A very quick recap of our weekend –
The park, a going away party, a hike, band practice, pizza night with the cousins, the zoo, and the art festival…wow!
Pizza Night with the cousins
Zebra at the zoo
Art Festival with Daddy
Art Festival with Daddy
At the park
At the park - Special alone day with Mommy
Hiking
Unframed. practice
See and download the full gallery on posterousThe terrible two’s…
It has begun (actually it began about a month ago but I’ve been in denial). William is becoming his own little person equipped with his own uniquely stubborn character traits (bitterness oozing from my typing fingers). For about the last month Wm has been acting out in defiance. He demandingly shouts “NO” as he hits, kicks, and pulls my hair. His aggression/aggravation has mainly been directed at me as Mike can quickly put Wm into compliance with a stern look or tone in his voice. My attempts to scold however have been met with giggles and fits of hysterics. In any case, I have spent the better part of the last month completely frustrated. I don’t think that spanking is the correct method to curb a seventeen month old’s hitting habit, scolding and shaking a finger proved pointless, and ignoring the situation simply brought about more hitting, kicking, etc. Finally, I think we have a solution. We have put into place the ‘Time-Out’ stool. Yesterday was the first day that I tried out our behavior modification method/theory and guess what…IT WORKED!!!!! William kicked me during a diaper changing and I immediately took him to his stool and made him sit for one minute. I sat in front of him and explained that he was in ‘Time-Out’ and why. At first it was funny but when he tried to get up and walk away he quickly realized that this was not a game. Last night he again hit me and I again took him directly to his stool. He cried and said “Noooo Momma” but there was an understanding that he had done something bad. This morning he began to behave as if he were about to hit. I asked if he wanted to go to ‘Time-Out’; he immediately switched gears and signed ‘Sorry’. We avoided the stool for the moment but I think that we are finally on to something here…
We have had another busy (but wonderful) weekend to report on here in the desert. William went on his first hike on Saturday to South Mountain. William was an absolute trooper and we were able to walk a total of 1.6 miles together as a family (not a long trek for Mike and me but for a little guy like Wm…). We hiked along side many other families, runners, dogs, and mountain bikers. We observed cacti in bloom, cool rocks, butterflies, many birds, ran down into a large wash, and jumped off of rocks. We’ve all decided to hike these trails again; although next time we’ll go with a pack/carrier for Wm so he can check out the scenery and rest while Mommy and Daddy do the hiking.
In the wash
With Daddy
Big Hiker
Jumping off of rocks
See and download the full gallery on posterousHere are the photos that I promised from my parents visit to Phoenix two weeks ago.
I realize that it has been awhile since our last post; my apologies…
Our family is all doing well and we are thankful for a month of good health, plenty of work, and wonderful weather.
William’s Grampa and Gramma M came to visit last weekend. I think that I’ve said it on the blog before but William just LOVES his Grampa M (and even carries his photo around the house to keep him close by). They all had a wonderful time together especially when G&G babysat William on Saturday afternoon and evening. G&G played basketball with Wm, took him on bike rides, and even went to the fish store (Bass Pro Shop) to ‘fish’ and play on boats. We all had a great time – I will post photos soon.
On a separate note, William has turned into quite the little ham hock. He loves posing for the camera (don’t know where that came from…) and showing off his skills at the basketball hoop.
William will be 18 months on Monday; hopefully I will get a growth and development update posted for everyone by then…
We OFFICIALLY said ‘Bye Bye’ to the bottle last night. I have been meaning to end this habit for over a month now but with all of our travel and then all of us being so, so sick* I kept putting it off. Finally, last night I was feeling well enough to take the plunge. I got a burst of energy and cleaned as much of the house as possible in order to “Get the sickness OUT”…I sanitized all of the bottles, packed them up, and we all said goodbye. We explained to William that we will see the bottles again some day with another child but that he is too big of a boy for them. William shook his head in agreement and that was that. I was a little nervous about his a.m. bottle but this morning he took his milk from a big boy cup without hesitation. Another milestone passed --- I am constantly amazed that he is growing so fast. He is such a boy now…
*we have all been down in the past 2 ½ weeks with sinus infections, ear infections, and bronchitis!
On Saturday, William had a surprise visit from his Grandpa Marshall. Gpa was flying from Raleigh back to California and missed his connecting flight here in Phoenix. He had enough time until the next flight to come to the house and play for awhile. Let me just say that William LOVES his Gpa. They have a special bond with one another - Anyway, William was so excited to see his Gpa. He giggled, laughed, and threw his head back when Gpa first arrived. It was a wonderful treat. They played basketball, drummed on Wm's bucket, and played on the slide/playset. The only problem came when we had to take Gpa back to the airport; William was so sad that he cried and cried when Gpa left the car.
Thanks Gpa (dad) for the surprise. It made our weekend!
When we were in Texas visiting Mike’s sister and her family we spent an afternoon at a pottery painting store. We created one plate together as a group and then each family created a project of their own. We chose a plate for our family. Yesterday we received our final product. It turned out pretty cute for 3 people with absolutely no artistic abilities!
It has been so beautiful here this last week that we have spent a lot of our time outdoors. These photos were taken late one afternoon last week. William was pretending to be a fire fighter.
