What do monsters, dinosaurs, toe nail clippers and showers have in common?

Lets see what have we been up to since I last posted...well Mason got a new pair of Thomas the Train Crocs that he insists on wearing everywhere and I screwed up our child. Yup don't take parenting advice from me...

I am not sure why I did this...I think I would like to place blame on my dad but really I just need to talk to the woman in the mirror and admit its my own doing.

It started with our hot water closet on our upstairs level. This unknown room had become a fascination to Mason, we obviously do not want him in there so I told him that is where dinosaurs live. When he would ask to see them I would tell him they are sleeping. Fear Tactic #1.


Than about 6 months back when Mason started not listening to me AT ALL I would use fear tactic #2 to get him to stop doing whatever mischievous thing he was doing. For example, we needed to leave the house and he would say "No" and would want to stay upstairs unsupervised...the first few times I would try to grab him and this would turn into a fun game of chase and my blood pressure would soar and my head would spin. When I would catch him a nice tantrum of kicking would ensue so I thought maybe if I try to trick him, scare him, this will end the battle. I would tell him "ok bye, watch out for the monsters!" and head down the stairs. Seconds later he would come screaming down the stairs and we could leave....

At this point you think I would have enough common sense to ask my self "at some point is he going to start having nightmares about this or is scaring your kid really a good move?" But it all seemed to be working so I stuck with it...well it still works but now we have constant conversation about monsters and dinosaurs, especially right before bed. That's right I lied to my kid and I screwed him up! Lets hope its temporary.
And to top it all off he has developed some additional fears about showering and toe nail clippers.

He usually gets a bath but if we are in a hurry we just throw him in with one of us...try holding a slippery wet toddler that is screaming bloody murder and wiggling like a baby pig, not easy. I think this fear is interesting because he has no problem sticking his head in the sprinkler or the pool!

The toe nail clippers or for that matter touching his feet is a whole other ball of wax...

We like to tease him and ask if he would like to take a shower and he likes to tell Matt and I "I'll take shower tomorrow." and "lets cut toe-nails Tuesday."  Already procrastinating.

I keep telling him you can not put off today what needs to be done tomorrow so at least I have that piece of parenting going for me.

We do have a particular and spirited child and I wouldn't trade him for anything BUT I will remind him of these silly fears when he gets older. Some he created on his own and others his mom brainwashed him with...that way he can blame me for whatever issues he might have.

Keeping us on our toes

I think Spring is around the corner because last week on my run I saw this rattle snake. It just barely became roadkill by our stroller. Yikes!

Mason hasn't had much of a reprieve from illness, this last virus turned into croup which is hanging on like a crazy ex-girlfriend.  He sounds like a chain smoker and has a lovely barking cough that rears its ugly head in the middle of the night, poor dude! There isn't much doctors can do for croup but offer a steroid to reduce the swelling in the vocal cords...otherwise hot steam from the shower, humidifiers, and cold air are your best chance at providing comfort.

Its funny how kids can be so stubborn. I HATED shots when I was younger, to the point I would embarrass my parents at the doctor's office. A team of nurses and doctors would have to restrain me. My son on the other hand decided he would rather have a shot of the medicine than take it in the form of chocolate. After the nurse and I tried to persuade him to take the oral version he continued to refuse and so he got a shot. The shot did not go well either and telling your two year old "I told you so" doesn't do anything.

Despite not feeling well Mason has found enough energy to keep up with his usually shenanigans, like covering the dogs with all of his bedding. I do SO MUCH LAUNDRY! Sorry green peace.

Or throwing a roll of toilet paper down the stairs before I can grab it from him. "Cleaning up after your kids is like shoveling during a blizzard, sometimes its just pointless."

And why is it that kids like to color everything but the coloring book? I tell ya, two is a lovely age but sometimes I think my dad was right on when he would say:

"I always love you but sometimes I like you best when you are sleeping."