Gary has been gone all afternoon and evening on a hike and camp out with the scouts. That means I was fielding all the kids through homework, dinner, bathtime etc, as well as all the cleaning up. I got Nathan ready for bed first, reading him a story and putting him in bed. I was then going to get Leia and Spencer ready. I supervised the teeth brushing and then prepared to break out another story. Leia says. "Don't worry about it Mommy. I'll read to Spencer and you can get your stuff done and watch the news."
I have tasted of Nirvana and am hungry for more.
Friday, January 30, 2009
Monday, January 26, 2009
Sore throat
I don't know what it is about a sore throat that disables me but whenever I have one my world seems to come to a standstill. I could feel it coming on last night and I knew I was in for a bad night. I woke up several times feeling like my throat was on fire. I knew I didn't have anything around the house that would help so I stayed in bed and just toughed it out. This morning I got up to discover that Nathan had decided to decorate the basement with an entire roll of toilet paper. He had also squeezed a bunch of soap down the toilet???? Now I'm not asking my children to be completely rational but sometimes Nathan's behavior in particular leaves me scratching my head.
As I drove Leia to the bus stop, the bus driver made me smile. He's an older guy - maybe 60s, and he always looks happy to see the kids. Leia tells me that he jokes with them and they all fight to sit on the seat right behind him. I think this comes from two years of riding the bus to school myself but there is nothing worse than a grumpy bus driver. I think it's adding insult to the injury of being up so early often in the bitter cold.
Now this morning the temperature is in the teens and it's snowing. With feeling so yuck I couldn't bear to take off my sweats. They are the ultimate in comfort especially since the scent of the fabric softener I use is so comforting. I decided to just keep them on while I went to the store for some sore throat relief.
As we drove toward the store instead of going back home once Leia was on the bus, Spencer said, "Where are we going?"
"To the store", I replied.
"In your pajammies?" he asked incredulously.
"Yes", I said.
"But everyone will laugh at you", he observed.
Thankfully no none batted an eye. My sweats don't really look like pajamas either!
And after I had loaded up on throat lozenges, Vicks Chloraseptic, Tylenol, noodles, fruit juice, and yes, even chocolate I was able to finally collapse here on the sofa. All I really want to do is go to sleep but with two energetic sons it won't happen.
It's strangely quiet downstairs. I guess that means my reign here on the sofa is at an end.
As I drove Leia to the bus stop, the bus driver made me smile. He's an older guy - maybe 60s, and he always looks happy to see the kids. Leia tells me that he jokes with them and they all fight to sit on the seat right behind him. I think this comes from two years of riding the bus to school myself but there is nothing worse than a grumpy bus driver. I think it's adding insult to the injury of being up so early often in the bitter cold.
Now this morning the temperature is in the teens and it's snowing. With feeling so yuck I couldn't bear to take off my sweats. They are the ultimate in comfort especially since the scent of the fabric softener I use is so comforting. I decided to just keep them on while I went to the store for some sore throat relief.
As we drove toward the store instead of going back home once Leia was on the bus, Spencer said, "Where are we going?"
"To the store", I replied.
"In your pajammies?" he asked incredulously.
"Yes", I said.
"But everyone will laugh at you", he observed.
Thankfully no none batted an eye. My sweats don't really look like pajamas either!
And after I had loaded up on throat lozenges, Vicks Chloraseptic, Tylenol, noodles, fruit juice, and yes, even chocolate I was able to finally collapse here on the sofa. All I really want to do is go to sleep but with two energetic sons it won't happen.
It's strangely quiet downstairs. I guess that means my reign here on the sofa is at an end.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Birth order? Yeah right!
So far, it seems that Gary and I have two molds when it comes to our children. The mold that produced Leia and Nathan and the mold that produced Spencer. According to the studies done on birth order, Leia should be conscientious, tidy, a high achiever, and sensible. I wonder what happened there? Today I received a phone call from Leia's teacher asking me if we could discuss Leia's inattentiveness in class and messy handwriting. Gary is going into school tomorrow early to discuss these issues. Here's hoping her teacher lets us know what exactly we can do about this at home beyond our usual struggles with keeping her focused on the task at hand. Her room is constantly a tip, and tonight Gary asked her to go downstairs and put on her pajamas. 5 minutes later the job is not done and so Gary asks her what is going on. She says "But I was showing Spencer a dance move". And tonight at dinner I was watching Nathan. He was on the move the entire time. Whether it was pulling a face or wagging his head from side to side, he literally could not keep his body still. Something tells me we're going to have the same issues with him once he goes to school.
I reflect on my own school experience. I wouldn't have dared to talk to my neighbor instead of listening to my teacher. I was never satisfied with less than an A, my handwriting always has been particularly neat and tidy, and I had a healthy fear of authority figures.
Don't get me wrong, I adore Leia with everything in me. As someone recently put it, she is a quality little girl. But it's definitely a labor of love to understand her and help her to be everything she is capable of being. There's one thing that you can always say of her and that is she is a lot of fun to be around.
As for my little Spencer. He has tested me to the edge of my limits and patience more times than I care to remember but lately things have begun to change. My Mum noticed it over Christmas. He is calmer, less confrontational, and more willing to accept what I say. He will go straight to his room and clean it when I ask him, not that it ever gets really bad. He more often than not puts his clothes away at night, and is very well behaved in school. He can sit for a long time building legos and at dinner, he remains in his seat without dancing a jig until he has cleaned his plate.
I always hope I can guide my children according to their unique personalities. It's not as easy as I perhaps thought it would be especially as they are so different to myself. I have to remind myself that there's no reason why they should take after me. After all, I have a sneaky suspicion that Leia may end up having a better social life than me.
And speaking of my social life, all I had going on today was a trip to the dentist in which I was informed that my lack of flossing is catching up with me, and treated to the most painful cleaning I've ever experienced. Seems like I will be nursing my bruised jaw all evening as I ponder these thoughts I've outlined. And I daresay I'll be making a date with some dental floss every night from now on!
I reflect on my own school experience. I wouldn't have dared to talk to my neighbor instead of listening to my teacher. I was never satisfied with less than an A, my handwriting always has been particularly neat and tidy, and I had a healthy fear of authority figures.
Don't get me wrong, I adore Leia with everything in me. As someone recently put it, she is a quality little girl. But it's definitely a labor of love to understand her and help her to be everything she is capable of being. There's one thing that you can always say of her and that is she is a lot of fun to be around.
As for my little Spencer. He has tested me to the edge of my limits and patience more times than I care to remember but lately things have begun to change. My Mum noticed it over Christmas. He is calmer, less confrontational, and more willing to accept what I say. He will go straight to his room and clean it when I ask him, not that it ever gets really bad. He more often than not puts his clothes away at night, and is very well behaved in school. He can sit for a long time building legos and at dinner, he remains in his seat without dancing a jig until he has cleaned his plate.
I always hope I can guide my children according to their unique personalities. It's not as easy as I perhaps thought it would be especially as they are so different to myself. I have to remind myself that there's no reason why they should take after me. After all, I have a sneaky suspicion that Leia may end up having a better social life than me.
And speaking of my social life, all I had going on today was a trip to the dentist in which I was informed that my lack of flossing is catching up with me, and treated to the most painful cleaning I've ever experienced. Seems like I will be nursing my bruised jaw all evening as I ponder these thoughts I've outlined. And I daresay I'll be making a date with some dental floss every night from now on!
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