My three year old loves to shop. (okay, she's a girl, it's what we do.)
But seriously, she loves to go shopping. And it isn't because she is going with the possibility of getting something from the store in mind. It's because she loves people. She loves to make them smile. She loves to make them laugh.
For awhile, every time we went to the store and saw someone older with grey hair, she'd yell out, "Hi Papa! Hi Grandma!" I'd be turning red and trying to hush her up (She has a voice that carries. She's quite naturally loud.) and get the heck out of Dodge.
She would say, "Hi!" to everyone we passed. And if they did not say hello back to her she'd say, (loudly) "I said hi!" Of course most people would laugh and say hello to her.
Maybe she thought that she was a Royal Princess, the shopping cart was her open horse-drawn carriage, (I always compared myself more to a pack-mule when carrying around all the baby paraphernalia myself...) and all the people were her Royal Subjects. There to pay homage to her Highness. I'm not sure.
What I am sure about is that I LOVE shopping carts. They are the best thing ever invented. Especially the ones with the seat belts. (Of course if you have a skinny little escape artist, this creates a whole new problem of keeping a close eye on the little darling.)
But whoever invented the shopping carts with the damned TV screen in them ought to be shot.
First off, they are battery powered, and therefore do not last that long. The battery runs down and you have to listen to them beep and talk to you telling you to take them back so they can charge up, and please don't take them outside. You cannot take them outside, because you can't pile in all your groceries into them after they've been bagged up. (actually it's probably because they are electrical equipment and if they got rained on, they'd no longer work.)
Now, I have never personally rented one of these carts. (yes, rented.) But I work at a store where they have them. They are big behemoths that take up half the aisle and look like they are about as easy to push as a lumber wagon. Usually they are filled with kids that are crying because they no longer want to be in there watching a Tele-Tubbie rerun for the second or third time.
I don't know, maybe for a quick trip around the store to get a couple of things. But no, I never make it through the grocery store in a "quick trip." And besides that, I can see my youngest thinking, "To heck with that open carriage... my Royal Subjects can come greet me at the window of my new Royal Vehicle... right after Barney stops telling me how much he loves me."
Nooooooooo, thank you. Not a chance.
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Ode to a Pile of Laundry
Oh basket full of laundry there,
My kids are wondering what to wear.
They will go to school in the buff,
If I don't find time to fold all this stuff.
Socks and shirts, and undies too,
So much laundry in this life to do.
I carry basket loads up stairs and down,
If I didn't we'd all go clothes-less around town.
Pants and shorts, fluffy towels to enjoy,
I feel like a old laundry-slave toy.
I fold and I hang, I hang and I fold,
I'm getting laundry-folding elbow, I'm told.
I am wishing hard that someone will invent,
Some self-folding laundry, with good intent.
It would make my life easier still,
If it would find it's own way to the drawers to fill.
The little one has spilled all over herself again,
I am wearily waving the white undies, you win!
It doesn't matter how much I do this folding chore,
I know that tomorrow there will always be more!
And more.
And more.
And...help!
sisu
September,2007
My kids are wondering what to wear.
They will go to school in the buff,
If I don't find time to fold all this stuff.
Socks and shirts, and undies too,
So much laundry in this life to do.
I carry basket loads up stairs and down,
If I didn't we'd all go clothes-less around town.
Pants and shorts, fluffy towels to enjoy,
I feel like a old laundry-slave toy.
I fold and I hang, I hang and I fold,
I'm getting laundry-folding elbow, I'm told.
I am wishing hard that someone will invent,
Some self-folding laundry, with good intent.
It would make my life easier still,
If it would find it's own way to the drawers to fill.
The little one has spilled all over herself again,
I am wearily waving the white undies, you win!
It doesn't matter how much I do this folding chore,
I know that tomorrow there will always be more!
And more.
And more.
And...help!
sisu
September,2007
So who is "The better half"?
I was always raised to believe that the Wife was considered "the better half" of a marriage. I guess mainly because you always hear people asking married men, "Where's the better half?". So I assumed that since he was out roaming around without her, she must be doing something important such as watching kids, cleaning something around the house, grocery shopping, etc.
But I am not so sure about that.
Take my Hubby and I for example, he is Mr. Clean while I am more (ahem) relaxed about how clean the house is. It's not like we have pack rats making a monthly odyssey to our house to collect or anything, there isn't garbage all over the floor (well, maybe in the kids' rooms.) it's just a very lived in house. It sort of has to be, we have 5 kids.
It amazes me how opposites attract. Not saying that my Hubby and I are total opposites, we used to talk for hours on end about anything and everything. But the cleaning thing- well, we are at almost different ends of the spectrum.
Like I said in an earlier post, I am a pile person. I have a pile of stuff here, one there. This drives my Husband nuts. There is never a need for a pile as far as he is concerned- ever. "No piles, life is good." is one of his mottoes. Mine is "I'll put this here in this pile for a minute and between running after a 3 year old, doing dishes, laundry, running kids to/from school, and making dinner I might get to it sometime in this life."
Sometimes he tries to make me feel guilty about my piles. He took pictures of my desk, (which was a mess, I admit, but it always has been- even before we got married.) and sent it to friends or showed it to them when they were over here.
I've been trying to be better about my piles, really, I have. But sometimes it is just impossible for me to avoid making one. Like the time between when the kids get home from school and my Husband gets home from work. My oldest two trot out their papers that need to be signed, read, looked over, corrected, and/or thrown away, and it takes me forever to go through it all. And what happens if I don't get through it all? You guessed it, a brand spanking new pile is formed. One that I vow to get to as soon as dinner is done.
I would say 99% of my piles consist of paper. I probably have 100's of dead trees in my house due to all the papers that are in piles. I cleaned off my desk not too long ago and went through every piece of paper on it and what did I find? Things from when my daughter was in 5th and 6th grade. That's 2-3 years worth of piles. Buried and forgotten.
So when I ask who is "the better half", maybe the answer isn't so obvious in my house. My Husband has loads of patience when it comes to putting up with my piles. (almost 4 years' worth of patience, he finally blew up at me over them last month.) I would venture to say that any given moment either one of us could claim the title of "the better half." And we each have those little things that bother us to distraction, making it difficult to claim the title full time.
If I were to be fair, I would say (hope) that we share that title half and half. I always want to be his better half, but I always feel he is mine. Because I Love Him.
But I am not so sure about that.
Take my Hubby and I for example, he is Mr. Clean while I am more (ahem) relaxed about how clean the house is. It's not like we have pack rats making a monthly odyssey to our house to collect or anything, there isn't garbage all over the floor (well, maybe in the kids' rooms.) it's just a very lived in house. It sort of has to be, we have 5 kids.
It amazes me how opposites attract. Not saying that my Hubby and I are total opposites, we used to talk for hours on end about anything and everything. But the cleaning thing- well, we are at almost different ends of the spectrum.
Like I said in an earlier post, I am a pile person. I have a pile of stuff here, one there. This drives my Husband nuts. There is never a need for a pile as far as he is concerned- ever. "No piles, life is good." is one of his mottoes. Mine is "I'll put this here in this pile for a minute and between running after a 3 year old, doing dishes, laundry, running kids to/from school, and making dinner I might get to it sometime in this life."
Sometimes he tries to make me feel guilty about my piles. He took pictures of my desk, (which was a mess, I admit, but it always has been- even before we got married.) and sent it to friends or showed it to them when they were over here.
I've been trying to be better about my piles, really, I have. But sometimes it is just impossible for me to avoid making one. Like the time between when the kids get home from school and my Husband gets home from work. My oldest two trot out their papers that need to be signed, read, looked over, corrected, and/or thrown away, and it takes me forever to go through it all. And what happens if I don't get through it all? You guessed it, a brand spanking new pile is formed. One that I vow to get to as soon as dinner is done.
I would say 99% of my piles consist of paper. I probably have 100's of dead trees in my house due to all the papers that are in piles. I cleaned off my desk not too long ago and went through every piece of paper on it and what did I find? Things from when my daughter was in 5th and 6th grade. That's 2-3 years worth of piles. Buried and forgotten.
So when I ask who is "the better half", maybe the answer isn't so obvious in my house. My Husband has loads of patience when it comes to putting up with my piles. (almost 4 years' worth of patience, he finally blew up at me over them last month.) I would venture to say that any given moment either one of us could claim the title of "the better half." And we each have those little things that bother us to distraction, making it difficult to claim the title full time.
If I were to be fair, I would say (hope) that we share that title half and half. I always want to be his better half, but I always feel he is mine. Because I Love Him.
Monday, September 10, 2007
*groan* *crack* *wince*
Okay, obviously people can tell by the heading that something happened this weekend. In two words- The Beach.
Yes, we went to the beach with two of our neighbors. Nine kids and six adults plus one wave runner a pair of skis and a couple of tubes. Oh LORD, am I sore!
When Jeff asked who was going to go first on the tubes my oldest piped up, "I will!" and before I knew it, the same words were coming out of my mouth!
Next thing I knew we were each climbing on a tube and telling Jeff we were ready... and ZOOM!... off we go. I think my face has more lines in it from laughing so hard. Even when I got dumped off. (3 times) It was FUN. I was laughing so hard I got a mouthful of water when I went under the one time.
My daughter kept signaling, "slower, slower" and I kept signaling, "faster, faster."
It was a riot.
I used muscles I didn't know I had. And every one of them are screaming at me. I am bruised in several places, sun burned and bug bitten. But it was FUN! And I realized... I am old.
There were 108 steps to get down to the beach from the cottage (after a 1/4 mile walk) and the same 108 steps to get back up. It might as well been Mt Everest. I took it really slow, one step at a time. But we had a black fly problem out there and they were out for blood. So you couldn't stop for long on the steps, otherwise they would swarm you and bite.
My Husband beat me to the top, and as I was coming near the top of the steps I croaked, "Water." He kind of looked at me and laughed, thinking I was comparing myself to some guy crawling through the desert. And I said, "No, seriously, my water. You have the cooler with you and it's in there!"
It was also my Hubby's first time on a tube. Jeff, our neighbor, was not as nice to him. He was doing 40 plus hauling my Hubby. I saw daylight at one point between him and the tube. But, I will give him credit, he did NOT fall off. Though I suspect Jeff was doing his darnedest to make him take a spill. Jim's arms are a little sore from holding on so tight. He was determined not to fall off. And he is sunburned too. I have to say though, my Hubby is in better shape than I am, and therefore holding up better under test of exercise we got Saturday.
My son fell off the wave runner while spotting for some of the other kids who were on the tube. It was really quite comical, one minute Jeff is yelling, "You ready?!" and then he punches it, and Chase goes right over the back of the Jet Ski. He definitely was not expecting that!
All in all it was a great day. Great fun, great food and good company. It was a long day, but on the up side, the kids slept really well! So did we for that matter. But Jim had to get up early because he was one of 4 guys preparing the pancake breakfast at church Sunday morning. (And what a breakfast! it was awesome!)
Did I learn a lesson from all this? Nope, I'd do it again in a heartbeat. (I'd put on sunblock and bring extra heavy duty bug spray...) I want to try knee boarding in fact. I used to do it when I was younger and I want to try it again.
I am a glutton for punishment.
Yes, we went to the beach with two of our neighbors. Nine kids and six adults plus one wave runner a pair of skis and a couple of tubes. Oh LORD, am I sore!
When Jeff asked who was going to go first on the tubes my oldest piped up, "I will!" and before I knew it, the same words were coming out of my mouth!
Next thing I knew we were each climbing on a tube and telling Jeff we were ready... and ZOOM!... off we go. I think my face has more lines in it from laughing so hard. Even when I got dumped off. (3 times) It was FUN. I was laughing so hard I got a mouthful of water when I went under the one time.
My daughter kept signaling, "slower, slower" and I kept signaling, "faster, faster."
It was a riot.
I used muscles I didn't know I had. And every one of them are screaming at me. I am bruised in several places, sun burned and bug bitten. But it was FUN! And I realized... I am old.
There were 108 steps to get down to the beach from the cottage (after a 1/4 mile walk) and the same 108 steps to get back up. It might as well been Mt Everest. I took it really slow, one step at a time. But we had a black fly problem out there and they were out for blood. So you couldn't stop for long on the steps, otherwise they would swarm you and bite.
My Husband beat me to the top, and as I was coming near the top of the steps I croaked, "Water." He kind of looked at me and laughed, thinking I was comparing myself to some guy crawling through the desert. And I said, "No, seriously, my water. You have the cooler with you and it's in there!"
It was also my Hubby's first time on a tube. Jeff, our neighbor, was not as nice to him. He was doing 40 plus hauling my Hubby. I saw daylight at one point between him and the tube. But, I will give him credit, he did NOT fall off. Though I suspect Jeff was doing his darnedest to make him take a spill. Jim's arms are a little sore from holding on so tight. He was determined not to fall off. And he is sunburned too. I have to say though, my Hubby is in better shape than I am, and therefore holding up better under test of exercise we got Saturday.
My son fell off the wave runner while spotting for some of the other kids who were on the tube. It was really quite comical, one minute Jeff is yelling, "You ready?!" and then he punches it, and Chase goes right over the back of the Jet Ski. He definitely was not expecting that!
All in all it was a great day. Great fun, great food and good company. It was a long day, but on the up side, the kids slept really well! So did we for that matter. But Jim had to get up early because he was one of 4 guys preparing the pancake breakfast at church Sunday morning. (And what a breakfast! it was awesome!)
Did I learn a lesson from all this? Nope, I'd do it again in a heartbeat. (I'd put on sunblock and bring extra heavy duty bug spray...) I want to try knee boarding in fact. I used to do it when I was younger and I want to try it again.
I am a glutton for punishment.
Friday, September 7, 2007
Oh NO! I'm like my Mother!
Yes, it is true. With each day that passes I find I am more like my Mother. And not really in all the good ways either. I am a terrible housekeeper. We don't have a filthy house, but it is (usually) not picked up. I am a pile person. I have a pile of stuff here, a pile of stuff there... and I am married to Mr. Clean. He likes the house neat and orderly. Did I mention we have 5 kids?
But I digress. The whole housecleaning/kids thing will be for another time.
Ways I am like my Mother.
The things I say. (Such as.)
"Because I said so." Oh Lord, this one used to bother me when I was in my teens. Not so much when I was little. It bothers my 3 year old to no end. I hear "But why Mommy?" 100 times if I happen to utter the phrase "Because I said so."
And it can almost become comical, like we are doing a bad rendition of Abbot and Costello.
"Kaecee don't throw your food on the floor."
"But why Mommy?"
"Because I said so."
"But why (or why not) Mommy?"
"Because I told you not to."
"But why Mommy?"
"Because it makes a sticky mess and then I have to clean it up."
"But why Mommy?"
"Because we don't have a dog to clean under the table."
(Here is where she changes it to throw me off track.)
(whining) "I want a dog!"
"We can't have a dog honey, not right now." (Thinking to myself, I already change smelly diapers, yeah, like I really want to be cleaning up dog poo too.)
"But why not Mommy?"
~~~sigh~~~
Another that goes along with the first is, "Because I said no." Re-read the above and just insert this phrase wherever the "Because I said so." is.
I do not remember my Mother ever yelling at us. I mean really yelling. Red in the face, can feel the blood pressure rising fast kind of yelling. She assures me that my kids were just like me when I was young. Just like me?! What?, whoa!, hold up! There is No way I was ever this... this... errr... energetic when I was young. Okay, so I did have the nick-name 'the white tornado' but that was just because... because... ARGHHHHH!!! Maybe it's true!
Okay wait, let me think about this. So when we grow up, we have children who act like we did when we were young, but we grow up to be like our parents were when we were young?
I don't know who to feel more sorry for- us parents, or our kids!
I just realized I digressed yet again. Another way I am like my Mother is how I feel about family. It is important. Meal time is important. Dinner in particular. I love cooking. (I didn't in my first marriage, because my Ex complained about anything and everything I made.)
I love fixing a meal that is well rounded like my Mom used to do. Veggies, meat, potato and salad.
A good, nutritional meal. Will everyone at the table like everything that is on the table? Nope, not a chance.
I tried to be like my Mom in this way too. "Take at least a spoonful of everything, and eat what you take."
Okay, with a blended family, that one is a little hard to do. And it took me a couple years of being a hard-ass about it to finally let go. It was the way I was raised. And those habits that I have taught my kids, are not the same as other parents have taught their kids. Namely my Husband's Ex. Her kids were taught that any old thing that they could pull out of the freezer and nuke was "dinner." And that cereal counted as dinner as well. We had a discussion on this. That's not the way that it works at our house. Sitting down to dinner with the kids is important to Jim and I. I hope someday it will matter to the kids too.
I have to say, all in all, I hope that I am like my Mom in my parenting technique. At least in some ways- the important ways. I admire her, and what she did for my sister and I when we were growing up. I don't feel there was anything lacking in my younger years., except maybe my Dad being around more. (They divorced when I was 8.) But my Mom was rock solid, a steady, dependable constant in my life. And I think kids need that.
Okay, I am going to end this one now before I get all sappy.
But I digress. The whole housecleaning/kids thing will be for another time.
Ways I am like my Mother.
The things I say. (Such as.)
"Because I said so." Oh Lord, this one used to bother me when I was in my teens. Not so much when I was little. It bothers my 3 year old to no end. I hear "But why Mommy?" 100 times if I happen to utter the phrase "Because I said so."
And it can almost become comical, like we are doing a bad rendition of Abbot and Costello.
"Kaecee don't throw your food on the floor."
"But why Mommy?"
"Because I said so."
"But why (or why not) Mommy?"
"Because I told you not to."
"But why Mommy?"
"Because it makes a sticky mess and then I have to clean it up."
"But why Mommy?"
"Because we don't have a dog to clean under the table."
(Here is where she changes it to throw me off track.)
(whining) "I want a dog!"
"We can't have a dog honey, not right now." (Thinking to myself, I already change smelly diapers, yeah, like I really want to be cleaning up dog poo too.)
"But why not Mommy?"
~~~sigh~~~
Another that goes along with the first is, "Because I said no." Re-read the above and just insert this phrase wherever the "Because I said so." is.
I do not remember my Mother ever yelling at us. I mean really yelling. Red in the face, can feel the blood pressure rising fast kind of yelling. She assures me that my kids were just like me when I was young. Just like me?! What?, whoa!, hold up! There is No way I was ever this... this... errr... energetic when I was young. Okay, so I did have the nick-name 'the white tornado' but that was just because... because... ARGHHHHH!!! Maybe it's true!
Okay wait, let me think about this. So when we grow up, we have children who act like we did when we were young, but we grow up to be like our parents were when we were young?
I don't know who to feel more sorry for- us parents, or our kids!
I just realized I digressed yet again. Another way I am like my Mother is how I feel about family. It is important. Meal time is important. Dinner in particular. I love cooking. (I didn't in my first marriage, because my Ex complained about anything and everything I made.)
I love fixing a meal that is well rounded like my Mom used to do. Veggies, meat, potato and salad.
A good, nutritional meal. Will everyone at the table like everything that is on the table? Nope, not a chance.
I tried to be like my Mom in this way too. "Take at least a spoonful of everything, and eat what you take."
Okay, with a blended family, that one is a little hard to do. And it took me a couple years of being a hard-ass about it to finally let go. It was the way I was raised. And those habits that I have taught my kids, are not the same as other parents have taught their kids. Namely my Husband's Ex. Her kids were taught that any old thing that they could pull out of the freezer and nuke was "dinner." And that cereal counted as dinner as well. We had a discussion on this. That's not the way that it works at our house. Sitting down to dinner with the kids is important to Jim and I. I hope someday it will matter to the kids too.
I have to say, all in all, I hope that I am like my Mom in my parenting technique. At least in some ways- the important ways. I admire her, and what she did for my sister and I when we were growing up. I don't feel there was anything lacking in my younger years., except maybe my Dad being around more. (They divorced when I was 8.) But my Mom was rock solid, a steady, dependable constant in my life. And I think kids need that.
Okay, I am going to end this one now before I get all sappy.
Thursday, September 6, 2007
As kids get older...
So do we. *sigh*
It was so much easier to handle a 3 year old (and a 1 year old at the same time!) at the age of 28 than it is at the age of 38. My daughter is like this big giant ball of pure energy that never stops. I think I'm going to rename her Sunshine. She is adorable, don't get me wrong. But she KNOWS she's adorable. And how does she know that you may ask? Because her Father tells her so, often. Okay, he doesn't say "adorable", he says "cute", even when she's being naughty.
The other day I caught her in the bathroom (which is not necessarily a bad thing, since we are potty training.) and I noticed that she wasn't back far enough on the toilet, so I told her she needed to scoot back and she said "No, I am going to piddle." And she proceeded to do so.
She probably could have put my 11 year old son to shame with the stream that came out the FRONT of the toilet... all over the seat, all over her panties and shorts, all over the step-stool she uses...her feet...the floor... *sigh*
I tell her that that wasn't very good, that I had told her she needed to scoot back and reminded her that she hadn't listened and that I was upset with her. And you know her response? "No you aren't Mommy, it's okay because I am CUTE." To which I promptly rejoined, pointing at the mess, "THAT is not 'cute', it's gross." She looked down with big saucer eyes and said, "It is?" and then, "It's okay Mommy, be happy."
If anyone out there has seem "Elmo's World" on Sesame Street, our house is a little like that, only not as fun. It's "Kaecee's World". And everything and everyone in it is there for her pleasure alone. She is like a Princess. Or a High Priestess of some Amazon Jungle Community that everyone caters to and bows down to.
She announces everything like it is a royal command. "I need luuu-unch.", "I need to go pooot-tty.", "I can't find my paaas-ssy." And the darned thing is everyone runs to do her bidding. Because we know, that to have Her Highness miffed at us is not a good thing. She can turn the tears on and off at the drop of a hat.
She already knows how to get her brother into trouble without him even coming near her.
(Okay, another story here; Kaecee is on one side of the living room, Chase is on the other, and Tasha, the 13 year old is next to Chase on the couch. They are all watching TV. I am in the front of the house, in the kitchen trying to get dinner fixed and I hear this ear-piercing scream followed by Kaecee yelling, "No Chase, STOP IT!" Me? I am a yeller, I yell alot, they have learned to ignore it- my Husband has not - I yell, "Hey! knock it off back there! Chase! quit making Kaecee scream!" This is answered by more than one person, all three, actually, and the only one I can understand is the 3 year old still yelling at Chase to "stop it". So I go back there. I tell everyone to be quiet. Then I ask my 13 year old what is going on. She informs me that my son was just sitting there watching TV when Kaecee decided to scream. For absolutely no reason what-so-ever, other than an attempt to see if she can get her brother in trouble. She's three.) *groan*
We are all in trouble if she starts asking for sacrifices.
Yesterday she informed me that she hates me. Hates me! Twice! And why? Because I made her get up into "her" chair for lunch. (Her chair is a booster chair buckled onto a regular kitchen chair.) Apparently her royal seat does meet the requirements for her royal bum.
No, really, I know what it is. She has four older siblings. The closest being 10 years old and she is trying to be like them. She wants to do what they do and does not understand that she is too little to do all of it. And it frustrates her. She acts more grown up than the age she is.
Like I said, little Miss Sunshine has way more energy than old tired Mom can deal with sometimes.
It was so much easier to handle a 3 year old (and a 1 year old at the same time!) at the age of 28 than it is at the age of 38. My daughter is like this big giant ball of pure energy that never stops. I think I'm going to rename her Sunshine. She is adorable, don't get me wrong. But she KNOWS she's adorable. And how does she know that you may ask? Because her Father tells her so, often. Okay, he doesn't say "adorable", he says "cute", even when she's being naughty.
The other day I caught her in the bathroom (which is not necessarily a bad thing, since we are potty training.) and I noticed that she wasn't back far enough on the toilet, so I told her she needed to scoot back and she said "No, I am going to piddle." And she proceeded to do so.
She probably could have put my 11 year old son to shame with the stream that came out the FRONT of the toilet... all over the seat, all over her panties and shorts, all over the step-stool she uses...her feet...the floor... *sigh*
I tell her that that wasn't very good, that I had told her she needed to scoot back and reminded her that she hadn't listened and that I was upset with her. And you know her response? "No you aren't Mommy, it's okay because I am CUTE." To which I promptly rejoined, pointing at the mess, "THAT is not 'cute', it's gross." She looked down with big saucer eyes and said, "It is?" and then, "It's okay Mommy, be happy."
If anyone out there has seem "Elmo's World" on Sesame Street, our house is a little like that, only not as fun. It's "Kaecee's World". And everything and everyone in it is there for her pleasure alone. She is like a Princess. Or a High Priestess of some Amazon Jungle Community that everyone caters to and bows down to.
She announces everything like it is a royal command. "I need luuu-unch.", "I need to go pooot-tty.", "I can't find my paaas-ssy." And the darned thing is everyone runs to do her bidding. Because we know, that to have Her Highness miffed at us is not a good thing. She can turn the tears on and off at the drop of a hat.
She already knows how to get her brother into trouble without him even coming near her.
(Okay, another story here; Kaecee is on one side of the living room, Chase is on the other, and Tasha, the 13 year old is next to Chase on the couch. They are all watching TV. I am in the front of the house, in the kitchen trying to get dinner fixed and I hear this ear-piercing scream followed by Kaecee yelling, "No Chase, STOP IT!" Me? I am a yeller, I yell alot, they have learned to ignore it- my Husband has not - I yell, "Hey! knock it off back there! Chase! quit making Kaecee scream!" This is answered by more than one person, all three, actually, and the only one I can understand is the 3 year old still yelling at Chase to "stop it". So I go back there. I tell everyone to be quiet. Then I ask my 13 year old what is going on. She informs me that my son was just sitting there watching TV when Kaecee decided to scream. For absolutely no reason what-so-ever, other than an attempt to see if she can get her brother in trouble. She's three.) *groan*
We are all in trouble if she starts asking for sacrifices.
Yesterday she informed me that she hates me. Hates me! Twice! And why? Because I made her get up into "her" chair for lunch. (Her chair is a booster chair buckled onto a regular kitchen chair.) Apparently her royal seat does meet the requirements for her royal bum.
No, really, I know what it is. She has four older siblings. The closest being 10 years old and she is trying to be like them. She wants to do what they do and does not understand that she is too little to do all of it. And it frustrates her. She acts more grown up than the age she is.
Like I said, little Miss Sunshine has way more energy than old tired Mom can deal with sometimes.
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
My First Blog - Intro
I am a crazy Mom of 5. (Three wonderful children of my own and two wonderful step-children.)
Ages: 13, 13, 11, 10 and 3.
Married to a wonderful Man for almost 4 years now and he is still the love of my life.
We live in Michigan, where you never know what the weather will be like one moment to the next.
I work part-time out of the home and full-time in it. (Running after the 3 year old.)
I live with the daily stresses of life which include dealing with 1 child that is ADHD (and slightly autistic), 1 child that is a whiz in all she does and 1 child who just whizzes all the time. No, seriously, we are going through the potty training thing (For the LAST time! Yay!) and by George I think she's got it! The jury is still out on the final say on that subject right now though.
Nothing will make you smile like a 3 year old screaming through the house on the way to the bathroom yelling "I gotta go potttttyyyyyy!!" And nothing makes a Mom move faster than a 3 year old running through the house yelling the same.
Not to mention the ba-zillion times after you put them in bed that they " have to go."
In to bed, out of bed, in to bed, out of bed. I feel like putting in a revolving door connecting the bathroom to the bedroom and making it a toll door, just so I can say I work from home and make an income.
And it's not like you can ignore the request. Because about the time you do, that will be when you end up with a wet spot on the floor... or worse.
We even tried the 1/2 streak method of potty training. (And believe it or not, this one has worked the best so far!) If anyone is unfamiliar with this method, it is where the child has on a shirt... and nothing else. We tried panties, pull-ups and nothing worked. She would still pee in them. So one day I decided she would go bottom-less, and lo and behold, it worked. She knew she couldn't pee on the floor and has made it to the potty every time since. She still has accidents when wearing a pull-up, but we, (my Hubby and I) are winning the battle so far. Knock on wood.
Does it sound like my life is centered around my family? Yep, it sure is. I enjoy my blended family. Not that it doesn't have it's challenges, because those happen daily. We are full of challenges, from dinner to room cleaning and beyond.
This is one of the reasons why I call myself crazy.
Hopefully you will see why in other blogs.
Ages: 13, 13, 11, 10 and 3.
Married to a wonderful Man for almost 4 years now and he is still the love of my life.
We live in Michigan, where you never know what the weather will be like one moment to the next.
I work part-time out of the home and full-time in it. (Running after the 3 year old.)
I live with the daily stresses of life which include dealing with 1 child that is ADHD (and slightly autistic), 1 child that is a whiz in all she does and 1 child who just whizzes all the time. No, seriously, we are going through the potty training thing (For the LAST time! Yay!) and by George I think she's got it! The jury is still out on the final say on that subject right now though.
Nothing will make you smile like a 3 year old screaming through the house on the way to the bathroom yelling "I gotta go potttttyyyyyy!!" And nothing makes a Mom move faster than a 3 year old running through the house yelling the same.
Not to mention the ba-zillion times after you put them in bed that they " have to go."
In to bed, out of bed, in to bed, out of bed. I feel like putting in a revolving door connecting the bathroom to the bedroom and making it a toll door, just so I can say I work from home and make an income.
And it's not like you can ignore the request. Because about the time you do, that will be when you end up with a wet spot on the floor... or worse.
We even tried the 1/2 streak method of potty training. (And believe it or not, this one has worked the best so far!) If anyone is unfamiliar with this method, it is where the child has on a shirt... and nothing else. We tried panties, pull-ups and nothing worked. She would still pee in them. So one day I decided she would go bottom-less, and lo and behold, it worked. She knew she couldn't pee on the floor and has made it to the potty every time since. She still has accidents when wearing a pull-up, but we, (my Hubby and I) are winning the battle so far. Knock on wood.
Does it sound like my life is centered around my family? Yep, it sure is. I enjoy my blended family. Not that it doesn't have it's challenges, because those happen daily. We are full of challenges, from dinner to room cleaning and beyond.
This is one of the reasons why I call myself crazy.
Hopefully you will see why in other blogs.
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