I went to church a month or so ago (that sounds sad doesn't it) but anyway we aren't "regular" church goer's although I consider myself spiritually active every day... And my children definitly know God. Anyway, the lesson that week hit home and it's helping me today. We are day 9 into our 14 day christmas vacation. Everyone's tired and cranky and very prone to dumb fights. "Mooommmm Jack took away my whistle" (why we have a whistle anyway is beyond me) "Mommmm Owivia won't wet me have a tuwn". (Jack's still working on his "r's"... and "l's" ) "Mommmmm he scratched me!" You get the picture... it's exhausting and annoying.
Anyway, the message was.. Life's not supposed to be "easy" We only grow when we are challenged. That suprised me, really it did, but it makes total sense. When you workout, it needs to be hard so you work your muscles and they get sore, then grow. When Olivia comes home from school and says Math is hard, I don't say Let me call your teacher and tell her to make it easy. We understand that certain things have to be challenging so that we can grow from them, but for some reason when it comes to "life" the biggest lesson of all, we want it to be easy. It's the old "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade" I love it b/c I've learned that I'm not a "bad mom" if the kids are fighting, it's just part of it. Think of how spoiled rotten they would be if we never had an issue over anything... if they got their way about every issue. I cringe to think of it. The fighting is sanding off the rough edges and when we learn how to treat other people I'm polishing them into the diamonds that I know they are.
All kids I know are destined to the pendulum swing effect. When things are really super duper extra fun in kid land like "Christmas, Fourth of July, Week at Grandma's etc..." then we always swing back extra hard into grouch land for a few days. That's ok, its worth it. (this is what I have to tell myself anyway :)
If I'm just patient and plod through the little storms I know we'll be back to smooth sailing and blue skies in no time. I have to tell myself that siblings are the greatest gift I can give them... they will have each other for their entire lives. And when they beg me to have sleepovers in each others rooms, or build a fort together and bring their stuffed animals inside, or when they get all excited to take a "blue bath" together I know it's worth it... all the mini storms ... when it's not easy... they make the good times that much sweeter.
One day at a time, step by step... this is part of my marathon too...
Marathon Mom
The FAB FOUR...
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Monday, December 27, 2010
Cheesecake digger..
So, I have a funny story... I was de-compressing after Christmas chaos. (Which incidentally was awesome! but you know, you have to have a day in your jammies afterward.) Anyway, so Olivia got a "fur real pet dog" for christmas. This little white yappy dog (that Kaya can't stand) that goes by remote control and barks etc... Well, guess how long the batteries lasted? Til bedtime Christmas night. Had a little meltdown before bed b/c her dog died. I know, sad huh? So, I promised we would go to CVS the next day and get new batteries. Chris of course was working at the Chiefs game, so I bundle all three of them up to go to CVS. I promised Jack gummy bears to get him out the door. (I am not above bribery ) Anyway, so we get there and he finds a "digger" a little toy excavator thing. He is on his knees zooming it all around the store. So, when it came time to check out I wasn't suprised when he wanted that instead of the gummy bears. No problem... Digger in pocket we head back home.
Everyone's happy, he wants to dig in this big box of pinto beans we have. (Dried beans of course!) Anyway, he's digging away so I decide to call my sister in law for a chat. Next thing you know (10 min later) he is yelling from upstairs "MOM! Kaya's tryin to eat the pie!." What? Pie? I run upstairs and sure enough there is a cheesecake on his bed turned over, little graham cracker crumbs sprinkled all over the place.
"Jack" I say "Why is there a cheesecake in your room???"
I usually don't really allow the kids to bring entire cheesecakes up to their bedrooms...
"I needed something to dig in!" he says innocently. I look at the cake and sure enough there are dig marks all over the top of it. Of course! He needed something to dig in! Why not the cheesecake? Lucky for all of us, I was able to laugh it off...
Everyone's happy, he wants to dig in this big box of pinto beans we have. (Dried beans of course!) Anyway, he's digging away so I decide to call my sister in law for a chat. Next thing you know (10 min later) he is yelling from upstairs "MOM! Kaya's tryin to eat the pie!." What? Pie? I run upstairs and sure enough there is a cheesecake on his bed turned over, little graham cracker crumbs sprinkled all over the place.
"Jack" I say "Why is there a cheesecake in your room???"
I usually don't really allow the kids to bring entire cheesecakes up to their bedrooms...
"I needed something to dig in!" he says innocently. I look at the cake and sure enough there are dig marks all over the top of it. Of course! He needed something to dig in! Why not the cheesecake? Lucky for all of us, I was able to laugh it off...
Marathon??
No, I'm not actually training to run a marathon. I am calling myself marathon mom for a couple reasons.
#1. I always thought I would run a marathon, and this makes me feel as if I'm following my ambitions even though I'm more of a 2mile jogger... and
#2. because if you are a mom like me, you know that your life consists of doing many of the same things OVER and OVER and OVER again. Kind of like running for 26.2 miles...
Didn't I put this dish in the dishwasher yesterday? Yes, yes I did. Didn't I pick up these toy trucks earlier today? OH, yes, I did. Didn't I drive this carpool, do this laundry, cook these meals, buy these groceries, bathe these little bodies yeserday?? Yes, yes I did. And I'm gonna do it tomorrow too...
See? It's my very own marathon. Running is one thing, you can go for a jog, come back and lay on the couch. That's what babysitting is like... going for a run. But if you're a mom, its like a marathon. It's repetitive, it's hard, it's also exhilarating, full of accomplishments and extremely satisfying. I love being a mom. But I think it's just because I have the BEST kids around. Yeah, I'm gonna go ahead and claim that... what? This is MY blog!!
Olivia, she's 6 1/2. She is so smart, and so kind hearted. She is sensitive, and loving and aware. She is in first grade up at Longview Farm Elementary... (best school EVER!) Anyway, she loves her friends and IS a good friend... she plays soccer (well she did in the fall anyway, she's not the most aggressive, but her heart is there) and she's into dance, gymnastics, singing, sewing and loves swimming. :) She's missing her two front teeth and that girl has got the best hair ... Seriously, I could do so much cool stuff with her hair, but she won't let me... yet. We are just focusing on brushing it for now. But she's awesome, and a fabulous big sis.
Then there's Jack. He's 3 1/2. Do I need to say more? He's ALL boy. He's got the sweetest blond hair and blue eyes like daddy. He LOVES Thomas the train and builds me amazing tracks all over the house. He's not a fan of trying new foods... he exists on peanut butter (dinosaur shaped) sandwiches, goldfish, eggo pancakes, frozen strawberries and lots of milk. He loves school (most of the time) and when I go to pick him up he always says "I had so much fun at school today!!!!!" Usually with about 5 exclamation marks at the end. He's such a daddys boy. He loves to go downstairs while Chris is working and just sit in the chair by him and watch cartoons in his jammies. Who wouldn't? What a life!
And then there's sweet little Ellee. She's 1 1/2. She is just starting to talk and try and copy big brother and sister. She adores them. I dont know if it's just me or what, but it seems like she's growing up really fast. She doesn't like the baby toys, she wants whatever Jack and Olivia are playing with. She loves her baby dolls though, but also trains and lately she's wanted to wear Olivia's cute little ballet flats around with Olivia's scarf around her neck... oh also, Olivia's purse. I mean, shes 1 going on. 16. She's obsessed with her belly button, if you try and put her jammies that zip up, she flips out and tries to get thme off so she can rub her tummy... She's starting to talk to me which is SO much fun. You might think the milestones aren't as exciting by the time you get to your third child but thats so not true. I get just as excited and tell Chris every time I hear her say something new. I see her studying me when we read books... We were reading an animal book today and she was watching me say "Moo" and doing it quietly with her own little baby lips. It was so adorable to see her whisper "moo".
And I've saved the best for last. My running partner, the talented, the funny, the devilishly handsome Christopher Palmer. He keeps me sane. He keeps me grounded, he is truly my partner in all of this.... Plus he's so cute I like to look at him too...
See? It's like I do the same things over and over and I get better the longer I do it. I've got my endorphins kicking now ... I've been "running" my mom marathon for 7 years now. It's funny, it's hard, it's all about balance and patience and endurance. It's my life, it's my marathon. :) Stay tuned...
#1. I always thought I would run a marathon, and this makes me feel as if I'm following my ambitions even though I'm more of a 2mile jogger... and
#2. because if you are a mom like me, you know that your life consists of doing many of the same things OVER and OVER and OVER again. Kind of like running for 26.2 miles...
Didn't I put this dish in the dishwasher yesterday? Yes, yes I did. Didn't I pick up these toy trucks earlier today? OH, yes, I did. Didn't I drive this carpool, do this laundry, cook these meals, buy these groceries, bathe these little bodies yeserday?? Yes, yes I did. And I'm gonna do it tomorrow too...
See? It's my very own marathon. Running is one thing, you can go for a jog, come back and lay on the couch. That's what babysitting is like... going for a run. But if you're a mom, its like a marathon. It's repetitive, it's hard, it's also exhilarating, full of accomplishments and extremely satisfying. I love being a mom. But I think it's just because I have the BEST kids around. Yeah, I'm gonna go ahead and claim that... what? This is MY blog!!
Olivia, she's 6 1/2. She is so smart, and so kind hearted. She is sensitive, and loving and aware. She is in first grade up at Longview Farm Elementary... (best school EVER!) Anyway, she loves her friends and IS a good friend... she plays soccer (well she did in the fall anyway, she's not the most aggressive, but her heart is there) and she's into dance, gymnastics, singing, sewing and loves swimming. :) She's missing her two front teeth and that girl has got the best hair ... Seriously, I could do so much cool stuff with her hair, but she won't let me... yet. We are just focusing on brushing it for now. But she's awesome, and a fabulous big sis.
Then there's Jack. He's 3 1/2. Do I need to say more? He's ALL boy. He's got the sweetest blond hair and blue eyes like daddy. He LOVES Thomas the train and builds me amazing tracks all over the house. He's not a fan of trying new foods... he exists on peanut butter (dinosaur shaped) sandwiches, goldfish, eggo pancakes, frozen strawberries and lots of milk. He loves school (most of the time) and when I go to pick him up he always says "I had so much fun at school today!!!!!" Usually with about 5 exclamation marks at the end. He's such a daddys boy. He loves to go downstairs while Chris is working and just sit in the chair by him and watch cartoons in his jammies. Who wouldn't? What a life!
And then there's sweet little Ellee. She's 1 1/2. She is just starting to talk and try and copy big brother and sister. She adores them. I dont know if it's just me or what, but it seems like she's growing up really fast. She doesn't like the baby toys, she wants whatever Jack and Olivia are playing with. She loves her baby dolls though, but also trains and lately she's wanted to wear Olivia's cute little ballet flats around with Olivia's scarf around her neck... oh also, Olivia's purse. I mean, shes 1 going on. 16. She's obsessed with her belly button, if you try and put her jammies that zip up, she flips out and tries to get thme off so she can rub her tummy... She's starting to talk to me which is SO much fun. You might think the milestones aren't as exciting by the time you get to your third child but thats so not true. I get just as excited and tell Chris every time I hear her say something new. I see her studying me when we read books... We were reading an animal book today and she was watching me say "Moo" and doing it quietly with her own little baby lips. It was so adorable to see her whisper "moo".
And I've saved the best for last. My running partner, the talented, the funny, the devilishly handsome Christopher Palmer. He keeps me sane. He keeps me grounded, he is truly my partner in all of this.... Plus he's so cute I like to look at him too...
See? It's like I do the same things over and over and I get better the longer I do it. I've got my endorphins kicking now ... I've been "running" my mom marathon for 7 years now. It's funny, it's hard, it's all about balance and patience and endurance. It's my life, it's my marathon. :) Stay tuned...
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