When to start??

When to start??
(January 2010)

So Paul and I have found ourselves with a little bit of a dilemma. My house is a haven for anything technology. I myself was a computer/networking and web design teacher for almost 10 years. My husband works in the technology industry as well. Some people will even call me a "gadget queen" so it isn't a surprise that Jacob has started to notice all of the technology in our home and wants to use it.

TV is a big part of my life, I am sorry to say that I love to watch TV. But other than a few months after Andrew was born, I try very hard to stick to a schedule with Jacob so that his TV watching is limited. So I am not really worried about TV. What I am worried about is computer games. I obviously blog and have email that I like to check, I also like to keep up to speed with things going on in the world. Recently Jacob has been interested in my laptop so I have tried to find a few "toddler friendly" websites out there to help him with his ABC's and 123's as well as colors and shapes. There is a website called "Zoodles" that is great. It goes out and searches the internet for you and finds games based on your childs age and compiles them in an easy to use and AD FREE environment. Jacob loves to play along with me and is doing great with the matching and colors/shape games.

My dilemma is that now that is ALL he wants to do. I know that this will be a phase, like most things with him. He tends to play the heck out of things for awhile and them will drop them like yesterdays news the next. So I am not really worried about this being a long term problem, I just worry that I shouldn't have introduced it so soon. When should you start learning games online?? Since he is only sitting behind a computer screen for educational purposes maybe 30-45 minutes a day is that OK?? I guess each parent will probably answer this differently...I am sure I could have some parents that are hardcore NO tv or computer , and some that are like me and think "everything in moderation"......

But like most parents of first borns you have trial and error, if it turns out that this was a HORRIBLE mistake, the spring is just around the corner and Jacob will be outside 80% of his day so I will slowly die off like everything else he obsesses over!

wishing it away....

Wishing it away....


This week was a tough week for me. Paul was gone all week for training and I was left for the first time since Andrew was born with two kids for a whole week. But to make the situation worse both of my kids came down with a pretty nasty cold. One that is still, 9 days later, going strong. Most days were spent dealing with a very very cranky 2 1/2 year old who didn't want to play, eat, sleep, or even watch TV. All he wanted to do was complain and throw toys, make a mess, and be disagreeable. Then to top it off Andrew being only 5 months old gets the same cold. But unlike Jacob he can't blow his nose, consciously clear his throat/cough, or tell me what is wrong.

Since just after Jacob was born in 2007 the CDC has removed all medicine for any child under the age of 4 (it used to be 2) so any sort of medicinal help for the symptoms was not happening. Tylenol was used during the first stages of the cold when Jacob had a slight fever, and of course vicks, and vaporizers have been running nonstop for the past week and a half.

I found myself wishing away the week, and honestly wishing away their childhoods. I found myself alone unable to ask for help (for fear of infecting other people), and wishing for anything that Jacob was old enough to be given medicine, and that Andrew was old enough to be able to at least blow his nose or at least talk and tell me what is wrong and to understand what is happening to him when he can't breathe!

What I wouldn't give for them to be feeling better, and for this cold to be gone and for me to be able to get more than an hour of sleep at a time during the night without having to wrangle those God forsaken nose aspirators into my babies nose or find that the 3rd box of kleenex was gone because of how often Jacob needed to blow his nose. I had finally gotten to the end of my rope when I found myself with two sleeping children and a small amount of time to myself. I decided to start reading the other blogs I follow and I ran across a post that suddenly made my life a lot less crazy and frustrating.

MckMama is a great blog if you have never read it, she is very well written and has a lot of really great posts. When I was reading this particular post I realized that she is soooo right. I have been so wrapped up in my "misery" that I wasn't looking at the bigger picture. This week wasn't about just my boys feeling bad and being frustrating. As I took a step back and thought about my week I realized that it wasn't just about the tantrums, and the lack of sleep. But during this week I also gave my boys 500+ kisses (no joke), I rocked them to sleep, I kissed boo-boos, I sssshhh'ed them as they fell asleep, and I was there with hugs and a smile every time they woke up (even if it was for the 10th time that night). I was their "one and only", they were sick and they needed me. They needed me more than I needed sleep, or time alone, or another person to help.

I was wishing away the week and years, and for what?? For maybe a two week cold? I suddenly felt so foolish and realized that although the cold would be much easier to weather if they were older, by having them old I would miss so much more, and who knows how long they will "need me". There is nothing I love more than my kids and their kisses, hugs, "I love you's" and smiles. It seems like I have already blinked and found myself with a 2 1/2 year old and a 5 month old. What I wouldn't give to be able to keep them small and innocent. When they are older they won't need my kisses on their "boo boo's" or need rocked to sleep when they are 15 or 20 years old. They will be obnoxious teenagers who "know it all" and don't need me (or think they need me) anymore.

I realized right then that I can't keep focusing on the bad parts of my week and I needed to be thankful for the moments I do have with my children. And as MckMama said I will not wish away their young years, always hoping to get more sleep, movies watched, laundry done, house cleaned. "I will relish each kiss, hug and song. I will leave their childhood behind with no regrets, no "I love you" unsaid, no cheek unkissed, no request to "Cuddle wif' me!" turned down.

I am gonna miss this.....


(thank you MckMama for such as inspiring post, I hope you don't mind that I quoted you in my post!)