Changes Going on Round These Parts

Our 18 (almost 19) month old has been testing my patience, of which I have none, so it has been a little rough here the past month or so. I have come to understand how third borns can be more spoiled than the older siblings. It's because mom and dad are just plain exhausted. We also might be a little more laid back, but mostly just exhausted. I give Reed things just to keep him quiet that I would have never given Saige at her age - like french fries, chicken nuggets, candy, and plastic bags (just kidding).

But let me tell you, I am paying for it. Because he has been ruling this house like a toddler tyrant and I have decided I need to buckle down and make some changes. When he throws a tantrum I tell him, "Nuh uh, boy, you are not the boss. That ain't goin work round here no more." Ok, minus the redneck part, but you get the jest. I am laying down the law. It will work, I assure you. 

The other nignt, he saw that Saige had a cookie after dinner. She had finished her meal, cleared the table and she was allowed to grab a cookie. As she came back to the table, Reed caught sight of it and that was it. Done. Fineto. Dinner was over for him and he refused to finish his food.
We kept telling him, finish your strawberries and then you can have a cookie. I told Patrick that I have noticed that he had been a little anti-strawberry lately (giving Reed the benefit of the doubt), to which Patrick responded, it looks more like anti-obedient. I mean they're strawberries for crying out loud, not asparagus. And then Reed started crying so hard he was doing the hacking-cough-thingy. You know the one where they want to show how committed they are to their cause? It goes something like this: cry, cough, cry, hack, cough, and cry some more until mommy or daddy ask if you're all right and then you quickly stop crying and point to the cookie your big sister is currently devouring. Yeah, he did that. But we didn't give in. We're the grown-ups. We stuck to our guns. Patrick just told him he was all done and took him out of the high chair and we didn't give in. And we've been doing that more often and what do you know? It's actually working. Except for when you go to Mission Burrito and he charms everyone in the place and you feel like an awesome mom and are so proud of yourself, until he throws himself down on the ground right in front of the door because he doesn't want to leave. I was a bit surprised myself, you'd almost think I have never had a child before. I promise you the third makes you feel like they're your first. Overwhelmed, blind-sided, and clueless. Yes, that about sums it up.

I'll leave you with these pictures of Reed and the stinker that he is (was), and granted the pictures are from February, but I think you'll get the idea. And please take note of the blue lollipop, nonetheless. Proof once again of the third born getting a staining, choking hazard because all the bigger kids had one.

Victorious Reed enjoying his lollipop after throwing a tantrum, and thus making Mommy concede.

Blurry, but adorable. Can you see why I give in?

Yes, I am Reed Stinker Wimberly, nice to make your acquaintance.

  

If this isn't a stinker face, then I don't know what is.

Here's my angelic face. Are you happy now?

Mom, are you done? Seriously, give me a break. I am tired of this and I want to go get into something else to make your life even more crazy.

Have a great weekend, y'all!

~cheryl~

    

Who Knew?

On Wednesday mornings my girls go with a sweet friend from church to BSF. And I get to be just a mommy-of-one for a few hours. I wish I could go back in time, to when I just had Saige, and tell the "then me," to CHILL OUT.  And to just take it all in and to enjoy the simplicity of one child. And tell myself that one is SO much easier than having 3 under 5. But I guess that's why they say hindsight is 20/20.

Anyways, I usually run errands on these days since getting one child in and out of the car seems like a breeze. 

I decided to brave the Super Wal-(Freak)Mart that is north of where I live and it is a bit more ... "country," we'll say. And I absolutely love going there, honestly. People are who they are and there is not a whole lot of pretense. Especially compared to the one south of where I live, that has a bit more of a keeping up with the Jones-esque' vibe going on. 

Needless to say, I like to blend in a little more when I go to the country version, so I usually wear a t-shirt and jeans and I dressed Reed in his camo pants. So this morning, when I pulled in and parked right next to a big Dooley with a confederate flag and a license plate that said WHYTBOY, I knew we were at the right place. Oh, Texas, the red-neck land I am learning to love. When I was walking in it occurred to me that I could potentially be prejudiced against people I think are racist. That seems funny to me. Racist towards racists. I will have to delve into that a bit more and write a whole post about how we need to love them with the love of Jesus too. But for now, I am just laughing.


After getting what we needed - you know, bulk in everything - and braving the big, crazy-consumer, capitalist America-at it's-best store, we got back in the car to come go home. I was in my friends car since she drove the van to BSF, and I didn't have my usual music. So I decided to turn on the radio and surf the airwaves. Aerosmith was playing so I stopped and I listened for a little while. I was a fan back in the day so it was bringing back memories of my days in combat boots, multiple piercings and flannel. I was singing along and then I quickly snapped back into Mommyland and realized that Love in an Elevator was probably not the best choice for my son since I didn't want him growing up to act like some of the boys I dated during my grunge-rock-teen angst days. 

And I changed the station. 

Reed went absolutely berserk. Screaming "mar, mar!" 

I looked around at the imaginary passenger and thought "he can't seriously be upset about that?" 

So just to find out, I turned it back to Aerosmith. The incessant screaming stopped.

So apparently we have another 90s rocker fan in the family.

I guess he does come by it naturally since Aerosmith's greatest hits album, released in 1993, was one of his daddy's first CDs to purchase. Man, we're getting old.

Who knew ...

that Reed was such a fan ...

 of Steven Tyler? 

I do sort of see the resemblance. Don't you?

18 Reasons why Reed's so Rad

Reed running away from his sisters after taking their puzzle

Reed turned 18 months on the 18th of this month, and I remembered that I had done this one time before when Saige was 18 months old. Patrick said why don't you just say he is a 1 & 1/2 and just think of that many reasons, but that's no fun! So here are 18 reasons to love Reed.

1. He gives the best hugs ever! Seriously, this child is quite the cuddler, and this mama loves it!
2. P.a.s.s.i.o.n.a.t.e. Whoa Nelly! He gives you a run for your money, this one!
3. Can scream and throw tantrums like nobody's business - see #2
4. Says words like Dora, Boots and Backpack and he'll hand you the remote and say Dora and see #3 when you don't turn it on
5. Just like his big sister Saige did, he does the River Dance when he gets excited. It is quite a sight to behold.
6. And although I have made him out to sound like a girl, I assure you he is ALL boy
7. He loves cars and trucks and makes all the appropriate sound effects
8. Loves to "help" Daddy in the garage
9. Has grunted like a cave man from a very young age
10. Even when he is wearing a princess tiara and necklaces, he will ROAR like a lion and chase after the girls
11. He can already take out Meadow (he is just 3 pounds shy of her) and is trying to take out Saige
12. Has to always have a "nack" in his hand and if you tell him "no, we have to wait til lunch," he will pull #3 on you
13. He has the most gorgeous blue eyes you have ever seen
14. He throws his head back when he laughs and is quite the ham
15. He keeps us on our toes and has added so much joy to our family
16. He is pretty fearless and will run head first into many things, which include, but are not limited to: the couch, the grass, a pile of leaves, the ocean, and my arms - see #1 and of course is my personal favorite.
17. He loves to be tickled and has a fantastic belly laugh
18. He melts my heart with every "Mama" that comes out his sweet mouth, even when he is a stinker half the time.  :)

We love you, Reed and are so blessed to have you a part of our family!

~cheryl~