THE TWO'S HAVE BEGUN???

I have a sneaking suspicion those terrible two's are sneaking ever so faintly into my little Jack's personality. Now, it's really nothing THAT terrible. He's just realized that he can start using his words enough to let me know what he wants and that's a powerful thing in his world. This week, it seems that "french toast" is the favorite. And after a long 30 minutes Tuesday morning of trying to convince me that he really should be able to eat his breakfast on the couch vs. at the table, I am discovering my little bugger is a little smarter than I had previously given him credit for. (I won that battle of wills by the way, however he did eat french toast for 4 out of 5 breakfasts this week and as a snack before bath/bed one night. You have to know which battles to fight and which to concede :))

So on that note, the September issue of Parents magazine had a "Memo to Mommy" that I thought very appropriate based on our world these days:

• Love me, even when I'm naughty. I'll only be this age once.
• Be pateint, I do everything for a reason, but I don't know enough words yet to give you an explanation.
• Stop freaking out about the mess! There's always time to clean-but how often do we get to make mud pies? (I'm actually pretty laid back with respect to this one already!)
• Let me do it. I know you can do it faster and better but sometimes experience is the best teacher. (Want to guess how long it can take for a 2 year old to buckle his own car seat when you are already running late for work/church/grocery shopping?)
• Don't expect too much of me. I want to do what you ask and make you happy, but I'm still little.
• Keep your promises. It's all about trust. When I'm a teenager, you'll understand why it's so important. (Note to self, think hard about what you OFFER to let him do before you offer it!!!)
• Don't try to reason with me when I'm having a tantrum. Trust me-I can't hear you over my own screaming.
• Don't keep asking me if I've been good. I'm not even sure what that means, but if I was bad I'd never admit it!
• Don't let me think that you're perfect. I feel a lot better knowing I'm not the only one who makes mistakes sometimes.
• Set limits. I can't actually eat a whole box of cookies - I just want to see if I'd get away with it.

I've got this taped to the bulletin board on the way out the door - serves as a great reminder everyday!

And, not to forget little Duke...he's had a big two weeks! Last week he started crawling - everywhere - at 100 miles an hour. Jack's getting a big kick out of this, except now Duke can actually grab any of Jack's toys no matter where he thinks they are out of reach! And this week, it's all table foods and no bottle - just taking his formula out of a straw cup. So HOORAY for us! Very few separate meals/feedings now and as soon as Jack is out of the cast this Thursday it's back to dual bathtime too! (And boy, does he need one! Phew!)