My Busy Boy

My Busy Boy

• 7.18.2011

Jed has finally reached a stage that can be challenging to both Bron and me. Our boy is in a state of perpetual motion. I swear my child is secretly an octopus bent on destroying everything in his path. He is so fast! And he is EVERYWHERE! If there is one thing in the room he is not supposed to touch, he wants it. And whatever Jed touches gets thrown, torn, dropped, eaten, dragged, or a combination. Jed has quite the rigorous schedule. My only respite from his chaos of motion and mess is when he suddenly lays still enough to sleep. However, when I sneak into his bedroom to peak at my sleeping baby, my heart melts. There is something precious about a sleeping child.

Jed's new toy: my alarm.  Jed knows how to turn the music on and off!  Smart kid.

(Fact: I've had that alarm since I was like twelve.  Hence, the stickers.) 

But it’s really not the motion or mess that challenges me. It’s that one minute Jed is independent and happy to be exploring the world on his own and the next he’s desperately clinging to my knees in insecurity. The constant change is giving me whip-lash. He’s also not quite old enough to know his boundaries. I must always keep a watchful eye or else he might fall off the porch steps, play in the garbage, or wander too close to the hot grill. Jed has also suddenly developed an opinion. If something isn’t going his way, he throws a fit. Sometimes he hurls himself onto the ground and cries. Other times he just whines. I do my best to help him or distract him, but he can’t always have what he wants. I don’t think it’s good for my child to always get what he wants. Disappointment is a part of life. For instance, we were standing in the check-out line at the grocery store when Jed finally spied the bag of grapes in the cart. He REALLY wanted them and let the entire store know it! I told him “No. You have to wait until I buy them.” Of course he didn’t understand, but I wasn’t budging on this issue. Grapes are bought by the pound and if he ate any grapes the bag would no longer weigh the same. These outbursts are making it more difficult to socialize in public at church or at summer picnic parties. Listening to him whine grates on my nerves. I am learning patience. Watching, holding, and distracting a small child is a labor of love but I am EXHAUSTED!

These next few weeks could be rough.