JumpingIn
Mummy+TTC#2
- Joined
- May 5, 2014
- Messages
- 1,561
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-That for toddlers, time doesn't exist. That in order to interact meaningfully with him, sometimes I have to forget that it exists too. To forget everything but what we're doing in that moment. Blowing a dandelion or digging in sand, making pancakes or painting..The end result doesn't matter. What matters is how the egg is sticky and the seeds are floating, paint spreads on tiles as well as on paper and the bucket is heavy when it's full.
-That looking after my mental and physical health is important. Those times I sneak away to breathe slowly or put on my makeup are important, even when he's whining. He wants me to be happy and healthy more than he wants me in that whingy moment.
-That sometimes he just has other plans and I have to follow his lead. If I take him out for a walk to the woods he may just want to stop before we get there to play with rocks on the pavement for 10 minutes, and that's OK.
- I'm not as sure about discipline as I thought I'd be
-If you smell a dirty nappy, wait 5 minutes. Carpet followup is a thing.
-That he is wilful, strong and craves independence, and the vision I had during pregnancy of a docile, vulnerable, wide-eyed creature hanging off my every word was ridiculous and boring compared to him.
-That being apart from me all day isn't some terrible trauma for him. I agonised over putting him in nursery and spent weeks in tears over it. Ha! He doesn't even look back.
-That my sense of identity independent of motherhood is more important than ever
-Exactly what ask those parents meant when they aid they'd kill for their children, die for their children and do anything for their children, and also why people want to hang and torture those who commit crimes against children.
-Exactly what they meant when they said they felt like they were trapped in a miserable black hole and were so exhausted they thought they might collapse.
-That my relationship with my partner is stronger than I'd imagined. And my relationship with myself. And why patents sometimes talk as if they have superpowers.
-Less is more! In the beginning I bought him a million toys in a desperate attempt to appease him. Don't do this. They sniff your weakness and don't look at the toys more than once. Now I keep it simple.
-Books are one of the best tools for (re)discovering the world around you and sharing it with your child. I genuinely love even the simplest board book experience with him and we read every day.
I'd love to hear some of the things you lovely parents have learnt during this time! What surprised you about parenthood? Or parenting your toddler specifically?
-That looking after my mental and physical health is important. Those times I sneak away to breathe slowly or put on my makeup are important, even when he's whining. He wants me to be happy and healthy more than he wants me in that whingy moment.
-That sometimes he just has other plans and I have to follow his lead. If I take him out for a walk to the woods he may just want to stop before we get there to play with rocks on the pavement for 10 minutes, and that's OK.
- I'm not as sure about discipline as I thought I'd be
-If you smell a dirty nappy, wait 5 minutes. Carpet followup is a thing.
-That he is wilful, strong and craves independence, and the vision I had during pregnancy of a docile, vulnerable, wide-eyed creature hanging off my every word was ridiculous and boring compared to him.
-That being apart from me all day isn't some terrible trauma for him. I agonised over putting him in nursery and spent weeks in tears over it. Ha! He doesn't even look back.
-That my sense of identity independent of motherhood is more important than ever
-Exactly what ask those parents meant when they aid they'd kill for their children, die for their children and do anything for their children, and also why people want to hang and torture those who commit crimes against children.
-Exactly what they meant when they said they felt like they were trapped in a miserable black hole and were so exhausted they thought they might collapse.
-That my relationship with my partner is stronger than I'd imagined. And my relationship with myself. And why patents sometimes talk as if they have superpowers.
-Less is more! In the beginning I bought him a million toys in a desperate attempt to appease him. Don't do this. They sniff your weakness and don't look at the toys more than once. Now I keep it simple.
-Books are one of the best tools for (re)discovering the world around you and sharing it with your child. I genuinely love even the simplest board book experience with him and we read every day.
I'd love to hear some of the things you lovely parents have learnt during this time! What surprised you about parenthood? Or parenting your toddler specifically?
