Little Man is growing up.
And what happens when a toddler, such as Little Man is, grows up?
Things get pushed.
And the three things that Little Man likes to push most are his stroller, his boundaries, and his bedtime.
He has reached the age where riding in his stroller is no longer an absolute necessity. He likes to get out and walk around and explore his surroundings in a more hands-on fashion. But he still gets tired on long treks, so the stroller comes with us on occasion. And on those occasions, pushing his stroller (all by himself, help from Mom and Dad is not acceptable) becomes more interesting that anywhere we could possibly be. Disney World? Wants to push his stroller. The zoo? Wants to push his stroller. Festivals, parks and gardens? You guessed it--wants to push his stroller. He has figured out how to disengage the wheel lock, and so when I get in the shower, I often find him pushing his stroller around the house, filled with his toys.
And it's not limited to strollers--it can be anything with wheels. Shopping carts, wagons, coolers full of frozen groceries: they all require pushing.
And then there's bedtime. Little Man is particularly tricky about pushing his bedtime. We've reached the phase where we get requests for one more bottle. He gets a truly pathetic look on his face, sad baby lip out and all, and says "Ba-ba? Ba-ba?" in a voice that would suggest he hadn't eaten in a week. And when we tell him we're on the last book before lullabys and snuggles, he'll let us get to nearly the last page, push that one away and request another "last book".
And then, every now and then, once we think he's all tucked in and dreaming, we'll hear the sound of little footsteps and Little Man will burst into our room, smiling his most handsome baby smile and holding Scout by the ear. It's hard to be mad at him because he always looks so happy to see us.
And lastly...boundaries. Oh, the boundaries Little Man has started to push. I can see it in his face: "does Mom really mean it when she says, 'stop'? How many times will she say it before she actually makes me stop?"
The answer is usually one time. And Little Man knows that. So when he's flinging train tracks off his table and over his shoulder, and I ask him to stop, he begins to fling faster and faster because he knows I'm coming to remove him from the situation. He doesn't disobey often, but when he does, he does it quickly--he's smart enough to know what he's doing is wrong.
I try to use the word "no" only when what he is doing is absolutely not an option. Things that he is absolutely not allowed to do include:
--Let go of my hand in or near the street.
--Throw trains/rocks/books at anyone.
--Stick his entire arm inside the bushes that line our local playground.
--Climb in the fountain. Any fountain.
--Jump on the couch.
--Be in the kitchen when the oven door is open.
--Water my plant with his milk.
Otherwise I try to suggest another way of getting the result he desires.
But most of the time, the boundaries he pushes are exploratory--albeit exasperating--and I know he's not trying to annoy me personally. Like today, when he brought me his foaming baby bath wash out of his bathroom. That's when I realized he had it all over him--on his face, his legs, and his hair.
"Wash," he told me, then squeezed some into his hands and washed his belly. With his shirt on.
What's a mother to do, other than to strip him down and plunk him in the tub?
Eventually he'll be able to think through things in his mind, and answer questions like, "what happens if I take everything out of the fridge and relocate it to my bathroom cabinet?" without actually having to do it.
Until then, Little Man, keep on pushing.
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