You Don't Need To Check Your E-Mail!

If I've never mentioned it before I must say that my sweet little boy is a very ornery little boy, and I LOVE IT! Ryan is starting to learn that some things are his and some things are not. For a while he has known what drawer in the kitchen is his and what cabinet doors he can open.

It was actually pretty amazing. I set aside a drawer just for him and one day I showed it to him. He has always gone back to that drawer since. Of course now he is enjoying "pushing the limits", if you will. He has found other drawers that he can open, and he mostly enjoys the squeak they make when opened and closed in a quick, jerky fashion. He has also learned that the doors of the cabinet that is allowed can be hit hard against the refrigerator or the stove which makes another *lovely* sound.

He is stong enough that he could probably do some damage, so we've introduced a new word, "no". This isn't the only, nor even the first, time he's been introduced to the word. We try not to use it much, though. We don't want him to think his first name is "NoNo". In most situations we just remove him from the temptation and distract with something else. However, there are times when his cute little persistence warrants the use of the word no. He is beginning to understand it's meaning, and he is also beginning to challenge it's worth. Today was the first day in which I had to actually apply a little discipline. I'm really sold on the "Love and Logic" form of discipline and I intend to use it to the best of my ability and in the areas it works best for our family. (Grandparents beware: there is a book about grandparenting with love and logic. It could possibly show up on your doorstep someday!) Today he continued to bang the cabinet doors despite the "no", so off to his crib he went to "think about it". Yes...he screamed. No...he wasn't hurt. Yes...I was able to finish warming his bottle. No...he didn't stay there more than a minute or so, but I'm sure he thought it was next to eternity.

I must confess I just got off a bit from my original thought. So on to the picture. One of the objects in our house that does not belong to Ryan is my computer. He knows this, but he likes to make sure he still isn't allowed to check his e-mail from time to time. He casually walks up to the computer and begins to look around as his tiny little hand begins making its way toward the forbidden machine. He waits until he's been caught. That's when the game begins. I say, "Hey! You don't need to check your e-mail." A great big sheepish grin crosses his face and sometimes a little giggle bursts forth. His curious little hand begins to move in a haphazard furry closer towards the computer until he is snatched up into the air and smothered with kisses. It's our game!

Today we actually let him "check his e-mail" on a broken machine. He thought it was great!


A Side Note:
I put Ryan on the scale today. We have a digital scale that I ought to frequent more often, but I usually dislike it's opinion of what I weigh. Anyway...I put Ryan on the scale. He weighed 18 pounds 0 ounces. And...no...there is no way I'm sharing what it said about me!