In his "little" shoes...

Today was one of those days that I not-so-secretly wanted to be over almost as soon as it started. It wasn't that something particularly bad happened to make me feel that way. It was just that I woke up (actually, I tried hiding under the covers first), and I just didn't feel like I had enough energy or patience to "put on a happy face" and "carpe diem." (But I did, because that's what moms do... Right?!)

As I tried to boost my own morale (while wiping up the 'crud' Caden left for me from breakfast), I remembered something we were probably all taught as wee children. Our parents/teachers/adults would tell us to "put yourself in his/her shoes" when attempting to understand someone. So, in my attempt to understand my little wild man (the one we call Caden), I tried to put myself in his little-but-very-fast shoes.

Here are the "Top Five" things he likes to do on a frequent basis and my attempt to rationalize them.

1. Saying "no" to every.single.thing. and then getting extremely irritated at me when I don't understand that "no" sometimes means "yes!" ------ Mama's take: I am guessing he hears me tell him "no," the dogs "no," the husband "no," the birds trying to build a nest above our back door for the 10000th time "no," so he wants to try it out for himself, too. "Nooooooooo!!" (Cute, and annoying at the same time!)
2. Feeding the dogs his food and then getting absolutely irate at the dogs for eating his food ---- Mama's take: This one cracks me up. It's like he thinks it's funny they eat his favorite snack and then he suddenly remembers he actually wanted to eat it and wants to karate chop them. Guess it's time to teach him the "don't be an Indian giver" rule.
3. Putting his hands in his "poopy" diaper when I try to change it (yes, it's totally gross) ------ Mama's take: I don't freaking know! Who does that?! Seriously?! Is this a little boy thing?? I can handle the peeing-on-everything, but NOT playing with poop!!! This HAS to be a boy thing, right?!?
4. Wanting to wash his hands all day long... (Of course, after #3 I guess that's a good thing!) ----- Mama's take: I don't think (at least I hope) he's not OCD, but I know he loves playing with "wa wa." So, it's not that he really wants to wash his hands all the time, it's that he wants to find any excuse to get wet and squirt water all over the place. (Oh, to be so easily amused!)
5. Random screaming fits for no-apparent-reason-whatsoever ----- Mama's take: I know this is a common toddler quirk, but I have to think it has something to do with all the different and new sensory, emotional, physical and social experiences this little human being is exposed to in a day. Sometimes, it's just too much to process and the result is an eardrum-bleeding screech (by the way, it should also be acceptable for moms up do that, too).

So, there you have it ... After putting myself in Caden's shoes I still feel completely exhausted, a little numb and pretty amused. Actually, I do feel better, because I am pretty positive that my tenacious tot is just as tired as his mama! After all, waking up to a virtually new world everyday and trying to learn how to navigate through it all is a pretty ambitious and exhausting job! I, for one, am glad I can't remember that crazy stage of my life (and they say the teenage years are wild?!?! Hmmphh!)

In other news, tomorrow is Friday, which means the husband is home, which means I just might survive (maybe).