Smart Little Boy

Caden loves his ABC book because he can "read" it himself. ;) He has been able to identify all of the letters a few times. Tonight wasn't his best attempt but he still did very well, especially for being only 2. Jeff and I are very proud of our little boy.

The Wonderful World of Science

We took Caden to the Science Museum today and he loved it. Jeff and I were a little bored at times, but Caden had fun and that was the important thing! And Jeff did find some things that interested him- sticking his face in a board of pins (you can see Caden left some handprints in it) and plowing/planting fields on a computer game. :) Caden got to play in water, learn about bugs (he had a great conversation with a lady at a booth there about bugs), play music, draw, ride a tractor... Caden even got to see a big beaver mascot. It was cute- he talked to him and everything. He would say "Cember (meaning December) Marie all gone". I'm not too sure why the beaver needed to know that but Caden felt the need to share it. He has been missing December a lot lately. Every day he says "Auntie Kristin California. Cember Marie California. Caden California too". Poor little guy. He has his church friends and he has playground friends too which is wonderful. He also has been meeting up with a little boy his age named Pierce. My friend, Anna, babysits him. Caden was talking about him a lot today too. But not nearly as much as his sweet cousin. Jeff and I need to get a better webcam so Caden can see December and Kristin.

As you can see I am HUGE. :) Our little baby should come any day now, my due date being just a week and a half away. Today would be a great day for the baby to come. Do you suppose it will happen? ;) I have an ultrasound on Tuesday for sizing, and if this little one is as big as Caden my doctor thinks a C-section might be best. I hope we don't have to go down that road again but we'll see. I'll keep you posted...

And as for Caden's behaviour- he is back to his old self and Jeff and I are SO SO thankful. :) He is napping and sleeping again, and he hasn't had any more tantrums. He just needs his door left open and reassurance that he can go to the hospital when his baby sister is born. This morning he woke up at 8:00 and was in tears because he thought we had left. The poor little guy is probably not going to like having a baby in the house, but we'll get through it. That's if the baby DOES come, and at this point I feel like there's no end in site... :S

Now we feel bad...

So I think I found out why Caden is acting this way (refusing to nap or go to bed, wanting the door open, etc.). I put him down for his nap after lunch and shut his door and he cried and screamed. I just sat at the table which isn't far from his room and listened to him for a little while. He would say "Mommy right back. Mommy right back. Caden go hospital too". This broke my heart. Caden is worried that Jeff and I are going to leave him. I've been telling him that I have to go to the hospital for a few days, and when I look back I realize that his poor sleeping habits began when I first told him I would be leaving. Caden is a smart little guy- really smart for his age and he's especially good at remembering things. So I feel bad for punishing him at times and yelling at him when all I had to do was tell him "Mommy's here" and cuddle him a bit. That was all I had to do to get him to sleep, and I put a baby gate in front of his door and left the door open so he wouldn't feel shut in. All his toys are still out in the main area so he won't throw them and get too distracted to sleep. Let's see if this works. This is one of those days that I feel like a bad Mom, but I know there will be many more. It's not always easy. OK, now I need a nap! ;)

I spoke too soon...

It's funny in some ways but in other ways it isn't... The day after I put up the post of how impressed I was with Caden's good behaviour, he changed. He has become a naughty little boy, and I'm not joking. Sometimes it feels like his temper tantrums are endless. I know this can be expected, but it doesn't make it any easier. He isn't bad all the time, but the last week and a half it feels like he's bad most of the time. He has decided that he doesn't need to nap and when we put him in his room he screams and screams and completely trashes his room. Last night, for example, Caden would not go to sleep. The only way we could get him to stay in his room and rest his vocal cords and our ears from his screams was to leave his door open. He didn't get to sleep until well after 10:00. His Grampie came over for a quick visit and, because Caden's door we open, he could hear Grampie and of course had to see him. Then it took him forever to go sleep. Once he got to sleep we thought all was well, but it wasn't. Caden got up at 2:30 and wanted to play. I put him back to bed, and he came out again at 3:30. So I shut his door and he screamed from 3:30 to 5:30. He could have screamed longer but I fell asleep at 5:30, only to wake up at 6:30 to Caden saying he wanted to play. I know he's been awake since 3:30. His room was completely trashed, his bed was covered with toys and books, all the stuffed animals were taken out of his closet... Jeff and I were not happy.

So at 6:40 this morning I packed up my keyboard to make space for Caden's toys in the hallway. I took almost all his toys out of his room and I also took all his books and put them in our room. I am done with leaving the door open and I am done bargaining with my 2 year-old. I just hope we can get him back on a schedule, especially since this baby is due any day now.

I just took this picture of Caden. Do you believe that this sweet little boy can be so bad? ;)

Some good news is that Jeff and I were able to buy a new van. So now I have wheels and it really does help. I am able to go to my Mom's-of-Preschoolers group in Cochrane and see my friends there, and I'll be able to go visit people in the day now which is great. My best friend, Cheryl, will be living only about 30 minutes from me at the end of the month, so I'll be able to see her too. She came over for a visit last night which was great, especially since I was worn out from Caden. ;) And now Jeff won't have so many errands because I can do them. I know he'll like that. And Caden LOVES the van. He says "My van!". Taking him for a ride is one sure way for him to be tantrum-free. :)

Farewell Dear Friend ;)

The day after Caden turned 2 (yesterday in other words *smiles*) I thought I'd try to take Caden's beloved "sookie" away. In the morning I asked him if he wanted to throw his sookie away and he said "OK". I didn't really throw anything away, but I did hide both of his sookies in his sock drawer. When nap time came and Caden asked for his sookie I said it was "all gone". He said, "Find it. Diaper bag? Under pillow?". When I told him his sookie wasn't in any of those places he said "Garbage" and went to sleep! His nap that day was significantly shorter than usual, however, but he did great at bedtime, his nap today, and bedtime tonght. Caden's behaviour impresses me more and more every day. Let's just see how long it lasts...!

Birthday Fun

As you can tell from the video, Caden had fun at his Grampie and Grammie's house last evening. :) He loves playing anything with his Daddy! Jeff was blowing up balloons and letting them go- Caden wanted him to do it over and over. We love his laugh! Without a doubt, Caden had a great birthday. Thanks to everyone who helped us celebrate (both those who were able to be here and those who were not). :)

Another Year Gone By

Every year on Caden's birthday I take a picture of him around the time he was born. It's amazing how quickly your little one changes...

Birthday Party #2 :)

Caden had a great time at his Grammie's house last night. :) Mike, Kim, Rebekah, Spencer, Matt, Tarena and Debbie were all there, and Caden loved to see them. Mike and Kim got Caden a dump truck with blocks in the back and that seemed to be his favourite toy of the night. He even slept with the truck (I took it away once he was asleep)!

Debbie (Caden's Grammie) got Caden an icecream cake and she had a special candle for it. The candle was shaped like a 2 and was actually a sparkler. When she lit it the face on Caden was priceless. He was terrified! But he got used to the candle very quickly. :) And he LOVED the cake.

When we got home I gave Caden a bath and Jeff got him ready for bed. Matt, Tarena, Rebekah and Spencer had all come over to our place, and Caden was determined to see his Uncle Matt. He was naked because he had just come out of the tub, but he didn't care. He wouldn't even let Jeff towel him off (he was crying and throwing a fit) because he had to see Uncle Matt. He'd say "I see Uncle Matt!". So Jeff let a naked Caden see his Uncle, and then that naked Caden decided he had to get in his new car for the hundredth time that day! I couldn't help but get a picture. :)

Oh, and don't you like Caden's new suspenders from his Grammie Aleta? We think he looks very handsome! :)

Birthday Boy Cont'd :)

I took this video this morning (shortly after Caden saw his new car for the first time).

Birthday Boy!

As you can see from the pictures, one of Caden's birthday presents was a peddle car. He LOVES it! Right now he is playing with it, and he has his sippy cup tucked neatly in the back. :) We let Caden have this gift before Jeff left for work this morning, and he's been playing with it almost constantly. He had his nap, woke up, and went straight for the car! We're glad he likes it.

Jeff will be home soon and in a bit we're going over to Grammie and Grampie's house for supper. We'll also let Caden open the rest of his presents soon. I can't believe he's 2 today.. Where has the time gone?!

Birthday Party #1!

We had a birthday party for Caden today with some of his friends from church, and he had such a great time! He loved having Hunter, Henry, Hannah, and little Catie all here, and their parents too. He also loved having his Auntie Holly and his Uncle Nathan (who Caden is crazy about) over to visit. :) The only young friend of Caden that we were missing was his cousin, December, who is in California now. :( Caden talks about her a lot..

We played outside with balls that were in a waterless splash pool for a bit and blew bubbles, and then we had supper, cake and opened the presents that people generously brought for Caden. Caden LOVED his gifts. He played and played right until bed, and I know he's going to have fun tomorrow playing with his new toys. His real birthday is tomorrow so we are going over to Grammie and Grampie's house to have supper with family. Caden will love that too. Jeff and I will give him his presents from us tomorrow. We got him a special gift that we know he'll love... I'll show you when I do the next post. :)