Fry Moments: Stubborn Kind of Fellow

It feels like it has been ages since I last posted. In reality, it's been a little over a week, and Lord knows I have gone longer than that before, but for some reason it just seems like it's been forever.

Anyway, I think I am in one of those positions in which I have SO MUCH to write about that I am completely paralyzed and don't know where to start.

My little Port...he has entered into a wonderful, hilarious, amazing stage in his development. He is just the most fascinating little guy - full of personality and quirkiness. At 22 months old, he is already quite the character. The boy, for the most part, knows exactly what he wants. He is so darn particular, it is to the point that much of the time I have to really dip into my patience reserves just to get through the day with him. He is very independent all of a sudden, and he has to do everything that everyone else does. It's not so much about doing things himself, like the phase that most kids go through. He will let me do things for him most of the time - things he knows he can't do yet, like putting on socks and shoes. He will go and get them, bring them to me, the turn around and back up the truck to sit in my lap. Sometimes he will try to put a sock on by himself or he will pull out the velcro from his shoes for me, but otherwise he is cool with letting me put them on for him. However, when he is pretty particular about something, he can be very stubborn and obnoxious about it.

For example, his big thing right now is getting in and out of the car by himself and walking everywhere. He does NOT like to sit in the shopping cart at the store any more, with the only exception being the race car carts at HEB (thank goodness!). So whenever I go to Walmart or any other place, he insists on walking and/or pushing the cart. I am sure we look ridiculous with Kiddo (5yrs) actually in the cart and the baby pushing it around the store. I have to put Kiddo in the cart now because I just don't trust myself to be able to look after both of them running loose at the same time. And Port doesn't take no for an answer either. If I even try to put him in the cart when he doesn't want to be there, he screams bloody murder the entire time. I can tolerate a lot too - I can tolerate a fit and crying and just be that mom that ignores it most of the time, but Port has a serious set of lungs on himself and he is also extremely strong! The boy will arch his back and muscle his way out of my arms or the cart and scream the entire time he's doing it.

He is sooooo different from Kiddo. When Kiddo was that age, he never complained about being in the cart. And if he did, I could just ignore him and soon enough he would give up. I had a very strict no walking in the store policy back then - man, that kid was so easy!

But Port, my baby boy, he is the complete opposite. He is stubborn as a mule and he does NOT let things go! If he gets mad about something, he will scream until he either gets his way or something near it. Even when we are at the house - if he sets his heart on something and doesn't get it, I can guarantee I will have to listen to him scream and cry about it most of the afternoon. I have put him in time out a couple of times, and after 2 minutes will come in to rescue him. He will calm down when I pick him up, we can cuddle on the couch, and laugh and play and then just when I think everything is alright he will get down off the couch go right back to the area of the fit and start screaming all over again!

When we come home from running errands, I now have to leave the boys in the car, go unlock the door by myself and then come back to get them out. If I get them out first, Port insists on taking my keys (and they have to be mine, I have tried giving him his own set of real keys) and trying to unlock the door himself. Then it is a huge struggle because he can't do it, and he will not relinquish the keys. Even when I unlock the door first, I still have to give him the keys so he can run up to the door and "unlock" it. He can't even reach the lock - he can barely touch the tip of the key to the edge of the keyhole, but he has to do it every time or there is a HUGE fit. Then, like a gentleman, he lets us in the house and he closes the door. He will then happily hand over my keys so I can hang them on the hook.

Mr. Particular knows where his plastic forks and spoons are in the utensil drawer, and he will pull them out when he needs one. If he decides he doesn't need it, instead of dropping it on the floor or abandoning it somewhere like a normal kid, he will put it back in the drawer, right where it goes and then shut the drawer. And heaven forbid I don't shut a door, drawer or cabinet all the way. He will come in behind me, reopen whatever it is and shut it for me. He does not like for drawers and doors to be ajar - something about it drives him nuts. He is constantly checking to make sure the dishwasher is closed all the way too.

He is obsessed with my make up and lotion. When I am putting it on, he has to have his own eye shadow compact and he will open it, run the brush over the powder and wipe it on his cheek. He then puts the brush back in , closes the compact and starts over. With the lotion, he will walk around the house with a bottle tucked under his arm. He opens the cap, touches the hole with the tip of his finger, then wipes it on his cheek. He closes the cap, then reopens it to start the whole process again.

He is still not really saying much that is clear enough to understand, but he talks ALL THE TIME. He will even come up to me when I am sitting on the floor or the couch, put his hand
on my shoulder and turn me towards him. Then he will lean over so his face is in front of mine and, still holding my shoulder, will say some long drawn out thought with all this inflection and expression, and wait for me to respond appropriately. It is hilarious! And, if he says something to me and I don't respond the way he expects me to (cuz uh, I have no clue what he is saying), he will put his chin to his chest, close his eyes and shake his head no; as if he is embarrassed or disappointed. He is such a stinker.

Because of his need for control though, sometimes I can use it in my favor to make things run more smoothly. In the past, at bedtime I would pick him up, take him in his room, change his diaper and put on his jammies. Then I would carry him around the house to say goodnight to everyone. It was always a big ordeal; screaming fits, kicking and hitting - and many times I had to have Hubby hold him while I was changing his clothes or else I wouldn't be able to get them on him. But a couple of weeks ago I decided to try a different approach and when bed time came along I just said to him "ok it's bed time, let's go get your diaper and jammies." and surprisingly he voluntarily went into the room without protest. He let me change his clothes and when finished, I put him down and told him to go tell everyone goodnight. Not only did he willingly do it, but most nights he will go right up to Hubby and say "nigh nigh daddy!". Then he runs to his crib and waits for me. I let him help me turn out the light, we say a prayer and he willingly goes in the crib. He now talks to himself for a while before going to sleep. It is such a turnaround from the screaming fit before and the 10-15 minutes of screaming afterward. So for the most part, bedtime is much easier now.

As for nap time, well that is another story. Naps are kind of hit and miss these days.

He has the most adorable expressions - I so wish I knew what was running through his head sometimes. He has a definite mischievous look that he gets when he is doing something ornery. And I so wish I could video record him right now, but every time I take out the camera he has a fit wanting it. *sigh* Maybe I can sneak something with my dslr.