on self-control, success and modeling the behavior you want

I just read an interesting article today linking self-control behavior to success. Research has it that toddlers at the age of three who had a lot more self-control are likely to end up healthier and more successful when reaching adulthood.

The research and findings make a lot of sense to me because self-control teaches a child to become more disciplined when it comes to the way he would handle his life and in coming up with sound decisions later on that will truly impact his future.

We all learned that the toddler years are the formative years of a child. This is why, as much as possible, parents should be there for their children to nurture and guide them especially at this stage in their lives.

Not tolerating and learning how to manage a toddler's temper tantrums, for example, is very important in teaching a child that he cannot always get what he wants by displaying anger and improper behavior.

Right now, whenever our toddler wants something done her way and shows her tantrums by crying almost uncontrollably, we would not try to pacify her crying by giving in to her wishes. If it's not something we approve of, it's definitely non-negotiable. However, since she's not even reached the age of two, we make it a point to distract her into doing activities that she would also like to do eventually.

Self-control is also important for parents. Even though it is already very tempting to yell at every irritating situation, parents should practice holding on to their anger in front of the child. Modeling the behavior you want is even most important.

more toddler updates

What's good about her being a one year plus toddler now is that it's no longer hard for us to know when she would like some milk herself because she would say "Malk" (sometimes "Balk" LOL). Even though she still mispronounces it, we would really know because she would point at her milk to emphasize her point. The educational video showcasing the letters of the alphabet is also a big help. When the letter "M" comes and it says and shows picture of "Milk", she would also realize she wants "Malk" as well. :-)

Also, we live in a place near the airport, airplanes are a common sight and sound on top. We taught her to say "airplane" everytime we see or hear one passing but she managed to consistenly identify it as "er-ten" everytime an airplane passes by.

And then today, when I took the boneless bangus out of the refrigerator for marinating, she pointed at it and blurted "fish!" although we can barely here the "H" in the "fish". Way to go, baby!

Another word she knows how to pronounce and identify is "dog", although sometimes she would also call a goat a "dog". Hmmm, it looks like I need to handle a few corrections along the way. :-)

By the way, I took advantage of her being a toddler copycat - I took a video of her when she would point and identify her "eyes" and then played it again so she wouldn't forget it. She also knows what an "ice" looks like. So now I'm wondering if it will cause her confusion why there are two words that sound the same but mean differently. :-)

mommy moments 4: the little christmas tree

Do you have a Christmas tree at home?

A few weeks ago, hubby and I were debating whether or not we should get a new Christmas tree in the house. We definitely want a tall one for a Christmas tree but.....

We've been thinking hard about it and decided that it's practical not to buy not only because we would be able to save on that supposed expense but because we feel that it would be safer for our little one year plus toddler to be without it in the house. You see, our little toddler wants her hands full with almost anything she finds new in the house. I have envisioned already what she would do with a tall Christmas tree and with Christmas lights and decorations around it.

Anyway, I also realized that we do have an old little Christmas tree. I bought it from Avon a few years ago. I never thought it could stand tall, I mean short and proud, up until now. :-)

So, here comes our little Christmas tree!

True enough, my little girl is really not satisfied watching at it from a distance. :-)

my clever little toddler

You know I was once told that when babies would already learn how to walk by themselves, you won't feel the pressures of being a mom or a parent anymore or that you'll be able to relax a whole lot better than you did when they were still just a few months old because they no longer have to be carried all the time. However, sometimes I would feel like they're safer in my arms and I would feel more sense of peace within myself when I know they won't get a scratch on any part of the body or a bump in the head for enjoying the newfound freedom to run or move. It's been like two or three weeks now as well since my clever little toddler have discovered a way to reach for anything she has a secret crush on even when it's far beyond her reach. What she would do is grab and pull a chair right to the place of her interest and use it as her ladder so she would climb up to get what she has been eyeing on. No matter how much we try stopping her from doing so and then putting her back down everytime she would succeed in standing on top of the chair's seat and enjoying the view, she's too stubbornly patient to try it again.

Uh oh, watch the tv!

mommy moments #3: memories from last christmas

I'm joining Mommy Moments again because I've got something to share - photographs and memories from last Christmas. :-) You'll have to excuse me for the pictures, though, because my camera hasn't been taking good pictures anymore. One thing that's good about it is that if you and I think I don't look great in all of my pictures, it's probably because my camera needs repair or replacement. Paging, Santa Claus! :-)

The pictures I'm going to share below were taken at a relative's place. Grandmother spent her Christmas there with them because my aunt (who was supposed to be her lone company in the house) took an almost emergency flight to Vietnam for some real important reason. It was a good thing that grandma chose to stay there because it's not too far from where we live - so we thought of swinging there to join them in the celebration of Christmas.

Grandma was so happy to see us that day. My little girl was only nine months old in this picture. She rendered a piano recital for her great grandmother.

Okay, I was just bluffing about the piano recital. Obviously, she just sat there. Okay, fine, we made her sit there. :-)

could it be baby measles?

I don't know with you guys but parenting for me is not like a walk in the park. I'm always the frantic mom everytime I would notice something unusual with my child. But then I guess that's how other moms or parents would react, too.

I mentioned she got out of her teething discomfort and fever some two weeks ago. I thought that was our only health concern for the month. In fact, we brought her along to church with us on Sunday afternoon. However, Monday morning when she was about to take her bath, we noticed some red rashes on her stomach, and then there were some on her back and behind her ear which we suspected to be "baby measles" but then again we can't be sure. She was complete with vaccination, by the way.

I was frantic and wanted to see the doctor right away but my little toddler was acting normal - active, walking and running around the house, jumping in the mattress, just like her normal self. No fever, no itching, nothing except those eruptions/rashes on the skin (parts of her stomach, back and behind her ear).

Time to call mother-in-law. We were advised to just observe first how it goes with her at least for a day. So, we just let her take lots of fluids. I thank God for her strong immune system because the rashes started to fade away hours after and when it was already morning, those rashes on the skin are all clear and gone.

Could it be baby measles or roseola? My analysis was that she got the virus when we went to church. Someone's child might have been carrying the virus, too. It was raining when we were about to go home. We forgot to bring an umbrella so we had to wait (along with the other churchgoers who also came unprepared) for the rain to stop. There were sneezing and coughing here and there. Hmmm, anyway, it's all clear already. Thank you, Lord!