Random thought on being a parent...

I'm not typically one for a serious blog post but I felt the need to release some "negative energy" that I've somehow picked up over the past few weeks about how complaining and parenting seem to go hand in hand.

I will be the first to admit that I often, way more often than I should, find myself sneering at the thought of changing another diaper, dreaming of just one night of uninterrupted sleep, or feeling envious of those who get to sit down to eat their dinner instead of standing up chopping it into miniature pieces and "feeding the ducks" as we call it here. The fact is, we are parents. Whether you "signed up" for it or not, if you have a child, you are a parent. We shouldn't complain about the day to day tasks that seem so repetitive and monotonous. We should feel lucky that we have these tasks to complete. Some people can't have children. Some people have lost children.


There is only a short period of time where as a parent, you will be viewed as royalty. As I type this I know my 1st grader is looking forward to coming home to ask me to draw pictures that look NOTHING like what she asked me to draw, but she loves them anyway. My two little ones who are in their cribs crying, not wanting to nap...they just want to spend time with Mommy as well. This time in their lives will never come again. No, at the end of the day they don't look at us and say..."Hey thanks for changing my diaper, washing my clothes, cooking my food, cleaning up after me, and sacrificing things you want to support us." That's not what matters. What matters are the hugs you get when you haven't seen them since they went to school. The sweet smiles peaking over their cribs first thing in the morning.

Before we know it, it will all be silent again. We'll get our wishes granted for a small pile of laundry, a night of completely uninterrupted sleep, and the option to sleep in past 7am. If anybody else is like me, you'll wish you had these days back. So the next time you feel like whining and complaining about how daunting it is to be a parent, be thankful that you get the opportunity. Some people don't get the opportunity, but even worse, some people do and don't realize the opportunity they had.

Just wait....

I don't care if you have zero kids or so many you live in a shoe....we've all heard...."Just wait" before. If you don't have any kids "just wait" until you do. If you have one kid "just wait" until you have two. If you have multiples "just wait" until they are crawling. If they are crawling "just wait" until they are walking. "Three girls??? Just wait!" I'm clearly not an overly patient person and I'm pretty tired of waiting. And am I waiting ON something or FOR something? Once again, society irritates me with the self proclaimed "professionals" out there who have been there and done that and LOVE to stop me and bless me with their sound advice. I'm working on adding a built in speaker to the double stroller. At the push of a button the sound..."Dun dun duuuuun" will come out which I'll strategically push during these conversations. It's either that or me say..."I'm really 'just waiting' for you to let me finish my shopping." I really need to order that "I'm trying to shop, leave me alone" t-shirt.

Captive Babies

Today has definitely been one of those days. The only real reason I'm writing this is to try to get my mind off of the torture chamber like noises coming from my nine month old captives upstairs. I'm apparently holding them hostage in their cribs, or at least that's how they view it. Apparently 9 month olds are too cool to nap, or so they are trying to convince me of that today.

So here I am giving them tough love, making them stay in their cribs, staring at the video monitor that I have a love/hate relationship with. Yes it is nice to see what my prisoners are up to and ensure they aren't plotting against me, but other times I think I'd be better off just thinking if it's quiet, they are asleep. We have two cameras, one on each crib, and I usually keep the monitor on scan between each camera. So I lay the girls down for their naps, listen to their loud protests, and go about my business. Just when it is quiet in there and I think the coast is clear (thank you Scooby Doo for making me talk this way) I look in the monitor and usually it goes like this: Camera 1....sleeping baby....seemingly long pause as the camera scans and I finish my "Please let the other baby be sleeping" prayer.....Camera 2....baby in corner sitting up trying to whittle or do some other thing with her hands at the same time she is trying to do the Cupid Shuffle while sitting down. So close!!! Ahhh the life of living with more than one baby! Who knows, one day maybe I'll go get them from their nap and one will have made a tiny ship in a bottle or come up with a new dance we can all do drunk at wedding receptions. Because yes, I drink.