15 months and counting

Dear Isaiah,

Today, you are officially 15 months old. This time in your life is so full of wonder and curiosity. You started to walk a few weeks ago- we love watching you walk. Your feet are still so round and chubby. Your toes still need to grip the ground. You stand proud with your round little belly poking out. Your stance is wide and you teeter and totter. Your trademark alfalfa sprout tuft of hair is always sticking straight up! You march with the biggest grin on your face, both hands up in the air for balance! Two weeks ago you started walking in the airport on our way to our Colorado vacation. You appeared to have absolutely no control over where your legs were going! It was hilarious to see you zig zagging and going in every which way. You made several people smile and chuckle. Now you walk with a purpose, a destination- when we're outside- your destination is almost always a pile of dirt, sticks and rocks. Such a little boy. You could sit outside in a pile earth forever- picking up sticks, collecting rocks and pulling flowers off their stems!

It just seems to get better and better. I was so worried about missing the infant you- I thought I would mourn the past- when you were wholly dependant on me and your dad. But now, you are a toddler and this is so much fun! You're so little and you know so much.

There are lots of things I do not want to forget about this time. I love how you give me kisses- everyday, you kiss me on the lips- 10 times at least! It's the sweetest thing- you'll be in the middle of playing and you look over, come to me and climb up to me and give me a nice wet one- and then you do it several more times- and go right back to playing.

Eating oranges- one of your favorite foods. I'm convinced you would eat 5 of them in one sitting if I'd let you. You LOVE them- you sign orange- and then devour every piece I put down as soon as it's on your tray. Juice is everywhere- dripping from your chin- running down your arms- covering your hands. You are so sticky and so happy when you eat oranges. You pretty much love all fruit. You like to say APPOH (apple) when we go grocery shopping, pointing at them all. You sign banana all the time too. You call it BAYA. And your latest favorite PAYA- or papaya. You get so excited at all the produce at the store you can hardly contain yourself!

My little Einstein. You love the Little Einsteins tv show. You get so excited, you know what episode is what before it even comes on! You know what parts are coming up on all your favorite shows and you show me by signing about them. You scream and laugh and sing and dance with the characters. You pat your hands for take off and raise your hands and scream for blast off! You love this show so much that when you're really sick, the only thing that makes you feel better is watching Little Einsteins. When you want to watch your show you bring me the remote control and beg me in your baby language to turn it on.

"NO." Lately your favorite word is "NO." Although I don't think you remember what it means all the time. You shake your head when you say it. You learned to do this from the Little Einsteins. You say it so matter of factly. It is almost always the answer to every question- whether you want something or not. Among our favorite words you say- fish is one of them- you can't make the F sound so you say SHHH SHHH- and you do the sign in sign language. The other day you wanted Goldfish crackers, so you signed fish and then cracker, and you did it over and over until you got your Goldfish! We also love it when you say flower- you say SOW and do the sign at the same time.

You LOVE the itsy bitsy spider. You do it in sign language- and we sing this song five million times a day. You have a book and several toys that play this song and you make sure they play all the time! You are really into music, and you seem to really know how to dance to the beat! It's so fun to watch you bop your head to the beat!

You say HI everytime you pick up a phone (be it a toy or the real thing). You cradle the phone between head and neck just like mommy does and then you say "HI". Of course you won't do it when someone is actually on the other end of the phone. Go figure. You love saying Hi and Bye to people and waving to them. ESPECIALLY the LADIES! You are the BIGGEST little FLIRT! You get so much attention every time we go out!

HOT. You call all cups HOT. I taught you several months ago that a mug was hot, and now you think all cups are hot. Last time we went to Barnes & Noble- the bookstore/coffee shop, and you went up to several adults to tell them their cups were hot. Coincidentally- they actually were hot.

You love to put on your shoes, and everyone else's. If I set you down with a pair of shoes, you will try for a long time to put them on yourself, and you will say "shhoos" several times while doing it. This activity always keeps you busy! You look so cute standing in daddy's big shoes!

We spend a lot of time together, going on walks- you like being in the ergo carrier, where you get a better view of everything. You're so talkative and happy. You are learning so many words so fast- first in sign language- then shortly after in the spoken language. You like pointing out just about everything, birds, airplanes, flowers, bugs, animals... you have opened my eyes up to a world which I have taken for granted and haven't appreciated for so long.

This time is so much fun- you are delightful, happy and sweet natured. You are also very strong willed, intelligent and persitent. What an amazing little child you are turning out to be!

Love you,
Mama

Be a bear...

If I believed in reincarnation (which I don't- but just for fun)... I would come back as a bear!

In this life I’m a woman. I've pretty much made the decison that in my next life I’d like to come back as a bear. Bears have it good, you'll see ~ when you’re a bear you get to hibernate. You do nothing for six months. I could do that!

Before you hibernate, you’re supposed to eat yourself stupid. I could do that too!

You eat in the river! You get an endless supply of fresh sashimi and there’s no washing up to do. I could do that!

When you’re a girl bear, you birth your children (who are the size of walnuts at the time) while you’re sleeping and wake up to cute, partially grown, furry little bear cubs. I could definitely do that!

If you’re mama bear, everyone knows you mean business. You swat anyone who bothers your cubs, if the cubs get out of line you swat them too. I could do that!

If you’re a bear your mate EXPECTS you to wake up growling. He EXPECTS that you will have hairy legs and excess body fat. I could live up to those expectations!

YUP- definately a bear! But... I did hear that pigs have 30 minute orgasms? I find myself undecided...

Discipline

Now that Isaiah is 14 months old, I feel like he is old enough to know the difference between right and wrong in a lot of situations. I have been trying to discipline him, but it has not been easy! He tests me every chance he gets! The little bugger! It's so hard to be consistent and sometimes it is heartbreaking to be strict. But I cannot give up! I know that discipline is one of the ultimate forms of love and I have to keep reminding myself of that! This email was sent to me in perfect timing in regards to discipline. Thank you Lord!

Don't let a bad attitude dissuade you from what's best for your child. As parents, we often want to make our children happy. We want them to feel good and have fun, but sometimes they need to experience the pain of their wrong choices. Allowing them to experience the discomfort of discipline can be a very loving thing to do.

So, when you need to discipline your child, and that child responds poorly, remember that discipline is not intended to be fun. Although you want to look for creative ways to teach and make learning a joy, sometimes a child needs to experience a negative consequence to learn a lesson. Expect some resistance, but persevere because you know that what you're doing is best for your child. The discipline is a valuable part of your child's growth. There'll be other times to make your child happy. When your children are having a hard time accepting correction, remember that their immediate response is not an indication of the effectiveness of the discipline. You are disciplining for long-term benefit. This truth can help you persevere. It can be quite freeing when parents recognize that discipline is unpleasant and that children often won't respond with gratefulness. Sometimes parenting isn't pleasant but discipline is a necessary part of the job.

Remember that Hebrews 12:11 says, "No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it."

3 basic rules

I came across these 3 basic rules and thought it was something I'd like to remember. Maybe you would too! These are from effectiveparenting.org. I receive their newsletter and I think it is an excellent resource for parents!

Rules are important in family life. They clarify expectations and provide opportunities for parents to teach about values. Some parents, however, rely too heavily on rules. They develop lists and family life boils down to a bunch of do's and don'ts. Remember that rules tend to focus on behavior and may miss the heart. But, if you use rules wisely and talk often about why the rules are helpful, you can teach your children a great deal about the values you want to pass on. As you begin making rules for young children, we would suggest three simple rules:

Obey
Show Respect
Be Kind

Almost any infraction in family life can fall under one of these three. Having just a few rules is especially good for young children. These three become the basis for most other rules as children get older. Each of them represents an important character quality. These rules are simple and introduce young children to the fact that certain guidelines dictate what's expected in family life. Talk about them often as you teach and discipline your children. This will help to instill a sense of character even at a young age.