#austinwill

This has been a long time coming. I have been reflecting upon the last 10 months of motherhood and all of the milestones my son has achieved. We are 2 months away from his second birthday and he is a little person with his own individual personality. I admit, I’m really just going with the flow of this parenting thing. Each day presents new challenges and precious memories.

Once Austin got settled with his footing and became a steady walker, it’s almost like we unleashed “the need for speed”! Not only does he like to zip from room to room like a bat out of hell, but he likes to climb all of the furniture! The first time I saw my son climb atop our living room glass-top table, my eyes almost popped out of my head! He shows no signs of fear or intent on slowing down his dangerous escapades.

I have officially become one of those "grocery store moms". You know…the kind of mom you see in the grocery store battling with their child to stay seated in the cart, not touch the belt, fighting over pushing the cart, resulting in the child throwing an absolute fit in the middle of a perfectly timed and planned shopping trip. The first time I was the victim of this type of assault, Austin was about 16 months old. We were in the mall and he was adamant that he should be allowed to push his stroller, rather than sit in it perched like a canary. I refused him and he let me have it by unleashing all of his frustrations on me. I was mortified, embarrassed, flushed and confused. What the hell was I going to do? It took some time and a few more tantrums for me to realize that: a) he’s just a baby and he’s expressing his frustration because he doesn’t know another way to do so and b) I have to react to these tantrums in a way that is not only loving and reassuring but stern all at the same damn time. *sigh*

There was a time, if I’m going to be really honest, there were a few times, where I just sat down and cried, feeling defeated. Parenting/motherhood for some, comes easily. I thought it would be the same for me. However, Austin was put here on this earth to test all of the Patience the Lord bestowed upon me; which is literally a tank of patience on E! There has to be a way around, public tantrums and tears! The solution was so simple, it might seem slightly pre-school. TIME!! That’s the solution! I did not stop taking my son on shopping trips or errand runs. In fact, I made it a Saturday morning routine.  By 9am on a typical Saturday, our grocery shopping is complete, laundry has begun, and breakfast has been made. Now, this isn’t something that is concrete, but for the most part, every Saturday follows this kind of cycle. This routine, normalized the idea of what a “shopping trip” is supposed to be and allowed for me “the mommy,” to set boundaries and expectations for behavior. 

Now I’m sure this sounds crazy to someone reading this right now, but I swear, I’ve been having full on conversations with Austin since he came out the womb. I believe in constant verbal communication and gentle reminders. For example, once we get in the car seat, I will tell him exactly where we are going, how long we should be, and  I’ll throw in “please be a good boy for mommy”. lol I make sure to bring along toys, the iPad, juice, snacks, pretty much anything that will keep him occupied and content during our “adventures”.  Over time, Austin just got right into the groove and we haven’t had a major blow out since. Besides, the usual fall outs, cries and screams when things don’t go his way, tantrums have been very minimal in our neck of the woods. For that I am very grateful, because tantrums, bring mommy tears and leave me feeling anxious and overwhelmed, never good emotions to have while trying to raise a balanced child.