The Chaotic Sunday

Our Sundays are normally restful and calm.  We all normally leisurely lounge around until it is time for church on Sunday mornings.  Okay lets be honest it may not be calm, but at least it is not that rush to get ready as we don't need to leave until 10:30.  The kids play and Tyler and I at least get in a cup of coffee.  Two weeks ago, however Ayden had a different perspective on how this particular Sunday should have gone.

The kids finished their breakfast and they went on an adventure.  This is basically the kids going upstairs to their rooms on their own.  It is an adventure because it is parent free for a few minutes.  I eventually get upstairs, but they have become independent and I was trying to give them a little freedom because nothing had gone wrong.  This should have been my sign right there…nothing had gone wrong…yet.  Well it was quiet and then the giggling began.  I ran upstairs and to my surprise both kids were holding a bottle of nail polish.  I know you are probably thinking, how did they get the nail polish? Well they opened the door to the bathroom and to the closet that the polish was kept.  They then had to rifle through the drawers to get the polish.  These were determined kids, and I am not sure why, but don't worry the story gets even better.

Now Tyler was running around looking for nail polish on the floor because the top was off of one.  He had found no spots or stains so we thought we were in the clear, however when I inspected Ayden closer he had "Disco Ball" clear, sparkle nail polish on his hands and lips.  Yes my friends Ayden decided to sample the nail polish.  He did not seem affected by this whole event, but of course we had to check with Poison Control.

After talking with Poison Control, nail polish is not as dangerous as you would think.  I guess in possible ingestion of a small amount, the most damage you can do is getting it off too aggressively.  Of course they ask if he seems okay and my response is, "Yeah he is fine as he is now trying to find something else to get into to."  I was told to have him chew on a cold washcloth to have the excess polish to freeze up so it could fall off.

I thought that was the end of our adventures for the day, however Audrey never wants to feel left out.  Later that afternoon we had come home from swimming and Ayden had fallen asleep in the car so I chose to hold him and sit on the front steps as Audrey played with her ball in the front yard.  It was the mom's worse nightmare…you know the one where you see the ball roll onto the sidewalk in slow motion.  Now Tyler's car was in my way, but I knew exactly what Audrey was going to do…go after her ball and that she did.  By the time I ran to the sidewalk she had already crossed the street and was getting ready to get her ball out of the neighbor's yard.  Now I wanted to lose it, but had to try to not look like a raging lunatic.  Still carrying Ayden, I scooped her up and put her in the house in which she was crying because she knew what she did was wrong.  I grabbed her ball and poor Ayden who was in a peaceful slumber, probably drugged by the nail polish from earlier, was awoken by all the commotion and he was crying too.

Poor Tyler had no clue what was going on as he was in the house the whole time, however he now had to screaming kids in the house with him.  Now Audrey was read the riot act and can probably tell you word by word as to why you should never chase after a ball if it goes into the road.  However I think after this particular Sunday I wanted to put both my kids in a bubble and sit in a corner and drink wine.

Both Tyler and I know to never leave the kids unattended and that kids are going to test their boundaries.  I know we cannot watch them every second, but we will continue to try, and I guess we have to try a lot harder with Ayden.  He is seriously going to send us over the edge with his adventurous spirit.

Finding Balance

I have been struggling to find a few minutes to sit and write a post for my blog, and I have evidently failed immensely as I don't think I have shared a post in two weeks.  Seriously I am not sure what is going on.  It is not as if I have taken on more responsibilities.

Currently I am typing during Ayden's nap time, and Audrey is bringing me book after book to read.  I am literally typing a sentence and reading a book, typing a sentence and reading another book.  It feels that lately my children are struggling to keep themselves entertained with playing without me right by their side.  Now I totally love playing with my kids, but I also need to make meals and use the bathroom.  It is almost a guarantee that my children will have a knock down, drag out argument when I just want to pee.

I am exhausted by the end of the day with the kiddos.  I feel I never get that little bit of rest time as I am constantly entertaining and refereeing.  Now I know I am no different than any other mom out there, but it just feels like these last two weeks have been tough and trying.  Honestly by the time it is bed time for the kids, the last thing I want to do is clean or type.  The cleaning of the house has definitely taken been neglected.  I have made sure things are clean, but the clutter is just everywhere.

Speaking of cleaning, I had to put in a movie just to sweep and mop the floor yesterday.  Yet, I question why I even did do that chore.  It is that time of year and the cat is shedding all her hair all over and there was an accident with a few raspberries this morning.

Now I have come to the conclusion that things just have to give.  The kids take priority over all the other things, the cleaning, the blogging, and the me time, however I think their demanding of my attention comes in waves and in a week or two they may no longer need me as much.  I really should embrace the fact that they want to be with me and that they want me to sit next to them because I know as they get older I won't be wanted as much as I am now.  However, it is absolutely exhausting!

So here is to all the moms trying to keep their cool and finding the balance that allows them to feel sane.   It is okay to have that clutter or mess, kids will only be little for so long.  However when you suffer from OCD issues like myself, letting the clutter be is tough and I become the overly tired woman because I am completing cleaning chores after bed time when I am already exhausted.  Here is to hoping I can let go and finding balance in my life.

The Power in the Word "No"

Like all children, Ayden has begun to exercise his voice and using the word, "No".  It is not a little meek "No" either.  It is the forceful "No" that I use when I find him playing in the toilet or biting his sister.  I guess I shouldn't get too mad at him when the "No" seems a little disrespectful as he is just acting as it has been modeled for him from his sister and myself.  Sigh….

Lately he has been exercising his ability to state he does not want what is on the table to eat or when he is asked to do something.  I know he is testing me because he says that forceful, "No" and then has that devious smile that follows.  This my friends is the beginning of the terrible twos I can feel it already, however I just hope that he is a little easier on me than Audrey was.  I mean we are still going through the tiresome threes with her and lets just say its exhausting so to speak.

Ever wonder what life would be like as an adult if we could exercise the right to scream the word "No" whenever we did not feel like doing something?  I think it would possibly help with my stress level on occasion, but it is evident that we eventually grow out of this aggressive "No" stage and go on to live happy, healthy lives.  However the process of now until then is always a painful one.  I love when I get the crazy, aggressive "No" when we are in public too.  You should see some of the looks of disbelief I get when Ayden screams the word "No".  I am not sure why though because I know Ayden is not the first to act like a defiant toddler.

In all reality, he isn't being disobedient, but actually just being a kid so that he can learn where his boundaries are.  We are still working on boundaries for Audrey, and I have a feeling that the boundary thing will be an ongoing process for both kids.  Ayden however may be one that I have to keep a thumb on because he is the boundary pusher.  He is a handful, full of life, and has a personality that is so large it is hard to describe.  I just have to find a creative way to guide him to be a little obedient:)  I know what some of you are thinking…good luck with that…one day we will get there, but until then I will be that mom being told "No" in every public place we go.  Wish me luck or pray for my sanity…either way we will get through it one day at a time!

You have plans….HA!

Have you ever had one of those days where you plan it all out and you are pretty darn proud of yourself, and then life happens?

I think this is what today is going to do for me.  I am dragging today as I sip my first cup of coffee, but with the early wake up of Ayden I figured today would be a great day for us to go do activities at the forest at Mud Pies.  But then again this may be the worse idea ever!  Only a few minutes ago were my children throwing tantrums over ridiculous things.  I asked Audrey to throw away a napkin…complete throw yourself on the floor, screaming and kicking, melt down, all due to a small, white napkin.  Ayden did not get to let the cat out of the basement.  I guess he really has a desire to be the knight in shining armor to save everything, including the small animals.  This tantrum ended in hitting his sister and throwing stuff at the cat…so much for thinking he wanted to be kind to animals.

Regardless of my plans, I think it always depends on my the mood of the children to determine if their attitudes fit the activities planned for the day.  Today I think we may be punting on going to the forest, unless by a miracle they decide they are ready to go out and behave.  However the one thing I can't change today is a doctor's appointment for Ayden, as it is necessary.  I hate these physicals that he has to have every month before he goes in for a treatment the next week.  Because I forgot to make the appointment a month out, we are blessed with a 2:30 appointment.  That's right…an appointment in the middle of nap time.  Last appointment in the afternoon, Ayden was overly tired and was driving his cars up and down the leg of the doctor while he attempted to complete the physical form for the hospital.  I am super excited to see what antics Ayden will do as we make it in for this afternoon's appointment. (Sarcastic voice should be used after reading that last sentence.)

I think what I am getting at here is I need to give up on planning or at least getting upset when my plans are fitting our mood of the day.  I need to look at my plans as a guide and then if they work for us great, if not who cares and move on.  Even though I think it is great for the kids to get out and do stuff, I think after a big play date Friday, a three day stay at Great Wolf Lodge, and then school yesterday for Audrey, we all need a down day and maybe today is the day for that.  Here is to hoping I won't need wine until after Tyler gets home tonight!

A Bump in the Night

As a mom I never think I sleep soundly.  I feel I am constantly listening for noises from the kids in the night to make sure everything is okay.  The funny thing is Tyler never hears any noises, unless it is equivalent to a sonic boom, and I am constantly awoken by random cries in the middle of the night.  I am sure there are many of you who are out there who can relate to that one pathetic whimper cry that gets you to sit up in bed to investigate further, to just find out it is your son or daughter just making noise and then the dreadful not being able to fall asleep sets in.  I swear this happens to me at least twice a week.  Well played Ayden…well played.

Last night Ayden went to sleep very easily, which should have been my sign that something was going to happen last night, but I just embraced the fact he went down peacefully.  He has figured out that he will not be able to escape anymore, so he has learned to find things in his room to do to entertain himself, and last night he sure did keep himself busy.  I was woke up by some loud noises at about 3 a.m., and when I looked at the baby monitor I couldn't see him.  I heard him collecting up his cars that were on his dresser and driving them around.  He then decided these cars needed to take a test drive on the humidifier, and then their final destination was his bed.  Now I am sure he was up longer than what I saw because he can be pretty stealthy when he wants too, but he proceeded to lay in his bed with all his cars and was having a hard time getting comfortable…go figure.

I think it took about a half hour of tossing and turning, kicking the wall, and driving cars, he finally fell back to sleep, but it put my 5 a.m. workout on hold as I couldn't not get up after my hour of entertainment.  As I look at the baby monitor now, he lays peaceful in his bed and will probably sleep as long as he possibly can because I have to take Audrey to preschool today and that is just how Ayden does things.

It is interesting how bumps in the night are still scary for me as an adult, but it is a different kind of scary…it's the fear of my children doing something insane or crazy while I attempt to sleep.