine needs a feeding and diaper change.
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