The past couple of weeks have been difficult at the Suburban House. Evan was the main culprit, since he’s been a teething, drooling, parent defying wreck. There were some days when I didn’t know how I’d get the energy to try again tomorrow….
With that in mind, I woke up yesterday to a 2-year-old who’d miraculously had an attitude adjustment in his sleep… and therefore, to a much more pleasant day. =)
By the way, if you are about to become a parent to 3 children under the age of 5, I can tell you exactly what not to do…. =)
But I’ve finally learned that you should start off the morning catering to the baby’s needs the most. Yes, I know, this goes against a lot of conventional wisdom, but it has worked for us around here. If I get Ben happy and secure, feeling like I’m not going to pick him up and put him down every few minutes, then he’s a lot more settled. That means that he’s willing to eventually, possibly, stay asleep somewhere other than my arms. This worked for us yesterday when I was able to transfer him to the swing for an hour of nap.
This means that I’m doing everything with one hand to get breakfast ready, so it goes a little slower. It also means I’m eating breakfast with one hand, so breakfast bars help a lot. Kraft has this new milk and granola bar thing that I am finding useful.
I’ve also learned that I’ve got to let go of the idea of doing anything other than play with the boys for the first 2 hours of the morning. Wanna put a load of laundry in? Sorry, forget it. Wanna wash dishes? Nope, ain’t gonna happen. BUT, if I will just sit with the baby and talk to them while they play, cultivating a patient heart, THEN I might be able to get a few chores or games or reading done later on because they all have their love tanks at least partially full….
Sooooo, some things that I was thankful for yesterday…
- Singing and dancing with the baby in the kitchen, on the screened porch, etc. to Pandora’s Christian Rock station. Who says you have to have a local Christian radio station anymore?
- Boys lining up and racing matchbox cars on the porch in the autumn sunshine.
- Being able to let them go out in the backyard because the new grass is finally established enough. Watching them explore, find sticks, pick up big rocks, etc.
- Cutting a full pink rose from my bush and putting it on the vase for my table. It’s a small, simple thing, but I love being able to cut flowers from my yard for my table.
- Ordering “The Ox-Cart Man” new and hardback on Amazon. Just because….
- Discovering the Amazon Wishlist feature. If you want gift ideas for us, just go there, and search under my maiden name, Ellen H. W……. Great place to keep track of resources I want to get eventually for the boys for school, etc., and then I don’t forget!
- Watching an old episode of “Reading Rainbow” with the boys on YouTube. I have such fond memories of that show. Seth was mesmerized the whole time…
- An almost 3-month-old who is learning to smile and coo at his brothers. “Mommy, he’s smiling at me!”
- Crockpot stew bubbling away all afternoon, making the house smell delicious.
- That Ben can sit up snuggled in the middle of my lap now while I type this. =)
1 comment:
What a good reminder of what's important!! : ) The kids won't remember that the laundry was always done or the kitchen clean when they are older, but they will be happy and remember the special time their mommy spent with them!
No matter what anyone else says, especially those 'parenting experts' (haha!), when the kids come first and are loved, that's the most important thing!
You're such a good mommy!! : )
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