Just truckin' along with daily life. Today when we got on the car to go to school, Claire said it was cold outside - it was 80 degrees. Still praying for rain, but the cooler morning temperature is a blessing. And hilarious that it is considered cool.
The kids got all scared this morning because I stopped the car on the way to school to help a little girl who had fallen off her bike. Some dad was offering to give her a ride to school. I couldn't even look him in the face because, basically, that is an off-limits offer from men. Sad, but true. There was no way I was going to let that girl get in his truck even if his own daughter was strapped in there. Luckily, her mom was driving by and saw us all, so it resolved. I felt sad that this guy wanted to help but, really, nobody was going to let him. It ain't worth the risk. Anyway, the kids were scared because I left them in the car for a whole whopping 5 minutes while I was on the sidewalk with the girl and the guy and the crossing guard. Claire was trying to get Charlotte to get out and walk the rest of the way to school. Hello - I'm right here on the sidewalk. You can see me. Calm yourselves. They weren't even tardy, by the way.
Gabe is bored with anything inside this house. He wants a playdate every single day. No. The end. Learn to cope. You have toys, crafts, tv, computer, books, and me. That should cover all your needs.
Andy isn't home much these days. I feel like I never see him. He leaves early, gets home late, and often travels. When did we get to this stage in life?
My library books are overdue, but I'm not willing to drive out there, even if I do want something to read. If I didn't have Gabe, maybe I would. Kids change the library drastically. I always imagine it as me sitting in one of the comfy chairs by the window, browsing magazines for a couple of hours. Then browsing the books for another couple of hours. Then me checking out a dozen. Then me reading for another hour or two at the library before coming home. Okay, even if I shrunk all of those activities down to one hour total, it is drastically different than library-with-kid. Reality consists of me dragging him by the hand to the specific books I already looked up and then hurrying back to the kid section to watch him play on the computer, watch him play with toys, watch him play with puzzles, and then, when it is finally time to check out, watch him frantically grab 10 books he doesn't even look at. Then either finding a penny for that swirly thing or dragging him past the swirly thing while he complains in order to leave. Not nearly as relaxing.
5 comments:
We need a playdate at the library...kill 2 birds with one stone. Actually, 3...then you can return your library books. Corralling kids is always more fun with a friend.
In other words: it's time for David and Emily to come visit. Think you can hang on till Thanksgiving? We'll bring a baaaabyyy....
i feel you on the library thing. about a year ago i went to the library and for the first time since teague was born, i actually ventured to find something for myself (heaven forbid). i put teague down for a second so i could concentrate on finding the right call number. tatum started chasing him around the corner and he started screaming, all while lexi was "helping" me by pulling book after book off the shelf to see if it was the one i was looking for. i felt bad because i totally lost it and said aloud, "this is too hard!! i don't even want the book anymore!" so i angrily grabbed all my kids and we drove home. lexi said, "mom, having kids is really hard, huh? i think i'm only going to have one." i felt bad that i made it look like parenting is never fun, but man, i learned that now is not the time of my life when i actually get to enjoy the library!!!
Speaking of library books, I just finished one that I really liked - Finnikin of the Rock. It's a coming of age story as two young people fulfill their prophesied destinies and bring a people back from exile to take a curse off their kingdom. It's a teen fantasy novel but very well written, with good surprises. I had to read it with a lot of interruptions and I always got into it again quickly. Sp, I just wanted to make that recommendation and say I love you!
Jamie - ouch. That's a rough one. I have had some of my very worst parenting moments in the library. I actually did go, though. I scaled down my expectations dramatically, and I liked the results. Expectation 1: the library is for books. Well that was the first to go. Gabe only wants the computer. So, I hustled him to the grownup section right when we walked in, picked up 5 magazines I wanted, and then read them while he played on the computer. Then I only checked out books that were on that shelf right by the checkout counter. That way, no dragging him around. Keep in mind, one kid who is almost five, and it was still not ideal. A time for every season, yes? A time to be born, a time to die, a time to read, a time to chase your kids around, turn turn turn.
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