You can tell at a glance when Ezra is planning something. His wheels are always turning and he is looking for something to get into. When something stands in his way it only takes a few seconds for him to manipulate the situation and overcome.
Last night we were all playing in the nursery. The couch sits against the wall and part of the window is behind the couch. Until last night neither of them could get on the couch unassisted. Ezra decided that he wanted to look out the window and quickly realized that he needed a boost. So, he used our makeshift drum (a.k.a. an empty Trader Joe's coffee container) as a stepping stone. He was elated with accomplishment and smiled ear to ear from the top of the couch. King of the mountain!
Ezra has always been a bit more independent, whereas Cedric has always been more aware of the people around him. He's not scared by large crowds or loud noises and will sit through an hour-long concert. He loves being with people.
And Cedric is definitely our freaker outer.
When something stands in between him and what he wants, he spirals into a tantrum, going from zero to sixty in two point five seconds. He has never been very independent, and he will often cry when he is not getting enough attention.
We have observed Cedric playing both with Ezra and alone, and he takes things very personally. A few nights ago he was pushing a toy car around the nursery. Keeping in mind that a car only does a few things--i.e., forward, backward, turns on side, and turns upside down--Cedric was getting visibly frustrated at the toy car, but we don't know why. It would appear the car was doing something "wrong" since his reaction was to scream and bite the car in retaliation. We have witnessed said biting on several occasions and nothing is immune. He'll bite coffee table for bumping his head, the door stop for keeping the door pinned open, and the blanket for getting twisted around this legs... all things that need to be told to behave, I assume.
We do our best not to react to these outbursts as to not encourage the behavior, but we are not sure how the nannies are responding when this occurs. When we stopped reacting to Ezra's head banging it went away on its own, but my fear is this will take longer to disappear and will advance to biting people.
Chad
Last night we were all playing in the nursery. The couch sits against the wall and part of the window is behind the couch. Until last night neither of them could get on the couch unassisted. Ezra decided that he wanted to look out the window and quickly realized that he needed a boost. So, he used our makeshift drum (a.k.a. an empty Trader Joe's coffee container) as a stepping stone. He was elated with accomplishment and smiled ear to ear from the top of the couch. King of the mountain!
Ezra has always been a bit more independent, whereas Cedric has always been more aware of the people around him. He's not scared by large crowds or loud noises and will sit through an hour-long concert. He loves being with people.
And Cedric is definitely our freaker outer.
When something stands in between him and what he wants, he spirals into a tantrum, going from zero to sixty in two point five seconds. He has never been very independent, and he will often cry when he is not getting enough attention.
We have observed Cedric playing both with Ezra and alone, and he takes things very personally. A few nights ago he was pushing a toy car around the nursery. Keeping in mind that a car only does a few things--i.e., forward, backward, turns on side, and turns upside down--Cedric was getting visibly frustrated at the toy car, but we don't know why. It would appear the car was doing something "wrong" since his reaction was to scream and bite the car in retaliation. We have witnessed said biting on several occasions and nothing is immune. He'll bite coffee table for bumping his head, the door stop for keeping the door pinned open, and the blanket for getting twisted around this legs... all things that need to be told to behave, I assume.
We do our best not to react to these outbursts as to not encourage the behavior, but we are not sure how the nannies are responding when this occurs. When we stopped reacting to Ezra's head banging it went away on its own, but my fear is this will take longer to disappear and will advance to biting people.
Chad
I have been following your blog for the past 12 months now and have loved the stories you have shared.
ReplyDeleteMy partner and I had Valentines dinner with a friend tonight and through conversation discovered that he is an old colleague and facebook friend of yours. Such a small world.
I hope life is treating you well and with you all a happy Valentines day.
Well, now I'm curious. Is this a mutual friend of Douglas or Chad?
DeleteDoug. My friend is alec goins. He is originally from US but now resides in Sydney, Australia.
ReplyDeleteHope it isn't a 'twin thing', but our girls were big biters....but only of each other. They never bit another person, but frequently bit each other when upset. Hope it doesn't go there for you guys!!
ReplyDeleteOur girls bit each other and me. A good loud ouch and cries from each other pretty much changed them from bitting to just closing their mouth over flesh but not following through with the chomp.
ReplyDeleteI also am close by and watch for signs that bitting / hitting may happen and remind them that I will help them not bit or hit. Really works.
This phase will pass, patience and breathing helps too.
Our new thing is what looks like one going in for a hug but really it is a full on football tackle.
Love your posts.