Noooooo!

Please tell me that the reason my not-quite-two-year-old's naps are getting shorter and the fact that he's having a hard time going to sleep at night is NOT what I'm thinking it is.

I would die a little inside if Felix gave up his nap anytime soon...

Oh, How I Cringe

I shouldn't, but I do.

Inevitably, anywhere from 5-10 times each day I hear, "Mom, can you play Littlest Pet Shop with me, please?"

And it makes me cringe.

Now, let me take a step to the side here and say that I am enormously proud that my 5 and/or 3 year old daughter(s) has phrased such a polite question. *HOWEVER* I don't like to play Littlest Pet Shop...or Barbies, or dollies, or animals, or you fill-in-the-blank. Isn't that what sisters are for? Isn't that why I birthed you 17 months apart?

-I digress-

It's not that I don't want to spend time with my child. I'll read you books all day. Come do chores with me. Heck, hop in the shower; I don't care! In fact, I'm used to it! I just.don't.like.playing.pretend. Anybody else?

If we play Barbies, I'll spend my time sorting the clothes and changing outfits. Because that's what I have to do to make it enjoyable for me. But, it bothers my girls. Case and point: "Mom, what are you doing? Please stop."

So, I'm trying to come up with ways I can play pretend with my girls (because it is so obviously important to them) without being terribly annoyed and so they know I love them dearly and want to spend time with them and build wonderful memories.

Here's what I have so far.

Rule #1: I will play with you as long as I can stay in one place. aka, I will play with you as long as you tell me what to say verbatim and I can sit here like the lazy slug that I am.

So far, they haven't fought me too much on this one...

Rule #2: It's okay if Mommy closes her eyes. This one will probably never fly.

If you can do this...

If you can do any of the following by yourself, or without causing someone emotional trauma...you must not have children.

*go to the bathroom
*take a shower
*stand
*sit on the couch
*get dressed
*brush your teeth
*run errands
*open the door
*close the door
*sleep
*wake up
*read a book
*watch a movie

Seriously, it's that joyous time of life when someone needs me at all times. I'm getting better at expecting that and rolling with the punches, all without losing my mind. How's that for a magic trick?

How did we get here?

As we find ourselves in an unexpected situation, and one in which we don't know how long we'll be (aka, we're livin' with our very generous in-laws) I remember a quote.

I can't remember the quote exactly, and I'm too lazy to look it up because I don't know where to find it, but it talks about when the Saints were commanded to settle Kirtland, and even though they didn't know how long they'd be there, they were commanded to settle it "as if for years."

Now, I'm pretty sure all parties involved hope we're not here for years, but I do realize the wisdom in making our lives functional, especially for my children. I need to have a schedule, move out of the suitcases, make them do chores every once in a while, etc.

Hopefully this will help them feel more at home, more comfortable, more loved, and give them some semblance of stability when the rest of our lives are in an upheaval.

Isn't it Ironic?...

...Don't you think?

The irony of Mother's Day? I want to do anything except my mothering duties.

There, I said it.

Systems vs. Schedules

I've always hated schedules. Always. I find it incredibly boring to do anything the same time every day. I only make exceptions for eating. How did I ever survive school? Sometimes I toy with the idea of keeping Sam home from school just so I won't have to get her ready...again...just like yesterday and just like tomorrow. But I don't, because that would be a really stupid habit to get into and a really dumb lesson to teach my child.

So, in an effort to add order to my life without adding the stifling chains of an hourly agenda, I try to come up with systems in which I can move flexibly, all while spending quality time with my kids, preserving order and sanity...and a clean house...and if my kids learn something in between, that's just icing on the cake, baby!

Here's what we have so far:

1. Monday is FHE and we always have smoothies for treat afterwards.

2. Tuesday has become "Treat Tuesday" because Tuesdays are always the most blah day of the week, at least that's what I remember from my school days. Our after-school snack is something totally unhealthy and delicious. It may even be a trip to Wal-Mart to get a donut or to Braum's for an ice-cream.

3. Doing a chore every day is not working for us. (I'm talking chores other than the usual, make bed, get dressed, brush hair and teeth, pick up toys, etc.) So I've decided that we will have bath night every other night. And on the nights we don't do bath, we will do an extra chore together. It's working well so far. :)

4. I just added this one: If we can get the house "Sabbath ready" on Saturday, then we can go out to eat for dinner. This includes getting clothes ironed, a quick wipe-down of the house, or catch-up on chores I've neglected that week (which is the norm around here...) I also need to include getting the diaper bag stocked with snacks and making sure I actually have crayons for the coloring books. How does this keep happening? Anyway, a night I don't have to cook? Or clean-up? You better believe I'm willing to make this happen! We've only done it once, and it was fun. Thank you, McDonald's!

Motherhood Panic

Did I kiss my kids enough today?
Tell them I love them?
Hold them when they ask?
Snuggle?
Play enough games? (any games?)
Read enough stories?
Smile enough?
Use a nice voice?
Sit with them at meals?
Listen to unintelligeable stories or dream recounts?
Laugh at all?
Say more compliments than commands?

Probably not. But I wonder if the answer to all of these questions will ever be "yes." I'm sure there's always more a parent can do. But, in my quest to grow and become a better parent, at least I was better than yesterday.