Cool As A Cucumber

Do you ever look at your beautiful, sweet, loving child and think... OMG I'm so frustrated!!!!? 

It happens. And if you say you have never had a frustrating moment with your bundle of joy then you are not human. There is a reason why God made babies so gosh darn cute.

I'd like to think I'm pretty good at keeping my cool and I'm a very patient person (you kind of have to be if you work with children) but even I have thrown a tantrum that made me stop and think... Which one is the toddler here? 

Diaper changes. Oh how you've changed since Lilly became mobile. Every now and then I start feeling flustered while trying to put a diaper on a roly poly... Uh, I mean Lilly. Sometimes I give up and let her run around for a few minutes before trying again with a more relaxed attitude. This also test how brave you are... Especially if you have carpet in your house. 

There are two ways to look at this situation. My point of view would probably be something like this: FOR THE LOVE OF PETE WILL YOU PLEASE BE STILL FOR 2 MORE SECONDS SO I CAN GET THIS DAG ON DIAPER ON YOU AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH. (Wow, that made my blood pressure rise just typing that!) 

From Lilly's point of view: I just want to play momma. I'm doing the best I can. I'm only one. 

And just like that I feel calm again. Toddlers love to move. Toddlers love to dance. Toddlers love to explore. Toddlers  are very curious about the world around them. And that's okay. So the next time your toddler pulls out all of the toilet paper, puts peanut butter all in their hair, or even rolls around during a diaper change, take a big breath and remind yourself that they are doing the best they can. 

And the next time your toddler is throwing a fit with crocodile tears and all, just tell yourself this- They are not giving you a hard time, they are having a hard time. There is a difference. And just by thinking that in my head it helps me to continue to be as cool as a cucumber. 

Change is Inevitable

Wow. June has been a huge month for us. Lilly started June with only 2 cute little bottom teeth. Lilly ended June with EIGHT cute little bottom AND top teeth. I thought her smile was precious before, but now it's just cuteness overload! Now that Lilly has all of these new teeth she's been trying more foods so that's a plus! She's still pretty picky but every now and then she will surprise us by putting something "unlilly like" in her mouth, like pizza crust! You go girl! 

Lilly is also giving kisses on the lips and hugs. Melts. My. Heart. I think it melts her daddy's heart even more. 

Lilly is also saying lots of words and repeating words. Her daddy came in and saw her with Oreo cookies all over her face and hands and said "oh man!"... So Lilly's new saying is "oh man!" and I love it! 

Our school got a new principal. This will be my 6th year teaching at Grifton School and my 4th principal. But you learn more and more with each change that happens so I'm trying to stay positive about that one! 

But the biggest change that has happened this month is that Lilly's sleeping in her crib in her own room. Yes, you read that right. We moved Lilly's crib upstairs last night. After finally getting Lilly to fall asleep Mike came in the room and she immediately woke up with a huge smile on her face like she was ready to go play. I looked at him and said "it's time". I could tell he didn't feel 100% ok about this, and neither did I to be honest. But we did feel like it was best for Lilly to be in her own room with no tv or snoring so she could sleep better. Lilly seems like she could care less about sleeping in her room. Tonight I'm feeling a tiny bit sad though. I never in a million years thought I would have my baby sleeping in the same room with us or even the same bed. But it actually makes a lot of sense to me now. I never slept alone as a child. I was always in my brothers bed or had my dog to cuddle with. I hate sleeping alone even as an adult! It's funny how you think you know everything there is to know about kids until you actually have one. Then everything you think you would do totally changes... At least it did for me. I'm proud that we didn't follow any rules. I'm proud that we did what we felt was best for our family. I'm proud that we ignored the looks on people's faces when we told them that Lilly slept in our room. And I'm so proud that we made this transition on our terms. Everybody has their own parenting style that will constantly evolve and change with their growing baby. Some parents (like us) just have to take a few more baby steps than others. And I'll still have my morning snuggle time with Lilly. I can't wait! Is it morning time yet?