Trying to figure this whole parenting thing out.

Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Tuesday, July 31, 2012: Off to go

Gavin is hiding under his bed with a load in his pants. He claims he is "not done pooping" and told me "I want you to go out in the hallway." I've told him before that leaving poop in his pants will make his butt sore (actually, we go right for the gold and say it will make his anus sore. Much more dramatic. And accurate). But I am not going to beg him to let me wipe his butt. I have diaper cream. I'll wait.

Speaking of poo (and I am, it seems, always speaking of poo), Gavin is in diapers full time again. He's technically in Pull-Ups but those are actually diapers and anyone who thinks otherwise is kidding themselves. They're just diapers you don't have to get a kid flat on the floor to put on is all. It's interesting though that twice Gavin has declared spontaneously on his own that he needed to pee and then went in the bathroom and did it all by himself. Both times we had company over so I have witnesses (Cheryl, Sara, please back me up). And then two other times he has pooped in his pants and I found him in the bathroom changing and trying to clean himself. Thankfully neither time resulted in stepped in feces tracked across the bathroom and all over tarnation, though. He is woefully inept when it comes to wiping, though that's to be expected at this stage. From what I've heard about boys they start to get better at it around the time they start college.

Gavin has been playing with this little Matchbox food truck I bought him awhile ago. He calls it his taco truck even though it says hamburgers on the side. But he can't read. And the only food truck he's ever really eaten from was a taco truck. Today he rolled the truck up to me and asked me if I was hungry. He then told me that he sold mango, strawberry and pineapple tacos and spinach donuts. Sounds damn good to me. Who wants to help raise the seed money for this venture?

I've been a single mom now for over a week. Frankly I think I'm pretty good at it, but that's only because I am not working this summer. For single ladies who have a kid (or kids) and a job (or jobs), I honestly don't know how you do it and I am so sorry that we live in a country that does not consider raising children an actual job and offers shit support to families. Family values, my ass. In any case, that is not to say that I in any way wish to stay a single mom. Gavin has two moms, just one of them in in Peru (or "at Paroo" as Gavin would say) right now. She'll be back soon. Gavin and I are both looking forward to her homecoming so long as she brings us the present we asked for (which is her arriving alive and well).

Of course, not having a break from Gavin at all save when we go to the gym and he hangs out in the Kids Club is taking its toll. I could use a break. Sometimes I just don't want to have to hear, "Play with me, Mama D" every five minutes and "When you gonna be done (with whatever it is you're doing that is not allowing you to play with me including things like going to the bathroom or showering or making dinner)?" And then there's, "What next?" which is what Gavin says at the conclusion of every activity or event we do together, reminding me that this is a never ending job. A very often rewarding job, mind you. But Jesus, what a job.

Speaking of Jesus, that's been one of Gavin's new catch phrases. A week ago at the park Gavin and his friend Colin were playing on a slide and since only the two of them were using it, they had free reign of the thing. At some point they went off to do something else and when they came back to the slide there were other kids playing on it. Gavin's response? "Jesus. Oh, Jesus. There's kids on the slide." Later, at home, Gavin heard a rumble outside and went running to the front door saying, "Jesus, it's the garbage truck." Now I readily admit that he got this from me. And I would be lying if I said I didn't think it was hilarious to hear him say it. But I also know that it's probably not the best habit to instill in my child and so I've been encouraging him to say "Gee whiz" instead since it sounds like Jesus. I haven't made a big deal about the Jesus thing because I'm afraid if I do he will also make a big deal about it by saying, "Oh, Jesus" forever. Or at least all the way through grade school.

Thankfully not every cute thing Gavin says is potentially offensive to millions. We've been going on walks every evening, which is something I usually do with Henri after Gavin goes to bed, but since Stacy isn't here, that's a no-go. Gavin's favorite thing to do on the walk is to pretend that he's the Big Bad Wolf and that I'm one of the three little pigs (or maybe I'm all three rolled into one?) and he chases me and I'm supposed to run. Now this might come as a huge surprise to many folks, but I am not a runner, despite my physique. I do not like to run, though pretending to run is worse than actually running. The Big Bad Wolf shtick is getting old quickly, except that while he's chasing me he yells, "Run in your life" instead of "run for your life." And it's fucking adorable. I have to admit that it breaks my heart a little bit when he outgrows certain verbalizations. Like the day he started saying "ketchup" instead of "keputch." Or when he started calling me Mama D instead of "Dirt."And there are many more I can't think of (but would happily to be reminded of by my wife or anyone else who reads this). Also, when we're about to leave the house he says, "Off to go," a conglomeration of "off we go" and "ready to go." He also says, "Ready to rock and roll" when we're ready to go, which he got from me. We often sing it in a high-pitch warble, often in unison, as if we were truly rock stars ourselves. Which we are. To each other anyway.

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