Once Upon a Time, There Was Some Order in the House...Then I Had Toddlers

Once Upon a Time, I had a house that had some semblance of order.  Then I had babies that grew into toddlers.  It has been a couple of years since I've had a toddler in the house.  It is official that I have one again.  You know what I mean.  Before they become mobile, books tend to stay on the bookshelves.  Things don't get dumped as much.  Clean laundry can get folded without going into a mouth or being dropped on the floor that still needs to get mopped. 

Well, now that my precious baby girl is walking and running and climbing all over the place, my cookbooks are almost daily unshelved and on the floor.  My clean laundry makes it to her mouth or the floor, while I'm trying to fold it.  School papers are fascinating to her.  Books are fascinating to her.  She is curious and learning about her world.  It's a good thing to be curious.  That's how we learn.  It's also how we learn what is okay and what is not okay.  It is not okay to stick her hands into my cupboard and grab the box of Jello and rip it open.  It is not okay to play with chemicals.  It is not okay to rip school papers.  It is not okay to open the dishwasher door.  It is not okay to pull down on the oven door.  It is okay to be curious about books, I'd just rather them not be on the floor... daily...multiple times.  It is okay to try to help mommy fold laundry, when she is bigger and not putting it in her mouth, or on the floor.  Her much older siblings would appreciate her not pulling their bookmarks out of the books they are reading.

I remind myself that she is learning boundaries and that it is building a foundation for her.  She won't be doing this forever.  Her curiosity is a learning tool.  Today she found a bottle filled with colored sand and a loose top.  She had fun learning about it, before she was caught.  In the past I've had nearly a full bag of flour on the floor by another curious toddler.  One toddler knew how to unlock the deadbolt on the front door and open it and run out, down the sidewalk, around the neighborhood, in her diaper.  She was between 1 and 2 years of age and I was pregnant.  My oldest had to chase her down for me and bring her back to the house, while she giggled about her escape.  We changed the lock on the door after a few times of this happening.  These are times to remember, because they only last for a short time in their lives.  The day will come that I will look back and smile at the memories.

Here's a picture of little one's adventure today.

This child cracks me up.  She makes a little bit of noise and then shushes herself, because we are trying to teach her to not be loud.  Silly girl!