Early Literacy

So I started this blog in December of 2012 and had a whopping 3 posts until I forgot about it. I came across it again today after writing a paper for my Early Literacy course and decided a few things. One, I need to start writing blogs in here again, whether or not anyone reads them, it'll keep me on my toes and my writing skills in tune. Two, how silly to not keep up with this and keep a record of mine and my sons life!?! Three, I may actually be good at it, so why not give it a shot?

Anywho, my paper today was about what made me the reader that I am today? Plain and simple, my mom. I'll attach the autobiography later if anyone who reads cares to read it, but that's not the point of this post. The point of this post is to really put focus on how Ryan and I read together. We read interactively, and up until now I was unaware that there was a name for the way we read with one another, but as it turns out, its the most affective way to read to children.

When you read with your child(ren) do you read and they sit there quietly or do you make them part of the adventure?? Ryan is part of our reading adventure. He's three now and he knows words to his favorite books. He knows how I read them in silly voices and he follows along. I try to trick him on words he knows by throwing in the wrong word here and there and see if he catches me. He ALWAYS does. I ask him to find things in the pictures that I know he doesn't know what the word means yet. For example, with Itsy Bitsy Spider, I had him find the spout. He had no idea what the meaning of the word was, what a spout was, he just knew it went with the book. So we found the spout and now he knows. A new word added to his vocabulary.

 

 

I want him to always love to read. I want him to continue to build his already HUGE imagination. <3

Terrible Two rears its ugly head!

         I was warned and warned about these so called "terrible two's" but yet I didn't want to think that my sweet little boy would ever put his momma through such nonsense...point blank, I was wrong. Big time wrong. I mean on the verge of tears at some points wrong. Now don't get me wrong I love my son and I love being his mommy. He is sweet and smart and funny. His vocabulary is getting better and better each day and it's amazing to see him learn like that. He gives kisses...to everything he owns. He adores his big cousin "Donnik" (also know as Dominic) and his aunt Mimi. He loves his Pap and his Grama is his best friend (aside from mommy). He plays with our adopted outside cat "Buzzie" (who really belongs to the neighbors and is named Buster). He loves animals and playing outside, and is really getting the hang of this t-ball business. BUT, with all that being said he has an attitude the size of an ELEPHANT!
       Our first major argument/issue of the morning usually involves the fact that he's not quite ready to stop watching Bubble Guppies or playing with his dump trucks to get dressed and get out of the door. Followed by "no I do it!" when I try to help to the potty or with his clothes, ending in a fit of hysteria when he can't get it figured out by himself but refuses to allow me to help. This, I know, is all part of him learning to be independent and to master new skills but its so hard to watch/deal with. I want him to be able to do all the things he wants to do by himself but patience is something he doesn't get from his mother so we struggle with this together.
        My biggest complaint with this age is the fact that he just down right decides to not listen when told to do something or not to do something. For example, we're outside gardening and I have a bag of plant food which I am letting him help me put on the plants one at a time when we need it. I turn my back once, he's pouring it into the grass. We go over the rules about it again. I go get water and he's dumping the entire bag into his toy bucket. Yes, I am aware that this in itself is not the end of the world, but at some point he needs to learn to listen and that here are rules that need to be followed. Some rules, thank goodness, he gets. Like "don't touch that its hot and will burn you" that one he gets. And cars and parking lots "cars get you momma." In retrospect I should be happy that he gets the major safety rules but at some point he has to start listening a little better....right?       
       Overall my kid is well behaved and he's smart growing and healthy but every now and then it just gets to the point where I feel I must be failing as a mother because I have a 2 year old who can't sit through dinner out or listen at all times. Then I'm reminded, he's only 2. And I see how well behaved he is when I sneak in to daycare to pick him up in the afternoon. It'll be interesting over the coming months to see who wins the battle of the wills...stay tuned....

                                           Ryan and his big cousin "Donnik"

Ryan's Happy day

As we near Christmas Ryan, like most kids, is starting to get a bit wired. Add to that the fact that December 25th is also his second birthday and it leaves you with a super excited almost 2 year old force to be reckoned with.
He got the hint about what a birthday is during October when we celebrated his Aunt Mimi, his grandma and my own birthday. We told him his birthday would be coming next and since then it has been deemed his "happy day."
He's no less excited about Santa, to put it quite honestly, he's OBSESSED with him. He's seen him roughly 5 times, had pictures, taken, and one a semi regular basis goes to the front door with coat and hat in hand and demands to go see Santa. "I see Santa!" Most children his age won't go anywhere near Santa!
We did all the usual holiday traditions this year...Christmas tree,.lights outside, gingerbread men etc. We found a second tree and put it up in the kitchen and used colored light on this one and Ryan has decided that this would be his "happy day tree." It's actually quite amusing to watch him decide which things are for Christmas and which things are for his "happy day."

And so it began...

Ans so it began

So as my son (Ryan) nears the age of two, I have realized a few things...

• There are a lot of absolutely treasured moments that I never want to forget, and by creating a blog I will forever have them
• There are moments of complete chaos in which times I have looked to other moms for support via blogs and I thought maybe some other moms would benefit from the wonderful hurricane of a toddler that I have and all his many antics
• And lastly that this thing we call motherhood if a truly miraculous adventure that I treasure more then I could have ever imagined, and something I try to not take for granted...EVER.

Let me tell you just a few things about my miracle child of a son. I was told I would most likely never have children and low and behold in May of 2010 I found myself absolutely flabbergasted to say the least. I was given a due date right around Valentines Day of 2011 and then my living hell of a pregnancy began. I was sick from about the time I found out I was expecting until about 15 weeks when it magically disappeared. I had about 4 weeks where I enjoyed being pregnant and then at 19 weeks my contractions began, yes real contractions at 19weeks, and let me tell you, to carry a baby half way and then be told that if my body goes into real labor there was nothing they could do was just about the most heart wrenching experience of my life.

So I spent the next weeks in and out of the hospital, got put on partial bed rest and eventually full bed rest. I have myself goals...get through Thanksgiving, get through Christmas, get through the new year and then he can come, just make it through the new year. The day of Christmas Eve found me in the hospital once again because my sweet little boy hadn't moved much all day, nothing new to  me, I'd be hooked up to  monitors and sent home, and so in I went and then home I went. I was under strict instruction to not get up unless it was to the bathroom. So home I went, with my parents to keep me company as everyone else went to holiday get togethers Around 11 I decided to call it quits, I wasn't feeling well and I knew something was off. About 1130 I headed for one more bathroom trip and GUSH there went my water. "MOM!!!!!!!!!" was about all I got out before the tears came flowing. It was too early, he was too tiny, I can't do this yet, was all that flashed in my mind. I had barely hit 33weeks in my pregnancy so on top on any normal mothers labor and delivery anxiety I had that to deal with too.
So to the hospital I went, where I had the most wonderful team of nurses and Dr I could have asked for. I laid there and they told me I wasn't having many or strong enough contractions but my water had broke so they had to keep me. I got to the point where my legs were so anxious they were just jumping all over the place so the nurse gave me some medicine via IV to help me relax, my sister held my hand as I slept and then BAM I rolled over at 430am and announced "he's here, he's coming now."
Apparently nobody believed me because of the monitors, I demanded that someone check and all I heard then was "Call the Doctor, page the NICU, get the team together STAT." Now coming from a medical background...hearing the word STAT usually doesn't mean anything good is happening. So I waited for what felt like an eternity for the NICU Dr to arrive as my doctor sat ready to catch my too tiny baby, who mind you, nobody knew if he would be strong enough to breathe on his own at this point. Two minutes and 2 pushes later he was here.

He was a screaming mess of all arms and legs. I heard bits and pieces along the lines of "wow big baby for a 33 weeker" "great lung sounds" "vitals are good, he's stable on room air." And then they put him to my face and I actually muttered "I can't believe I'm going to kiss your bloody head but I love you sweet boy." And just like that he was gone, whisked away to "Babyland" to be evaluated and hooked up to all his monitors.

Ryan Andrew was born Christmas Day 2010 at 4:53am weighing 4lbs 6oz and was 19in long. And he was and still is the best gift I have ever received. I had to wait for an eternity to finally get my hands on my baby but it was all worth it when I finally was brought down to see him. He was born strong and healthy and already as long as some full term babies. He was quiet, he barely cried, and he slept, A LOT! He just wouldn't eat. So we spent the next 16 days trying to get him to get the hang of it. He saw therapy, and Dr's upon Dr's and then finally I had a wonderful nurse who let me try it my way. "Just let me try to nurse him and see if he eats, I really think he just doesn't like the bottle."

So she let me try it my way, he was after all MY baby. She got out the special scales so we could weigh him before and after every nursing to see if he was taking anything in. Well long story short...we tried this on a Friday, he ripped out his feeding tube that night and went home on Sunday. And then he camped out on my breast for the next few months.

It's bittersweet to take a preemie home from the hospital. You're so excited to get to take your sweet baby home, but you're scared to death to do it alone. But, like every new mom, you figure it out. And we did, and he did wonderful. He came into the world when he was ready, almost 8 weeks early, and he has done things on HIS schedule and HIS schedule alone since that day. And now, 10 days before my tiny little baby turns 2 years old, I begin this blog "The Chronicles of Ryan...my adventures as a mom" so that everyone else who reads can take delight in the wonderful adventures of my sweet funny little monster.