Busily Growing Up

Wilder and I went to a playgroup at the home of a girl from my meetup group a couple of weeks ago. When we got in the car to go I told him we were going to play with some kids at a friend's house. He had brought a ball in the car with him and after a few minutes he said, "Wilder's ball" and I said "Yep, that's Wilder's ball." Then he said, "Kids get?" as in "Are those kids going to get my ball?" and I told him that it was his ball but that he could share it with the other kids because they would share their toys with him and that was how to be a nice friend. He responded with "Yeah" and then "No" and then another, more emphatic "Wilder's ball." Then I repeated how it was nice to share and even if he let the other kids play with his ball it was still his and they wouldn't take it forever. We went around in circles like that for the entire 25 minute drive to the playgroup and just ended up leaving the ball in the car when we got there because he wasn't fully convinced of the reasoning behind the whole sharing concept. Two is going to be an interesting age.

Anyway, the hostess of the playgroup and I hit it off and our boys played well together and were only two weeks apart in age so I pounced on the possibility of that friendship and messaged her later to say we'd like to get together with them again sometime. She messaged me back and said they'd love to and invited us last minute to her son's birthday party that weekend. It was a train party so, of course, Wilder was in heaven...

The next day we hung out around the house, cleaned, and worked/played in the yard. Wilder loves to help so we gave him a broom and he swept the sidewalk for literally an hour. I made a mental note to add that to my list of ways to entertain him in the future.

Late that afternoon we were so excited to take him to his first real movie theater movie. (OK, he and I actually went with a friend and her baby to see Water for Elephants when he was 3 months old but that totally doesn't count.) We went to see Wreck-It Ralph and he thought the whole experience was totally awesome. He ate half a bag of popcorn, a whole apple (core and all somehow), and didn't take his eyes off the screen once. The movie was really cute and well-done so Paul and I enjoyed it almost as much as we enjoyed watching Wilder watch it haha ;)

Trying to smile through that awful flash haha

Mesmerized

So the party on Saturday was fun but, alas, less than 48 hours later Wilder came down with a cold. I seriously do not understand parents who take sick kids to playgroups, parties, etc. where they'll be in close contact with other kids. When Wilder is sick I basically quarantine us because I don't want to give it to anybody else so it infuriates me when he gets sick because someone else wasn't as considerate. Urrghh. Anyway, so all last week we didn't do any of our normal fun activities and went nowhere except the grocery store. I was going crazy towards the end of the week so I decided to give potty training another try. We had been trying off and on for a few months but never could find a way that worked for us. I never realized how delicate of a process learning how to use the toilet is. 

Finally last week I decided to try my friend Kelly's way, which was to let the child go around naked (at least from the waist down) anytime you're at home so that they can just go in the bathroom and sit down on the potty whenever they need to. I know it sounds a little crazy but it has seriously been the key to Wilder's potty training. Whereas before I would be constantly asking him if he needed to go, which was a lot of pressure on him. And then if he said yes we'd have to go through the whole undressing process, only for him to sit on the potty for 2 seconds and then want up without doing anything, which was frustrating to me and I'm sure discouraging to him. 

So I decided maybe he needed a little more freedom to take charge of going to the potty by himself. He's been walking around the house naked or half naked (which he loves a little too much) for almost a week now and he is doing SO well! Being able to go on his own has really built up his bathroom self-confidence and he is so proud of the "prizes" he gets afterwards. For the past two days he hasn't even peed in his diaper when we've had to run errands and for the past two mornings he hasn't woken up with a poop in his diaper like he always does! I'm sorry, that's probably way too much information, but I'm just so thrilled with his accomplishments and so proud of what a big boy he's getting to be!

This potty thing is very serious business

So all last week we played at home. Wilder was super super snotty but seemed to not feel too bad so he was pretty much his usual silly self...

"Firetruck chase airplane!" he told me.

Driving vehicles on Rider's back has become an obsession.

If she gets up he will either yell at her to lay back down

or follow her around the house until she does. He tells

me that her back is "mud" and then he'll run the truck

the other way up her back making her hair stand up and

he says that's "tall grass." Haha, I just love his imagination!

I asked him to smile for me and he gave me what

Paul calls his "I'm going to eat you" smile so I 

said "Wilder, can you please smile like you're

actually happy?!"

That's better, haha :)

He put his catcher's mitt on his head and said, "Catch Wilder!"

This child never ceases to entertain and amaze me.

Finally by this past weekend the flood of snot subsided so we were able to get in some visits with family. Paul's dad and sister came into town Saturday and spent the afternoon with us. Wilder loved having them here and showing off for them. 

Three generations of Taylor men going for a walk

Wilder and his sweet Auntie

Sidewalk art with Auntie Liz

Then on Sunday my cousin Amber and her baby girl, Tempe, were in town from California. We hadn't seen them since June so I was so so happy to be able to visit with Amber and love on that sweet baby even for just a few hours. Wilder was also so glad to see Tempe and pretty much attacked her with hugs and kisses. 

Hugging on his twinkie 

Tennessee cousin, Mackenzie, too

Love and miss these ladies so much!

Just a few more funny things Wilder has said recently that I want to remember...

Whenever we get to this page in his Night-Night, Little Pookie book, he always drags his finger over the mom and says, "Turn around! Turn around!" like "Duh, he's right behind you, lady!" Cracks me up every time :)

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The other day he brought a tiny bucket out of his room, put it on the floor, and said, "Mama, sit bucket." I said, "Wilder I'm too big to fit in that bucket!" and he looked up at me, shrugged his shoulders, and said, "Try?" I died out laughing and, of course, I tried. ;)

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Our dogs are like two moving road blocks around the house and I'm constantly telling them to move. Unfortunately I think I'm going to have to start saying "Excuse me" to them instead because Wilder has picked up on it and has told people to "move" on more than one occasion when they're in his way. Yikes. It really hit home the other day when we were at the grocery store. I parked Wilder in the cart and walked back down the aisle a few feet to get something off the shelf. Two ladies were standing in front of what I needed having a conversation and didn't see me trying to reach behind them. Suddenly I hear Wilder yelling, "Move! Move!" and look back to see him waving his arm at them. Luckily they were engrossed in their conversation and didn't notice so I rushed back to the cart and tried not to laugh as I explained what it means to be polite.

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He's gotten in a bad habit lately of trying to get me to come back into his room a million times after I've put him to bed. Before I even get out the door most nights he's called me back in at least two or three times for another hug or kiss. He calls them different kinds of hugs or kisses each time, like last time he got a "baseball hug" but this time he needs a "dump truck kiss." The hug thing works every time because I'm certainly not going to tell my child that I won't give him a hug haha! 

But now he's got another tactic too. As soon as I walk out of his room after putting him to bed, he throws his pacis and yells for me to come back in and get them. He knows that I know he won't sleep without them and I will therefore always come back in to pick them up for him. The past few nights I've been waiting longer and longer before I go back in hoping that he'll just go on to sleep or at least that he'll think I'm not coming and then maybe think twice before throwing them again. Last night Paul and I were sitting in the living room listening to him yell "MAMA! MAMA!" over and over, then he started yelling "MAMA! DADA! MAMA!" When we didn't respond, it got quiet for a minute and then he started yelling, "RIDER! POSEY! RIDER! POSEY!" hahaha! I guess desperate times called for desperate measures ;)

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Last thing... He is so alert and observant. He's always pointing out sights or sounds that I would normally overlook and I'm so thankful that he makes me "stop and smell the roses" so to speak. The other day we were kicking the ball around outside and suddenly he stopped and said, "Birds tweeting!" It was just so sweet the way he said it and how delighted he was by it, so of course I had to make him say it again for the camera ;)

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That boy is all personality and sweetness and he makes his daddy and me so happy every day. I cannot believe he'll be two in just about a week and a half!