Unsuccessful weeks

Lately I've been feeling frustrated.  The kids have been spending a lot of time inside, making huge irritating messes, my son's asthma has been flaring up with a vengeance, meaning he is having trouble spending time outside . The attacks ratchet up his anxiety and his grumpiness, which increases his less desirable behaviours. I'm waking up feeling like I've run a marathon in my sleep (frankly the only way I will ever run one).  I'm cranky and snappy, and even acknowledging and trying to control my bitchiness isn't helping.  I've come to loathe Christmas and preparing for it isn't helping.  So much stress about  family that doesn't like each other,and where will we gather, what about presents, and shopping! Gah! People. Everywhere. Bumping. Pushing.So loud.  It's not for me.  I lack any religious affinity for Christmas, so the whole thing is becoming a high pressured money and emotional suck for me.  I wanted to pack up the kids and drive south the second school got out on Thursday.  Then I remembered that we had a year where no breadwinning income came in for 7 months . Yeah. And so I didn't pack the car and flee the madness

I can't wait for it to be over, and that makes me sad because I remember how excited I was as a kid, and I wonder what's wrong with me.  

I can't even come up with a parenting success recently. So I've had nothing good to report for weeks.  

Wait. My 4 yo baked for one of his teachers. And I let him.  Well, I did the in and out of the oven parts    I guess that counts. He made fortune cookies as one of the things for his teacher and came up with the things to say, completely on his own. I helped him spell, but I didn't correct his handwriting. 

Ouac navigated!

Parenting success : after much deliberation and research, I helped my oldest son apply to his top university programs of choice.  Number one was a full French program, math and teaching. 

So yay! Success! 🎉

  One child ready to soar on the wings we've helped grow

(I hope he gets in!)

And then I hugged him, and said I was proud he'd made his decisions. Then I went upstairs to lay down with my youngest to help him fall asleep, and cried while writing this blog post. Which is ridiculous.  But whatever.  

 Here he is, way back at 21 months 

A good morning

Not gonna lie.  Most mornings trying to get my youngest up and out the door are less than stellar.  

If you looked up difficult in the dictionary, there's a good chance it says "getting z motivated and ready for school in the morning"

But yesterday he magically woke up without crying! Then he ate his breakfast! And he was so excited that he ran to the kitchen where I was making lunches, bowl in hand.  A glass bowl.  As he ran he was twisting the bowl with pride, showing me the emptiness of it.   And then, like a missile, it shot from his hands ( that's why we don't run with bowls!) bounced off the cabinet, ricocheted and slammed into the side of my ankle so hard that I screamed loud enough that the teen in my upstairs bathroom checked to see if I was ok. I truly thought my ankle was broken. 

There is a dent there, where my bone used to stick out. That's what passes for a good morning here.   Kid you not.  This is the bowl that attacked me.  Not even a dent.  Unlike my ankle .

Wild Kratt bat costume

Finally completed! Shortage of black material here so close to Halloween, so we went with grey

'Twas the night before Halloween...

'Twas the night before Halloween and all through the house, no one was sleeping, (except Dad on the couch). The pumpkins weren't carved, and the costumes unfinished, this crazy mom just hadn't a minute....

There I sat, with glue gun dangling, from the little one's room came soft distant singing and banging . It started off low and louder did grow.  

This duet of medley, lead by my 4year old...

"It's got mountains, it's got rivers, it's got sights that make you shiver, but it sure would be prettier with you... You're gonna miss me by my walk, you're gonna miss me by my taco (talk-oh)"

Accompanying him, was his 7 yo sister tapping a cup on the desk next to her bed.  

What I thought in my head was...man that's so cute! What I yelled was more like

"Anyone who thinks they are trick or treating tomorrow night, might want to zip it up there!" 

Parenting success: Co operative play between my children. Props for spontaneity, maybe they can start a flash mob some day.   

Parenting Fail: Inability to bend them to my will and make them sleep.

Argh!

 

 Success: I didn't hide in a closet crying today instead of momming up.  Though I wanted to.  Momming up is akin to the phrase "manning up/ man up" but for moms of every variety who have wanted to run and hide... But didn't (or can't. Whatever) and trudged on through whiny sticky days ...

You know how as a parent sometimes you have great days, or good days, or even mediocre days? And sometimes you don't? I'm currently in a phase where I'm not having great days.  I've been having less than stellar parenting days for the last week roughly.  

Maybe it's the season change. Perhaps my offspring love time outs.Could be a contest my kids are having to see who can make me crack first.  I don't know. All I can say kids, is that if you are trying to make me want to run away and join the circus... Well , I've got tripadvisor open in another tab. 

Parenting success

It turns out that coming up with a successful parenting thing every day isn't that easy. But today was more of a vague thing-  I was proud  that my daughter ran in the cross country meet,and that her focus was on fun, rather than the place that she came in.