Toddler Mom Check-In

big_noise · December 2012

Hi toddler moms. Thank you for not throwing me out as your toddler mom leader. I appreciate it. Pregnancy is getting the best of me lately but I'm managing better so far this (Monday) week.

This check-in is for moms with a toddler(s) age 12-36 months.

What is your toddler really into right now/their new accomplishment?

What challenges took place this past week? Other toddler moms - this is the part where we can chime in and help one another with ideas/suggestions for working through challenges (behavior issues, etc.)

Did your toddler do/say anything particularly funny recently?

QOTW: This one is for the moms. How are you doing with one week left to prep for Christmas? Almost there? Still need to start?

With next Monday being Christmas Eve, I may not post, as we'll all be quite busy. If not, Merry Christmas to those of you who celebrate this holiday. Smile

tbone_bride · December 2012

This is my first check-in

I have a toddler & an 8 week old.

What is your toddler really into right now/their new accomplishment? She's really into Play-Doh.

What challenges took place this past week? Other toddler moms - this is the part where we can chime in and help one another with ideas/suggestions for working through challenges (behavior issues, etc.) She is starting to get really jealous of DS. She's still really good with him, but she is whining that she wants her mommy more. I don't blame her, she was my 100 percent focus before DS, now she sees me rocking him to sleep multiple times a day and she gets mad.

Did your toddler do/say anything particularly funny recently? DD was following me up the stairs to take a bath, and I told her to hurry up. She said "OK mom, give me a break!" I died laughing!!

QOTW: This one is for the moms. How are you doing with one week left to prep for Christmas? Almost there? Still need to start? Whew - I have done a crazy on-line shopping spree the past week or two. Just have a few things left & I'm done. So much less stressed now! The doorbell rings and there's a few packages outside the door each day, I think I over did it!

Merry Christmas!

ewilliams1127 · December 2012

What is your toddler really into right now/their new accomplishment?

DS is into climbing. Everything. He pulled his activity block over to the gate surrounding the tree, climbed the block, balanced across the top of the gate and pulled on the limbs. Thankfully I caught the tree mid-fall. He's a monkey. I'm now convinced.

What challenges took place this past week? Other toddler moms - this is the part where we can chime in and help one another with ideas/suggestions for working through challenges (behavior issues, etc.)

See above.

Did your toddler do/say anything particularly funny recently?

He now says "Tickle, Tickle, Tickle" Never just once, always three times in a row

QOTW: This one is for the moms. How are you doing with one week left to prep for Christmas? Almost there? Still need to start?

Oy. On top of Christmas we are having our house re-financed. So we have a walk-through appraisal. Yikes! I'm not sure I'm going to make it through this Christmas in one piece. I still have shopping left to do and DS is just not cooperating in the shopping department.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to everyone!

luvmyducks · December 2012

What is your toddler really into right now/their new accomplishment?
She loves to play with blocks lately.

What challenges took place this past week? Other toddler moms this is the part where we can chime in and help one another with ideas/suggestions for working through challenges behavior issues, etc.
Trouble napping here and there. I think it is teething related but she has been working on these damn canines forever. I'm over them.

Did your toddler do/say anything particularly funny recently?
She thinks it is so funny to put beads around my neck and then take them off again.

QOTW: This one is for the moms. How are you doing with one week left to prep for Christmas? Almost there? Still need to start?
All done!!

big_noise · December 2012

What is your toddler really into right now/their new accomplishment? She is finally getting the Santa thing, which is pretty fun. Excited for that this year. Also, she's getting better and better at singing more of songs. Her latest ones are Twinkle Twinkle and Jingle Bells. It's adorable.

What challenges took place this past week? Other toddler moms - this is the part where we can chime in and help one another with ideas/suggestions for working through challenges (behavior issues, etc.)

DD doesn't want me to put her to bed in her big girl bed. Only DH. She will let me read stories and "cuggle" for a bit and then she wants DH. Last night was the first time she let me put her to sleep. She's a bit of a daddy's girl.

Did your toddler do/say anything particularly funny recently?

Pretty much every day, lol. I was taking a video of her twirling and signing the other night and she kept getting mad at me for turning the light on on my cell so it wasn't so dark, so the twirling and dancing is intermixed with her walking over and saying, "light off!"

QOTW: This one is for the moms. How are you doing with one week left to prep for Christmas? Almost there? Still need to start?

Ready for it to be over. Still have a few things to get and need to wrap everything (DH will do most of that). I'm excited for Christmas with DD b/c she really gets it this year but I'm anxious over it as well, given it's the first anniversary of my first m/c. I kind of want to be on the other side of it. Esp. going to my in-laws which is where it started.

big_noise · December 2012

tbone_bride:
This is my first check-in I have a toddler & an 8 week old.
What is your toddler really into right now/their new accomplishment? She's really into Play-Doh.
What challenges took place this past week? Other toddler moms - this is the part where we can chime in and help one another with ideas/suggestions for working through challenges (behavior issues, etc.) She is starting to get really jealous of DS. She's still really good with him, but she is whining that she wants her mommy more. I don't blame her, she was my 100 percent focus before DS, now she sees me rocking him to sleep multiple times a day and she gets mad.
Did your toddler do/say anything particularly funny recently? DD was following me up the stairs to take a bath, and I told her to hurry up. She said "OK mom, give me a break!" I died laughing!!
QOTW: This one is for the moms. How are you doing with one week left to prep for Christmas? Almost there? Still need to start? Whew - I have done a crazy on-line shopping spree the past week or two. Just have a few things left & I'm done. So much less stressed now! The doorbell rings and there's a few packages outside the door each day, I think I over did it!
Merry Christmas!

Welcome to the check-in! I'm expecting some of what your DD is doing too, when this LO arrives. I know she's going to be a great big sister but they all go through that somewhat.

big_noise · December 2012

softskate31:
DD is learing some sight words and has memorized countless books, songs, and rhymes. It is wonderful to hear her reciting things and being so proud of herself.
Problems lately include a lot of mini tantrums of her saying she wants something then saying No, then saying she wants it then saying No - over and over.
Funny - "mommy has gray ovals" in reference to my black polka dot panties that are stretched across my fat bum.
Christmas - i just realized today that this is the last week before christmas...somehow I thought I had another week. I suck. nothing is wrapped, I have no gifts for anyone but my kids. oh well.

LOL don't you love it when they point out things you'd rather they not? DD loves to say, "mom, that's your boob!"

CheesyPeas · December 2012

Hi toddler moms. Thank you for not throwing me out as your toddler mom leader. I appreciate it. Pregnancy is getting the best of me lately but I'm managing better so far this (Monday) week.

Thanks for doing the check-in! This is my first week participating. I'm glad to hear this is looking like a good week for you so far with your pregnancy! Hopefully this is your new normal.

What is your toddler really into right now/their new accomplishment?

He is really into bubbles (or buh-boos as he calls them) and turning on our robotic vacuum this week. The light on the robotic vacuum is just too much for a toddler to resist it seems. And then of course he has to run to me for protection when the thing starts moving.

What challenges took place this past week? Other toddler moms - this is the part where we can chime in and help one another with ideas/suggestions for working through challenges (behavior issues, etc.)

Tantrums, head banging (or rather face banging on the floor), and hitting. He's definitely stepping up the difficulty factor recently.

I know that he's reaching that stage where he's starting to get frustrated that he can't communicate his wants but I often know what he wants but don't want for him to have it, and that leads to dramatic flailing and this fun little production that involves walking backwards while crying until he runs into something and then proceeds to melt-down. I don't want him to injure himself, so I keep going to him to pick him up or otherwise prevent him from hurting himself (particularly when he's on the tile floor for example) but I feel like giving him attention during his tantrums is also encouraging them. Frequently my solution is to just give in and give him what he wants (like pieces of dog food to carry around, ink pens, etc...things that could hurt him but hopefully won't if closely supervised) rather than trigger the tantrum to begin with but I feel like that probably contributes to acting out as well. If he's accustomed to getting what he wants, he won't react well when I take a strict stance on a pair of scissors for example.

I think the face banging (banging his open mouth up against objects on the floor or directly on the floor over and over) is partially frustration or a soothing mechanism, and he has done it for a while now but has recently stepped it up. I'm thinking it might be teeth related. Anyone else deal with this? When he does it on a soft object, I try to ignore it but when he does it on the floor, it hurts him and makes him cry, so I try to stop him so that he doesn't hurt himself. So again, I struggle with trying to protect him but also not trying to encourage the behavior. Notice a theme to my post?

And the hitting is basically just something he finds humorous, so we're trying to redirect a raised hand to a hug when possible, or put him down on the ground when he hits while being held. I know this is something that is probably confusing and might take time because he's allowed to and gets positive reactions from giving high fives, beating on musical toys, etc. I just wish I had a way of working with DS the hitting thing at home without the worry that he's also likely hitting kids at day care.

Did your toddler do/say anything particularly funny recently?

"Bye-bye" is one of his favorite things to say, and is dramatically overused throughout the day without any association of him or someone else leaving or walking away. So I decided to play N'Sync's "Bye Bye Bye" for him on the computer, thinking that he would enjoy it and dance to it. I was right; he did enjoy it. And now about 50% of his bye-bye's throughout the day have changed to bye-bye-bye's.

QOTW: This one is for the moms. How are you doing with one week left to prep for Christmas? Almost there? Still need to start?

Almost there. I have a couple more easy gifts to take care of it and I have most of my wrapping left to do.

big_noise · December 2012

Lindsey8301:
Hi toddler moms. Thank you for not throwing me out as your toddler mom leader. I appreciate it. Pregnancy is getting the best of me lately but I'm managing better so far this (Monday) week.

Thanks for doing the check-in! This is my first week participating. I'm glad to hear this is looking like a good week for you so far with your pregnancy! Hopefully this is your new normal.

What is your toddler really into right now/their new accomplishment?

He is really into bubbles (or buh-boos as he calls them) and turning on our robotic vacuum this week. The light on the robotic vacuum is just too much for a toddler to resist it seems. And then of course he has to run to me for protection when the thing starts moving.

What challenges took place this past week? Other toddler moms - this is the part where we can chime in and help one another with ideas/suggestions for working through challenges (behavior issues, etc.)

Tantrums, head banging (or rather face banging on the floor), and hitting. He's definitely stepping up the difficulty factor recently.

I know that he's reaching that stage where he's starting to get frustrated that he can't communicate his wants but I often know what he wants but don't want for him to have it, and that leads to dramatic flailing and this fun little production that involves walking backwards while crying until he runs into something and then proceeds to melt-down. I don't want him to injure himself, so I keep going to him to pick him up or otherwise prevent him from hurting himself (particularly when he's on the tile floor for example) but I feel like giving him attention during his tantrums is also encouraging them. Frequently my solution is to just give in and give him what he wants (like pieces of dog food to carry around, ink pens, etc...things that could hurt him but hopefully won't if closely supervised) rather than trigger the tantrum to begin with but I feel like that probably contributes to acting out as well. If he's accustomed to getting what he wants, he won't react well when I take a strict stance on a pair of scissors for example.

I think the face banging (banging his open mouth up against objects on the floor or directly on the floor over and over) is partially frustration or a soothing mechanism, and he has done it for a while now but has recently stepped it up. I'm thinking it might be teeth related. Anyone else deal with this? When he does it on a soft object, I try to ignore it but when he does it on the floor, it hurts him and makes him cry, so I try to stop him so that he doesn't hurt himself. So again, I struggle with trying to protect him but also not trying to encourage the behavior. Notice a theme to my post?

And the hitting is basically just something he finds humorous, so we're trying to redirect a raised hand to a hug when possible, or put him down on the ground when he hits while being held. I know this is something that is probably confusing and might take time because he's allowed to and gets positive reactions from giving high fives, beating on musical toys, etc. I just wish I had a way of working with DS the hitting thing at home without the worry that he's also likely hitting kids at day care.

Did your toddler do/say anything particularly funny recently?

"Bye-bye" is one of his favorite things to say, and is dramatically overused throughout the day without any association of him or someone else leaving or walking away. So I decided to play N'Sync's "Bye Bye Bye" for him on the computer, thinking that he would enjoy it and dance to it. I was right; he did enjoy it. And now about 50% of his bye-bye's throughout the day have changed to bye-bye-bye's.

QOTW: This one is for the moms. How are you doing with one week left to prep for Christmas? Almost there? Still need to start?

Almost there. I have a couple more easy gifts to take care of it and I have most of my wrapping left to do.

Welcome to the check-in! I don't have a lot of experience with those kind of tantrums. DD throws them but she does it in more of a "girly" way and lays on the floor and sobs and wants attention. That's easier to ignore than what you're describing. Hopefully it's something that can be worked out so you don't have to give into him but can still ignore him when he does throw a tantrum.

Sonadora · December 2012

What is your toddler really into right now/their new accomplishment?

She started using pronouns and plural words correctly within the last week.

What challenges took place this past week? Other toddler moms - this is the part where we can chime in and help one another with ideas/suggestions for working through challenges (behavior issues, etc.)

We had a pretty good week generally.

Did your toddler do/say anything particularly funny recently?

I can't remember if I told you last week, but she's started singing and she will randomly bust out with "Baby it's cold outside."

QOTW: This one is for the moms. How are you doing with one week left to prep for Christmas? Almost there? Still need to start?

I'm done.

Ernie52408 · December 2012

What is your toddler really into right now/their new accomplishment?

He's starting to learn his colors. He's most accurate with Purple and Blue but sometimes gets the others right too.

What challenges took place this past week? Other toddler moms - this is the part where we can chime in and help one another with ideas/suggestions for working through challenges (behavior issues, etc.)

Oh God. The screaming. Over everything. Please make it stop.

Did your toddler do/say anything particularly funny recently?

We went out to dinner this weekend with our friends and their toddler. DS loves, LOVES pizza right now so DH ordered pizza for them to share. DS would not eat because it was shaped like a square. We cut the square into a triangle and immediately DS shouted "PIZZA!" and chowed down like noone's business.

QOTW: This one is for the moms. How are you doing with one week left to prep for Christmas? Almost there? Still need to start?
I'm done!

VeilSdeGTO · December 2012

big_noise:
What is your toddler really into right now/their new accomplishment? She just figured out how to put the letter block things into her vtech alphabet activity cube. She will do it, it says the letter, and she claps.
She also just figured out the word nose. Whenever I say "nose" she will squeeze her nose. This then inevitably leads to her picking her nose, something we've been trying to discourage.
What challenges took place this past week? Other toddler moms - this is the part where we can chime in and help one another with ideas/suggestions for working through challenges (behavior issues, etc.) Teeth brushing is now the worse torture imaginable for her. She used to love it and now she curls her lips inward and pushes the toothbrush out of the way. I've tried letting her do it, distracting, having DH try, brushing my teeth in front of her, using my finger (ouch!), washcloth, etc. I'm lucky to get in just ONE good swipe.
I don't force it. Instead, I just find myself trying to get a swipe or two multiple times between dinner and bed.
Did your toddler do/say anything particularly funny recently? She just learned to shake her head no. Hilarious to her, not so much for us. Sometimes it is hard not to laugh since it is kinda cute.
QOTW: This one is for the moms. How are you doing with one week left to prep for Christmas? Almost there? Still need to start? DH and I got each others gifts out of the way early. We are trying not to go overboard with presents for DD and so far, so good.
We are trying to do a white elephant this year with family. We have a pretty small family so it isn't too bad.

Scooby2358 · December 2012

What is your toddler really into right now/their new accomplishment? Still into "collections" - all her hair bows, legos, etc get put into a container, carried around, then taken out and displayed. Repeat ad infinitum.

What challenges took place this past week? Other toddler moms - this is the part where we can chime in and help one another with ideas/suggestions for working through challenges (behavior issues, etc.) Oh, my, the whining! "I neeeeed......[fill in the blank]." Then, "I don't want it!" Ok, take it away. "I neeeeeed......[same item]!" This is getting old.

Did your toddler do/say anything particularly funny recently? She's also into pointing out things I'd rather not call attention to. She's especially good at spotting if I'm leaking milk through my shirt - "Mommy, you're soaked!".

QOTW: This one is for the moms. How are you doing with one week left to prep for Christmas? Almost there? Still need to start? I'm supposed to do something for Christmas? I thought little elves were going to come in and do it all for me.

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