It is so important for us to try to react to our children in a loving and kind way. I for one, am the first one to admit that I overreact a lot of times when Brielle is misbehaving/doing something that she shouldn’t be doing.
After reading this article a couple of months ago, I am really trying to understand more of where/why she is acting the way she is, instead of reacting so fast to the situation at hand. This has changed how she responds dramatically and it has actually help to prevent a LOT of meltdowns.
I have been working on saying more phrases like “what is making you so mad” or “how can mommy help you figure this out” so she doesn’t become frustrated which usually ends in a meltdown.
There are still so many times that Shane and I jump the gun and say something out of anger/little sleep/busyness, but that doesn’t make it ok and I know it does hurt her feelings in the end.
What I have noticed is that it’s ok to say “I’m sorry, mommy only said that because I was upset with you and I will try to work on not yelling the next time you do that”. She is learning so much and putting everything together, and I don’t want her to remember this phase in her little life, as always being in trouble or redirected to do something else.
We can always be better, and in the end, that’s the most important thing is that we continue to work to be better parents, better partners and always have the same goals in the end!
Have you said something negative to your child, and immediately thought out a different scenario where things could’ve ended differently? Let me know! I would love to connect on this topic!
The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2015 annual report for this blog.
Here’s an excerpt:
A New York City subway train holds 1,200 people. This blog was viewed about 7,300 times in 2015. If it were a NYC subway train, it would take about 6 trips to carry that many people.
This past month/season has brought about so many new and different emotions this year. This is the first year that I have ever gotten involved in reading/doing the advent calendar/activities, and have read so much of the Bible, and truly appreciate and understand so much more than ever before.
This season also brought about new mixed feelings when it comes to Rochelle. It’s so crazy to think that just one simple year ago, we were in the hospital waiting, hoping, and praying for good news that we could go home and enjoy the new year at home, as a family of four. As I am growing in my relationship with the Lord, I am realizing that He gave us everything we had prayed for. He gave us healing, and comfort, and time. He gave us undying strength, love, and affection. He truly did give us everything we needed, at the exact time we needed it.
One of my favorite verses from the Advent series, that explains exactly how I feel, is when Elizabeth was speaking to Mary in Luke 1:39-45 and said
You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what He said.
Over this past year, our daily nighttime family prayers have become more deeper, and more meaningful than they ever were. We are reminded daily from Luke 1:12 that
God has heard your prayers.
We are forever thankful for the birth of Jesus, and of the angel that spoke to Mary, the virgin, and told her in Luke 1:35 that
the baby will be born Holy, and he will be called the Son of God.
I truly think that Brielle and I both benefited from exploring more into the birth of Jesus, and doing the daily coloring activities, which allowed us to explore deeper into an understanding of what I was reading. I loved the fun baking activities, and I think our most favorite one, was when we got to donate to Ronald McDonald, Toys for Tots, and the Salvation Army.
We must never forget that time spent with our loved ones making memories, praying, and serving others is what will last forever, and truly that is what this entire season/holiday is all about.
**To learn more about Advent, and which journey I decided to embark on this year, click here. I was so amazed by how much time/effort Kara-Kae put into making a printable, that us moms(families) could use with our kids and teach them every day more about Jesus.
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from the Johnsons
I cannot believe that Brielle is 2 1/2, as of yesterday. When I told her that it was her “official” half birthday, since we have been telling her she’s 2 1/2 for a little while now, I think she expected some kind of big celebration.. or maybe just a balloon!
So much has happened within the past 6 months with her brain expanding so much, and her knowledge has grown exponentially. She understands so much, that I forget at times, that she is just only two! This little girl is literally like a sponge, and loves to learn. She loves to be taught new things, and gets frustrated when she is working so hard to get something right, and it doesn’t work.
I would definitely say that she is fully potty-trained at home, and in public.. well that’s a different story! The distractions everywhere, I think prevents her from telling me when she has to go, unless I am the first one to initiate the suggestion. She loves to “do it myself” and at times, doesn’t like me going behind her to make sure she is really clean. We’ll get there soon!
Here are some stats of this precious girl!
Weight: 30 pounds (finally!), naked on home scale
Shoe size: 8/9 shoes! She loves to wear “princess shoes” and dresses and pretend she is a princess ALL the time lol!
Likes/loves: -Anything to do with vanilla ice cream. I swear this girl could eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner if we let her! She still loves to dance, and perform! Any time she hears music with a beat, it’s like it has to come of her body and she must move! It’s entertaining, for sure! She still loves her paci’s.. I mean, like there is no way I see us getting rid of them right now. Well, she has lost a few to discipline lately, but still has about 3/4 of them hanging around.
Dislikes: -having Shane do anything for her. “no, mommy do it!” has got be painted on our walls somewhere. No changing her, taking her potty (unless she tells him that she will “do it myself!” Oh and she also recently has started to get mad at our cat, Oscar when he walks away from her and is done playing! She started crying because he hurt her feelings when he did that.. so precious.
Teeth: 18 teeth. 2 year molars are officially making their way into her mouth!
Diapers: Size 6 luvs during naps/bedtime and undies/pull-ups during the day.
Language: We have been signing to keep up with her skill, so she doesn’t lose it, and she still loves it. She stutters when she says “thank you” and recently told me that sometimes it’s hard for her to say, so I told her to sign it to people, and if I am around, I will definitely let them know what it means, so she doesn’t have to struggle when saying those words. It’s interesting.. she will only stutter when she is thinking of too many things at once and she is not focused, or she is really tired, or it will just happen out of nowhere.
Other than that, she speaks really well. We haven’t hard too many people say that they couldn’t understand her, but sometimes she doesn’t know a particular word, or says it a little different, and will show you something else to help describe it, so we understand it better. Very smart, coming from a 2 year old! I love that her vocabulary has expanded so much, and one of my recent favorite words that she is uses is “inappropriate”. I have definitely said that before!
I can’t believe how far she has come in these past 6 months, and I can’t wait to see where she goes from here!
Can someone PLEASE stop time (minus the attitude–LOL!). My baby is no longer a baby and she will even tell me “I am a big girl now, not a baby anymore”. 😉 Gotta love my two and a HALF year old!
Here are some pictures from the last 6 months!
She got her first play kitchen~
She decorated ornaments for her siblings in Heaven
She went on her first walk, at her new house!
She went on many adventures
She loved to do what the boys did.. even in a dress 😉
She loved on her cousins
She took pictures
She spent a lot of time with Nana
She danced in the rain
She got her first headphones.. thanks Nana! 🙂
She loved Halloween
She got her first sticker from a police officer, who came to play with the kids!
We are forever thankful for the birth of Jesus, and of the angel that spoke to Mary, the virgin, and told her in Luke 1:35 that
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