Impulse Control...Age Appropriate or Genetic Trait?

I woke up this morning thinking about impulse control. 

My husband and I battle daily with our son's developing frontal lobe and the likelihood that he'll dart into traffic or set our house on fire.  One day he'll be thirty and lack the desire to write on the walls, or swing on the refrigerator handle.  Hopefully.

Now our daughter is a full blown wad of impulsive toddler.  Her little brain is changing direction so quickly that she will literally walk into the wall.  If you pay attention closely I swear you can watch her wheels turning.  Of course it's a good idea to dump out the dog water. Sure that half of a strawberry in the trash is delicious.  It's hilarious.

My husband is no stranger to impulse either.  If he or anyone else were to question this, I'd present:

     Exhibit A:  the 55" flat screen TV 

     Exhibit B:  a very fine set of impala horns

     Exhibit C:  the partially decomposed snapping turtle at the top of the driveway.

Oh yeah, and all of this in the last 6 months!

Of course, maybe lack of control is contagious.  In the last 6 weeks I've managed to acquire a job, a puppy, a college schedule, and bangs. 

It's going to be a long strange summer.

Super Son part 3

We fulfilled James's dreams last night.  Clad in his Spiderman pajama shirt, khaki's and boots (no socks) he hopped in the minivan ready to see The Avengers.  He'd spent the earlier part of his weekend watching double plays of Captain America and was completely ready to see his idols all together on screen.  True to family form, we were running late.  The six thirty showing was sold out and the only remaining option was the seven o'clock 3-D option.  Whatever, if you're treating yourself, why not go big right? 

To kill time and feed Dad before the show, we sat down at a nearby hibachi restaurant.  Over chicken and rice, James starts to scan the room.  He did this a few times and we continued to eat.  Finally, he announces "Mom, I'm the only superhero in here.  If anything happens, I'll have to save everyone."  Now, what do you say to that?

The movie was great.  James felt like it would've gone better if he (Spiderman) could have participated.  I enjoyed the sight of my mini-miracle in pint-sized 3-D glasses sitting on the edge of his seat.  Sure, he wasn't the quietest patron in the house nor was he still for two hours, but it was pretty super!

Super Son part 2

As the commercials for the upcoming movie "The Avengers" reach fever pitch on TV, the superhero drama at our house continues.  My son achieved his goal on Saturday by having another human call him Spiderman.  I addressed him at the park by his name and was quickly corrected by a grinning little girl who said "No, his name is Spiderman!".  The look on his face was priceless.  He's spent much of the last week alternating between being Superman and Spiderman, with most time spent as Spiderman.  He's taking credit for the webs on the front porch (note: husband, if you're reading this...please clean those.  They gross me out), contorting his body into various Spiderman inspired poses.  Perhaps one of the more disturbing things was his "Mary Kiss."  He asked me for a Mary kiss.  A Mary kiss?  He then gave me a slow (closed mouth) sweet kiss while tilting his head back and forth.  "You know mom, like Mary Jane kisses Spiderman."  Uh-oh.  My parenting choice at the moment is to completely ignore this.  Perhaps the cutest moments lately have involved Superman.  He informed me a few nights ago that "cristo-night couldn't take away his strings".  I had to work with him for a few moments before I interpreted that "kryptonite couldn't take away his strength."  Now this is just cute. 

The Superman and Spiderman shirts were being washed on Sunday.  This led to his dressing in all green and announcing that he's the Green Lantern.  This just keeps getting better and better!