Mistakes in Motherhood

As the mom to a toddler, I feel like my life of cuddling a sweet little baby has been snatched away from me evolved. I now feel my primary duty is no longer as a nurturer, but now as a protector. Just today I was telling a friend how I felt like I spend my entire day saving my daughter from certain death. Just before I typed that I pulled a screw cap out of her mouth, and an alan wrench and nail clippers out of her hands. We are now on day two without any keys to my car, and I have a feeling my 13 year old had a 27 inch toe-headed accomplice. She’s like a ferret without organization, she will steal from you, but lacks follow through to stash them away in a specific hidey hole.

She’s getting better at entertaining herself, she will walk upstairs by herself and play with Matthew in his room for 10-30 minutes at a time before moving on to her next game, heist, or inadvertent demise. This is bittersweet, as part of me is happy she is able to play independently, while at the same time I worry she won’t make it to her second birthday. Now that she conquered her fears about walking, she seems to have no more healthy fears left and is quite the little daredevil.

Her imagination is really starting to blossom too. Not long ago I wondered why we owned so many toys that no one played with, and now I am amazed at how, and how much she plays with them. She imitates so much and it is funny watching her play and realizing that she is imitating normal daily household activities. For instance she will put her purse on her shoulder and then push the shopping cart by her toy box picking out play foods, which she will then transfer into the refrigerator of her toy kitchen. She will also rock her babies and pat their backs, shush them, and coo at them. The toy kitchen has provided countless hours of play for Sophie and Matthew alike, as well as help from Austin and Christopher too from time to time.

I guess the more I look at this time, the more good I see in her growth and maturity. She is really amazing to watch as she grows into a young child. However, I do with, that for once, I could actually eat all of my own food. I feel like I get to only take a bite or two of whatever I have before I have to hand it over to one of the younger two. Yet if I put it in front of them, they won’t eat it, or will cry for what I have, even if it is the exact same thing.

No Comments | In: People, Places & Things | tags: Amazement, Family, Parenting, Sophia, Toddlers. | #

Orajel, applied to a wooden night stand by a toddler, and left undiscovered for 12 hours, will strip the finish all the way to the wood.

I am devastated.

***Updated with Pictures***

So Bobby and I had agreed he is out of the will, until I came up with the idea that the only thing he will get is all the stuff he has broke/ruined/marred…. at this rate, he will get more than the other three. *sigh*

5 Comments | In: Uncategorized | tags: Photography, Sadness, Toddlers. | #

Yesterday, Matthew got a freaked out look on his face while standing on the top of the steps. He looks at me and says “biper mommy!” I say “diaper?” and he says “nooooo, biper”, so I say “Swiper the fox??” and he says YES! So I listen and I hear the cat downstairs scratching in the cat box and start laughing, because on Dora the Explorer, when Swiper the Fox comes to steal from Dora, the music is kind of a scratchy sound.

Wednesday, I am at the Midwife’s office with Matthew and they are doing a quick pelvic exam. Matthew keeps trying to see what is going on under the sheet while the nurse and the midwife try to get him up by my head. Matthew asks “doctor hurt mommy’s vulva?” and we all start cracking up, little smarty. At the same appointment we are listening to the baby’s heartbead, and Matthew start’s getting disinterested and comments “Mommy laying on toilet paper?” Again I crack up because the exam table paper does sort of look like a roll of toilet paper. He then decided his own baby was hungry and lifted his shirt to nurse her.

1 Comment | In: Uncategorized | tags: Humor, Matthew, Silliness, Toddlers. | #

Thanks to the “wonder drug” making me so sick, I have yet to have a full night’s sleep. The first night I was puking, the second night I kept waking from crazy dreams (the kind you get when you are sick), and last night I was in so much pain that not even the hot bath could relax me enough to get more than a couple hours of sleep. Everything from my waist up (to include wrists and thumbs) hurt so bad that breathing is almost unbearable. Even sleeping upright did not help.

My only solace is that DH is taking our oldest to school, so I don’t have to get out of my pajamas. I need whatever comfort I can get so not dragging out the two year old, scraping frost off my windshield to drive him to school is the best thing I could have asked for.

Don’t get me started on the middle son though…. the boy is on my last nerve. I have been wondering how it takes my oldest two boys to get ready to school when the oldest has 1 1/2 – 2 hours to get ready for school, and the middle child has 2 hours to get ready. Yes, they have chores in the morning (make sure the dishwasher is loaded, should have been done after dinner so that is a cinch, get the clothes out of the dryer and start a new load in the wash, pick up your messes, and get yourself showered, dressed, eat breakfast, brush your hair & teeth). NOTHING that should take more than an hour. Apparently my middle son thinks it should take 45 minutes to be dressed up to his underwear. When I finally gave up trying to sleep, and got up because I was sick of hearing him yell through the house, I got up to find he had showered for 15 minutes (no biggie) and then done nothing but stand around in nothing more than his underwear for the next 30 minutes. I am not sure how I can get that boy motivated without breathing down his neck for 2 hours each morning, which just is not feasible with my lack of sleep lately.

On a better and brighter note, I am 12 weeks today! The baby is starting to look more human, and I am *supposed* to start feeling more human soon, but I will just watch and wait to see if my morning sickness gets the hint that it is time to hit the road. I am going to go out on a limb here and say either I am carrying a girl (since I have 2x as much morning sickness than I did my other two pregnancies combined) OR this is another baby boy trying to guarantee he is last baby we have (which was always the plan anyways). Either way, I will be happy, as I truly just want a healthy baby. Don’t tell Matthew this, as he insists this is his “baby sister”, he gets angry anytime I even suggest it could be a baby brother.

Please someone tell my 2 year old that mama REALLY needs him to take a nap today, so she can try to nap herself. This nap strike he is on is about to drive me batty!

No Comments | In: Uncategorized | tags: Austin, Bobby, Christopher, Family, Health, Matthew, Me, Milestones, Parenting, Pregnancy, Ramblings, Ranting, Sleep Deprivation, Tirade, Toddlers. | #

With the time change, a cold and being in a bad mood this morning, Matthew and I already are butting heads. He is congested and coughing so I would not let him have a glass of milk with his bowl of cereal with milk and that turned into a 15 minute sob-fest of “Matthew SAD! No water mommy, Matthew MILK.” I do not deal well with his whiny days.

I have to leave NOW to get Austin to school, but no one is ready, then I have a 45 minute prenatal appointment today Mr. Whiny Pants is going to have to accompany on. I want to cancel it, but she should have answers of my test results this morning and I really want to get a treatment plan going NOW.

Once we get back home from taking Austin to school, I think I am going to toss Matthew in a hot shower to steam his sinuses clear and then a nice snuggle in bed before we go, maybe that will put him in a happier mood.

No Comments | In: Uncategorized | tags: Austin, Matthew, Me, Ranting, School, Toddlers. | #

Matthew was so sweet, he wanted to talk me into letting him watch Sesame Street this morning so he asked me if I would lay down and hold him on the couch. I am so sleepy lately that I almost instantly fell asleep holding him, and I guess I was shivering or something because next thing I know he is covering me with his blanket that he pulled through the bars of his crib. I went upstairs to get my own pillow and blanket and he cuddled in his blanket and together we watched Rosita and Zoe turn Maria into a chicken with Abby Cadabby’s wand… or so they think! Oh Sesame Street, I love you. I love you for holding my sons interest, I love you for your characters, and I love you for your lessons.

No Comments | In: A lot about nothing | tags: A lot about nothing, Matthew, Ramblings, Television, Toddlers. | #

Matthew has discovered logos and commercialism. He rarely watches TV, but I think he will catch a moment here and there of a commercial or two when we are watching TV because as we were pulling into Taco Bell on Sunday to grad a quick bite before heading to the park he noticed a Pizza Hut sign and started yelling “Pizza House Mama!! Pizza House!!” We never eat Pizza Hut, so I am guessing he must have recognized the logo from a commercial.

He also noticed a car with a Papa John’s logo on top of it today while getting Austin from school and he was all excited to see a pizza car. We watched it pull into the school, watched him deliver the goods, and then watched him leave. Matthew was all excited and even had to tell Austin that he saw a pizza car when Austin got into the car. Austin, being 11 and starting to get the teenage enthusiasm just did not share Matthew’s joy… shocker there!

No Comments | In: A lot about nothing | tags: A lot about nothing, Austin, Auto Stuff, Matthew, Silliness, Television, Toddlers. | #

The song I am listening to, in the signature today and the blog title fits today perfectly. I wish I had my camera on me, I would love to share the experience. Maybe today when I get Austin to school I will take my camera and pull to the side of the road and take a picture.

In December, Officer Ken Jordan was killed in the line of duty just blocks from my home while trying to apprehend a suspected drunk driver. The driver decided he did not want another DUI and shot and killed the officer in cold blood. For weeks the bridge he was shot was decorated with flowers, candles, cards, stuffed animals, and frequently visited by his fellow comrades. Every time I would pass that site, I would cry.

Well, I guess today was his birthday, because as I drove by this afternoon I saw a beautiful bouquet of roses, a bunch of balloons and a huge birthday card. I grew up around our men and women in blue; my father worked for the county and we frequently visited the court house and I remember often him introducing me to this officer or that officer and I also got to tour the local juvenile facility and getting to ride in police cars. We all grew up with a huge respect for the law and for police officers.

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In an unrelated note, my house smells like a cat box. My cat started inappropriately urinating on the dog bed, the cat beds, etc. I though he was just expressing himself in a negative way, until I noticed he was visiting the cat box every few minutes and staying there for long stretches of time with limited results. This made me almost positive it was a urinary problem of some sort and I immediately called the vet and requested a drop-off appointment. They will call me when he’s done and the kids and I will be busy cleaning today and tomorrow. I could not find my cat carrier, so he had to ride on my lap with a leash & collar and in the 10 minutes while he was in the car managed to pee on my leg. He had peed in the cat bed right before we left too.

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General Matthew Cuteness:

Daddy was changing Matthew and he pulled a big old booger out of his nose, sticks the finger with the booger out at daddy and said “Here Dad, for you”.

~

Matthew likes to make himself burp, especially after he gets a drink, today after finishing my water he makes himself burp and it’s strained and really gross sounding and he said “Mmmmm, Juicy!” I am almost positive he was referring to the sound, not the taste as he had not had anything fruity to eat yet.

He is such a boy!!

***

Forgot to mention, Austin has his first school dance today ::Sniff, Sniff:: My baby is growing up!!

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Now playing: Blind Faith – Had To Cry Today
via FoxyTunes

No Comments | In: Uncategorized | tags: Austin, Fur Babies/Pets, Matthew, Memories, Sadness, Silliness, Toddlers. | #

Ahhhh, life with a toddler, what a joyous experience that is! I think having a toddler is an experience must all go through to prevent us from judging animals who eat their young.

So it’s smack time in the Mistakes household, and Matthew is happily munching on some Bunny Grahams, raisins, and a big glass of water like a big boy at the table. I decide since it’s 10 am and I am hungry to grab a snack for myself too. I just don’t understand how I could already be hungry, I did eat breakfast, but then I remembered that a grapefruit alone does not go very far when your two year old is sitting on your lap saying “BITE! MORE MOMMY!” before you can even get the food to your mouth.. anyways I digress.

So I grab myself a Pumpkin Spice Flax granola bar and the little stops eating his snack and says “MY manamana mommy!” which apparently means “granola bar” to a 2 yr old. So I give him half wondering WHY I am not 98 lbs by now living with the food gremlin. So the rest of snack time goes like normal; Matthew climbs on the table and starts dancing, in the process knocks over the water, spills the bunny grahams, hears the garbage truck and abandons the raisins. Starts yelling at the dog who is in the other room, but he feels is encroaching on his food and then ends up playing on the stairs. I remind him he needs to eat his snack and he glares angrily at me and then uses his highchair as a barricade while using his food as cars.

The one-half granola bar did little to satisfy my hunger, but it’s not worth it to go find something else, if I hear “mine mommy” one more time my head is likely to explode.

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Now playing: Disturbed – Voices
via FoxyTunes

4 Comments | In: Uncategorized | tags: Matthew, Me, Parenting, Toddlers. | #

This morning I was relaxing, reading, while I thought to myself how nice it was with the kids in school because the house is so nice and quiet. Then I paused… QUIET??!!?? Where is the baby and why is he quiet?

As I started walking through the kitchen, the smell hit me at once… Comet!

I walk slowly up the steps to catch the baby in the act and in my head I am hearing the sound effects from Jaws, ‘duh-duh, duh-duh’.

I can feel my blood pressure rising with each and every step, and I will share with the class why this is. Below are pictures of what I saw in sequential order:

First step.

Second step.

Top landing.

Top landing leading into the kids’ bathroom.

Hmmm, footprints of the guilty??

Bathroom & rug.

Wet comet.

Hmmm, could Matthew have done this? Does he look guilty and remorseful or what?

Matthew signing “sorry” while saying “sorry mama”.

So I could tell he felt bad, and I did not need to raise my voice, but I did tell him he was naughty and that the comet was a “no, no, no”, I still can’t figure out how he got to the Comet, but my instincts tell me Austin got it out and put it away under his sink instead of in the locked cupboard under the kitchen sink. I gave him the meanest punishment I could, I told him to sit down on his stool in his room while I vacuumed. The vacuum scares him more than anything else, so I shut the door to minimize the sound. Normally he runs and hides when I vacuum, or I do it when he’s sleeping, but today he got to hear it right outside of his bedroom. Five minutes later when I was done cleaning I went back in his room to check on him and he was still right where I left him.

I wish I could say he was better after this ordeal, but he was a pill when we went to go run errands, at lunch time, and at nap time, but he’s sleeping now so I KNOW where he is and as a bonus my house is quiet once again.

Oh, today I was at the post office mailing off a math textbook to a friend and when when they did the standard “anything perishable? Fragile? Hazardous?” I said “only if you consider math hazardous” and he said “I sure do, and I am sure your kids will agree with me!” LOL I love that post office, the one who handles my mail is full of people who are unkind and act like they hate their job. At least at this branch the workers are not afraid to joke, conversate, or be polite. If you have any doubts about what I mean when I say they are rude at my local branch, read this post from April.

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Now playing: Grateful Dead – The Golden Road (To Unlimited Devotion)
via FoxyTunes

3 Comments | In: Uncategorized | tags: Humor, Matthew, Parenting, Ranting, Tirade, Toddlers. | #