Bumblebee has discovered the temper tantrum.
Right now it’s a little funny because he only throws one when I pull him away from something dangerous, like a pile of small rocks he desperately wants to taste (Thanks, ABQ, for being a choking hazard) or something similar (usually rocks though). He arches his back and lets loose a mighty whine (not really a scream at all), and then in about two seconds he’s totally moved on to something else, like his dad’s cigar or our shiny silver shoehorn.
Yesterday he actually threw one for something other than rocks, and for a little longer than two seconds (though not much longer). It was frozen yogurt. My husband and I took the baby to the mall so that my hubby could get a massage and I could get some birthday present shopping done for him (no luck in that department). When we met up again about twenty minutes later we decided to get a frozen yogurt to share. We got the plain one with strawberries and raspberries on top. My husband decided to give Bumblebee a bite of frozen yogurt and we were charmed by his reaction. He held it in his mouth for a moment, puzzled, and then started smiling and laughing and reaching for the spoon. He’s had yogurt before, bites of regular yogurt he liked, gerber yogurt melts he seemed indifferent to, and yogurt covered cheerios which he doesn’t seem able to tell apart from the regular kind. But freeze the stuff and, apparently, my son can’t get enough. When we finished the yogurt, he waited somewhat impatiently for the next bite. I told him it was all gone and we were all done, which is what I say at the end of every meal. He seemed apprehensive. I stood up to throw the garbage away and told my husband, “He might start to cry when I walk away.”
A few seconds I came back and Bumblebee was screaming bloody murder. His cries were heart wrenching. He would never be happy again, that much was obvious. His dad strapped him into the stroller and a few seconds later the crying ceased. We went home and he cried the last minute or so of the trip, which is rare for him unless we’re on a long road trip. When we got inside, he ate a bunch of finger foods and crashed for about an hour before waking up as cheerful as ever.
Despite the discovery of the temper tantrum, my son has actually been crying less. He can clearly communicate what he wants by reaching and grabbing at things now, so that cuts back on some of it. I’ve learned to anticipate his needs (especially sleep and food) a long time ago and that helps even more. He’s been sleeping through the night ever since we took him out of the bedroom of our one room apartment and set up his own room in the living room (apparently I was waking him up in the middle of the night. My husband says he would lie awake listening to me and the baby respond to each other’s breathing and movements until everyone in the family was wide awake and cranky. Put him on the other side of the wall with the door open a crack and the problem is solved). Sometimes he would wake in the middle of the night crying but not often.
Last night was weird. I woke up because I’m due for another baby in about two months and I had to use the bathroom. I also thought I heard Bumblebee making soft, happy noises. As I left our room I glance at his bed and sure enough, he was standing up in the corner and gently whispering, “Hadada… hadadadada…” He grinned when he saw me. I wasn’t entirely sure what to do. first I went to the bathroom. No change in Bumblebee. I had no idea what time it is thanks to our complete lack of clocks in the house, and I wasn’t about to start up a computer just to see the time. So I just made him a fresh bottle, laid him down with it, told him it was still night-night time and went back to bed. I waited a few minutes before checking on him again, he was still lying down (bottle untouched) and it seemed like he was going to go back to sleep soon, so I went to bed and slept the rest of the night without hearing any crying or happy noises. Hopefully any future night wakings will be just as easy to deal with!
