Sunday, April 20, 2008

And Speaking of my baby...

Weston is approaching the magical age of 18 months. He has been throwing little "mini-tantrums" for a handful of months already, but those were "fake ones" if you ask me. They gave me the opportunity to teach and train a little (like, for example, he knows what No means and how he is to respond to that command, he is learning that when he flops on the floor and cries when he does not get his way that it tends to clear out the room of specators and that he needs to come find me in another room so he can do it again. etc, etc.)

But like I said, those were practice tantrums. The real ones are just now upon us. Therefore, it is time for a refresher on child training. For all my kids I have relied upon the wisdom of Elizabeth at "Raising Godly Tomatoes," a website by a mom of "ten kids so far." Yah think she knows what she is talking about? Yeah, probably.

If you are having any trouble training your little one, I highly recommend a dose of her wisdom. I can't say I agree with everything she says, but much of what she says is peppered with incredible helpfulness.

Here is a quote that caught my eye today: "Enjoy your wee ones, but don’t delay discipline and training forever. It's perilous to wait until your child has reached the hefty age of two or three years old, as many of the so-called childrearing experts of today are now recommending."

Hefty age of TWO or THREE? What a counter-cultural idea!

She has great advice for training when you start early and when you start late, she addresses whining, sibling squabbles, and feelings. Her explanation of Tomato Staking is really good, especially if you have a particularly difficult child. She even has help for potty training.

One of these days I will get my "Obey Mommy The First Time" method up on this site. Perhaps another day, when I am not stuggling through first trimester morning sickness.

Bye!

7 comments:

Jon and Erin said...

Ummmm. Did you say first trimester morning sickness? Are you giving a hint of what is to come?

Jenne said...

...hint hint!

Megan said...

Ya, I like how you slid that in there. Are you just testing to see who reads your entire post? :)

Bronwyn said...

Wow Jenne! I had to reread the last paragraph several times and then search previous blogs for any announcements you had made and then I reread the last paragraph again. Congratulations!

Anonymous said...

Um, are you serious???? I did read the entire post! Is that for real? How exciting. That deserves an entire post to itself.

Ginger said...

Couldn't be happier for you and the entire family! Love you!

Anonymous said...

I really learned a lot from Elizabeth's site (and incidentally, by searching for it again was how I came across yours!). I was so thankful to find it when my little girl was six months old, so I could start putting those techniques into practice. The outlasting tips revolutionized my entire strategy for training- I didn't know how effective they were until I tried it.

And congratulations to you! -Rachel