Here we are again...

Hubby's away and I'm parenting solo for a few days. Here are some are things I really wish I didn't do when he's away.

1. I wish I didn't get hooked on the computer and stay up waaaaaaaay too late and end up exhausted and full of regret the next day when I'm falling asleep during the afternoon marathon of Chutes and Ladders.

2. I wish I didn't procrastinate on the disaster-area clean-up by getting hooked on the computer. See item #1.

3. I wish I didn't eat so much. I eat when I'm lonely. Well, I do lots of eating at inappropriate times, but it's especially bad when I have only the TV, the computer, and lots of dirty dishes and scattered toys to keep me company.

He'll be back in a few days, but in the meantime, I shall spend way too much time aimlessly surfing the web, procrastinating on chores, and I'll eat way more calories than I should be consuming...ugh.

Vocabulary lesson

An exchange I had with my Big Boy today:

BB: "My sister is the bad guy and I am the Super Hero."

Mama: "Really?"

BB: "Yeah, she has a sword, but I have an expensive sword to shoo the bad guys away and save the people."

Mama: "Okay. So, what does 'expensive' mean?"

BB: "It means only Super Heroes and grown-ups can use it."

When I refer to my camera and my iPod as expensive and ask him not to touch them, this is how he has interpreted the meaning. I love this definition!

How do I know when an issue really is an issue?

Is the absolute inability to listen to one's parents an innate characteristic of a four-year-old, or should I be concerned? I'm pretty sure he has a filter for my voice. I tell him to stop doing something; no response. The voice gets louder and louder until the seventh or eighth attempt, when I am essentially yelling. I've been teaching him sign language, so sometimes I even yell at him in sign. (He can tell it's "yelling" by how emphatic my signs are and how angry my face looks. It might be more quiet, but it's essentially the same as raising my voice.)

At this point, I finally get a response, except it's anger and frustration at the fact that I am yelling at him. So, what's the deal? Is he testing my limits to such an extreme that he refuses to listen until I'm red in the face? Or should I be worried that he's so focused on what he's doing that he tunes me out completely?

This stage of development seems tricky to me. It seemed easier when I was just looking for the milestones the books tell me to expect. We wait and wait for the newborn to roll over and express grave concern when such a milestone seems late to us. But the doctor assures us that there is always a range for these things, and eventually, the babe does roll.

My approaching-two-year-old is supposed to throw tantrums and tell me "no!" I expect this. But I KNOW my big boy understands what I am asking of him. Must he wait until I've asked him so many times that I am feeling like the hold music on the pediatrician's phone?

Do your kids listen to you? How can I get mine to do it? Desperate (and highly repetitive) mom seeking advice...