Max is a great sleeper, which wasn't always the case. He wouldn't sleep a stretch longer than 3 hours at a time until we slept trained him at 6 months. Now he sleeps a solid 10-11 hours at night, and he always takes a long 2-3 hour nap. The best part is that we just lay him down in his bed, give him his blanket, and he goes right to sleep with zero fuss.
My little guy is extremely affectionate. Big hugs and kisses are a regular part of our day, and I love it! Max is also a little singer. He is almost always singing a song during the day. I try not to brag too much about my child. On the most part, I think Max is pretty normal and average, but one thing he does excel at is carrying a tune. That kid can seriously sing. I think he will be very musically talented one day. In church when we sing the hymns, Max belts out his ABC's as loud as he can. Adorable.
Max is a whiner. He has been since day one. Several months ago we taught him to say "please" when he wants something instead of whining. He now says "please" all day long in the cutest most sweetest voice he can muster up. It pulls on my heart strings, and he probably gets what he wants a little too much when he says his adorable "pleases."
Max loves to be chased and tickled. It's his favorite thing in the world. He comes up to Dan and I every night with the biggest grin, tickling the air with his hands to signal come and get me! We chase him around the house tickling him until he has worn us out. His happy shrieks and laughter make up for any naughty moments he had during the day.
Max loves looking at the baby in my belly. He lifts up my shirt, kisses my stomach, and says, "baby." Before we found out what the baby was, we asked Max several times if it was a girl or boy. Every time he would say "girl" without hesitation. I am sure he will be shocked when an actual baby does come out of my belly, and is here to stay, but he sure does seem to love his baby sister so far.
The bad:
Max isn't a super easy toddler. He was an easy baby, but once he turned one it was a different story. But things are getting better as my toddler gets older, and I feel the bad days are farther and further between. Like I mentioned before, 13-18 months was a frustrating time for both Max and I. There were days filled with hours of whining and crying. Those days seem to be behind us, for the most part, and now Max's tantrums only seem to last for a few minutes at a time. I hear a lot from other moms about the dreaded "terrible two's," but I feel Max is getting easier and more enjoyable the older he gets. I am actually looking forward to him turning two.
The ugly:
Church. Deep sigh. An hour and fifteen minute sacrament meeting with a very active toddler.... need I say more? Most Sundays it's just plain ugly. Dan and I have spent many hours talking, and praying about what we can do to make sacrament meeting a better experience for us all. Max has a very hard time sitting in the pew reading books, eating snacks, and doing quiet activities. Most of the time is spent out in the hall. Here's where we have the dilemma, if we let Max play out in the hall, he does pretty well, but we don't want to teach him that it's ok to run around in the hall during church. We have implemented a strict no getting down on the ground rule when he is taken out into the hall. Max hates it, and kicks and screams as loud as he can when we take him out. Most of the meeting is spent in an empty room trying to calm down our screaming child. Now that Dan is working 6 days a week and working most Sundays, I get to brave church alone. One of these days it will get better, but until then, we will just keep taking him to church and hope that our efforts pay off in the end.
Looking at this list I see that the good far outweighs the bad. Parenting is not for the faint of heart. It's not easy, but I love being a mother. Max brings us happiness, and I get so much satisfaction knowing that I am doing exactly what I am supposed to be doing every day.
2 comments:
Well that is the beauty of parenting. There are bad and ugly times but the good times are the ones you remember.
Church is very difficult with children. I'm totally with you on not making the hall the fun place to go. I swear Corey sometimes just pinches them so they'll act up and he can spend the meeting in the foyer! We try all kinds of quiet books, etc., but they lose interest so fast! I try to remember to pack new, different books and toys so they are more entertained and distracted. Good luck!
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