The toddler drama continues. We are trying to find ways to help Trevor cope with Brendan’s noise, but nothing has been successful so far. Trevor woke up with a stuffy nose this morning, so keeping the boys separated seemed like a good plan for the day. He probably picked up something at the gym or the aquarium, so now we have to hope Brendan doesn’t get it too.

Brendan has also been the naughty little instigator. He LIKES to see Trevor melt down and will chase him and yell at him just to get the reaction. Trevor can be screaming and Brendan will be giggling and putting his finger in his trach so that he can yell louder. He crawls over and tries to climb on Trevor and then looks shocked when Trevor hits him on the head.

Because we have no nurse on Mondays, Brendan got to go spend the morning in Daddy’s home office. He wore his PMV with the O2 adapter and made tons of noise and explored and had a blast. Trevor and I ran to the bank and then just drove around and looked for airplanes and trucks and called Gramma on the phone. We got home in time for lunch and naps.

Trevor hasn’t had a great appetite today. I knew he wasn’t feeling well when he wouldn’t eat his strawberries for breakfast. He did feel up to licking out the empty nutella jar.

Brendan had to do cleanup

Trevor got all clean and had to get himself a drink

Bill was trying to get Brendan to practice his standing and balancing, but every time Bill would stand Brendan up, he would start dancing and flopping his legs in this funny little jig

We kept Brendan away from the dinner table tonight, but that did not stop him from yelling and getting Trevor so worked up that he choked on his dinner and almost threw up. We had to put on a movie to keep Brendan occupied and Trevor settled enough to get dinner in him.
I soothed his nerves with a blue popsicle.

Going by the blog (and the fact that Trevor yells “Coke!” when he sees a large cup with a straw), you would think I stuff Trevor full of sugar and caffeine (and coffee). He really eats very well and loves his veggies still. If the blog was open to the public, I am sure I would have an abundance of better-than-thou moms telling me that blue popsicles are causing all of our behavior issues.

I hope that Trevor wakes up feeling fresh and healthy. He is going to like going to the airport tomorrow to pick up Granddaddy!

To add to the naughty list, Brendan pulled his trach out twice today. The first time, I am not even sure how long it was out! When I got Trevor up from his nap, he came out to the living room still in his jammies and with his paci (usually that is not allowed to leave his crib). Wouldn’t you know it, the paci was dropped and next thing I know, BRENDAN has it in his mouth, fully, looking at me all proud.
So much for not sharing the germs. 🙁

I thought we were making progress today. We had some good play time, some good naps, and nothing special we had to do or get done. We just did grocery shopping first thing and stayed home.

Brendan likes to stack things

But every few minutes, he begs for the TV to be on

Trevor found this pair of newborn socks with little dogs on them. The socks had heads and then four little feet around the sides. I could not believe it, but they were able to stretch enough to go on his feet!

He loved wearing them, and barked at the dogs

Then, without prompting, he decided to give them hugs and kisses. Flexible Trevor!

As long as I kept watch, we kept the hitting to a minimum and things were OK. But then we got to dinner time. At the kitchen table, Brendan throws everything you might give him and decides to play with his trach instead. And then he yells. His yell sets Trevor off with a cry that is like a smoke alarm that you can’t turn off. He just melts down 100% and screams and can’t seem to get ahold of himself.
We struggle to know what to do. As long as Brendan sat at the table, Trevor sobbed out of control. Bill took Brendan out of the room and I was able to get Trevor to settle enough to get his dinner in him.
The noise and stress is hard on everyone, I wish I understood what was wrong.
The rest of the evening, we had to keep them separated, just for our sanity.

I got another reminder again today of why I like doing this blog so much. We had some epic meltdowns and chaos that dominated the dinner hour. Trevor cried so hard he could hardly breathe and went on a rampage, Brendan was trying to pull his trach out, all the while some bread was burning in the oven. It felt like torture, it makes you feel helpless, overpowered, and overwhelmed.

But then I look back at the day and realize that it was not all that bad. We took it easy and had no plans. We cleaned up and did laundry. Trevor and I ran to Target for some more storage/organizing things. Aside from some quick toddler fights and some minor Trevor tantrums, things were good. When it escalates though, it is easy to forget all that.

Trevor continues to fear and panic at the sound of Brendan’s voice. His reactions seem to be getting worse. He will also run up and smack Brendan over the head with toys or anything else in his hands, totally at random. Brendan winces and puts his hands up when his brother comes near, it breaks my heart. And then, minutes later, they are chasing each other around in circles, giggling hysterically and having fun. And then Trevor will lovingly pat Brendan’s head gently. If this is what all of the terrible-twos will be like, I don’t know how we are going to survive!

We just have to focus on what is positive, as always.
Bill took Trevor into our bedroom to fold some laundry and recover from one of his spells early this morning. Separating him from Brendan seems to be the only way to interrupt the meltdown. Trevor decided to tell one of his “stories”

Proof that they can be happy in close proximity!

Bill thought they might finally be old enough for the giant bag of Megablocks. They were definitely interested!

It didn’t last too long, but they focused for a while. You would never know from this picture that Trevor just got done with his screaming rage. It lasted a long time tonight, but once it was done, he was ready to eat and play. The rest of the night was just fine.

I had to use the monster truck to try to divert his attention and get him to stop crying. It had to stay with him then, and he was offering it noodles to eat.

Brendan just threw everything that came near his tray

They both went to bed without issue, even with thunder rolling outside. The dogs have been all pouty today, I think they liked having the girls here for the extra attention! We are so glad they made it home safely!