Screw The Energizer Bunny

As you read this, no matter when you read this, one of three things will be happening at my house. Caleb will be running around yelling, AJ will be running around yelling, or I will be running around yelling. Life with a two-year-old and a four-year-old is...well it's interesting to say the least. There's never a dull moment, no matter how much you wish for one. My only reprieve is bedtime, when the little Energizer bunnies I gave birth to finally shut off.

From about 6:00 AM, and for the whole day, my children and I play the "who is more stubborn game", along with "because I'm your mother" and "how many times do I have to tell you to..." It's broken up with mealtimes, snack times, maybe the occasional nap. However, for the most part, that's what I do. Did I mention the oldest one never stops talking? Even when he has nothing to say, he's making noise of some kind.

So why am I writing all this? Because I know it's not just my kids. Many parents out there deal with the same things day in and day out. To all of those reading this. You're not alone. For those of you wishing you had just a fraction of the energy your kids have, you're not alone. For those of you who are ready to tear out your hair, you're also not alone. Remember, patience is a virtue. And when patience runs out, there's always Valium. :)

Great Friends Think Alike

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to spend time with some great people. It was a birthday barbecue, and a lot of the people there were parents of young children. All the kids were playing together in the pool or in the playhouse, or taking turns on the big wheels truck. For the most part all the kids got along great together. Perhaps a few scuffles here and there, but that's totally normal. What was even nicer than all the kids playing together and having fun was the fact that all the parents were able to talk to each other. And better still, we all had the same ideals.

One of the most important things I can say to you if you are a parent is surround yourself with other parents who have the same values and thoughts towards parenting. An extremely relaxed mother, and a mother who can't let a sniffle go by without calling the doctor, are going to end up annoying each other eventually. However, two mothers who can let their children play a little rough, or two mothers who both feel the same way when their children exhibit signs of sickness, are going to get along, because they agree on main points of parenting styles and have a lot to talk about.

There are many experiences I have as a parent that might be embarrassing to some (like having my child escape from the house without my knowledge) but when I'm around parents who have the same experiences, we can laugh about them and learn  from them. It's nice to have validation for a certain style of parenting and there's a comfort that comes from knowing you're not alone.

John Ratzenberger said, "Find people who share your values, and you'll conquer the world together." Maybe we don't want to conquer the world, but it's nice to have all the help you can get as a parent.

It's The Little Things

My oldest son is going to Pre-K this fall. Today we got to go meet his teacher, see the classroom, and meet some of the other kids that will be in his class. Let me give you a run down of what I deal with every day. Mind you, this all occured in one hour.

We arrive at the school and he gets a sticker with his name on it, then he tells everyone standing around us that he got a sticker. Next, we must wait for his teacher to come and get the group and lead them back to his classroom. He literally can not stand still. He's touching the plants, talking to other people, and looking out the windows. I think I should have named him inertia. The teacher's aide comes out and leads us back to the room. As we walk in he sees the blocks, the tables, the chairs, the chalkboard, the whiteboard and all he says is, "Whoa." He then proceeds to touch everything. He sits at a table that has small shapes in a box and starts building towers with them and telling me the yellow octagon is a sun. Then he gets distracted by another table that has blocks off all different shapes that you can put a string through...and the string is also in the box. He pulled out every ball and pulled the string through them. When the teacher asked him what he was doing he told her he made a necklace for her. She actually wore it too. Then it was story time. All the kids sat on the floor while the teacher read. He was hesitant to sit with the kids, but he warmed up and sat down. About every 2 minutes he would look at me, smile, and give me a thumbs up. After story time, she walked them around the classroom and showed them the different stations. He cried when she said they couldn't play on the computer. It was then time to see the rest of the school. While standing in line, he sneezed and launched unpleasant material onto my pants. I'm very glad I didn't wear shorts this morning, and also I'm very glad I still had a few baby wipes in my purse. While we walk around the school, he wants to see into every room we pass, and won't stop asking what things are. That concluded the end of our time at the school. When I told him it was time to go home and tell the teacher goodbye, he started crying and told me he wanted to stay and play. It's difficult to tell a four-year-old to wait 3 months and then he'll get to play. He hugged the teacher for about three minutes before he would finally let go, and walk with me to the car. When I buckled him in, he told me school was awesome and that he loved me.

The point of going through all of that was just to say, sometimes life can be crazy. Sometimes my children embarrass me, aggravate me, and annoy. But there are these little moments, when they say or do something so minute no one else probably even noticed, but they warmed my heart. Live for the small moments in life that give you pleasure, and try to forget about the boogie on your pants.

Mother's Little Helpers

A little while ago I had a discussion with one of my dear friends. She is a stay-at-home mother of two, much like me. We were discussing how often during the day we want to scream, and how going back to work actually sounds appealing. So how do you keep from going absolutely crazy? You have to be just a wee bit selfish.

I am a woman of many vices. I don't recommend picking up new ones if you don't already have them. However, not the vice itself but the feeling you get from taking five minutes for yourself can do wonders for your mental health. One thing I can't live without is coffee. As soon as I get the kids breakfast in the morning, I go straight to the coffee pot. I probably drink three cups or so throughout the day. It might be false energy, but it keeps me going never the less. When I get my cup of coffee I don't chug it down then go back to doing what I have to do. I sit down with it, either watching TV with the kids or at the table playing around on Facebook. Even if it's only a few minutes, it's a nice little break.

I remember when I worked at a hospital, when I got home it took me awhile to relax before I could go to sleep. I know a lot of people to have to "wind down" before they go to sleep no matter what they're job is. So why should it be any different for moms? We work all day too, we need time to wind down and relax before it's our bedtime. If you are of legal age, you might try one beer or glass of wine. If you aren't old enough or you're not a drinker, try some hot chocolate or for that matter a small piece of chocolate. Give yourself a small reward for making it through the day without going crazy. Notice I say small reward. Don't go drinking a whole fifth of Jack or anything, but allow yourself to have a little moment when you think about yourself. Draw a bath, watch a movie, or read a good book. Anything for a little "you" time.

Moms may not get mental health days, but we can have our little moments.

You Might Be a Parent If...

Unless you live under a rock, you have probably heard of Jeff Foxworthy's line of jokes titled, "You Might Be a Redneck." Well, I've decided there's some things that could tip you off to being a parent as well. I'd like to keep this list growing, so if you have any ideas please add them.

1. If you've ever been peed, puked, and pooped on all at the same time, you might be a parent.
2. If you've ever substituted your fingers for a tissue, you might be a parent.
3. If you find yourself singing the Elmo's World theme song while you're alone, you might be a parent.
4. If you consider a  nice dinner anything but hot dogs and macaroni and cheese, you might be a parent.
5. You might be a parent if sleeping in means any uninterrupted sleep of more than five hours.
6. If you've ever looked forward to going to the dentist just to get out of the house, you might be a parent.
7. If you've ever wondered if that's chocolate or poo on your hand so you taste it, you might be a parent. (I'd like to go on record as saying that one is not one from personal experience.)
8. You might be a parent if spit up is just another accessory to your outfit.
9. If your form of a union break is popping in a Disney movie so you can walk away to do laundry, you might be a parent.
10. If walking through your living room is more like an obstacle course due to all the toys, you might be a parent.

That's the list so far, let's keep adding and see how many we can get! Consider it your homework. :)

We Always Knew He Was Special

So for a little while now, my son had what I thought were bug bites all over him. Where we live, to say bug bites aren't uncommon is an understatement. Not getting bit by a mosquito around here is an act of God. The mosquito really should be our state bird. See why I thought he had bug bites? Well sometimes as a mother, you're going to overlook the obvious.

I gave these "bites" a reasonable amount of time to heal up and go away. The problem was, they didn't. What was once just on his face and scalp, now had traveled down his neck and onto his arms and legs. Sigh...time to call the doctor. I usually avoid the doctor at all cost. My kids have to be pretty sick for me to take them to the doctor. I like to give them every chance to heal on their own before I go pumping them full of medication. But some things are warning signs I can't ignore. When five different people ask you if your kid has chicken pox, it's time to talk to the doctor.

The reason I had never given chicken pox a second thought is like most children these days he was vaccinated for the chicken pox virus when he was just over a year old. I knew it was a possibility, but it was such a slight chance...that should have been my first clue. Well, off to the doctor we go. Mind you this kid knows exactly where we were as soon as we pulled in. I know this because he started to scream before I had even parked and screamed until the nurse left the room. This is another reason we avoid the doctor. The doc comes in and looks at him, asks me a few questions, and says, "Well thanks. Now I have to report your kid. He has chickenpox." Super.

After laughing with the doctor about it, and leaving out the back door because they asked me to, I spent a few hours on the phone with people he's been in contact with to let them know "Hey congratulations, you've been exposed to chicken pox. Hope you've had it before." It was a very long, very tiring day.

Leave it to my kid. The doctor informed me the percent of children who still get chicken pox after receiving the vaccine is about 10%. So there you go. He may be one in a million to me, but statistically he's one in 10.

Finding The Happy Medium

I joke a lot that my son has two speeds: full throttle and off. If he isn't running around acting ridiculous, he's probably asleep. Most days it's difficult to just sit and watch a movie with my kids because I can't get them to sit still long enough.

I love to go outside with the kids on nice days. We'll play for as long as I can take it before we come in and get bathed and most of the time fall asleep. Sometimes even I take a nap after that. The problem is, when I spend all that time playing around outside, I don't get anything done inside. Other days, I spend all day doing things that need to be done, and I don't get a chance to play with the kids or do something I want to do.

So where is the happy medium? How do I find a place where a four-year-olds energy can be used little at a time? How do I get to a place where things are still kept up around the house, but I don't miss time with my children? Is there such a thing as this elusive happy medium, or is everyday just another struggle to get as close as we can to it as though we were chasing a rainbow?

I suppose, all we can do is our best. Each day we have to try to make our own happy medium. Where the important tasks are accomplished, but we're not missing quality time with the kids. We can allow ourselves to get caught up in it, one way or another, or we can choose to say, "We'll go play for an hour, then I'll do what I have to do." Sometimes, things aren't going to get done, or we aren't going to get as much time with the kids as we wanted. But all we can do is our best to make sure it doesn't go too far one way or another.

"The choicest pleasures of life lie within the ring of moderation." ~ Benjamin Disraeli