every captive thought

Yall, I'm beat. When Brad got home from work today I was about to fall asleep on the couch while feeding Jude and James was in the kitchen "doing the dishes"...which really means he was just getting completely soaked. But by that point in my day, I really wouldn't have cared if he was outside rolling around in mud. Then I had to put up the gate to fix dinner in peace. James didn't like that so much and tried to breach the perimeter. But border control is pretty tight around here. I sent him to go play trucks. We've been struggling yesterday and today with naptime and bedtime. James has been so good about staying in bed and not getting out until I come in and get him until yesterday. I guess the twos are finally rearing it's ugly head. I thought I might come through unscathed, but the amount of fit throwing, foot stomping, and defiance I've seen today have proven otherwise. He refused to stay in bed tonight which led to this... So sad. Jude and I...

Today was not an easy day to be a mom for me. Have you ever had one of those days? It was just difficult from beginning to end. James, who is generally very compliant, is pushing the limits every chance he gets. And to be honest, we let him get away with way too much. And to be brutally honest...it's because it is just easier. It's easier to not make him obey. It's easier to just pick up the toys myself. It's easier to let him decide he doesn't want to eat dinner. It's easier to let him torture the poor dog. But I am not doing him any favors. He sat in his chair tonight for well over an hour, crying his eyes out, not eating his dinner. It didn't end well. He was punished and is now in bed with an empty tummy. That is hard on a mommy's heart. I know he is not going to starve and will eat a great breakfast in the morning though. I know that the Lord is teaching James about Himself through Brad and I. That is weighty. And daunting at times....

Last Sunday night Brad and I decided that we would begin the transition for James from the crib to his big boy bed. We've had the bed set up for awhile now and have talked to James a lot about his big boy bed. So I finally put the bedding on it and he seemed really pumped. I thought, "this is going to be a breeze!". I've watched Super Nanny and had a plan. We would say prayers, kiss, hug, put him in his new bed and leave. Knowing he would get right out we decided to leave him in there for 20 minutes before we went back in...hoping he would get tired and go get in bed and go to sleep. If that didn't work we planned to go back in 15 minutes later and do it again. We thought we were so smart. After making a mad dash out of the room we sat down on the couch with the monitor and watched him. Of course he was immediately out of bed, sobbing, knocking at the door to get out. It made me cry. Not so tough after all. After 5 minutes I looked under the door and saw...

I got an email from my sweet friend Erin yesterday regarding different discipline issues. We had our little boys about 6 weeks apart and are dealing with some of the same issues. She sent this email out to 4 or 5 of her friends and I asked her if she would mind sharing their responses with me as well as I am always game for some good mommy advice. I don't know any of the other girls that she sent this email to but she was kind enough to share their insights with me. I was struck by the similarities in all of our thoughts and ideas on discipline. But I was also pleasantly surprised to see that we all have, or are, struggling with a lot of the same things. That was so comforting to me. Here are some of the thoughts and ideas I gleaned from their emails that are helpful for me at the stage James is at: -Don't let your child know you are feeling out of control -Lots of kisses and hugs after disciplining -As for tantrums, step over them and leave, even shut the door -If he thr...