Now that Noah is 2-years old and more curious about his surroundings, it is so fun to do outdoor activities with him.Taking photos of him at our local pumpkin patch was so fun!
It amazes me how such a small person can have such a big personality.
It is true that we should never talk down or underestimate our child(ren).
From picking his pumpkin, entering the petting zoo, taking a photo by the hay stacks, getting a Pokeball painted on his hand and choosing the snack he wanted, he chose them all on his own. I was highly surprised that he avoided the ponies, he loves horses!
I was highly surprised that he avoided the ponies, he loves horses!
Fun doesn’t always have to be pricey. Check out your local park district, they always have great FREE activities.
This video makes valid points about society’s point of view on boys.
Just because he gets spaghetti sauce all over his face doesn’t mean it’s just because he is “being a boy.” It just means he is a 2-year-old child who hasn’t mastered the skill of feeding himself.
Some months ago I posted this same picture of Noah on Instagram using the hashtag #boyswillbeboys. This hashtag has over one million hits on Instagram alone. So I sat back and thought about how carelessly we use that phrase.
NO! Let’s not raise our boys allowing them to think that being rough is okay because they are boys. That guns and weapons are “cool” because society always emphasizes weapons on that macho male figure. That boys are “dumber than girls.” That they don’t learn at the same pace as girls. That girls are more likely to succeed and boys are underachievers. That books are for “nerds” and therefore our boys shy away from them because the girls don’t like “nerds.”
These are all stereotypes that our society has formulated and are stopping our young men from reaching their full potential of success.
I don’t want to raise my son under all of these negative stereotypes that make boys inferior.
As a woman and mother of a boy, I want to raise him to love literature because it will expand his mind. To love dancing because music and rhythm are great coping skills. I want him to be loving and caring without thinking that it will be confused as weakness. I will make sure to encourage him to want to excel in the classroom because that will get him far in life. I want to make sure that I teach him how to respect not just girls but everyone and everything in the world.
That notion of “boys will be boys” is what creates closed-minded men and I refuse to raise my boy to be that way.
When Noah was born, I had already planned that he would be potty trained the minute he started walking. Well, that was definitely not the reality and there were so many factors that came into play.
He was potty trained just a day shy of this 2nd birthday and it was a lovely 6-day journey for us. But not all kids learn at the same pace, we know that for sure. With our potty training journey I definitely learned that the key to success is to pay attention to the physical and emotional signs. Your child will let you know when HE is ready to take that next step into “big boy”status.
START EARLY
1-year-old Noah sitting on his potty while reading monthly magazine gossip.
As soon as he started walking a few days after his 1st birthday, we began sitting him on his potty. No, we were not trying to force this transition on him, but wanted him to get ready little by little. In doing this I think we eased him physically and emotionally into his “big boy”stage. A transition that he made himself because the signs were all there, we just had to pay close attention.
CHOOSE THE RIGHT POTTY FOR HIS PERSONALITY
Early on, we learn about the big personality that comes attached to our child. Our boy has loved music and dancing since he could hold his head up. Therefore, when we went to purchase his potty just a few days after his 1st birthday, we definitely wanted one with some type of music or sound. That is when we came across this Fisher Price potty at Target. It was very affordable and mocked the flushing sound of a life-size toilet, plus it has a cool sensor that potty activates and makes it play cheerful tunes.
DON’T BE AFRAID TO SIT HIM ON THE BIG TOILET
It is a big step to transition our child from the dependent diaper to the independent potty and even a bigger step to transition them to the big toilet. But from experience, sitting Noah on the big toilet from the day that we started introducing potty training on him was a huge help. This helped with the fear of the size difference and once he was potty trained, he was accustomed to big toilets so when we were out in public places, he used them without a problem.
MALE BASHING IS BS
DO NOT let people tell you, “don’t worry if it takes a long time to potty train him, boys usually take much longer than girls.” (I CRINGE) This quote was exactly what the cashier at Target told my husband and I the day we purchased the potty. But she wasn’t the only one that I had heard those same exact thoughts from, many other people had told me the same thing before. So I paid close attention to the signs that I should be looking for and when I finally saw them, I knew that my BOY would be potty trained in only six days and a day before his 2nd birthday. I know people who have girls that are three years old and not yet potty trained, so ignore those who gender bash because it is pure BS!
IF POSSIBLE, HAVE DADDY(OR MALE FIGURE)GO IN THE BATHROOM WITH THEM AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE
Daddy teaches Noah how to pee standing up.
To me, this was one of the most defining factors of potty training. My husband made sure, and still makes sure to take Noah in the bathroom with him. At 2 years old, Noah has that curiosity of learning new things and mocking the many things that he sees daddy do. This has made it easier and more encouraging for him to adapt to this new “independent”activity.
THEIR UNDIES WILL ENCOURAGE THEM
Colorful boxer briefs “just like daddy’s.”
Although we did get him undies with Finding Nemo, Toy’s Story and Bubble Guppies, he would point at daddy’s boxer briefs every time he would go in the bathroom with him. So we searched everywhere until we found some “just like daddy’s.” Do be aware that if you have a petite boy like myself, it is quite challenging to find underwear that small. He’s 2-years old and 27lbs. Sometimes he still fits in 12-18mo clothes so these Fruit of the Loom size 2T/3T(which is the smallest underwear size I’ve found)are pretty big on him. But the simple fact that he’s wearing underwear that resembles who he looks up to as his male figure, saggy or not, he loves them.
DON’T BE MAD WHEN ACCIDENTS HAPPEN
Many parents will ease away from the diaper, meaning that they will continue to have their child wear a diaper to bed. We took a different approach and completely took it away as soon as we knew he was potty trained. We wanted to start him on a bedtime routine and this involved using the bathroom before bed. And yes, he has had 3-4 accidents in the last two months since his transition, but when those accidents have happened we make sure to talk to him instead of getting upset and yelling. By talking instead of yelling, he knows that although it was an “oopsie,” potty must be done in the toilet. Plus, you don’t want to scare away all the hard work and dedication of your journey.
I can’t imagine dropping my son off at daycare and that being the last time I see him alive.
When my husband and I decided that we wanted to have a baby, we knew that many sacrifices will have to be made. With both of us in school trying to finish our bachelors degrees and knowing that we did not want our baby in daycare, we had to compromise. My husband wanted me to continue with school and stay home with our son.
Yes, that meant that bills will be paid but we would not have much money to spare. But that was okay, we were going to make it work for our baby.
Just recently, a toddler died suffocated at a day-care. While this did not appear to be intentional, it is an accident that could have been prevented. Why didn’t staff realize the child was missing? How many staff members take care of how many kids? These children are toddlers and require a lot of attention. I notice it with just one child, my child, so I can’t imagine having to keep an eye on 5-10 kids.
Children are defenseless and especially toddlers who cannot even communicate if they are being harmed. Surveillance videos from various daycares have served as proof of the harm being done to innocent children.
Many parents cannot afford to not work, or do not have a trusting family member that will take care of their child(ren), therefore daycare is their only option. Parents take their kids to these daycares trusting that the staff will care for them as professional caregivers.
And although not all daycares are committing these atrocities, our decision to keep our child out of unnecessary harm’s way was the best decision we’ve made for the well being of our son.
PINKMOMTURNEDBLUE 