Mike Tyson

Nathan is tough and rough and I've been known to call him mean. I know he's only 18 months old, but he's down right mean sometimes. He's a huge pusher and although he's very tiny, he can dig in his feet and he'll shove with his head until he knocks Carson off or away from something he wants. He will hit and throw things too. He's teething very badly right now. The canines (or eye teeth, whatever you call them). I know they are hurting him. He's got his hands in his mouth almost all day. He fusses and he's not eating well (which is definitely not like him). Today he's been mean, not aggressive as I usually put it, but just mean. He's taking everything from Carson then throwing it down once he's gotten it. He's shoving and hitting and he's biting today. Carson came to show me very deep teeth marks on his upper arm today and told me several times about him biting him. Nathan's been in time-out a lot today and he's been throwing major tantrums. They were both playing on the mini kid's trampoline and having a fine time together and then Nathan tried to shove him off. I hear Carson start screaming and he runs to me crying. Nathan had bit his ear! Hard! He had teeth marks and a very red ear. Carson was never a biter or a shover. He was a very sedate child. Nathan is a total opposite and I'm at my wit's end.

When I lost my virginity.

I voted today for the very first time! (aside from high school royalty)

It was so exciting and although most of you will laugh largely over this; I teared up a little bit filling in that first circle for our new president.

So yes, yes, yes, shake your finger, shame me for being 30 and never voting before, but I did vote today and I hope that you can all see the great in that over the shame of having not voted in prior elections.

I'm glued to the TV tonight as well, just waiting to see if the majority of voters feel the same as I do. I'm excited. So excited. Excited for change in the country and excited to feel a part of it.

8th percentile????

Nathan had his 18 month check up on Saturday morning. He hadn't gotten much bigger. He's in the 8th percentile for weight, 40th for height and 5th for head circumference.

Now if you look down a couple posts you'll see him eating one of his favorite foods, fettacine.

The pediatrician said his percentiles and said that he was very healthy and developmentally doing great and that he may just be small, but they'd like to see some more weight on him if we could encourage him to eat a little more.

Really? How? We do not limit our children's food at all, but we also never force them to eat or to finish what's on their plate. Carson is in the 50th percentile for weight and barely eats anything at all.

Here's a typical breakfast (quantity wise, the foods are mixed up) for Nathan:

2 Nutrigrain bars, 1 yoplait yogurt, 2 kiwis, a handful of grapes, a cup of whole milk, and some puffs (to try and finish them off).

Here's a typical lunch:

6 Tyson chicken nuggets, 1/2 a can of carrots, a banana, 1/2 cup of goldfish crackers

Here's a couple of dinners for him:

More spaghetti than I can eat. He ate about 2 cups of spaghetti shells with meat sauce and a piece of garlic toast.

He's also eaten a cup+ of taco meat, a handful of cheddar cheese, a tortilla shell, green beans.

He also eats 2 snacks a day.

Seriously? How could he possibly be encouraged to eat more? I am not sure how the boy is so small. Apparently it's just who he is. He's just a little boy.

Approval

Here's a little conversation I had with Carson...

"Mommy, can I tell you something."

"Sure."

"I'm John McCain and I approved this message."

(insert my looking as confused as a baby in a topless bar)

Wordless Wednesday

Things I don't want to forget

Tonight Greg was out running an errand at the hardware store. He took the boys with him and was later than he expected to be so he picked up some fast food. When they got home I was in the basement and Carson asked if he could eat down there if he didn't have any BBQ sauce. (I thought that was smart of him, but he's my kid so of course I do.) So they had a 'picnic' in the basement. Mostly Nathan just walked around with food, but Carson ate his dinner. Greg and I were doing some work while they were eating and we hear Carson say. "I'm all done. May I be excused, please?" My heart just swelled with love and pride. He's on the basement floor and his brother's walking around with food and Greg and I are working on things and my boy still used his manners! I think that was amazingly sweet and I couldn't resist praising him and covering him in kisses.

Today we all danced to "I've Got a Song in my Tummy" and did the movements and sang it. Sweet little Nathan looked back and forth from Carson to me and followed along with the movements. He was so cute leaning over to get his toes and squeezing his nose, and my favorite...the 'song in my heart' was actually his hand on his neck, but hey he gave a great performance!

I am part of a private message board with a group of women and a few days ago one of the girls called me. Carson and Nathan were playing in the bedroom. Well, when the phone rings, Carson has to run and ask who it is. So I told him it was Mommy's friend and he didn't know her. He said, "Is she from your board".

I was making cookies a couple days ago and I had the first sheet in the oven. The timer went off and I checked them, but they needed a couple more minutes. I sat down and then forgot all about them. Not just for a few minutes but for about 10 minutes. They were beyond being edible if dipped in milk. I said, "Oh no, I burnt the cookies!" Greg asked how badly. "I said, they are really burned." I put the next sheet in the oven and sat down on the couch. Carson came over and said, "Are the cookies burned?" I told him, "Yes, Mommy forgot to take them out on time so they burned." He got a very serious look and a serious voice I've never heard before and said, "It's okay. We'll call Mimi and she'll know what to do." Where did he get this idea? So I said, "Ok" and didn't give it another thought. He was still standing there and said, "Mommy, it's okay. Call Mimi and she'll know what to do!" His inflection was adorable. So guess what, I had to call my mother and tell her I burned cookies and need to know what to do with them. She laughed and suggested I throw them out. Thank goodness I have Carson and my mom to help me through the really hard times.

Today Nathan did a little dance in the living room and then he began to turn in circles which is often does. He finally got himself too dizzy and fell down and bumped his head on the entertainment center. He was a little fussy and then started crying and came to me. I picked him up and hugged me and he was bawling. Then Carson calls loudly from his bedroom, "Baby! Baby, come in my room and play on the bed!" Nathan stops crying instantly, slides down and goes running down the hall.

Toddler Tornado

So I'm sick today. The nasty tummy kind. I'm also very, very dizzy and stumble whenever I get up. I got the boys breakfast this morning (frozen waffles and fruit). After breakfast I laid down on the couch to rest and they played in the living room and their rooms. Carson asked for a snack and as soon as Nathan heard that word he was in the kitchen hollering. My head was spinning so I asked Carson to bring me something out of the pantry and a plate from the clean dishwasher. He brought me pretzels and two bowls. I filled them each and Carson put the bag back into the pantry. All seemed to be going fine as I laid on the couch with my head spinning. They were loud and hollering and I heard toys being dumped out and typical noisy boy play, but they were getting along better than usual. This is should have worried me.

I got up about 11:30 to get them something for lunch. I noticed that there are toys everywhere and under the layer of toys was a layer of Nathan's pretzels and his empty bowl. Apparently, they were not appetizing to him. I just gave it a silent 'whatever' and got their lunch ready. After lunch I walked down the hall to the restroom and glanced into Carson's room. His curtains were on the floor and the curtain rod (just the cheap kind) was still held by screws to the wall, but broken in half and sticky out on each end. WTF? Seriously? Can a sick mom not just rest on a couch? Why is this not possible? How do they know I'm so out of it that I wouldn't hear such a thing take place? Oh they are crafty, little boogers.

I ask Carson what happened in his room (which is also covered in toys and his blankets and pillow). He said that they wanted to open the window but he didn't want to ask me because I was sick and needed to rest (love when he uses my own words against me). So he was trying to open them and Nathan climbed on it and it fell. He also added, "...it just fell, but Baby didn't even cry so I didn't bother you." I simply rolled my eyes and returned to the couch.

They are napping now and I am typing this as the screen literally swirls. I don't even plan to warn Greg before he gets home from work. I just have to see his face when he gets the same surprises I received.