January 10, 2005
Mama's a wimp
Sometimes Ethan actually behaves like a two-year-old, and when I'm the only one here (Jeff's out of town for a few days), I practically can't cope. I don't get it. Other mothers do this. Lots of them. But when we get into a battle of wills, I get so frustrated. Or maybe it's that I'm not well-rested enough, so I can't cope. Or maybe it's because when it's just the two of us, he tends to be very demanding of my attention, and I need time alone to recharge. Which I don't get.
Yesterday afternoon we had a run-in about a bowl of cheese puffs. We just couldn't agree, and distraction didn't seem to be working. I called Jeff for moral support, but he of course wanted to fix it, and being so far away, he couldn't. So we hung up without either of us feeling better.
Then I did get him to nap -- I suppose he was just tired -- and when he woke up, he absolutely refused to go to Ann and Zack's for dinner. But I kept talking about it, and eventually he got into the spirit of it, and we went over there. He LOVED Ann's black bean soup. Then he snuck off to play on their computer. True to form, he managed to launch a browser, but couldn't navigate to Thomas the Tank Engine, which is where he wanted to go. Anyway, they played with him for a while, giving me a much-needed break. And then he really, REALLY didn't want to leave. I guess I didn't give him enough warning. So he was crying, refusing to put on his shoes and jacket, even when Ann tried valiantly to coax him into it. So finally we just left, and as soon as we got in the car and turned the music on, he was perfectly happy. Go figure.
Then today, I'm here working and he's with me, since we haven't yet started with a new babysitter. And during my morning meeting, he happily played by himself downstairs for an hour and half.
Posted by ktingey at January 10, 2005 02:01 PM