These past two mornings, first thing Mago says when emerging from his room to see me:
I promise not to take naps anymore.
These affirmations come between his daytime efforts to abandon naps, often ending, Tia tells me, in his nodding off in the early evening and consequently going to bed later – and thus the cycle repeats itself.
This morning he had a time out for talking loudly near Nem-nem’s room and waking her up, in which time out he struck me in his futile but aggressive way in frustration. I said to him very pitifully “Oh, son..” and told him I’d have to take some stuffed animals and keep them until I come home from work, and he should work on being gentle with Tia and Nem-nem until then. (He adores Nem-nem. When his adoration isn’t expressed in wrestling or otherwise hurting her. Tia is exasperated some days, and I think our loving disciplining is tapering off his uncontrollability/aggression?) This saddened and angered him a great deal, and he lovingly stroked my face in between fits to show his effort to be gentle. I told him that’s great, and he needs to do that all day until I come home and give his stuffed animals back. (Y’all are getting pictures of me towing a ton of kids’ stuffed animals away in my car and bringing them into work. That would be fun – but I just hid them in the house.)
In the late morning I called him, and he answered the phone, and I asked him how he was doing with being gentle. His answer was:
“So you can give me my stuffed animals back.”
Okay. That’s not an answer, but he’s clearly got the concept. After this, I asked him to let me talk to Tia, to go give the phone to Tia, and he said:
“Why are you going to work.. you are going to work.. okay come home. I love you.” (click.)
I hang up and get another dial tone and call again.
“Hi.”
“Hi. Will you get mom?”
“Who is this?”
“This is dad.”
“Oh. Alex. Okay. Come home. I love you.” (click.)
He’s left the phone again. Okay. I’ll leave this alone.
Tia tells me later in the day he’s had a few bouts of aggression. I think that’s better than all day, so he’s getting some stuffed animals back.