2 girls, but so different

Okay so I have two beautiful girls. Julie was easy until about 4, but she was never as bad as Kaitlyn. I never got to the point where I debated going out places. Now I am at that place. The other day, Kaitlyn and I were shopping in Wal-Mart so we could pick up some things for our camping trip. Well as the cart was getting full, I told her that she would have to walk due to the fact that there was no more room in the cart for her to sit. Well lets talk about a complete meltdown. Refusing to walk, screaming that her boo-boo hurt(a small scrape on her leg that happened a week earlier), and all in all crying like crazy. I calmly told her that she needed to walk and mom was going to keep shopping and she needs to come with me. So I walked around the corner thinking she would worry that I am leaving and of course she was still standing dead still crying in the middle of the isle. I walked back and picked her up and continued to shop and put her in the front of the cart...now she was screaming because she only wanted to ride in the back. A lady who had also been shopping this whole time came up to me and said that she was very impressed how I handled it and that I kept calm the whole time. She told me that it would get easier and I was doing a great job....it makes you feel good when another mom compliments you in that situation.

So lets fast forward to today. I was having a bad day so I decided to take the girls to see my mom at lunch which I think we all needed. I would have a small break and also get to see my mom. It turns out my mom was running late so we went ahead and ordered and of course the girls wanted a small toy from those dumb machines where you pay 50 cents for a penny toy that is crap. So I wanted to keep them happy while I ordered. So as I gave them the money, I reminded Kaitlyn that you can't pick the one you get as she pointed to the one she wanted...well thank god that was the one that came out although she didn't think it was the same, so she starts saying she wants a new one and I told her that you only get one. Well then the drama started. She started crying and screaming that she wanted a new one. I carried her to the table and quietly told her that you get the one that comes out and you can not pick. That next time, she won't get anything if she cries about it...well as the crying got louder and louder, I decided that I couldn't inconvenience the whole restaurant so I asked Julie to please wait in the booth while I took Kaitlyn outside for a time out(since I could see Julie through the window the whole time). So I sat Kaitlyn on the ground and explained to her that when she was done throwing a fit and crying we could go back in and eat our food and get a drink. So I stood there ignoring her while we waited for 5 minutes for her to stop screaming. I asked her if she was done and wanted to try it again and she said yes. So I walked her back inside and placed her in the booth and told her to stay put while I took Julie to get her salad. Once again as I was walking up to the salad bar, a lady on her cell phone stopped me and said that she wanted to commend me on the job that I am doing and how I handled the situation even though she knows how hard it is.......
I guess that I am doing something right even though it is so hard.....At least I am getting a pat on the back...and I want another one....am I crazy????

Different from the start, even in utero

As we make our way back across the united states from New York to California, I cant wait until we get home. Not for the reasons that you may think though. Lets go back to the beginning. When I was pregnant with my first, she was very mellow even in the womb. There were times I didn’t feel her move or kick all day and I would get worried and then have to drink some juice and do kick counts to make sure all is well. After she was born, she was the easiest, most mellow tempered baby and child. Everyone would remark how good she was sleeping through the night at 6 weeks old. Accepting everything with ease. To this day she is still very mellow and easy going except for the typical 4 yr old things. We could take her anywhere and not have to worry…restaurants, long car trips, airplanes and know that we would never have a problem…….
Let’s jump to number 2…..I started to feel her kick in the womb at 11 weeks(really early) and she never ever stopped kicking or moving. I swore up until my ultrasound that she was a boy because how dramatically different this baby was. My doctor would just keep telling me that it was just a different personality….but I wasn’t convinced. Now I must say to Dr Burke….you were right on the money. She is very high spirited, easy to anger, stubborn, and if she doesn’t get what she wants or thinks she deserves watch out. There are no tricks to help with her either.
So lets get back to our plane adventure that we are currently on. We left Ny around 1pm for our first leg of the flight which was an hour and 45 minutes. Let me say now that I am so very sorry to the people who were in front of us…if she wasn’t karate kicking the seats she was yelling no and getting angry that I was holding her legs….then when drinks came she decided that it would be fun to use her small straw to blow apple juice all over the back of the seats and I hope not on the people in front of us. We tried everything from our arsenal of snacks, food, drinks, colors…to no avail. It was one of those flights that before I had kids, I would have said, why cant those people control that little brat….lol. Let s just say we were so thankful to land at Atlanta Airport where we stopped at Fridays for a bite to eat….at this point she was trying to lay on the table, sit on the table, crawl over the table, throw all of the sweetener at people, crawl and lay under the table…well I think you get the picture. Needless to say she didn’t eat much so of course when we got on the plane, she was still hungry…we had a 3 hr layover in Atlanta so we decided to let the kids run like crazy up and down the airport to tire them out even though they were already exhausted. So we board the plane to Sacramento and I am sure that Kaitlyn(the 2 yr old) is going to fall asleep at any second….but oh no. For the next 2 hrs she screamed, kicked(thank god we put dad in front of her this time), cried, threw things, and just caused a ruckus. She wanted her window shade up, then down, then up….she wanted the earphones on and off and on and off….she wanted some of the cheese and fruit we bought but only on her terms. She was mad that her sister fell asleep leaning against the side of her car seat….and then about 20 minutes ago finally…peace…her eyes are closed and she is finally sound asleep. I thought that it would never ever come. Only another 2 hours to go until we land..lets hope that everyone stays fast asleep.