Yesterday we went to a small local zoo which has a lot of birds, including penguins, which Harlan was very excited about. They have an offer on until 18th February, 99p per person to get in.
Sunday, 16 January 2011
Beautiful!
Harlan found a tin of tinted Vaseline lip balm today and managed to get the top off. After being very quiet for a minute he turned to me and said "Painting mummy!"
Yesterday we went to a small local zoo which has a lot of birds, including penguins, which Harlan was very excited about. They have an offer on until 18th February, 99p per person to get in.
Yesterday we went to a small local zoo which has a lot of birds, including penguins, which Harlan was very excited about. They have an offer on until 18th February, 99p per person to get in.
Friday, 14 January 2011
Toilets, boxes and dollies
Harlan went to his childminder today, as he normally does on a friday, but today was different. Today he didn't wear a nappy, he wore pants. As such, I packed his bag full of spare pants, trousers, tops and even socks.
As it turned out, all he need was one spare pair of pants and trousers, because after a small accident first thing in the morning, he stayed dry all day. Once he came home, the things I'd put out for him to play with proved too exciting, however, and he had a couple of accidents. "Nevermind" he says, so at least he's not getting a complex about it! I found some stickers I bought a while ago, so he's now having a sticker when he does a wee on the potty or toilet, and so far he's got two shiny stickers to put on his trike.
I got a new book today, arrived in the post from Amazon. It's called The Toddler's Busy Book and as well as having lots of ideas for simple things to do with your toddler, it also has some amusing and poignant quotes in it. One that made me laugh was the mother's prayer:
Dear Lord,
So far today I've done alright. I haven't gossiped, I haven't lost my temper, I haven't been greedy, grumpy, selfish or very indulgent. I'm very grateful for that. But in a few minutes, lord, I'm going to get out of bed, and from then on, I'm going to need a lot more help. Amen.
It made me smile because, no matter how good our intentions are, some days we are grumpy and selfish, and you know what? That's ok. As long as you are usually the parent you want to be, and your children know they are loved, then surely everyone is allowed a bad day. I darn well hope so, anyway!
When Harlan came home from his childminder, I'd made a bed for his dolly, just a simple one made from a cardboard box and a terry towel as a blanket. When Harlan saw it, he decided he wanted a big box for himself, so I put some cushions and his 'special cover' (a blanket I embroidered for him when he was younger) in a large box and he had great fun settling dolly and himself off to sleep - complete with fake snoring!
As it turned out, all he need was one spare pair of pants and trousers, because after a small accident first thing in the morning, he stayed dry all day. Once he came home, the things I'd put out for him to play with proved too exciting, however, and he had a couple of accidents. "Nevermind" he says, so at least he's not getting a complex about it! I found some stickers I bought a while ago, so he's now having a sticker when he does a wee on the potty or toilet, and so far he's got two shiny stickers to put on his trike.
I got a new book today, arrived in the post from Amazon. It's called The Toddler's Busy Book and as well as having lots of ideas for simple things to do with your toddler, it also has some amusing and poignant quotes in it. One that made me laugh was the mother's prayer:
Dear Lord,
So far today I've done alright. I haven't gossiped, I haven't lost my temper, I haven't been greedy, grumpy, selfish or very indulgent. I'm very grateful for that. But in a few minutes, lord, I'm going to get out of bed, and from then on, I'm going to need a lot more help. Amen.
It made me smile because, no matter how good our intentions are, some days we are grumpy and selfish, and you know what? That's ok. As long as you are usually the parent you want to be, and your children know they are loved, then surely everyone is allowed a bad day. I darn well hope so, anyway!
When Harlan came home from his childminder, I'd made a bed for his dolly, just a simple one made from a cardboard box and a terry towel as a blanket. When Harlan saw it, he decided he wanted a big box for himself, so I put some cushions and his 'special cover' (a blanket I embroidered for him when he was younger) in a large box and he had great fun settling dolly and himself off to sleep - complete with fake snoring!
Tuesday, 11 January 2011
Toilet training
I've bought Harlan some training pants - pants with a little padding and plastic backing - as he's been doing really well with toilet training.
It actually feels wrong to call it toilet "training" as we haven't trained him at all. He spontaneously decided a few months ago that he wanted to wee in the toilet, and since then he's been wearing nappies but using the toilet when he wants to. Some days he doesn't want to use it at all, other days he's dry all day. He doesn't like using his potty much anymore, he prefers the big toilet and that's fine by me. I'm glad we didn't force the issue and he's doing it in his own time with no tears or tantrums.
He does seem to be finding it quite challenging being two at the moment, we have moments when his brain is ahead of his physical capabilities and he gets frustrated, and he fluctuates between being clingy and being his usual independent self. He's always been a good sleeper but has found it hard to settle down into normality since Christmas but we'll get there!
It actually feels wrong to call it toilet "training" as we haven't trained him at all. He spontaneously decided a few months ago that he wanted to wee in the toilet, and since then he's been wearing nappies but using the toilet when he wants to. Some days he doesn't want to use it at all, other days he's dry all day. He doesn't like using his potty much anymore, he prefers the big toilet and that's fine by me. I'm glad we didn't force the issue and he's doing it in his own time with no tears or tantrums.
He does seem to be finding it quite challenging being two at the moment, we have moments when his brain is ahead of his physical capabilities and he gets frustrated, and he fluctuates between being clingy and being his usual independent self. He's always been a good sleeper but has found it hard to settle down into normality since Christmas but we'll get there!
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