The War on Toddlerism is getting real y’all, and Patrick and I sometimes feel like we are losing it. We’re still a month away from Beau turning two, but he’s advanced at becoming a toddler – go figure! I have to laugh…the things Beau excels at are not always the things that I’d like him to excel at. Just yesterday we had some new friends over for dinner with their two year old, and they were totally impressed with how good Beau was at climbing in and out of the pack and play and running down the stairs not holding on. I on the other hand was totally impressed with how good their little boy spoke in full sentences and had the ability to convey what he wants through words. I don’t know how my new friend was feeling, but I found myself wishing Beau was more skilled at speaking so he could keep up with the cute conversation her son was having. I have to remind myself that God created Beau to be the person he is, and it’s okay if he’s good at some things (even if they are the scary things!) and not so good at other things. I have to remind myself that Beau’s mobility is a gift, and some kids aren’t blessed with that gift.
Beau’s active nature though is what has me writing. Y’all, it’s been a day! So here’s the story…we were getting ready to go see the Easter Bunny and I had Greta all dressed and ready to go in her car seat. As I was getting myself ready, Patrick alerted me that Greta was crying. I ran into the family room to plug her with her pacifier when I saw chocolate on her face, yes CHOCOLATE on the face of my 2 month old!!! I didn’t give her chocolate, Patrick didn’t give her chocolate, and the dog would scarf chocolate down himself before sharing with the baby, so that only leaves Beau…who was last seen was snacking on a Cliff bar he helped himself to from the pantry. Did Greta eat chocolate?! I’m going to guess most likely, no. Did Beau offer it to her, I’m going to guess most definitely, yes.
Next, I found my chocolate faced toddler playing with a gift I had wrapped to give to his buddy for his birthday (which was in February…don’t even get me started on the amount of gifts I have to deliver to friends who’ve had babies and birthdays, exc.) The gift bag was ripped down the side and the tissue was thrown across the baby gate into our office. After taking the toy off of him and grabbing a new bag I found Beau running from my bedroom with my toothbrush in his hand (he’s obsessed with brushing his teeth) as I chased him down to recover it, he threw it too over the baby gate into the office. Now, I knew if I opened the gate he would run inside to this forbidden “fun” room, so I decided to lean over the gate to grab both the tissue paper and my toothbrush. The toothbrush went a little further than I expected and as I leaned further for it, I felt the gate giving out beneath me. I knew Beau was close by and I didn’t want the gate to somehow fall on him. As I tried to get up while keeping the gate upright, I realized I couldn’t! So I yelled for Patrick to come quick because I was falling (Thank God he is at home with me right now! I don’t know what I’ll do when he’s in school!) I heard him rush past the office because really, who falls into the office?! As I yelled “Hurry!”, he yelled “Where are you?!” After lifting me up as the gate crashed down, we both just laughed while he hugged me. I definitely shed a few tears…not sure if they were from laughter, embarrassment, or frustration…maybe a few from all of the above. Patrick still keeps looking at me and just laughing…it might take awhile to live this one down!
When we got in the car I decided to read a new chapter of our current car book, “Praying the Scriptures for your Children” by Jodie Berndt.
We were gifted this book by our friends Jay and Jenn when Greta was born. Jay and Jenn have three teens and I totally admire them in every aspect of their lives…their child rearing, their gorgeous, perfectly kept home, their ability to be the most creative hosts with the most delicious meals…I could go on and on! So any bit of advice they give, I try to soak it up like a sponge! When they gifted us this book, I knew we needed to read it, and we needed to read it together. So now I read it aloud any time we are driving into the city. As I read, a little piece of truth was revealed to me – as it always is when I take the time to open myself to the Lord. It was an “Aha!” moment as I read “Make no mistake, Satan wants to destroy our families, and he is always on the lookout for ways to sow seeds of tension, rebellion and destruction.” It goes on to quote 1 Peter 5:8 “Your enemy, the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” Truth and truth! After reading those words I realized that each toddler tantrum and each meltdown is an attack on me by the enemy. During these frustrating moments I’m more prone to weakness, and I become a mommy I don’t want to be. It reminded me that I need to turn to the Lord in prayer in those moments instead of giving into my frustrations.
We did eventually make it to see the Easter Bunny. It was by far our most difficult holiday photo so far, and I’m sure that had to do with the switch to getting two kids to sit still and smile, the fact that it was nap time and of course the fact that we were dealing with a toddler. Given the above, I’m just glad we got one! Go bunny and go bunny photographer!
Life sure can be crazy with a toddler and a newborn…two under two…but I wouldn’t change it for anything. I love my crazy toddler and I love my snugly newborn. Most days I feel like I can’t do anything for myself, and a lot of times I can’t, but I’m okay with that because this is truly the life I’ve always dreamed of and more! So bring on this War of Toddlerism…I know I can get through it with the power of prayer!
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