Play-by-play 6/1/07

Aaaahhh... silence. The boys are in bed and I hope that every tooth that is even thinking about popping through on either one of them comes through overnight so that tomorrow will be a better day! We start our class at The Little Gym tomorrow at 8:45 - should be fun.

On days when the kids are fussing and whining and screaming and nothing I do helps, I often think, "It is SUCH a good thing I am not 16" I think impluse control is something that strengthens as we mature. It's a good thing I'm mature :-)

The scream/cry/shriek factor was big here today and I will confess that I fantasized more than once (mostly because it made me laugh to think of it) about using the same technique on the boys that I use on my dogs when they are barking. Yep... the dreaded squirt bottle. It's worked so well with the dogs that they've turned into self-scolders. Now when they bark they will sometimes shake their head as if they're shaking off water. And of course I congratulate myself profusely every time for my stellar skills at dog behavior guidance. To do this (congratulate myself) I have to ignore the fact that in the last hour alone, Molly has eaten poop in the backyard and Katie has stepped on my heels twice because she's overly attached.

Many of you know that Kyle has had some let's just say 'biting issues'. I realized today that most of his attempted bites are more like attempted licks. He got mad at me today when it was time to leave the play area at the mall and he cocked his head towards my arm repeatedly with his mouth wide open and tongue stuck out. His intent wasn't to actually bite me (or lick me for that matter) but it was to let me know he was mad.

Now, some people don't want to scold their kid in public because they want to spank their kid but are afraid that other people will be horrified or comment or whatever. Me, I don't want to scold my boys in public because I don't want other people to critique me or do a play by play; I had two mothers watching exactly how I handled things today and I didn't like it. Kind of like John Madden and Troy Aikman calling a football game and offering plenty of editorial.

Madden: Oh Troy that was a bad call

Aikman: Yeah, John, I really think she fumbled that one. Did you see how those boys did an end run around her when she got ready to leave? Did Kyle just try to bite her?

Madden: I think it was more of a lick, Troy.

Aikman: Oh I wonder how she's going to handle this one.

Madden: Oooohhh I'm really shaking now! She put her hands on his cheeks and told him that teeth are not for biting. Whippee.

Well, I'd better go enjoy my peace and quiet. Enjoy the weekend!
Mary Jo