It's been a long time since I've blogged. My oldest boy Zeke started 2nd grade last week, and 3-year-old Gabe is sassy as ever. Life is flying by at break-neck speed, and I'm determined to find a way to put the brakes on, if at least just a little.
An old friend emailed me the other day. Her little boy just turned 6 months old, and since this is her first, she's finding herself feeling a little lost at times in the emotions department. This little bundle of joy, your heart outside your body, can be the root of such conflicting emotions sometimes. I thought I'd spend a minute reflecting on the outcome of our exchange.
What it boils down to is that, no matter what life throws at you, you still love your children more than your next breath. It's something you just can't put a value to, you know? But, God love 'em, there are times those little boogers can push your buttons "just so" that leaves you seeing red and wondering if this whole parenting thing was just too big of a bite on your plate.
Most weekends, I've got the kids myself. Hubby has been working the past several Saturdays, and by Sunday, he's in much need of some veg time. I can't blame him. At the same time, when he walks through that door Saturday evening, I'm soooo tempted to say, "Here you go, they've been fed and washed, and now it's YOUR turn. I need some Me time." Nuh uh. Not gonna happen. But dude, I've had these two with me ALL DAY!! It's not that Hubby refuses to take on parenting duties in the evening, but rather I try not to dump all that in his lap the minute he walks in. I give it at least five. *grin*
[Rewind a little back to Saturday...]
So, we started off the morning with a trip to McD's for breakfast, which we use as a treat rather than a necessity. Keeping the kids contained in their excitement is a bit of a challenge, but we manage. Then we grocery shop, and here's where things start to get a little messy. We get one of those big shopping carts with seating for bigger kids, so both the boys are able to ride while I peruse the aisles. Erm...in theory, this is a fantastic idea. In actuality, it's more like trying to keep two chimpanzees from running amok at a banana festival (if there was such a thing).
More than anything, my two little angelic sons prefer to spend their time tormenting each other. Rather, I think the little one likes to torment the big one, if I'm totally honest about it, and I have to keep stepping in to resolve disputes and losing my train of thought. Great! I walked right past the parmesan cheese ten minutes ago, and now I'm gonna have to go back. You get the mental picture. I'm trying to keep it together, but
sometimes, you just wanna grab them up, shove them back in their seats,
and threaten them within an inch of their lives that so help me it'll
get ugly if you stand up and do that again, Mister! And that goes for
you, too, Brother!
Running down the aisles is an automatic time out, no questions asked. I think Gabe's got this down now. Surprisingly, that's the one thing he DOESN'T do on this particular trip to the store.
After what turned out to be a much longer shopping trip than planned, I swing by the house to drop off groceries and let the kids have a potty break. (This would be in addition to the 3 bathroom trips we already made in the store, since Gabe is now out of Pull Ups and is braving the world in big-boy underwear with his itty bitty bladder, bless his heart.)
Then we're off again, this time to meet up with some friends at the playground to give all of our chimpanzees some time to let off some steam. At this point, I'm hoping my two will wear themselves out enough to take a nap, but as usual, no such luck. We spend a pleasant hour or so there, then on a whim, I swing by one of the gas stations for some much needed libations in the form of slushies. I think this is where I screwed up because there was no WAY Gabe was going down for a nap with all that sugar in his system! My bad. S*** happens, y'all.
Let's see...next on the agenda was Zeke's first soccer practice. We have enough time to go home for a few minutes and let him change into his uniform (team pictures were the same afternoon, of course, so we had to have all his gear on), and we were gone again. Gabe did surprisingly well after his sugar crash and sat nicely with me on the sidelines.
(Ok, ok, I supplemented with cartoons on YouTube on my phone. Sometimes, you just have to do what you have to do!)
Heading home after all that, it was time to get dinner on and get these two cleaned up. By now, Gabe was so tired that he fell asleep (too late for his regular nap, too early for bed...GAH!), which allowed me to get a little work done in the kitchen, but now Zeke's bugging me, telling me every joke he can find in his BoysLife magazine.
Every. Single. One. :-\ At this point, I'm contemplating burning the magazine and denying any knowledge of its existence.
Dinner's ready, and Hubby walks in through the door, tired and achy and wanting to rest. Gabe's up by now, having only napped for an hour (uh oh!), and it doesn't take long for him and Zeke to start bickering about something. Again. I swear, were my brother and I like this as kids?? I don't know...that's a long way to think back. Hubby has a short fuse after his long day, so I quietly set the table while he deals with their bickering. (Thank you!!)
We eat. We talk. We recap on each other's days. This is one thing Hubby and I will not compromise on, spending time as a family at the dinner table. I have to say I'm right proud of us for sticking with it.
Then time for bed and all the squabbling and carrying on that it entails. By the time the kids nod off, I'm done. Done, done, done, done, DONE! Now I need to veg and pull out my latest crochet project while I catch up on the Dallas episodes I recorded on the DVR. (My guilty pleasure...hehehe!) So, only one load of laundry got done today, and I only unloaded and loaded the dishwasher once (and now the sink's full again...WTF?!), but this is what weekends are like now. My transcription reports will have to wait until tomorrow because I just don't have the mental capacity to give it my full attention right now. *sigh!*
Yeah, those little monkeys will challenge you in ways you never imagined when you first brought that little bundle home from the hospital. You will have days you wanna just pinch their little heads off (don't pretend the thought never crossed your minds, people - you know exactly what I mean), but then those bedtime kisses and hugs seem to put things all in perspective.
"'Night, Momma, I love you," is what my sleepy boys tell me. Night night hugs and kisses are so awesome no matter how crazy the day was. Zeke climbs up to his bunk and is asleep in a minute or two, and Gabe lies down on his bunk and wants another hug. As he slips his little arm around my neck and hugs my cheek to his little chest, I melt.
Dang it.
Wouldn't have it any other way though, would ya? I know I wouldn't. Better enjoy it now while I still can, those crazy little boogers. ;-)
