Old Blog Posts: July 2007

There is a very strong chance that at some point in our visit, you will find yourself babysitting Will.  This is because it is quite likely that Nic and I will arrive in town, dump him on the nearest willing family member, and go off cavorting around town.  Should you find yourself in that situation, here are a few things that you might find useful.

Food

Will is a very good eater.  It is probably my one success as a mother.  He will eat almost anything.  In fact, I can’t think of anything that he won’t eat.  You might have to offer it to him two or three times, but he’ll eat it.

There are, however, some things that he particularly enjoys eating.  This is a fun thing to know, because foods that Will likes usually get a happy food dance out of him.  It’s adorable.  And there are some foods that he loves so much that he’ll eat them long past the point of being full, and it’s hilarious to watch the faces he makes as he tried to fit one more bite of salmon in his stomach.

Foods that warrant a happy food dance:

salmon, mac’n’cheese, grilled cheese, pasta, basically any food that involves cheese, fruit salad, eggo waffles with peanut butter, cheezits, swedish fish (yes, the candy…yes, I’m a bad mom), Milano cookies, and a bunch of other things that I have forgotten to list.

Will is big on using his own fork/spoon lately…but he has limited success.  He’s not a bib wearer, so it’s easier to strip him down before a meal or to have another outfit at the ready.

Observing

Will loves to tell you all about the things he sees.  A lot of the time this involves signs, so if you don’t understand what he’s signing, just very enthusiastically say “yeah, buddy–I see it!  great signing!”  Sometimes he will be shouting “bla!” “bla!” and I will be all “hmm–no balloons or balls around here, buddy–I don’t know what you’re talking about” only to see it a second later.  He’s almost always right, so now I try to look very hard for what he’s talking or signing about.  Last night, for example, Nic was giving Will animal crackers, and Will started signing what Nic thought was chicken.  Nic laughed and said, “no chickens here, buddy” only to realize a minute later that Will had been signing “gorilla” (they’re very close) and talking about the pictures of the gorilla he’d seen on the animal cracker package.

Consider yourself warned

If you tell Will no, there is a chance that he might pull your hair or bite you.  This is a recent development and one we’re working to correct.  If he does, say “no” and put him in The Naughty Corner.  Any corner will do.  Say “naughty corner” in a stern voice, and place him in the corner.  If he’s really worked up, he might fight it.  Hold him in the corner until he accepts that he’s going to stay in there for the rest of his life.  Once he gives signs of having his will broken, you can say “you can come out now.”  He then has to give a hug to say sorry.  If he keeps shouting/biting/hitting/pulling hair, he probably needs some quiet time.  Sometimes he gets a little worked up and needs some time to decompress.  You can put him in his pack’n’play with his books and he might holler at you for a minute or two, but odds are good that he’ll just read his books happily and quietly for a while before shouting that it’s time to come out.

Will loves to unload dishwashers, and doesn’t understand the difference between clean dishes and dirty dishes.  He knows how to unlock and open the lever style dishwasher doors…so prepare to say “no” and stick him in the naughty corner if he discovers yours.

Books…Will loves books!  He loves to look at books, loves to be read to…but he still loves to destroy books.  Don’t trust him alone with anything other than a board book.

Will is a climber.  He’ll climb on top of tables, sofas, endtables, chairs…if he can get up onto it, he will.  We find the best way to keep him off of a surface is to keep everything off of it.  If there’s something up there, he’s going to want to check it out.  Watch him like a hawk…he’s good at getting up, but he’ll generally shout to have someone get him down.

The Wiggles

Will loves The Wiggles.  We’ll probably buy a DVD before we come for any babysitting emergencies.  If Will gets worked up, you can sit with him on the sofa and watch The Wiggles for a while.  When I’m working, Nic sometimes calls on “wiggly naps”–he and Will watch The Wiggles, snuggle on the sofa, and fall asleep.  Will is pretty routine oriented, and is very good about taking naps by just going into his crib at naptime fully awake for me, but a change of location/caregiver could easily upset the precious balance.  You are welcome to do whatever you like in that situation (letting him cry in his crib is always an option), but if you want to, you can always call on a “wiggly nap” to ease him into sleep.

Music

Will loves music!  Play some good music and you’ll find a happy dancer on your hands!

Helper

Will loves to sweep and mop.  He also likes to help by taking everything in your garbage out of your garbage.  Probably a good idea to move your garbage under the sink or behind a closed door (hint:  he can open closet doors).

Diaper Changes

These have the potential to be an epic battle.  Lately, though, they’ve been turning around.  We find that singing “if you’re happy and you know it” or “pat-a-cake” turns a diaper change into a pleasant experience with a willing subject.  Otherwise, it’s a good idea to have two people–one to hold him down and watch those hands–he loves to grab his willy…even if it’s covered in poo.

Sunscreen

Will has a good tan going (and you’ll see how blonde he’s become), but we are COMPLETELY ANAL about putting sunscreen on the scars on his face.  The one near his eye and the one on his forehead MUST have sunscreen on them if he’s going to go outside.  Even if it’s just to walk to the mailbox at 6pm, he’s gotta have sunscreen on his scars if he goes outdoors.   I have a little chapstick sunscreen thing that makes it easy…and he knows the routine, so he’s very good about having it applied.

Injury

Will falls down all the time.  We don’t make a big deal about it.  We always say “crash!” “boom!” or something positive, and so he only cries when it really hurts (or if he’s embarrassed).  Don’t feel badly if he scrapes his knees–he does that all the time.  And if he really gets injured, don’t worry.  God knows we’ve already taken him to the ER twice.  He’s a tough kid to keep out of harm’s way.  We won’t be mad if you break him a little.  That said, you gotta watch him like a hawk.  He’s sneaky and smart and hell-bent on killing himself.

Licky Face

One of Will’s most favorite of games is to lick you in the face.  It means you’re part of the tribe.  It’s sick, but it comes with love.  He loves it if you squeal and act like his licks are as gross as they are.  He’ll probably do it again and then you’ll be playing Licky Face forever.

That’s it for now…I’ll add more as I think of it.