Lately Finch has been a real pill. He's gotten really mouthy, he doesn't want to do anything he's asked, he huffs around with crossed arms, and he yells "this is so hard!" as often as he can. The level of provocative cheekiness varies between cracking me up and wearing me thin.
Illustration A:
Recently Finch discovered that sticking one's tongue out is a way to communicate rudeness. After trying it on me and being informed that he was not able to do so without consequence, the next time he was angry at me he gaped his mouth open like a fish, not sticking his tongue out but still communicating his clear disdain for me. Cracked me up. Laughed out loud. Couldn't help myself.
Illustration B:
At my parent's house I was worn thin doing the solo mom thing. In effort to speed up and guarantee bedtime success, I promised the kids a reward if they could be in pjs, teeth cleaned, and in bed in ten minutes. Small Sun and Sprout were done in about four minutes. Finch rolled around on the floor, took his clothes off and refused to put anything else on, and in general made himself a nuisance. The older two were rewarded with a hand-full of cheap, plastic reptiles that they were delighted with. Finch, despite my repeated requests for compliance, passed the ten minute mark in the nude, with unbrushed teeth. Reward lost.
I'm sure my parents thought that I was downstairs beating the poor child, as he raised the roof with his hysterical, snot slinging, breathe stealing, tiny fist pumping tantrum "I want a frog!" A tiny plastic frog. I rode out the storm with him until he was calm and hiccuping his way towards sleep, assured that tomorrow he would have another chance to earn a frog, by brushing his teeth and putting his pjs on in ten minutes, when asked. No laughing that night. He nearly wore me out.
Today I relayed the day's challenges to The Captain, and it dawned on me...I've been through this before!
Wind the clock back to when Small Sun was finishing up preschool. "What is wrong with my child?" I wondered. I felt guilty to admit it, but I was kind of looking forward to sending him off to school just to have a break from the little strong man routine.
School starts in a week and a half. Yesterday I wasn't sure if Finch was ready. Today I'm pretty sure! I might sign him up for an activity too. This little fledgling might need his first push out of the nest.
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