Fuller has a bad habit of arguing with us when we ask/ tell him to do something. When we ask/ tell him to do something, he immediately launches into “But…” This past weekend Damon and I both realized (almost at the same time) we were tired of it, and have started combating the behavior.

He isn’t really getting the idea of “argue” and I was wondering how you combat this kind of behavior with your kid(s)?

I don’t have lofty goals today. The only thing I have to do is take Lively to the groomer. I’m still behind on the house chores that piled up while I was in Vegas and while I had a great start, I kind of flatlined on my energy quotient on Thursday. So we have half done chores to finish.

There is a project I need to take care of that I think a lot of parents I know do around this time of year- the thinning of the toys. I piled all of Fuller’s toys into his room earlier this week and I have yet to sit down and actually do anything about it.

I’m in a quandry about the toys because there are toys he no longer plays with because they are too “baby.” And I wonder if we really need to keep those toys or if we should donate them somewhere. The idea used to be we should keep toys for any future brothers or sisters. Now that it is obvious that there will be so much space between Fuller and siblings (never our intention), is it really worth the attic space to keep these things? By the time another addition to the family is ready to play with toys, there will probably be better, less likely to cause lead poisoning toys on the market. At least I hope that is the trend.

I don’t have sentimental attachment to anything Fuller played with as a baby and am actually considering chucking the whole lot that is in the attic. So I ask… what do you think I should do? Free up attic space? Or start hording for the unconceived one?

You know how the Oscars and Emmys and whatever else are certified by some accountability firm so that the votes are real and not faked?

Well, I don’t have one of those, but I do have Google Video!

The video of who won the giveaway is currently being uploaded. While we wait, lets open the floor for some discussion:

What potty training chair did you use for your kid(s)?

Has anyone ever used chalkboard paint? I am wondering if it would still work if you painted over an existing chalkboard. We have a green chalkboard that Fuller is currently using. However it doesn’t take the chalk very well and there are some stains on it (we got it at a thrift store). I was thinking about painting over it in chalkboard paint but wonder if that would help or hurt.

Thoughts? Stories?

There is a topic of discussion that has come up in our house and with some friends so I thought I would bring it up here and see what kinds of comments we get.

Toys taking over the house is a fear of ours and we think that part of the problem is the duplication of kinds of toys, or brands of toys, that essentially are the same as something your kid already has, but has a different angle or feature. Or the same kinds of toys don’t work together.

Examples: Interlocking bricks, some might call them Legos, or Duplos, or Megablocks. We have Quatros. They do not work with Megablocks or Duplos.

Or the aforementioned V-Tech toys. Leapfrog has a lot of similar things, but the cartridges won’t work in a V-Tech system. From what I can tell, there isn’t a lot of difference between the two, just some different looks and bells and whistles (some louder than others).

Another example is Little People versus Playmobile. Same concepts, different styles.

So my question is this: do you ask those who are inclined to give your kids toys, to stick to a certain brand or toy type? Do you return/ exchange something that isn’t in the same “system” as something your child has?

It’s open mic people, let’s hear what you have to say.

Beth has a great question over on her blog. I would ask that if you are a parent of a boy that you go and put in your two cents. I would ask especially if your are the father of a boy that you go over there and put in your two cents… don’t worry ClubMom won’t bite.