I ♥ toddlerhood

This is one of those nights where I can think of nothing except how freaking lucky I am to be Mama to my boys, and how much my kids make me laugh every single day. OMG toddlers are seriously hysterically funny, so much more so than infants.

Some random thoughts as I sit and hope that Missy will bring me a gallon of whole milk on the way to her ungodly-hours vet clinic job …

1. I am wondering if Ryan isn't going to be a hypersensitive little worrier. I can't *cough* imagine where that trait would come from (/end lie), but he's certainly exhibiting some signs. For a long time, he was terrified of this awesome pop-up book we have with piranhas and crocodiles (okay, I'll admit that I stupidly made it go CHOMP CHOMP toward the boys by opening and closing the book the first time we read it). After I left him alone with the book for a while (it's ripped to shreds now, go figure), I could see him try and summon up all the bravery he had to deal with those 2 pages, even going so far as to touch the crocs' teeth and say "tee" in a quavering, brave little voice. I could cry just typing this. My boy. ♥

Another book we read is called Llama Llama Mad at Mama, about a llama who gets bored on a shopping trip with his mom and throws a fit. Poor Ryan has started bawling each and every time I get to the page where little Llama loses it:

"Loaf of bread
and Cream of Wheat.
Llama Llama wants his treat.
It's no fun at Shop-O-Rama.
Llama Llama MAD AT MAMA!"

The lip quivers. Enormous tears fill my sweet baby's eyes. And the sobbing begins. I feel terrible when this happens! I think it might be that I start using a big dramatic voice at this part, and maybe that's too much to deal with. Who knows? Tonight he even – sob – escaped from my lap when I got to this page and went to sit by the door with his milk and blankie. But Matthew adores this book. Perhaps I really really really need to rethink this.

2. I can already tell potty training is going to suck ass. Do I seriously have to do it? Are there any functioning adults who just change their own diapers?

I think we got the potty seats out 3 or 4 months ago, after the boys had spent plenty of time following us into the bathroom. You know, I really shouldn't say "us." Eric almost always takes a piss on his own, lucky bastard. They were fascinated by the process – trying to stick their heads into the toilet while I was sitting there in order to see where that tinkling sound was coming from, waving and saying "bye-bye!" to the pee and toilet paper after the flush, getting in on the hand-washing action. They can say "pee pee" and even "poo" (lovely that my expressive language-delayed kids can count that among their 15 words, Jesus). But, um, the potty thing isn't happening. Tonight I put Matthew on the toilet right after bath, knowing that he pees right out of there. He sat on the potty for probably 3 minutes (extremely long for a kid with the attention span of a flea), said "all done," and I helped him off. As I got Ryan out of the tub, I flicked my head around to check on a silent Matt … who was peeing all over his towel and the floor. ACK.

Sooooo ... anyone know of any good, non-scary books? Or a rationale for never teaching my boys to use a toilet?