stream of conciousness

It's Saturday night at 9:30pm. 

I took the boys swimming today for the first time this summer.  Sage kind of remembers how to swim.  At least, he remembers how to keep himself above water.  He jumped right into the deep end yelling "Cannonball!"  And then looked scared but made it to the side.

Kolby is still his cautious, sink to the bottom self.  His kick seems stronger this year.  I hope this is the summer that he gets it. 

Levi got braver the longer we were there.  By the end, he was walking in the shallow end.  His balance walking in the water needs to improve.  He never dunked himself accidentally, but he didn't let go of my hand. 

I told the boys they could go to any restaurant they wanted tonight.  Sage said McDonalds or Chick-fil-A.  I said, any restaurant, what about Rainforest Cafe?  Sage said he really wanted to go somewhere he could get a toy.  I chose Chick-fil-A.  They all three got the same book and kept it.  No one wanted ice-cream.  Well, Levi didn't get a choice.  I'm pretty sure he would have chosen ice-cream.

Speaking of Levi.  That kid talks!  He repeats everything.  And he makes it so much clearer how speech delayed Kolby is.  Like Levi will say ha for hat.  And we'll say haT.  And he'll say haT.  We still have to do that with Kolby.  I'm not complaining, just saying it how it is.  I can understand most of what Kolby says, especially if it is in context.  If he wants to tell me something or sometimes, he makes up a story, I won't have a clue as to what he is saying.  Sometimes, I have to tell him that I just don't understand.  It frustrates him, it frustrates me, it makes me sad.  Levi is by far our earliest talker.  Sage started talking more around 2.  

While at Chick-fil-A, there were some other kids there playing in the playplace and the little boy was hitting and pushing Kolby and Sage.  Sage told him to stop and Sage didn't complain about it again so I thought he did.  Kolby cried though.  So, the little boy kept hitting and pushing him.  Of course, I am the only parent in there.  I talked to Kolby, told him to stop crying and tell the little boy to stop it. 

We ended up leaving.  What would you have done? 

In the van, I made Kolby practice speaking firmly, "Stop hitting me.  I don't like it."  Kolby is a great victim.  Someone wrongs him, he cries.  Whether it really hurt him or not.  We see it happen with Levi at home.  Levi knows which buttons to press with Kolby and Kolby plays the victim role perfectly.  Rarely, does he hit or push Levi back.  And to be totally honest, when he does, Levi completely deserves it.  But, we don't encourage that. 

I'm 28 weeks tomorrow.  Third trimester.  Um, wow.  I had my glucose screening yesterday.  And my rhogam shot. 

I'm not feeling so hot about the doctor or hospital I've chosen.  I asked yesterday about having to have the pitocin and she told me about how it is standard, how it helps the uterus to get hard and firm and lessens the bleeding.  She asked if it was really that bad.  I said it was the worst ever.  I had been through labor and delivery twice before and didn't have an iv or pitocin and no complications.  Anyway, I could go on and on, I know there are medical reasons for an iv, but the pitocin is, I can't think of a word, stupid.  I know breastfeeding does the same thing and I do that with my babies.  Maybe if the hospital didn't take my baby for 5 hours, an hour after I delivered, I could breastfeed more and avoid the pitocin. 

So, I'll be calling a different hospital that has midwives and see what their standards are.  The bummer is, it is farther than 5 minutes away which is where my doctor and hospital are currently.  It is at least a half hour.  And I have to pay for parking.  Drew is encouraging me to at least check out my options.

And that was longer than I thought it would be.

To summarize,  how do you handle when your kid is being treated wrongly by another child whose parent isn't present?  And how do I get Kolby out of the victim mentality?