My sweet first-born son is only a little over 2 1/2 years old. Yet, here are some of the things he says:
I love to hear Michael call me "Mommy." It's sweet, innocent, and even nostalgic in its own way. Yet, the last couple weeks, I'm starting to hear more and more often: "Mo-o-om!" I can't help thinking to myself that Michael's too young to switch to the more grown-up "Mom" and I'm not quite ready for it. I mean, he's only 2 1/2!! That's practically still a baby! Now I see why some families have kids about 3 years apart - the older one was growing up too fast and becoming independent, and the parents wanted another little dependent baby! But I have already told myself that if Michael is ready for more independence, I'm going to help him, guide him, and do my best to not smother him. So not easy!
I never realized how often I must have said "what happened?" But Michael has learned to ask "What happened?" anytime Eric or I show any kind of concern or distress with any situation. It is extremely sweet, and often brings things back into the proper perspective when I have to think of an appropriate answer to Michael's "what happened?" For example, there was the time that Michael "took me" on our Mother's Day date to Jones Hall to watch "Thomas the Train, Live On-Stage!" Since I've never been the best with directions and am not as familiar with Downtown Houston, I had a lot of trouble finding my way back to the right highway and locating the on-ramps. I found myself driving around Downtown lost without the GPS, which Eric had forgotten to return to the car after the latest oil change. I've never handled being lost very well, so I was on the verge of panic and tears because my cell phone battery had died. In my emotional distress, I was convinced that Michael and I would be lost in Downtown Houston forever, with no way to contact Eric and the looming impossibility of finding my way out of Downtown and to the right highway. Needless to say, my whimpering was heard by Michael and he started to ask me, "What happened? What happened, Mommy?" It was a good reminder to get a grip and start praying for some help!
One of the things that I don't allow Michael to do is to throw major tantrums. From the first time he ever cried because he didn't get what he wanted, at less than a year old, I made the decision that if he ever cried or fussed, I would absolutely never give in because of the precedent it would set. Even if I was about to change my mind and let him have what he wanted, the second he cries, it's "over" and I become immovable in my decision. As he got older, and he started to want to cry loudly to try to get what he wanted, I would tell him to "stop crying, or you're going to get a spanking." I know it seems a little harsh, but in general, I would have to say that Michael doesn't throw tantrums. ("Thank-you, Lord! Please don't let that change!! And please let Nathan be the same!!") And when he does cry because he didn't get what he wanted and I say the above to him, he will literally exert visible self-control and stop crying, giving me the opportunity to praise him and love on him. Well, lately, Michael has taken to yelling "STOP CRYING! STOP CRYING!" to Nathan whenever he cries for any reason. Of course, Nathan, being only 10 1/2 months old, doesn't really listen to Michael, but Eric and I get a kick out of it.
Other cute things: Michael calls Lightening McQueen "Kachow". He used to call Gordon (from Thomas the Train and friends) "Jordan," because his cousin's name is Jordan. But now he knows Gordon's name and calls Jordan, "Gordon." I guess he hasn't yet realized that their names are not the same. He calls the movie Kung-Fu Panda "Kun-bu Bear". He used to have octopus down-pat, but now he calls it "opposite." He used to call giraffes "raff," but now he says that right. There are many others, but those are the ones that I can think of off the top of my head.
So what is Nathan saying these days? Well, let's see. There's "Up!" which I really think he knows what that means. He says "Ummm!" with every bite of food, and will tell us "Umm!" when he's hungry and wants to eat. Something he picked up from me when I first started to feed him solid food. Things he's said one time only: "nonono" and "ball." Of course there's been a few "Mama's", too!
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