Firstly, we went camping with the in-laws last weekend and for some reason, it was not annoying or irritating...just nice. Relaxing, even. Wha? I know! Maybe I'm growing as a person!
We had a fabulous time, sleeping in a tent (it was Otto's first time), making s'mores, hiking, reading books in the sunshine next to a river. Awesome. And much needed time away from computers, TV, Internet, xbox...all that. It was delightful to just BE.
But of course, our return to civilization was inevitable and here we are again with our crazy days of daycare drop offs, long workdays, hastily prepared meals and harried work-outs. Oh and my car is in the shop for what is yet an unknown malady. The mechanic actually called me last night to say he has no earthy idea what is wrong so he 'might have to call Subaru' in the morning to figure it out. Awesome.
Secondly, I'm sure lots of parents, go through cycles where some weeks you feel like you are totally ROCKING this whole working parent thing and then other weeks, you feel like the absolute worst parent ALIVE and are completely secure in the knowledge that you are scarring your child for life?
Guess which kind of week I'm having. Yeah. Its been a tough one.
The kiddo's started hitting me when he doesn't get what he wants which I know is totally normal but OH MY GOD it pushes my buttons and it is SO HARD not to react. I am making a conscious effort to respect his feelings and understand where the frustration is coming from but there are times, oh boy howdy, such as in the grocery store when I am just trying to pay and get the fuck out of there and he is sitting in the cart hitting me and yelling "NO MAMA!" and it is SO HARD to maintain my composure. And all the understanding in the world doesn't change the fact that I have very limited time to do these sorts of errands and sometimes he just has to come with me even though that's not an almost-two-year-old's ideal way to spend a Monday night, you know?
And I don't want to be that mother who tenses up and talks in a low menacing voice with all sorts of threats but I also don't want to be the one going "Oh honey! Oh! Its OK! Mama is hurrying little bumblekins!" You know?
What do you guys do when your kids are being little shits in public? How do you get through it without doing something you'll regret or making a complete ass of yourself and your child? How do you respect your kid's emotions and integrity AND preserve your sanity? Inquiring minds want to know.
1 comment:
The second I type this, it will change. But A doesn't act like a creep, really. Well, sometimes he arches his back and freaks out if 1. he's tired and 2. we don't let him swipe a credit card through the machine. But this is how we deal with it: We let him swipe his card through the machine. After we're done. The cashier thinks it's cute. Usually.
Or I tickle him or do something else equally silly.
What is making him freak out and hit you in the cart? Is it simply "Get me out of here and home!" or "I really want that bag of Fritos we passed in aisle six!" or "I HATE this cart!"?
In other news, AF decided to visit me a few weeks ago. 31 months later. I had no idea it was happening to me. The day before, I honestly thought I was going to die. The nausea, the pain, the debilitating I-don't-know-what (horrendous gas that never released?) that just had me unable to sit or walk or think or even lie down. All I could do was think about how Andrew was going to have to send Alasdair to day care when I died, because I knew I was going to die, right then and there.
I felt like such and idjit the next day when I figured out the cause.
So, ya. That first time back ... Holy shit. (At least I hope it's only the first time that almost kills me.)
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