Parenting Happiness

Since school has started we have been particularly busy. There are cross country and flag football practices, girl scout meetings, birthday parties, meets and games, and the list goes on and on.

What I have noticed is despite the hectic schedule, I am loving it. I am loving this phase of life when I am up to my ears in sewing badges on sashes and Tae kwon do uniforms. I love cheering them on at their games. I love taking them to the playground and just spending time with my kids. I love their contagious belly laughs. I love sleepovers, OK maybe not the sleepovers so much (it can't all be blissful).

They are getting so big and I hope I appreciate every minute, because when we are at Holiday World or cooking out in the backyard I look around and think there will come a time when they would rather be with their friends then with us, so for now I will soak up every minute of their time with me.

The Pinch Heard 'round the World

OK, every family has a dirty little secret, some little bad habit that goes on behind closed doors. Some may burp at the table, some may fart at will, others like to walk around in their underwear. What is ours you ask? We pinch each others buns. Dad pinches Mom's, Mom pinches Son's, everyone pinches Baby Girl's and Baby Girl pinches Dad. Well, you get the idea.

Yesterday our Dirty little secret was exposed. Buster Brown pinched one of his classmate's buns. As a Mom this is when I know a bad habit has gone too far. I just kept thinking of his poor kindergarten classmate who may not be used to bun pinching and doesn't know that in the eyes of Buster Brown this means I like you and you are officially my buddy.

The teacher told me what had happened and I wanted to blurt out, "I don't know where he learned that! Probably his father." But I kept my mouth shut and shoved my pinchers in my pockets.

So, last night at dinner we made a conscience decision to lay our pinchers to rest. There will be no more red buns in our home.

We should be living in the country because...

when my husbands truck backfires the neighbors think there has been gunfire and call the police.

It's a twister!

Let me preface this story by saying that for about one week in a row we were having bad storms triggering the tornado warning siren to go off. While tornadoes are something that I don't take lightly, when you hear a certain siren everyday you start to loose the urgency you once felt.

One night I had apparently gotten the flu (who gets the flu in the summer!?) anywho the next day I was totally wiped out and just trying to get by let alone take care of my kids.

On this day, I was using every once of my energy to walk into the house from the car, and the siren goes off for the umpteenth time this month. Lady Jane turns to me and asks,"since we don't have a basement should I go in the closet?"

I found myself unable to utter anything but, "yes, go in the closet." Then I proceeded to drag my body to my bed where I heard the whole scene play out.

Lady Jane insisted that baby girl get in the closet with her. Baby girl soon found that getting into the closet wearing her cinderella plastic shoes was more of a challenge than she had anticipated. Soon I heard a giant crash followed by a tiny voice, "Holy Smokes!" Normally, such a crash would have sent me running toward the noise but I lacked the energy and so the scene continued.

Now that Lady Jane knew her sister was somewhat safe on the closet floor she decided to set her sights on the dog. Using grapes to lure him she eventually did manage to wrangle him into the closet and shut the door with the three of them inside. Soon after my husband came around the corner just in time to see the scene.

Apparently being shut in the closet with two little girls sent the dog into a sort of a panic. Hubby saw the closet door fly open and the dog with his forehead on Lady Jane's stomach catapulting her out of the closet.

There never was a tornado, but my mind has been put at ease knowing we have had that little drill.

Have you noticed?

First of all, I know it's been a while but I got a bit caught up in the summer maddness lately. Besides our vacation I am finding summer to be exahsting. Keeping the kids entertained running from activity to activity. Only 8 more years and Riley can drive herself!

Ok, I'm getting off of my negative wagon. Lately I have been making an observation about my sleep habits. When I was in High School or even college I would go to sleep because it was bedtime or I was thinking that I need to go to sleep now to get enough sleep for the night.

Now-a-days I collapse into my bed and exhausted heap. I go to sleep because I find it exhausting to keep my eyelids open any longer. Gone is the eternal energy of my youth. I would really like some of that energy back. Perhaps it is my age or perhaps it is the the energy parasites I hang out with all day. I mean don't get me wrong, I have a lot of fun hanging out with my kids and even am making a concious decision to be home with them, but even during the fun times they are EXHAUSTING!

I would write more but I am too tired.

Hallelulerrr!!!

We have had a breakthrough at our house. The poops are actually making it in the potty! How did we get baby girl to use the pot, you ask? Lollipops. I was hesitant to use this technique, but was reaching the end of my rope. I was sick of changing poopy underwear about twice a day.

Yesterday I was feeling particularly desperate to get the poops in the potty so I took a gamble. I let her go buck naked. This way she had nothing to poop in, although I was risking finding a log somewhere on the floor. I decided it was worth it.....and it worked. The poop landed in the potty. We whooped, danced, called daddy and gave a sucker. I made sure she knew it was because she pooped that she got a sucker.

It worked so well that her second poop of the day also made it in the potty, so I gave her another sucker. Then, later on, she decided she wanted to go for round three. Three poops in one day? I thought this was pushing it a bit. She sat down on the potty and went to work. I was thinking, 'man, she sure does want a sucker.' Then I started to worry she may give herself some hemorrhoids. It turns out she was unsuccessful in willing herself to poop but I am proud to say she has made it in the potty every time since! It is a happy day.

Ahh, summer

As school wound to a close I found I was looking forward to the freedom of sleeping in, if you believe that sleeping until 7:30 is sleeping in. I was also looking forward to living in the moment and doing as we pleased. If the weather was nice we would go to the pool. If we had time in the day we would wander over to the library. If it wasn't too hot we could play at the park. This type of attitude does not fly with Lady Jane at all.

I soon discovered that I would be awoken every morning at 7:00 just as I was during the school year with an eight year old face in mine shouting, "What are we doing today Mom?" To which I would reply, "I don't know! I just don't know!" another fine parenting moment.

I soon came to realize, and it took me eight years to figure this out, that Lady Jane craves structure. No, she NEEDS structure. When school is out she longs for the strict schedule, social interaction and mental challenges she faces when she goes to school everyday.

I noticed I would not be able to have the laissez faire summer I was dreaming of. I need to make her a schedule. Without it she feels as if she is in a free fall with nothing to stop her. So if you will excuse me I am off to schedule in some quality time at the pool.