10 reasons why it’s hard being a toddler

While Kyle’s babyhood went by too fast for me, I’ve really enjoyed watching him grow as a toddler.  Especially since he turned 2!  He has such a personality, and his high-energy is so contagious.  Of course, there’s the other side of toddlerhood where I often find Kyle frustrated, mad or crying. This is obviously not a fun moment for either of us, but sometimes I just have to laugh.  If my son could write, I believe this is a post he would write.  So from a toddler’s point of view, here are 10 reasons why it’s hard to be a toddler:

1. I have too many rules to remember. Like, don’t bite your brother, don’t put your hand down your mom’s shirt or down your diapers, no jumping off the stairs, dessert is AFTER dinner, etc…
2. My eye level is aligned with everyone’s crotch.  That’s why I throw tantrums all the time.  You would too!!
3. I’m too short to see what’s on top of the counter. I know there’s a cookie there but my parents are denying it, and I have no way to prove it.
4. I have a younger sibling now and everyone is buying them gifts except I’m the one that truly appreciates presents. I mean, I’m the one that’s ABLE to unwrap them all, not my younger sibling.
5. I’m older than my baby brother but I have to go to bed before he does.
6. I want to do everything myself but “adults” won’t let me, like press the buttons on every machine possible or hold my new baby sibling without help from others.
7. I have to share my stuff with some kid I just met. And this is coming from my parents and I still don’t believe they are good at sharing themselves.
8. While I love playing the drums, I go absolutely nuts if my dad tries to play.  Same goes for air hockey and T-ball.  I can’t really explain it, but that’s how I want things done, so stop asking me “why”!!
9. I love my mom so much that I want to spend every single second of the day with her, including her time in the washroom.  She keeps on saying that she wants “privacy”.  I’m not sure what it is, but what does privacy offer that I can’t???
10. I don’t understand what the big deal is with potty training.  There’s all this talk about using the potty, rewards, being a big-boy, wearing underwear, etc… but come-on, why would anyone not want to wear diapers forever? Besides… I’ve seen those depends commercials.  I’ll be back in diapers eventually, so why bother getting rid of them in the first place???

on having a second child

I just had my second child two weeks ago and while the nights are still sleepless and the laundry is never ending, here are a few things I learned along the way that are different this time around.
1. Labour

During my first labour, I was in so much pain that I swore up and down that I would never have another child (don’t we all).  Well, this time around, I got an epidural at 3 cm and was smiling versus at 4 cm and experiencing hell.

2. Postpartum emotions
While I experienced baby blues after my eldest was born, I didn’t this time around (at least not yet).  Yes, I still get emotional here and there (hello hormones); I am afterall, the same girl that cried through her entire wedding speech!

Sparkling Vintage Jewelry!! My best giveaway ever – $250 to Bee’s Knees Gems (Open to Canadians)

I don’t know about you, but I’ve been a little obsessed with big sparkly gem jewelry this year.  I know they’re a big trend right now, and that might be why I’ve gone bling crazy, but you have to admit, they do look great.  I spent most of the winter season searching for a perfect necklace to wear for the various holidays parties, but all my searches resulted in me leaving stores empty-handed.  While I did spot some beautiful pieces they were too expensive, and everything that was more affordable just looked cheap.  I was left a little disappointed to say the least.

More recently, I was introduced to an amazing Canadian company that specializes in beautiful vintage Gem jewelry; Bee’s Knees Gems.  I probably spent a good hour perusing the web-site.  Every piece was so pretty and special.  I had a hard time deciding whether I should pick the trendy emerald-green and rose gold ring, the teardrop sapphire pendant on a rose gold chain, or the black onyx ring.  After much deliberation and some consultation with my husband (yes, he even helped), I decided to get the cushion cut pendant necklace.  I’ve been searching for something similar to this for a while now.  I also wanted something that I could wear on a daily basis but easily use to go from day wear to evening wear.

Sports! From the Girl’s Corner

The saying “and from the girl’s corner…” is a familiar one in my household.  My husband, an avid sports lover, likes to use that term whenever I make a sports-related comment or question that usually has nothing to do with what is actually going on in the game.  To be fair, he doesn’t mind that I watch sports with him and he doesn’t mind that I ask questions, he just thinks that some of the questions I ask are a bit “ridiculous”.  The thing is… I don’t really care if the Jays lost because they’ve had a string of injuries or that the Leafs can’t win because well…. from what I understand you can pretty much blame anything for this one?

I do like watching the games though and I like them more when I understand the rules of the games.  There are however, some rules that I still, no matter how many time they’re explained to me, will never understand. First example: Icing. I don’t know how many times have I seen icing called and I still couldn’t for the life of me explain this mystery “icing” rule to my son.  Second example: When a baseball player strikes out but ends up running to first because the back catcher didn’t catch the ball. What is that all about?

ah?

Third example: All of football.  This is probably my least favorite sport to watch (Superbowl excluded).  I honestly have no idea how anyone, including the players, understand the rules to football. If my husband is watching football I immediately reach for a good novel (Ok I reach for my phone to check Facebook – stop judging!).

Here are a few things about sports that do interest me (these will probably give you a good indication why my husband comments “from the girls corner”):

Difference between a first and second pregnancy

As my second pregnancy comes to an end, I had some time (read: sleepless nights) to reflect back about my current pregnancy and my first one.  I realized that there’s a lot of differences actually.  Here’s some of the major ones that came to mind for me:

1. During my 1st pregnancy, my husband came along with me to ALL of my Doctor appointments.  For this pregnancy the count is 0.

My one year blogiversary!

One year ago I came up with a crazy idea to start my blog.  I can’t believe it’s already been a year and I can’t believe people are actually reading my blog.  At the time, I didn’t even know what a blog was; but I had so many stories to share and write about my life as a parent. When I first started, I was hoping that at least a handful of my friends would read my blog and that I would get a few followers (20 to be exact).  But here’s what has unfolded since my idea came to fruition.

• I have written a total of 64 posts (including this one)
• I’ve had over 44,000 unique views on my blog (approx. 3,667 views a month)
• On my best day, I had 4,514 views
• My top 5 most popular blog posts are 1) Communicating through Baby Sign Language – plus a Course Giveaway! 2) The start and end to my skydiving career 3) The church of the flying spaghetti monster?!?! Is this for real? 4) It’s not easy being a male baby model! 5) Is it a boy or a girl? Only the cupcakes know! (the best baby gender reveal EVER!!)
• My post “The start and end to my skydiving career” got Freshly Pressed on WordPress
• Top Views by Country are: Canada, United States, United Kingdom, Australia, India and Israel
• I did a total of 6 giveaways
• I had 6 guest posts (big thanksto all of my guest writers)

My favourite things for newborn babies

I may not be Oprah (okay, I’m nowhere near like Oprah), but I have my own list of favourite things.  Specifically, for newborn babies.  With the holiday season upon us, and the birth of our second child around the corner, it got me in the mood for some shopping! Okay, I’m always in the mood for shopping, but more so now…

Here’s a list of my favourite items (along with some input from my other mommy friends) that I think every parent of a newborn should have:

1. Velcro swaddle.  Kyle was a great sleeper and I attribute this to the fact that we swaddled him consistently.  In fact, we kept swaddling him until he was 6 months old!  A bit longer than most people would like to admit to, but hey, it worked (for all of us). Another one recommended by my friend is the Miracle Blanket.

Awesome work benefits for parents

Prior to my current gig as a stay-at-home-mom (SAHM), I worked for a large, multi-national corporation.  While the pay was decent, the benefits were better.  Specifically, they had some great benefits to assist parents. You know, the work-life balance thing.  Beyond the standard paternity / maternity leave and top-up, and work-life-balance workshops, my work offered a flexible spending account.  We each had $1,500 a year that we could use for any of the following:

• Contribute a portion to your RRSP
• Use for professional services such as getting a Will made
• Use for gym membership or for products that will help you stay fit (shoes, workout equipment, Garmen watch, etc…)
• Use towards other services that will help with your work-life balance such as babysitter, snow plowing or grass mowing services.

Confessions of a stay at home mom (SAHM)

I always imagined that being a stay at home mom would allow me to do some of the things that I didn’t get to do while I was in the workforce. I pictured myself visiting different neighbourhoods throughout Toronto, walking around, discovering new stores and enjoying the fresh air or a nice cup of coffee.  That was all fine and dandy, until reality sank in.  I had Kyle and hardly had time to get to know my own neighborhood let alone visit other ones in Toronto.  Well, here’s a couple of other things I didn’t really expect to experience either, but I’m laying it all out so there’s no confusion about the realities of a stay at home mom (mine anyways).

• I wear the same clothes two days in a row if I know I wont be seeing the same people both days (my husband and son are exempt from this rule)
• I know the theme songs to 10 kid shows (and it’s not because I remember them from my childhood)
• I spend more time in the washroom than I really need too
• I let my 2-year-old get away with more than he should because I don’t want to have a bad day
• Many of my child’s activities include shopping
• I can’t DIY anything 😦
• I look forward to my phone blinking as it’s my way to communicate with the outside world
• I enter several online contests as a way to “contribute financially” to my family
• The iPad is my son’s best friend
• My favorite book to read is “magazines”
• My cleaning schedule depends on when we’re expecting guests
• I know kids love repetition but if I have to read the same book more than 10 nights straight I start to shake (and quickly hide that book)
• I don’t always make my son’s food from scratch
• I don’t buy organic
• I never wear sweatpants because I don’t want to fall into the stereotype
• I don’t always compost because the garbage is more accessible
• After 2 years as a SAHM, my cooking hasn’t improved
• Obtaining my MBA was a cinch compared to being a SAHM
• Even thought I can’t always describe in detail what I do all day long, I promise you I’m busy and exhausted by the time I put my son to bed
• I still prefer being a stay at home mom over working outside the home

If you’re a stay at home mom, what are some of the things that surprised you the most that you weren’t expecting to feel or experience?

Preparing our toddler to become an older brother

While Kyle isn’t great at socializing with kids his own age, he does love playing with older kids.  He also adores babies; and mostly, he’s very gentle with them.  This is a good thing, since we’re expecting our second child in two months.  From the moment we found out I was pregnant, we told our son Kyle about it.  At the time, he wasn’t talking much, so we weren’t worried about him spilling the beans.

More recently, we have stepped up our discussions of the impending birth of our second child and read to him daily one of our “I’m a big brother now” books.  Kyle will tell you that his baby brother is in “mommy’s tummy” and occasionally, he gives his future brother “gifts” under my shirt including his beloved pacifiers.  When I tell him that his brother is kicking he responds by kicking my tummy in retaliation. Clearly, he doesn’t yet understand what that means, but it’s completely hilarious to watch.

When we talk about being a big brother, Kyle gets excited about all of the things that he will get to teach him, including: hopping, touch-down, kicking, home-run, ABC’s, puzzles and hockey.  However, when we talk about helping mommy and dada push the stroller, Kyle immediately responds with a “no baby, Kyle’s stroller” and gets in his stroller even if we’re not going anywhere.  Same goes for his chairs and even though we haven’t gone there yet, I’m sure it will be the same reaction regarding his toys!

I know that issues with sharing is a phase, but I wonder if there’s anything we can do now, before the baby is here to help alleviate some of the stress that Kyle might have with sharing his things and his time with us with his new baby brother.

What advice can you give us to talk to Kyle about now or do now?  What was some of the best advice you received when preparing for the birth of your second (or third) child?