Update: Operation Dogs are Nice

Slowly but surely David's succumbing to the fact that both he and the dogs must co-exist together in the house. We've baby-stepped our way to comfort with the dogs: having David stare at them through the window; holding one dog while the other parent holds David; having David throw the ball to the dogs; petting them; having them walk around together...the list continues. Once David grows more confident, we'll have David help feed the dogs and give them treats to establish a proper pecking order with the dogs, so they'll know David provides food like us. Overall, the magic solution to coexisting is simply going to be time.


Another developing element in our saga has been the two-year-old mentality of "mine" and "no." Right now, one of his favorite things is to test us. He loves to claim things as his own, or he'll want our help one minute and then not the next. The honeymoon is definitely over! He's trying to tell us, "No," and Kyle and I are quickly learning to chose our battles, giving him fewer chances to tell us, "No," and more opportunities for us to say, "Yes." The great thing about parenting seems to be that we'll always have another chance to handle things differently next time, so we're quickly learning and adjusting as we go. :)

David finally got to meet Uncle Clint, Aunt Jana, and Uncle Kyle. Too bad he had to take a nap. (Sticking to our schedule hasn't always been convenient, but it's a necessary evil in establishing our norm.)

This morning (Mon.) we went to the park since this is probably the warmest it will be for a while. David loved the slides, the swing, and climbing over anything he could. Definitely ALL BOY!! Kyle and I enjoyed seeing him giggle and flash that charming smile as he played.


Another major triumph was that he actually wanted his shoes off and helped put them up in his closet. Of course, not two minutes later he wanted them back, but at least it's a small victory for now. Talk to you later.

Emily