Big Boy Bed

Or, as Grant will proudly tell you, "Big bed! I sleep there!" Ok so it sounds more like I seep dere but the point is, he's rather proud of his new sleeping arrangement.

On Monday, I got a wild hair and decided to convert the crib. Husband was outside mowing so he had no idea what I was doing until it was about half finished. I would have had it done sooner except I had to tear the house apart looking for the right size allen wrench. So he caught me, rolled his eyes at me, and went back outside.

Pre-conversion.

Grant sat by my side for the whole process. Trying to "help" by putting all the screws I took out of their holes back into their holes. I couldn't even be mad about it because it was too stinking cute. He also brought me monster trucks for help :) I don't think it took me more than 20 minutes. Much easier than I thought it would be.


Done! Grant's checking things out. (Please note the pile
of "helpful" monster trucks next to the bed.)

 He loved it immediately. He kept saying "I get in bed" and then would crawl up or "I way down" and would pull the covers over him. He seemed very proud of it, especially when I told him it was for big guys.


"I way down."



I showed him how comfy it is to read in bed. (He told
Grave Digger and Bear to "Way down!")

Then it comes time for bed.

Brodie was checking for monsters.

We read books like normal. Brush teeth like normal. But now getting into bed isn't normal. Husband and I both tucked him in for the first night and the poor little man looked petrified. I almost lost it right in front of him. He didn't want to stay in bed (he told me, but didn't make and attempt to get up), he wanted his crib back, he wanted Daddy. Everything. It took about an hour and half to get him settled, the he was O-U-T. I, of course, slept awful waiting for him to wake up screaming any minute.

He didn't. He slept great and has ever since then. He sleeps with a pillow now, too, and looks so grown up and adorable. That first night I was really second guessing my decision to do this but now I know it was right. I guess he was ready!

My big guy :)

23 Months

23 months old

With his second birthday literally around the corner, Grant is most certainly "a big guy". I put that in quotes because he will proudly tell you that he's a big guy when asked. It seems like that last month or two has brought about a lot of growing up that has left us confused as to how it happened so quickly.

What he's up to:

• Took his first real vacation - to see family in NY - and did remarkably well on a very long car ride.
• On that vacation he went to his first parade, which was a big hit with him.
• Went "swimming" for the first time (and many times after that) and loved it! My goal for next summer is to have a small pool for us.
• Not only has he used his first cuss word, but he uses it correctly. When he dropped something, he said "Damn it". When something was out of reach, he said "Damn it". You get the idea. We were advised to ignore it (first instinct being to tell him stop, of course) and he seems to have stopped saying it. For now.
• Uses some complete sentences now. "Mama, what's that?" "I get it!" "I find it!" "I find him!" (this one generally referring to the dog). You get the idea.
• Likes to try to say the ABC's by himself (but isn't very good at it yet) and he can count to 10 with prompting...but he obviously doesn't know what that means yet.
• Not much progress in the potty training. We haven't really been pushing it. When we think to put him on the potty it's always at the wrong time. But he still likes to sit there and read magazines.
• Still signs "more", "please", and "thank you". And he's using "please" and "thank you" often without having to be prompted. Now we're working on "yes, please" instead of the "Okay!" he's fond of using now.
• Only needs his pacifier at bed time now. He naps without it at school, so he naps without it at home. I like to think we're getting there (with getting rid of it entirely) but that seems like a bold statement.
• Wearing mostly 18 mo and 24 mo/2T but still has some 12 month shorts that fit him. His shoes are still size 7 but I'm thinking before too long he'll be needing a bigger size.
• Doesn't have much interest in cartoons. He'll watch them in the morning while I'm getting ready for work (used to be whatever was on Nick Jr. but now we've moved to Disney Jr. and I like their morning selection better!) but any other time of day he doesn't care about what's on TV unless it's Monster Jam. He has also started having some interest in sports stuff on TV too (hockey season will be really fun this year!).
• Insists on helping me when brushing his teeth. He grabs for his Spongebob toothbrush and says "Help? Help?"
• Loves music and looooves to dance to it. Very cute. We have little dance parties in his room after bath time and dance together (I have zero ability to dance but Grant doesn't seem to mind).
• He can never have too many stories at bed time.
• Loves anything with an engine but monster trucks are still his absolute favorite.

Why?

At approximately 6:45 this morning, we entered a new Toddler Phase. It was very unexpected. I figured Grant was too young to start this.

It happened when Grant picked up a dryer sheet off the bedroom floor that was laying next to a pile of laundry I haven't had time made time to fold yet. He held it up to me and said "Eeeeeew" Something he says a lot (especially about the dog).

I said, "Ok, give it to me. I'll throw it out."

"Why?" Grant asked.

I thought nothing of it. "Because it's trash", I replied.

"Why?" *queue the menacing music*

"Because...when something is trash, you throw it away."

"Why?"

At this point I hear Husband's voice from the computer room "Oh no!".

And so we have entered The Why Stage. It literally happened over night.

Wish us luck.