It has been a rough few weeks but I am happy to report that progress is being made! We were definitely not prepared for the behavior issues we have had this time around. I fully expected these two to be a piece of cake, two kids are easier than three, right? WRONG!!! The first two weeks were especially difficult because we had to figure out which behaviors were typical, toddler-pushing-the-limits stuff and which behaviors were stemming from traumatized babies in an unfamiliar place. By some of the looks they gave us I know they were thinking where are we, who are these weirdos, why does that woman insist on putting those stupid bows in my hair, and why are they telling us what to do? In her 20 months and his 3 years we are the fourth set of "parents" they have lived with. The first few days we worked mostly on building trust. Once they realized they were safe and loved it was time to lay down the law. This included tons of time outs, a place all your own to scream to your little heart's content (FYI: while in the car rolling the windows down and turning the radio up stops the screaming instantly!), a lock on the toy box (you WILL take a nap!), etc.
Although it has been a rough road so far, seeing the progress they have already made has been oh so rewarding. When our little buddy boy got here he was saying one to two words and a speech evaluation was already set up to address CPS concerns. He is now (without speech therapy) putting six to seven words together. His progress has been awesome and exhausting!
He follows me around most of the day and it sounds a little something like this:
I: "Mama"
I: "Mama"
I: "Mama"
I: "Maaaaammmmmmaaaaaaa!"
Me: "What Buddy?"
I: "What are you doing?"
I: "Cooking?" "Going potty?" (standing outside the bathroom door) "Washing dishes?" (the list goes on)
Me: "Yes"
I: "Oh"
He has also learned how to answer questions instead of just repeating the last two words of the question we ask him. Last night I asked him, "How many times do I have to ask you to stop doing that before you actually stop?" His response: "Two!" If only that were true. Little sister is getting the hang of using words instead of pointing and screaming and is also answering questions. This morning when I picked her up out of her crib I asked, "Are you going to be a good girl today?" Her response: "Nooooo." Awesome, thanks for the heads up! I do however appreciate her honesty!
The next task to tackle? Potty training a 3 year old! Lord, help me!
