Since November, it seems like Parker is just a little bit sweeter, more cuddly - and last week, all last week, he was giving me kisses and randomly saying, "i love you."  And then something happened and he's kindeve a little whiny "Mine" and "NO!" monster.  It doesn't help that Stewart is around to encourage or aggrivate the situation. 

Parker is still having a hard time going to bed at night.  He is soo stubborn.  If we had the patience, he would get up all night long.  He gets up and we go put him back to bed and he gets up and we go pit him back to bed and he gets up - infinity.  Our biggest fear as parents, as a married couple (!) is that he will go the way of Stewart and want to sleep in bed with us all the time.  Stewart only stopped getting in bed with us when Parker arrived.  We aren't having anymore children - Parker could sleep in bed with us forever!  So we don't let him in bed with us - unless it's after 6am.  If he gets up in the middle of the night we go put him back in his crib - which only has to be done once.  It is somehow much easier to get him to go back to sleep than it is to get him to go to sleep in the first place.   

I've stopped fighting with him at nap time - and I will close the blinds and the curtains and turn on some soft relaxing music and let him take his nap in our bed.  Somehow it works.  He doesn't fight it as much - maybe it's because he likes our bed or because he can see me sitting at my desk doing homework.  I can't tell you how much i love his bright red cheeks when he wakes up from his nap.  It's like I rubbed some rouge into his little cheeks - they are so red.  It is such a contrast to his fair skin.   

So this was a really tough weekend for all of us.  Bill and I both had homework.  I spent some time reading with Stewart.  I made a really awesome roast (will post the recipe soon) and I made the white bean and winter vegetable soup.  It was really good.  Not bad for my first time with leeks, escarole, and kale.  Parker and Stewart seemed exceptionally rambunctious.  Boys.  Apparently, while in the basement with dad, they were having a "battle royale" and it involved throwing balls at each other and hitting each other with sticks/swords.  I think dad had to break it up.  But they are both growing and i guess this is all part of having 2 boys.

I hope the terrible twos don't last long.  I don't remember Stewart going through an exceptionally bad or long period of terribleness - but then that probably means that Parker will have the terribles until he's 10.