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I hope you’re comfy. This is a going to be a long one.
July 26th, 2010
I’ve been wanting to blog for over a week now and just can’t seem to get any time to do so. Sam’s in this horribly needy/clingy/screechy stage. He’s an absolute gem when he’s being held. Gerald actually calls him “Guy Smiley.” However, the MINUTE you set his ass down, it’s DEFCON 1/Red Alert/Death is Imminent. He hates the swing, the bouncy seat, the playmat… basically everything that’s not Mama or Daddy. I’m not going to candy coat it. It’s a pain in the ass. I struggle with getting the bare minimum done everyday. Even wearing him in the Moby Wrap or Baby Bjorn I’m limited as to what I can do. Some things just aren’t possible to accomplish when wearing a baby.
Anyhow, Maddie’s eating breakfast and watching Curious George and Sam’s still in bed, so I’m going to write until one of them loses their respective shit.
* Maddie’s completely potty trained (during the day). It was a rough four or five days, but we made it through and my girl’s been a champ. If only we could stop the Tour of All Public Restrooms We Encounter, things would be perfect.
* Speaking of, I think this is the ideal time to teach Mad about “private parts.” At church the other night, she started pulling her shorts and underpants down in the hallway outside of the bathroom. Right now, she has no concept of private parts. Hers or mine or Dad’s or Sam’s. We’ve always been very matter of fact about genitalia and treat it like, say, an elbow, when bathing. I want to inspire modesty not shame and I’m unsure of how to go about it. Do any of you have any advice on the matter?
* It’s been 2 years since my gastric bypass. Even with a pregnancy in there, I’ve maintained my weight loss. I’ve lost 145lbs from my starting weight right before surgery and 160lbs from my heaviest. I’d like to lose 20 more pounds, but I’m not stressing about it. I wear a size 12 and a medium and I’m happy with that. I do, however, HATE myself naked. The extra skin! The shar pei wrinkles! The boobs that can be tucked into my waistband! It’s nothing that $40k worth of plastic surgery can’t fix and I look all right in clothes, so I guess it’s not so bad. I need to have Gerald take pictures and I’ll post comparative shots.
* BlogHer ’10 is next weekend and I’m not going. I’ve known for almost a year that I wouldn’t be attending and it’s still upsetting. I had such a wonderful time last year and it makes me heartsick to know that I’ll be missing it this year. And New York City! I’ve never been! I’m trying to be happy for my besties that are going, but it’s hard not to feel sorry for myself. I keep telling myself that while I can’t afford to go to BlogHer, I get to stay home with my kids instead of working 40 hours a week and sending them to daycare. Although, that’s hardly a plus some days, amirite?
Well, I’m halfway through my list of topics and Maddie desperately needs me to pretend to be The Man with the Yellow Hat. I got further than I thought I would.
test Filed under maddie, Sam, where do I come up with this stuff? | Comments (7)7 Responses to “I hope you’re comfy. This is a going to be a long one.”
Hooray for potty training success!!!
We’ll miss you at BlogHer!!
I was thinking that this would be my year to go to BlogHer, but it falls on my wedding anniversary. Not that I didn’t consider it, even knowing that. Bringing along an eight week old nursing baby was the final nail in the coffin.
As for the modesty, nudey issue – Bub LOVES to be naked. At home, we let him be, to a certain extent. We tell him that we can be naked at home, but we wear clothes when we’re out, or when our friends are over. So far, so good.
Congrats on the potty success! That’s such an awesome milestone. And fwiw, I still have 2 that need overnight pull-ups.
I kind of have much to say about childhood modesty, so I’ll try to make it brief. Our family handled “private parts” much like you describe- they are no big deal. As far as teaching modesty? Well, we basically decided not to. There is such a precious few years when a child can be totally, completely free in their bodies, that I decided to honor that. Until last summer, my older two would OFTEN strip totally naked while outside…. and we just let them. I wouldn’t let them run the neighborhood naked (Oops! We need clothes on to leave our yard!), but I never “talked” to them about being naked outside or anything.
For the hallway-stripping incident you described, I would have said “Oh! Let’s take our pants of when we’re in the bathroom” and left it at that. If I felt like anyone saw and JUDGED me, I would figure it’s their problem. She’s THREE after all. Just a beautiful three-year-old child who has not yet learned to care about how she looks.
I know lots of people probably disagree with me. I also know that in our world today there are some safety concerns to consider. However, sexual abuse nearly ALWAYS happens by a family friend or family member, so I don’t believe that my child naked in the yard is going to “cause” them to become a target. Unless, of course, we have family or friends that would harm them.
I also believe that each family has to do what’s comfortable.
Anyway, those are my thoughts. And, btw, by age 6ish, my older girls were naturally modest without us doing anything. Age 6! Still years and years from puberty! (Though they are still completely free inside our home, when it’s just our family.)
The tour of all public restrooms does not end quickly. We’re still doing it a year and a half after potty training. It has gotten to the point where when I know she’s gone recently, I’ve taken to telling her some places don’t have potties. I know, I’m a horrible mom.
YAY for being potty trained! BOO on a clingy baby. I hope he gets a wee bit more cooperative soon.
Lands. The clingy baby will send a mom over the brink. I’ve yet to master the Moby, so you’ve got me beat there.
As for the modesty thing, this comes on the heals of our two year old swatting at my husband’s “bits” as they got out of the bath this evening. My explanation about who touches who’s (whose?) penis fell a little short. Wanting to explain boundaries to someone who still needs his biscuits wiped by parents and teachers left me a bit floundering.
Oh boy….gotta love “private parts” stories. Since the kiddo was potty trained at preschool, they helped us out by explain the whole “parts” things to the kids and just filled us in on what they told them. The teachers there were hell-bent on calling the parts by their anatomical name– the director told a story about her kids going to middle and high school and how they were the only kids in their health classes that didn’t snicker or was embarassed at the technical names for the human reproductive system. She made a point of explaining who has a penis and vagina and what they are used for(at the potty training age). Now, my boy knows not to tug or pull at his pants until he’s in the bathroom, in private. He knows to “hide his penis in his pants” before leaving the stall or bathroom. Easy peasy…
I’m bummed about missing BlogHer this year too. I thought my little munchkin would be born earlier than last week, but she decided to take her sweet ass time. If she was going to be around a month old, I was going to go. Living in NJ was going to be to my advantage since I would just take the train in for the events. Oh well. That just means that next year I get to jet off to an actual location and have a blast meeting bloggers like you!