Apparently Not....

So these past two months my question has been answered...My two year old has NOT been an angel. The face here shows how we have been with each other lately...constantly battling. And it has been quite challenging!! I decided that I should make an entry after an extremely long and rough week...as I do need to remember some of these more difficult times as well. In previous entries on his baby journal website:[ http://www.babysites.com/sites/derickruiz ] I seemed to sit down and write when I was more on the happy side of the spectrum...as there as so many incredible cute moments that I wanted to be sure to record. Yet, I do also want to accurately be able to recall some 'real' but not so fun times...so that way when I am old and gray, I can't tell him that he was a perfect angel all the time :)

What has made the week so challenging? Well #1 probably was that Derick was sick. He had a mild fever which over a course of a few days seemed to spike pretty high over 103, so I did take him to the Dr. We found that he had an ear infection. I was very thankful as that is a pretty quick recovery once we started the meds. However, during the time he was feeling lousy, I think I may have cut him a little too much slack on his poor behavior. I kept thinking that he must feel awful and really doesn't have any way to express it, so I let some bad things slide...from some kicking at me, to the shouting of No, to outright disregard for the requests I would make of him. Well now that I have had more than 4 hours of straight sleep I realized I should have put my foot down regardless of how he was feeling. Needless to say we are getting back on track and it seems half the day is spent in time out or else talking about timeout. It's probably not that bad, but those battles seem endless some days. This next picture is how I feel....like screaming!!

Yet, we have had some fun. I love, love, love listening to his sentences getting more complex. He is so curious and wants to know the names of everything and will still repeat anything new he hears. His natural inclination to learn astounds us! It has also been so funny that he still likes to tell on himself. He will say, "Mommy, I hit Max." or "Mommy, I throw the ball and it hit that." Or when I pick him up from somewhere, he will tell me what his caregiver has told him not to do... "Wayne say no throw rocks." "Erin say no hit with bat in the house."

Yet the sweet moments are as tender as ever. "Mommy, I love you." "Mommy, here is a kiss for you." and my all time favorite, " Mommy, I love you with all my heart" while stretching his arms so wide. It is also the taking of my hand when we are walking...he says, "Watch out, there are cars." It's this moments I try and bank as I am sure I will need them come the teenage years!

We thank and praise God for the blessing we have in our family. His grace is infinite and gifts are endless. We thank Him for leading us gently.

"He tends his flock like a shepherd:
He gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart;
He gently leads those that have young."
Isaiah 40:11