"If We Can Get Through The Next Two Years We'll Be OK"
This week marks the second anniversary of when the Toddler joined our family. This is the second in a series of posts I hope to write about my impressions to mark that anniversary.
Given our advanced ages (relatively speaking), we've been fortunate that the Toddler has been a very easy baby, BH. She started sleeping through the night at a relatively young age and has continued to do so until today. She goes to sleep easily. She still takes a long afternoon nap. She is a somewhat picky, but good, eater. She enjoys her bath. She is very engaged and has a great sense of humor. She is very friendly and gets along well with just about everybody.
And then she turned two.
The Toddler is turning out to be very strong-willed. She has a fierce temper. She expects things to be done her way and is prepared to throw fits (or food) if they are not. In other words, she just turned two.
This behavior, of course, presents quite a challenge and requires a lot of self control and discipline. MHW is very good at this. I am not so I have to work at it constantly. Remember, I am old enough to be a grandfather (I am a grandfather!) and I have to stop myself from acting like one.
On Shabbos, after one of The Toddler's hissy-fits, MHW said to me: "I think if we can get through the next two years, we'll be fine." I thought that was one of the funniest lines I had ever heard but MHW was serious.
We've been through this before with our other kids (in very different ways and to different degrees) but that was many years ago, when we were young. It just seems a lot harder at our ages.
Indeed, of all the things that worry me about raising The Toddler, our ages worry me the most. MHW is right about the next couple of years; we can and will get through them with a lot of love, patience and self control. I worry more about the years to come. How is The Toddler going to relate to parents who are as old as most people's grandparents? (Teenagers already think their parents are pre-historic).
It's good, I suppose, that for alter cockers, we are in pretty good shape and on the "young" side (especially MHW). I guess we have a lot of incentive to keep it that way.
This week marks the second anniversary of when the Toddler joined our family. This is the second in a series of posts I hope to write about my impressions to mark that anniversary.
Given our advanced ages (relatively speaking), we've been fortunate that the Toddler has been a very easy baby, BH. She started sleeping through the night at a relatively young age and has continued to do so until today. She goes to sleep easily. She still takes a long afternoon nap. She is a somewhat picky, but good, eater. She enjoys her bath. She is very engaged and has a great sense of humor. She is very friendly and gets along well with just about everybody.
And then she turned two.
The Toddler is turning out to be very strong-willed. She has a fierce temper. She expects things to be done her way and is prepared to throw fits (or food) if they are not. In other words, she just turned two.
This behavior, of course, presents quite a challenge and requires a lot of self control and discipline. MHW is very good at this. I am not so I have to work at it constantly. Remember, I am old enough to be a grandfather (I am a grandfather!) and I have to stop myself from acting like one.
On Shabbos, after one of The Toddler's hissy-fits, MHW said to me: "I think if we can get through the next two years, we'll be fine." I thought that was one of the funniest lines I had ever heard but MHW was serious.
We've been through this before with our other kids (in very different ways and to different degrees) but that was many years ago, when we were young. It just seems a lot harder at our ages.
Indeed, of all the things that worry me about raising The Toddler, our ages worry me the most. MHW is right about the next couple of years; we can and will get through them with a lot of love, patience and self control. I worry more about the years to come. How is The Toddler going to relate to parents who are as old as most people's grandparents? (Teenagers already think their parents are pre-historic).
It's good, I suppose, that for alter cockers, we are in pretty good shape and on the "young" side (especially MHW). I guess we have a lot of incentive to keep it that way.
Labels: Fostering
posted by MoChassid @ 11:33 AM
5 Comments:
At 4:22 PM,
Anonymous said…
Don't sweat the age stuff. I worried about it when we adopted our kids as we were 40 the first time and 43 the second time.
We have had many issues with our kids, but they don't seem disturbed at all by our age, even when somebody assumes we are their grandparents. (and we are unfortunately not in good shape)
May you continue to enjoy her - she's a cutie!
At 4:31 PM,
MoChassid said…
Anonymous
Thanks for thr chizuk
Despite being in good shape, EVERYONE assumes she's my grandchild because my hair (or what's left of it) and my beard are white.
How old are your kids?
At 4:59 PM,
orieyenta said…
...our ages worry me the most.
Certainly you have a valid issue there but I think you need to take it into perspective. You met PHD, at 63 he is certainly old enough to be my 8-year old's grandfather but you would never know it. He has more energy than I have ever had and while she knows he is a older than I am, the age factor has never been an issue for her. And I truly think the adage of "you are only as old as you feel" fits here because from whatI have been told you are in great shape :)
At 2:41 AM,
Anonymous said…
My kids, may they be happy and healthy til 120, are now 10 and 13.
And my DH doesn't have any hair at all, so you are still ahead of the game.
When we moved to our current location our kids were 6 and 3. Once we were all walking together on Shabbat and somebody asked us "how old are your other children" just assuming that these were the last of a larger family.
At 11:53 AM,
MoChassid said…
anonymous
I am your current age with a two year old!
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