CHALLENGES

Since having Emmanuel as a mellow baby, his new sense of personality and assertiveness has been quite challenging. My husband and I have had to re-group more often now days than before and that can be tiring.Tantrums are one thing but dealing with different styles of handling the tantrum is another. In learning about the changes and the developments of your baby, you never know what to expect. It is tempting to assume the textbook solution but it isn't always a text book problem. The guidelines are but great to start with. We don't always agree but we're trying to find solutions though a united front.

The one thing we dreaded was Emmanuel finding avenues to getting away with things, and so I reckon for the moment we're practicing to keep the united front. Sometimes Emmanuel's reaction to the untied front is so funny that composure goes out the window. He tries to explain himself in words that we literally don't understand and his cute facial expressions just makes our hearts melt....The challenge is to keep that consistency in dealing with the tantrum. The challenge is to teach him that tantrums are an unacceptable way to express his annoyance , frustrations or disappointments.

Amongst the challenges, come the joys of parenthood. The joy in his little man achievements, the joy and scare of Emmanuel being able to get himself out of the fortifies deck of our house, his problem solving skills. The joy of watching hubby and Emmanuel have a conversation without the other understanding a word but that it can go on for more than ten minutes.

I love this life, I love Emmanuel.

So Many Changes

There have been so many things that have happend since my last blog ages ago. I spent a year at home learning the challenges and joys of motherhood and it is' still on going. And so this year, my husband and I after much prayer and thought decide that I go back to work at least three days a week and Emmanuel would go into day care. The only problem was is that we couldn't afford to put him into day care, so we prayed for financila support only to put our son into day care so that i could go back to work. Now given that we're missionaries, praying is always that first thing you do....God answered our prayers by provided my cousin's wife to look after our son for free three days a week and hense i am enjoying the serenity of having peaceful mornings. Taking my time getting ready for work and just doing things at a peaceful rate....

We've enjoyed Emmanuel as a mellow baby and now we're having to adjust to him being an assertive todler, quite determined little chap, bless him. He literally walks around our home with his plastic blue chair looking for things or places to reach. And does he have a high pitched scream if he is denied of his blue chair. So the adjustment for Api and I is to take it as it comes, and try to provide solutions to what we see as a problem but you see Emmanuel sees it as an adventure. It also tests us as a couple in terms of boundaries and what we diiferently see as potential danger for Emmanuel or just fun and games...so we're always having to "discuss" the issue at hand.

We're moving and learning and boy it can be hard if you're not getting the expected results and it can also be fulling when it does come around, well for me it's when I am right about something....ha..ha..