Talking Dirty

When you become a parent something happens. Yes, you get an adorable little creature to dote on and nothing compares to the unconditional love that comes your way. But there's something else...

No subject is out of bounds anymore. In fact, you'll find yourself delighting in conversation solely surrounding potty training and the inevitable 'boo boos' (yes, another new term to add to your hypothetical parenting dictionary) along the way. Just the other day I had a one hour conversation to a good friend of mine on the subject of CONSTIPATION. Her child hadn't 'gone' for a whole week and understandably she was beginning to worry.

'Grab the prunes' you may say - which in theory is a brilliant piece of advice. But this little girl is luxuriating in her 'terrible twos' stage, and has been delighting in the constant power struggles you face on a day to day basis. 'No prunes, yucky prunes'. Ok, Plan B. Up the fruit, veges and cereal. 'Yucky fruit, veges and cereal' was the reply. So now my poor friend is not only worried about constipation but also STARVATION! It seems parenthood is also a one way ticket to a life time of worry! Vomiting, diarrhoea and the arty things kiddies do with both are also high on the agenda (they give Picasso's works a run for their money).

No subject is too disgusting or vulgar that it can't be discussed at length over a hot cup of coffee and gooey chocolate cake. So, embrace the new you and talk dirty to your hearts content, knowing that somewhere in the world, even in your neighbourhood, there are hundreds of mums (and the odd stay at home dad) discussing the finery's of life on the edge of sanity.

A Day With Daddy, aka The Patience Battle

It's just going into summer here in New Zealand, and I play club cricket every Saturday. There was no game this weekend, so Kate and I took the opportunity to switch places for the day - she headed off to town, and I spent the day with Joey.

I always have a blast with one-on-one time with my wee boy - it gives us a chance to catch up and reconnect after being away from each other all day during the week, and I know Kate appreciates the chance to get some time to herself!

Joey and I have a lot of fun together - he loves getting out and about, and the more boisterous the play the better. But it's a huge challenge at the moment, too. Joey is 2 years/3 months old, and he's very much in the 'terrible-two' phase of life.

Particularly, he's really struggling to understand the idea of patience - he just can't grasp that sometimes you need to wait before something happens! This could be anything - getting a cracker from the cupboard, putting his shoes on for him when we're getting ready to go somewhere, or holding a pile of stones for him while he grabs another 5. He's getting there, but I don't think he understands the concept yet - and it's making for some interesting little battles.

Sometimes - and it's not all the time, but it's regularly enough - all I need to say is a gentle 'Just wait, Joey, we'll do such-and-such in a moment, when we've finished this', and his face just changes. His bottom lip drops, his eyes well up, and he just explodes into a teary mess. It's actually extremely cute - the expression on his little face is priceless :) But, the cute face doesn't actually help solve the issue...

I never know what the right thing to do is - tough out an argument until the bitter end, hoping the lesson gets across even if he's a sobbing mess...or just hurry up and give him what he wants immediately, and move on so he doesn't get upset, hoping that he'll understand eventually.

Is there even a right answer? I guess every kid is different, so probably not :)

Very keen to hear any similar experiences you've had, though, and how you've dealt with them!

About the Nappy Brains

When we had our first child (back in August 2007) we very quickly discovered that nothing can prepare you for having a baby, or for being parents.

Now our second baby is one the way, and will arrive just as our son hits the peak of his terrible two's. No, we did not think of this when we planned the pregnancy. Obviously.

This blog is part-therapy for ourselves (must.get.it.out!), and part what-we've-learned-so-far for you to glean information from. So, please interact with us - tell us if something you've read here has helped you, or if there's a piece of advice you can offer us. Believe us when we say we're all ears!

We hope you're enjoying reading our blog :)

Yours in insanit...err...parenthood,
Israel and Kate.