My Son is Awesome

Despite all my complaints about my kid's behavior and while I still often feel that parenting may not be the best "job" out there for me (and that it's just not for everyone), he really is a pretty awesome kid. At almost two years old, he ...

• can get & bring me many everyday things like sippy cups, shoes, blankies, and books. Oh, and the TV remote.
• can turn the TV on and off on his own.
• recognizes & can point out a number of things from his ABC book, like apple, ball, banana, car, cat, dog, door, dress, flower, and many more.
• can point out the following body parts: head/top, hair, eyes, ears, nose, mouth, belly button, toes, and bottom.
• knows how to kick and throw balls.
• can build block towers 7-10 blocks tall.
• can stack smaller blocks 5 blocks tall.
• can successfully insert several shapes in a shape sorter.
• laughs when you say the word "cotton".
• dances when he hears music, even when it's coming from a passing car & you're trying to cross the street.
• loves Sesame Street, Blue's Clues, and Yo Gabba Gabba!
• can scoop sand into a bucket.
• loves pouring water from one container into another.
• helps pick up his building blocks & put them back in the bag when it's cleanup time.
• is an expert sofa climber.
• loves to "talk" on the "phone" - remote controls, baby monitors, and cards have all been used as "phones".
• offers you his head when you ask for a kiss.
• thinks it's absolutely hilarious when he sticks his fingers in your nose, ears, and belly button.
• coughs in sympathy.
  

He may not be saying any real words just yet, but he more than makes up for it with his crazy little personality.

Kids With Guns

Today, while sitting down in Disneyland for lunch with my son, I noticed another little boy running around with his toy gun. He looked about five, and his "gun" seemed to be of the laser, Buzz Lightyear-type variety.

At one point, the little boy was pretending to shoot at the little birds eating crumbs off the ground. Then the Jedi Training Academy show started, and I noticed that he started to aim elsewhere - toward the crowd of people (mostly kids) around the stage.

My son doesn't own any toy guns, and I've consciously made the decision not to buy him anything that resembles one. (Summer was hard, what with all the gun-inspired bubble blowers around.) Yes, I'm a liberal, but I'm not necessarily anti-gun. With my son and his hyperactive tendencies, I'm all for doing what I can to help curb violence. (After all, my bouts of screaming rage is probably more than enough bad example.) Plus, I've seen enough young kids playing with toy guns pretending a little too far; holding the gun like gangsters on TV, pretending to shoot other kids they didn't like, or otherwise glorifying gun-ownership as something cool or tough or both.

I'm not sure what I'll do when he's older, when he's more conscious of other kids that he sees playing with toy guns. If he has a toy gun, is it alright for him to pretend shooting at animals and other people? Does that necessarily teach him that it's OK to pretend to hurt innocent animals and people? When we played cops & robbers when we were kids, was that OK?

Spiteful Bitch

I sometimes miss the women in the PPD group I used to go to. With them, I didn't feel like such an outcast, and more importantly, I wasn't afraid to express my true feelings about parenthood.

It was nice to have other moms around who also felt like they didn't like their child at times. It was nice to know I wasn't the only one who questioned whether having a baby was the right choice. It was nice to be able to say what was on my mind without feeling like I was being judged negatively.

I know most parents have their bad moments. I know most get frustrated. But for me, "frustration" doesn't even begin to describe what I sometimes feel for my kid. I was so angry with him tonight that I took his chin so he'd look me right in the face, and I flat out said, "I DO NOT LIKE YOU RIGHT NOW." And I did it with the absolute intention of being a mean and spiteful bitch.

I'm always told that it gets better. But people have been telling me that for almost two years now, and while some things have gotten better, new annoyances have taken their place. Overall, it hasn't gotten better, and I'm afraid that it only gets worse. God help me.

Angry Morning

It's one of those mornings when my son wakes up at the ass-crack of dawn and I am thrust into a foul mood. There's nothing more I'd enjoy right now than some time with a baseball bat and stacks upon stacks of dishes to smash.

The sitter will be here soon, and I'm hoping to get my anger in check by taking a bit of a run outside.

At Least This Part is Easy

For all the headaches I get from my kid, I am quite thankful that he can usually go to sleep on his own and stay there until morning. (Granted, some mornings mean 5 or 6 AM, but still.)

Body Armor

With my son being the crazy hyperactive kid that he is, I often find myself saying that I need body armor to protect myself from his flailing limbs (including the occasional head-butt that sometimes results in bloody lips).

After reading this, I'm convinced someone should start making and marketing the stuff. Moms like us need protection too!