Rylee was the best baby a parent could ask for and has grown to be an equally amazing child. She is quiet, well-mannered, obedient, and a joy to be around. She is so easy (and Fun!) to take places and always has been. I would have had 4 kids just like her if I got to choose their disposition.
Now, Wyatt on the other hand....well, as I said, he's a boy! And not only that, but he is the son of a man who got in trouble a lot as a youngster. From about 2 weeks old, I knew we had a long road ahead of us with this child. Wyatt's whole first year consisted of crying, crying and more crying. Luckily he was a good sleeper at least. His past 5 months since he has been mobile have been full of "get down", "stay out of there", "NO!", "STOP!", etc. I don't even remember a single day that I didn't have to yell at him for something. The worst part is, he doesn't seem to care when he is getting yelled at, as he continues to do whatever he shouldn't be doing....and with a dimple-to-dimple smile that would melt anyone else's heart. He has an "I'm cute, I'll get away with everything" attitude.....how do I break that now before it's too late?!?!?! Rylee only sat in "time-out" twice in her life, but I see Wyatt spending a lot of time there real soon (although I have a feeling it won't work on him).
Before Wyatt was born, James and I thought we were all-star parents and had all the answers to everything parent related. As it turns out, we just had an unusually good child who made parenting super easy. There are still some things I swear by when it comes to parenting, but mostly I have learned that there is so much truth to every child being different and needing different parenting tactics. To give you specifics on just how different my children are:
The Christmas tree:
Rylee: puts all the ornaments on (and never touched them at Wyatt's age)
Wyatt: takes all the ornaments off
The produce isle of the grocery store:
Rylee: helps me put the apples into the plastic bag
Wyatt: finds the most expensive apple, grabs it off the shelf and takes a large bite out of it
Vocabulary at 18 months:
Rylee: 50+ words (I wrote them all down on her 18 month birthday) and easy to communicate with
Wyatt: 3 words...and he doesn't use them regularly...which makes all his crying that much harder on us.
Cupboards:
Rylee: Never opened the doors, didn't have to child lock anything
Wyatt: Has opened every single door/drawer and makes cleaning house like eating Oreos while brushing your teeth! (but I still refuse to child lock my house)
Leaving to go "bye bye":
Rylee: Straight to the van
Wyatt: Straight to the Gator or lawn tractor and if you don't let him climb up and drive them, you have a screaming, kicking, back-arching kid to wrestle into his car seat.
Library:
Rylee: sits quietly in the designated area
Wyatt: Runs, squeals, pulls random books from shelves...5 at a time. Oh, and plays with the fire extinguisher that is located just inches off the floor.
Play Place at the mall:
Rylee: Plays on the equipment
Wyatt: Runs out of the play area and makes me chase him
Park playground:
Rylee: stays mostly on the ground and "safe" equipment
Wyatt: climbs to the tallest point and leans out through the rails. (I used to enjoy a relaxing outing to the park for Rylee to play...now it requires me to wear running shoe, climb ladders, crawl through tunnels, etc. to make sure Wyatt doesn't fall or get stuck).
Cries per day:
Rylee: 0-1, only when she gets hurt or does something she knows she shouldn't have -- she doesn't like to disappoint adults. She has never been much of a crier.
Wyatt: 12+, approximately once an hour every hour that he is awake. He cries when he gets hurt (which is a lot because he's a boy), cries when he can't have something or is taken away from something he was doing.
Naps per day:
Rylee: 0 (It was a sad say when this went from 1 to 0)
Wyatt: 2 (1 because he needs it and 1 because I need him contained to his crib for a little bit)
Mommy: 1. What? Is something wrong here??
I'm very glad that Rylee was born first, because she may not have even been a thought if Wyatt came along first. We didn't know what gender Rylee would be until she was born....and when I was told "its a girl", I was a little taken back...."what the heck am I supposed to do with a girl??" was my first thought. James really wanted a boy and I was just sure we were having a boy. But, I wouldn't send her back (or to the Indians, which is what she sometimes wants to do with her brother). She is my best friend and I love that she likes lots of girly things...jewelry, painting her nails, princesses, dance, etc. I didn't try at all to make her girly, and it's very interesting to watch each of my kids be interested in their traditional gender toys. On Rylee's first birthday she received her first baby doll...it came with a bottle and she knew exactly what to do with it. She held the doll like one would hold a baby and she put the bottle up to it's mouth before anyone showed her that's what it was for. I was shocked! From that day on, she has preferred all things girly.
Another great thing about having my girl first, is that she is very motherly and protective of her baby brother. I'm sure most older siblings are protective of their babies, but many of the things she does with him display her "maternal instincts" and it just melts my heart...not to mention, makes her a big help! Speaking of help....I don't remember ever helping my mom with anything, sadly, but Rylee offers to help me with anything and everything all day long (except pick up toys). And she always wants to bake, which she did NOT get from me!!
Wyatt, if I haven't mentioned yet, is all boy! He loves toys with wheels and gets super excited when he sees tractors or construction equipment in action. I have even started hearing him make "vroom" noises as he plays with his tractors. I know I mentioned in another post or a Facebook status that he likes to make "fart noises"....he also gives me the tongue out, slobbery, fart noise (you know the one) when I tell him to stop doing something that he has no plans of stopping. BOYS!! I don't know why I have to be punished for my husbands naughtiness as a child....I was an angel like Rylee...so not fair!
Wyatt does test my patience and makes me want to drink an entire bottle of wine, but he also has a sweetness to him that I hope will last forever. I know there is a special bond between mothers and sons and I already feel that with Wyatt (even though he's a daddy's boy right now). I feel really bad for my future daughter-in-law because I will be overly protective of him and not happy when she comes between us. A former co-worker of mine, who had all boys at the time, said she wasn't looking forward to dealing with daughter-in-laws someday and now I understand what she meant.
How about potty-training a boy?? I'm so dreading that! Even though Rylee was fairly easy (didn't seem like it at the time), potty-training has been my least favorite parenting activity so far. When I found out I was having a boy, I was afraid of getting peed on....I've lucked out so far, but would take getting peed on over potty-training any day! I may have to enroll him in daycare just so someone else can train him ;)
No matter their dispositions, both of my kiddos are blessings and I feel so lucky to have them. I think most people's dream is to have at least one of each gender....it was mine. I wouldn't have minded having 2 of the same gender either though because I love the special bond between brothers or sisters that I didn't experience having had a brother. I once read that the most special gift you can give a child is a sibling. I didn't grow up an only child, so I don't have that to compare it to, but siblings share something very special that I feel so fortunate to have been able to give my children. They are already growing a bond that is so amazing to watch (as they are fighting right now, haha).
I love my little family!!! (Even Wyatt who has been pounding on my keyboard as I've been typing). And with that, here is the Christmas card photo I took of them this year....this is by far my favorite picture yet! I just can't stop looking at it :)
I realize this may have been better in the snow...but I just couldn't pass up a 60 degree day...and they loved being pulled through the grass just the same :)
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