Friday, November 25, 2011

I hate big girl beds

As parents, we are supposed to be excited for the transitions our little ones go through.  Transitions are hard though, mostly on us.  My daughter has been begging for a big girl bed since she saw her little friend's big boy bed several months ago.  We put it off as long as we could ... not because she wasn't ready but because we weren't ready.  And I don't mean in that sentimental "my baby is growing up" way ... I mean in the "mommy and daddy really like to sleep" way.
For whatever reason, over the Thanksgiving holiday, my husband and I decided to make the switch.  Our recent purchase of double video camera monitors for the kids' rooms turned out to be more valuable for her than her baby brother since we could now watch her wander around her room.  Initially, she would readily return to bed when I radioed her (through the monitor... bonus feature!).  However, on day 2, she refused to get back in bed at nap time.  I was busy trying to get things ready for my son's birthday party the next day and didn't have time to deal with her (and my husband was out running errands).  Unsure of what to say or do, in a moment of weakness I threatened to bring the crib back.  Since she had been so excited about the big girl bed, I thought for sure that she would zip back into bed quietly.  "NO" she screamed and then, "I want my crib back," and the cries began.  What had I done?  An empty threat did not seem to accomplish my goal.  Nap time ended with my husband sleeping on the floor beside her while she wandered around the room.  At least I was able to get some things done.
Mom of the year ...

Thursday, November 17, 2011

Nighttime Prayer

Tonight, I was trying to be a good mom and reminded our daughter to say her nighttime prayers.  It went a little something like this ...

"Dear God,
Thank you for Daddy and Lambie ...
and blankets and Santa Claus ...
and that girl over there ... what's her name?"
(as she pointed to a random doll)

Me: "Anyone else you want to thank God for?"

Daughter: "Yeah, that girl over there, what's her name?"

Well, she has confirmed it.
Mom of the year ...

Monday, November 14, 2011

Personal Space

I'm not a clean freak but I don't like getting food and grime on my clothes.  My husband always tells me that it's part of being a mother, but I disagree.  I'd rather wipe my kids snotty nose before he rubs it on my shirt or clean off my kids hands before I pick her up or hold my child by her armpits when she's just had an accident.
When we go out to dinner, we often choose to sit in a booth and somehow, I always end up next to my 2 1/2 year old daughter.  No matter how far I try to slide her away from me, she always sits practically on top of me.  And I'm sure you can imagine that her hands, covered in mac'n'cheese and yogurt, always seem to find their way to me and my clean shirt.  At times, I find it necessary to move ... not because I don't love eating with my grimy-handed child, but because I need some clean personal space.
As always, my husband was ready to capture my shining moment as a mother on film!
Mom of the year ...

Friday, November 11, 2011

Yellow jacket whack-it

We were finishing up lunch with two friends and their children today when we noticed a yellow jacket flying close to my 1 year old son.  We were all a bit nervous watching it fly around the kids so I decided I should do something about it.  It landed on a chair nearby and I couldn't find anything to swat at it.  So I took off my shoe and whacked it.  I maimed it enough that I think it must have died (although we couldn't find it), and we gathered our belongings and left the restaurant.
Outside, my friend told me she overheard the family behind us commenting that they thought I was taking my shoe off to spank my son!  Really, do people do that?  If so, maybe they deserve my award -
Mom of the year ...

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Meltdown Strategies

When we first had our daughter, we enjoyed taking her out with us whenever we had a party or gathering of friends.  One night, I noticed that some of our friends who had 2 children would always leave any gathering or party about 30 minutes to an hour before us.  They left while their children were still perfectly well-behaved and I never understood why they were leaving so early.
That was when I discovered that there are two schools of thought on exiting a party with your child:

1) Hang out and enjoy yourself until your child reaches their limit and crumbles to the floor in a crying catastrophic mess.  At that point of complete meltdown, you thank your hosts and quickly exit the party, happy to have survived long enough to enjoy some food and adult conversation.
2) Hang out and enjoy yourself for a period of time.  About half an hour before you anticipate your child's meltdown, utilize the "preemptive strike" strategy and exit quietly and graciously.

I am sure everyone has a guess which strategy my husband and I tend to choose, but I am curious if we are alone?

Mom of the year ...

Saturday, November 5, 2011

A marathon weekend

Apparently doing a marathon as a mom has its own unique set of considerations ... that maybe I should have considered before my race today. Here is a list of lessons learned:
#1 Putting your feet up before the race is not an option, regardless of how many babysitters you bring with you. In fact, you will likely be on your feet supporting your own weight in addition to the weight of your children.  You might also prepare yourself for less than optimal pre-race sleep, especially if you're sharing a room with the baby.
#2 Preparing for the race is mostly focused on how many snacks you need to pack for the kids and what clothes they will wear instead of how many gus to take or which socks to wear.  It helps if you remember both children and pack some milk for the baby.
#3 If you are nursing, you should take into account that the 10 oz you pump pre-race are calories spent before you even start the race, which may explain the hypoglycemic wall you're bound to hit around mile 15-16.  If you've run out of food at that point, maybe you should plan better next time and hire a pack-mule to carry your nutrition.
#4 Seeing your kids along the way is way more exciting for you than for your kids who look fairly miserable all bundled up in the stroller.  If you're lucky, your husband will drag your child against her will kicking and screaming to where you can see her around mile 25 ... how motivated you will feel to finish the race then!
#5 Post race, expect that your babysitters are exhausted from babysitting your hungry, tired kids during the race and forget about relaxing, feeding yourself, or showering until the kids have been fed and are napping.  (This is especially true if one of your babysitters is more interested in the NC State-UNC football game than watching the kids).

Most important lesson: Bonking at mile 16 and going 10 minutes slower than predicted matters a lot more to you when you don't have an adorable family waiting patiently at the finish line for you with big grins on their faces!
Mom of the year ...