You're Acting Like A.....!

I have wanted to write this post for a week or so now and thought I better write it down NOW before I forget the valuable lesson I learned last week as I was losing my patience with my sweet Henry. I can truly give my pregnancy credit for my lack of patience or at least it being very thin. (I hope anyway...I'd like to think otherwise I am a fairly patient mother) Well, I waited too long now to remember exactly what it was that was wearing me so thin that day... It could simply have been Henry's dawdling. He seems to like to dawdle. A LOT. (Remember, this is just one side of the story, if you asked him, which knowing my sweet 3 year old has forgiven and forgotten... he would simply tell you he likes to take his time, or some other reason, which I am sure is very good for his ...'dawdling') It could have been that my house was a mess, or that I was running errands I very much did not want to run... anyway, whatever the reason, I finally had had enough! I very firmly, okay, I yelled at Henry..."You're acting like a 3 year old!" Wow. Uh.... Oh sweet Henry, I thought to myself. What are my realistic expectations for you? I actually often think back about what my expectations were for Henry when he was 6 months...12 months...etc. But rarely do I consciously think about my expectations for him now as a 3 year old, and I realized that day that I probably expect more from him than his 3 years simply can give. I am not by any means more patient, but I do try daily. I try to remember he needs stimulation, play, and love from me. He needs me to be patient as he sorts through the shoe bucket to find his shoes and put them on. He needs me to be patient as he gets all his cars parked each in their own designated parking spot before he can get his hat and coat on, and needs me to be patient and loving as finishes lunch while distracted by a helicopter by his plate. I love this kiddo more then I ever imagined I could. I would want him to know that when he reads this in years to come, and when he remembers all my impatient moments, He will know that I tried, and am trying every day to encourage, love, and be patient with him and he grows and learns about the world around him.