A good (parenting) day

posted by Jeff | Friday, September 6, 2013, 10:33 PM | comments: 0

Like Ice Cube says, today was a good day. It was one of those days where Simon was our darling little boy, mostly sweet as he could be. We needed one of those days.

Diana was itching to get out of the house, and he definitely needed it, so they went to Magic Kingdom this afternoon. He was a happy boy, energetic, and sweet. When I got home from work, he continued to be very sweet, asking me to sit with him on the couch, and he cuddled up with his book. At dinner, he sucked down everything in front of him without a protest. I really wanted to blow off some steam, and despite the rain, we went to Epcot for a few hours to walk around, have adult beverages and snacks. To end the night, Simon cuddled up on my shoulder for a few minutes before he peacefully climbed into bed. It was fantastic.

Not every day is like that, and lately it feels like there are more difficult days than good. There are really two issues we're trying to tackle. The first is that we aren't getting adult time. For me, I mean that I'm not getting one-on-one time with Diana. Her situation is much worse though, because she's not getting any real adult time with anyone. We're still meeting people, and she doesn't have the kind of routine of play dates, library stories and such. It's all Simon, all of the time, and that's hard with a 3-year-old who is constantly challenging you.

The other, and more serious issue, is that Simon's developmental delays are starting to cause us some anxiety. Most of the time we can handle the 3-year-old drama, but getting him to do basic things kids his age should do is causing stress because we're not getting anywhere. Potty training is a total fail because he won't do it, and we don't want to force him because of the guidance that suggests this can cause resistance to using the toilet at all (something I know all too well from my childhood). His reluctance to try certain things, like getting undressed or putting on his shoes, is another battle that's tiring and stressful. We can't get him to take interest in drawing or writing of any kind. And while his vocabulary is clearly growing, it's so mixed with babble we don't understand.

This isn't a hopeless situation, it's just a passing issue, hopefully. We'll figure out our night out thing on a regular basis. Simon has also been evaluated by the school district to see if he qualifies for their preschool, and even if he's not, we'll figure out a way to get him the help he needs. (Bonus: that would be 12.5 hours per week that Diana would get for herself.) Even the dress/undress thing is starting to show a glimmer of progress. It's just hard because the clock is ticking... two years to kindergarten.

But for all of the struggles, there are days like today that are fun and filled with love.


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