Consequences

Finley has access to all of the lower cupboards and drawers in the kitchen. I have only locked off the one under the sink where I keep the dish soap and a few other household cleaners. I've decided to let her have at the others. There isn't anything in them to hurt her. She loves to explore and satisfy her curiosities. She has a grand time playing with the mason jar rings, wearing them as bracelets, taking the Tupperware apart refastening the lids and filling the water pitcher with small toys. Sometimes, I open cupboards to find them holding unusual household items like, raisins, or a shoe, little reminders that my daughter has been here playing. While she is removing the cookie tins to use as drums I get to work quickly in the kitchen prepping a meal or parts of the meal while she is happily entertained.

I do, however, have one cupboard that is off limits in the dining room. It's a built in and there are no obvious handles so Finley has not clued into the fact that I have my good china serving plates, candles and the dried bouquet of roses I held at my wedding stored under there. That is until the other day, when she saw me replacing a serving platter. Ever since then she has been making a B-line straight for the cupboard door.

First, she pulls off the tea towel I have hanging there more for decor than polishing stem ware and then she looks back over her shoulder at me and smiles. She looks me straight in the eye while she proceeds to open the cupboard door and reach inside. While she is waving her hand around inside the cupboard she's looking at me, because, she absolutely knows that I don't want her playing in this cupboard. I have already sat with her and showed her all the facinating items sitting on the shelves. I let her touch a few breakable items just to satisfy her curiosity. My bright idea was to demystify the cupboard and it's contents and we would not have an issue. Boy was I wrong! For the last few days she has been in there every chance she gets.

"Finley, please close the door to the cupboard and go find something else to play with. This cupboard is mommy's. It's "NO" for you."

She stares at me and giggles. She reaches her hand in to touch a blue vase.

"Finley, you WILL go to time -out. Close the door, now, please."

She reaches into the cupboard with both hands, this time she bends her knees as though bracing herself to lift, her little diaper bum facing me, and pretends to pick up the vase.

"Finley!"

She laughs, jumps up, closes the cupboard door, and runs to sit on the bottom step of the staircase. The step we reserve for "Time-Outs." We began to impose Time -Outs when Finley went through a biting phase in September. At that time, a very upset and startled Finley sat on the bottom stair crying, while I explained to her why biting hurt mommy and if she continued she would have many more "Time-Outs." I actually thought she was too young for Time-Outs but the pediatrician said she was not, he said to try it and see if she reacted to it. As a result of biting we had several "Supported Time- Outs" and the biting stopped. Time- Outs were indeed effective.

Finley is still giggling when I approach her to sit beside her on the stair. At 19 months and 6 days old my sweet Finley has given herself a Time-Out.

Sometimes the urge to touch something despite heeded warnings not to, is too much. For Finley the consequences of giving into this curiosity was absolutely worth it.

As for me. I think I'm in BIG trouble. What comes after time outs?

Fall Back

Okay, Day Light Savings Time,

Your fall back has wreaked enough havoc on my toddler's schedule.

I'd like my SEVERAL HOURS LOST battling

an over-tired, past nap time, toddler back.

Let's Spring Ahead NOW and call it even.

OKAY?

Halloweenie

I love everything about Halloween! Halloween is my FAVORITE day of the year. It has been ever since I can remember. I love to dress up to go door to door to see all the costumes and pumpkins. Our friends would meet and tear through as many neighbourhoods as we could before 8:30 PM when we had to be home. Once home we dumped our pillow cases filled with the night's loot out onto the living room floor where we would sort them. Well, I, of A-Type personality sorted into like kinds then into bags. My mother would come by to check the candy and usually took her mom tax of a Kraft Caramel or two. They were her favourite.

One Halloween, my friend Kelly and I spent a good two weeks making our costumes. I was a box of Tide and she was the washing machine. We were in the 5th or 6th grade. Neither of us realized that we would not fit up the steps side by side in our costumes. We were presented with costume challenges all night long. Like when Steven Ayotte, the bad ass kid, in our class chased me while throwing eggs at me and I could not run very fast to get away because the box covered my knees. Yeah that was a good challenge. I was heart broken that there were eggs splatted all over my back after all my hard work making my costume. Now, however, I wish that egg chase was on video. How ridiculous! One day I'll write that scene into a screen play and it will live on forever. Anyway, Kelly and I were talking about this last week and we are still miffed that neither of our mother's took a photo of us. Are you kidding me? We worked for like two weeks on those costumes which is plenty of time to buy flash cubes, film and batteries for the old Kodak. This might explain why Kelly does not go anywhere without her camera. She is making up for a photo-less childhood.

This year our day began with a visit to see Daddy in the Emergency Department

(where he works)

The nurses began to put candy in her pumpkin. She all of a sudden was very into Halloween! Before that her pumpkin contained a sippy cup and her woofy - a toy dog.

Finley and I carved the pumpkin.

The littlest witch at nap time.

She had no idea I pinned the witch hat to her shirt earlier in the day.

I made Finley a beautiful cape in black and purple tulle with black ivy and purple & Black hydrangeas on the collar - I even made matching hydrangea clips for her hair. I came at her with the cape and she booked so fast to get away from me that she ran right into the dining room table. That was the end of mommy trying to make her wear the cape. Maybe next year?

She stood on the front porch with me while we gave out candy to all the kids. She was so excited watching them come up the steps to see her. She clapped her hands and helped to put candy in the bags and even ate a couple of rice crispy treats. She LOVED it and I'm SO happy! From here in we get to share in Halloween excitement!