parenting 101?

chris was in vegas for a stag over the thanksgiving weekend, so i was at home with gabe. thank goodness for my parents...we had dinner at their place every night, which allowed me a break from having to deal with gabe.

our mornings would start out fine, i'd greet him at his crib, open the curtains while he turned on the light, and then i'd get my morning hug & kiss. well, the happy times ended there. as soon as it was time to take off his pj's and change his diaper, he turned into a devil child...the body contortioning, the yelling, the crying, it went on and on. he would eventually settle down enough to get through breakfast, and he was actually happy...he loves his food :-) after potty time, we would get ready for a morning activity, and the "no's" and heel-digging would start all over again. and everytime he had a fit, he'd start signing "potty", so i would offer to take him to the bathroom, and he would change his mind...every time!

i was having car issues literally as soon as chris left, so i ended up borrowing my parents car for the weekend. well, that confused gabe, so every time we got in the car, he would ask for my parents and yell mama and papa all the live long day. because of the 3rd car, i ended up parking in the visitors lot. well, i never imagined gabe getting so upset by it. he freaked out at the fans in the parkade (it's been a constant battle we face at my parents parkade), he was scared as heck of the garage doors opening/closing, and he would get really stubborn and not walk at all. grrrr!!!
once we finally made it to our morning destination, everything would be fine. in fact, everything was fine for the rest of the afternoon. dinners at my parents were good for the most part...my mom had to get stern with gabe when he threw a fit at me (reason unknown). my parents condo was having elevator issues for 2 days, so we happened to get stuck there one night when all 3 broke down. so lucky us, we had to walk down 32 flights of stairs. i was really surprised at how well gabe did...he even insisted on walking part of the way down. he got huge praise for being such a big boy!

and then every night at home, the tantrums would start all over...potty or no potty, wasn't happy with his pjs, wanted dad, didn't like the facecloth he had. every night i would just walk away from him once he was in his crib. i didn't have the patience to deal with anymore of his nonsense. and that's all it was...nonsense. but by monday night, i reached the end of my leash. i was emotionally drained, i was mentally exhausted, i just about burst into tears. instead, i locked myself in my bathroom and took a long hot bubble bath. it wasn't relaxing nor an escape since i could still hear gabe screaming and crying :P

he's been 2 years old for 9 days, and i can tell it's going to be a long year. so, i am doing everything i can now to figure out how to get us through it. a friend of mine actually did the ECE program many moons ago, and she referred me to a series of books they used as a reference guide. so, i'm gonna raise gabe by the book from now on.

i've been trying to think of this as an "off" weekend since chris wasn't home, but the rough nights started 2 weeks ago and haven't let up (he now plays with the light switch...on and off, on and off). i've been checking for any new teeth cutting through, but i haven't felt anything, so i'm pretty sure that's not the problem. obviously gabe's lack of verbal skills is part of the problem...he's frustrated that we don't understand him, and we're frustrated he can't verbalize the problem.

like the dog whisperer says, it's not the dog it's the human. gabe almost never acts up with my parents. and when chris gets stern with gabe, he actually listens...i've seen it with my own two eyes. so it's definitely me. hopefully the book will provide some insight as to how i should be approaching each situation.

in the meantime, chris had his weekend away and i have a toronto work trip next week. i'm thrilled to get some mommy-free time! my hat is off to all the single parents out there!