Naptime Blog

I remember before I had my boys that I’d see parents with their kids and think, “Why on earth would they do that?” I think a lot of us are guilty of this, right?

 I would see a mom with a toddler screaming in a grocery cart and think, “Why can’t she calm him down?” Oh, how naïve I was! Having kids sure does slap you with reality and make you understand things. If I observe that same scene now (sometimes involving me and my party of two), I nod with total understanding and empathy.

Before kids I couldn’t fathom why a parent would put noisy shoes on their child. I would see children running through malls with squeaky shoes on and cover my ears. I never understood why the moms and dads would sit there with a big smile, watching their little one, oblivious to the offending noise.
You know what?

I now get it! I TOTALLY get it! Every child is different. Every family is different. I have a 2 ½ year old son with developmental delays. He walks, but struggles with it daily. Lately, he has been walking on his own more and more and he’s so proud. I get tears of joy in my eyes just thinking about it. He takes unassisted steps with a huge smile on his face and a look in his eyes that says, “Are you proud of me?”. Awhile back, I was given a pair of squeaky shoes for him. Let me tell you, that squeak squeak squeak as he walks little by little, step by step is beautiful music to this proud mother’s ears. He loves hearing the squeak and that helps him want to walk more and more.

So, the next time you see someone doing something you don’t understand, try putting yourself in their shoes (squeaky or not) for just a minute.

Shannon
Potamus Prefers
http://www.potamusprefers.com/

It’s October! This is my favorite month (I did mention it’s my birthday month, right?). Even though most days are still hot and humid, there are little hints here and there of cooler days to come.

As I walk the aisles of the local merchants, I am seeing more and more pumpkins, cornucopias and other fall themed decorative items. Store racks are packed with adorable little Halloween costumes for the little ones. As I drive down the freeway, I see several Halloween super stores packed from wall to wall with Halloween costumes and decorations for people of every age.

I want to enjoy each season thoroughly, but seeing Christmas trees in September and October is a bit much. Don’t you think? I mean, I’m still in shorts and could easily take a swim and get a suntan on almost any given day. I say hold off on the Christmas decorations until we’ve at least had our first real cold front.

Anyway, back to Halloween. What are your little ones going as? Do you dress up? I am not really into dressing up myself but I love to dress the boys up. This year they will be monkeys. I got the costumes for $5 on clearance last year. The same exact costume is on sale for $25 again this year so I say I got a steal! By the way, that’s a neat savings tip… buy Halloween costumes, Christmas décor, etc. when it goes on clearance each year.

Do you have a fall tradition? We like to go to our church’s fall festival where the boys can safely trick or treat and show off their costumes. They have all sorts of activities for the kids and music for the adults. Afterwards, we will probably let them trick or treat at a few homes in our neighborhood as we pull them around in their wagon.

Shannon
Potamus Prefers
http://www.potamusprefers.com/