#turdler

[twomumstwokids]

Apparently we now sleep through the night. Well, he has for the last 2 night's, so let's hope this is a positive change!! Yay!! Now to get me to sleep through the night 😂

[twomumstwokids]

We've been a bit MIA, but here's some pics! They're the obligatory birthday (mine) photos 😂 Em is on school holidays so we're cramming in as much family adventure as we can alongside my extra work.

[twomumstwokids]

What a week.

We've been packing and cleaning like crazy. We cannot wait to get the keys on Wednesday so we can finally start moving stuff over! I'm sick of packing.

Mr has what we believe to be conjunctivitis and a fever, both of which we do not need right now. Poor little thing is a little out of sorts.

Also, I'm pretty sure I'm in the midst of a chemical pregnancy. We got a faint positive, then a darker positive, then the faintest positive this morning. It all seemed too easy so we shouldn't be surprised. I've had very sore boobs, but that's probably from Mr being on them more than usual. We're devastated, but my period is due tomorrow (roughly) so we're just waiting.

[twomumstwokids]

Well, shit. Now where are the cats supposed to go 😓

[twomumstwokids]

New pyjamas, new pig, bed hair and mommy's shoes. What a life 😃

[twomumstwokids]

We were accepted for a new rental today. The house has bigger bedrooms, bigger bath, and a yard (Not huge, but grass for the play equipment and cement for his bike and scooter; more than what we have now!). I'm super excited to start fresh, I love moving house.

Our donor is coming over tomorrow, and next week, so hopefully soon we'll have some exciting news. I'm having a hard time tracking my ovulation with opks, so we're having him come over twice to cover as much as possible. It will also be his first time meeting Theo, which is a little nerve wracking. I guess it's time to start talking to Theo about him.

Also, my mother, her girlfriend, and her girlfriend's 9yo daughter are coming to stay for a week in our tiny little, half packed house. It's going to be a long, and probably stressful week. Every time I ask Theo if Grandma is coming he says 'No'. Apparently he's not excited either! And yes, I (Simone) am almost 29 and my mother is only 48.

[twomumstwokids]

Gentle Parenting

The gentle parent approach to parenting has been, perhaps, one of the hardest things to do. It takes a large deal of patience, self control, and understanding. But we did our research and fully believe that this is the best approach to parenting. 

We have to remind ourselves daily that he isn’t doing anything to hurt or annoy us. He is just a small human with large emotions far beyond his comprehension. 

We don’t smack, we don’t yell, we don’t do time-out, and we don’t allow him to cry-it-out (unless he’s processing). Daily we fight the urge to yell or smack out of frustration or fear; unsurprisingly, they’re among people’s first reactions. 

We take time, we allow him to process his feelings, we validate his emotions and we talk him through everything. When he has a tantrum, we get down to his level and try to talk him through, even though we have a clear communication barrier at the moment. We remind him that we’re there, that he is allowed his feelings, and that he can express them without ‘getting in trouble’.

 We don’t say ‘be careful’ where we can, we try to explain what could happen or help him work out the next move; this allows him to explore without instilling a sense of fear at new experiences. 

We practice extended rear-facing, the ‘just say yes’ philosophy, cloth nappies, and attachment parenting. We’re doing our best to raise a kind, loving, adventurous human, and sometimes I need to remind myself that we’re doing an amazing job. 

[twomumstwokids]

We've had really cold, wet and windy weather this week. Today we got sick of being inside, so rugged up and went out. Had a blast, got super wet, and let out some energy (so hopefully Mr will nap today!).

I'm really grateful that we're in the position that I can spend my days home with Theo. Some days it's too much and I wish for something more, but for the most part I'm glad I'm able to teach him and watch him grow rather than relying on someone else.

One day the kids will be bigger and I'll work more. We'll be able to save money and do the big family things we dream of. But for now, this is enough.