sorry long silence...

It's seems like it's been ages since I last blogged. I don't know what to say about it, except for the usual litany of excuses: I've been busy with Christmas shopping; Zoey's been staying up too late; I've had writer's block; there's just not been that much going on; my cable modem keeps going out; my aunt, who'd been living with my parents, passed away; ummm...I've been watching too much TV...

Okay, so, whatever, silence. I've been spending most of my free time Christmas shopping, dropping Zoey off at my parents when I can because she's not so easy to go shopping with right now. She doesn't like to sit in the cart, but when I let her down, she runs away from me. It really distracts from the shopping. Luckily for her, it's also really cute, so I can't get too mad. I do get a little mad, though.

Toddlers are a challenge. They are pure id, all "want this" and "do this," always pushing boundaries. Now is the time when it's super important to set boundaries, if only in theory. Because even though they might understand the theory (even if only the tiniest little bit), they'll still want to test it. So you tell them they can't do something, like play with the knobs on the oven, stand up on the table, or jump in the bathroom, and they do it anyway. It becomes a kind of seesaw. I say, "get down off the table, Zoey;" she just looks at me and continues climbing up. I repeat "Get down," more sternly; she pauses, and looks at me...then stands up on the table. In an even louder voice, I say "Get...Down!" and she looks at me and smiles...and then gets down.

Less than a minute later, we repeat the entire scene. We do this two or three times, and then I play the distraction game where I find something else for her to be interested in, like drawing with her crayons or dancing to her music. I wonder if she'll even obey my orders or if I'll be the mother of one of those out-of-control kids running around a restaurant. I think she'll be okay. I'm staying positive.