He'll be the boss

The speed at which children learn has always fascinated me. They typically learn to eat within minutes, they learn to communicate their needs through crying within hours of birth, they learn to smile, to play, to walk....and to manipulate, one of the most important skills of childhood, and then they learn about money. Well, they learn about the idea of money. Most of the time, Ben is convinced that every day that I go to work I come home with a pocket full of cash. And then trying to explain a check or a credit card to a 4 year old, impossible.

Teenage Mutant "Minja" Turtles have been a recent obsession for Ben. Turtle shirts, masks, underwear, "minja" turtle action figures, and begging to paint the bathroom green...and then begging for turtle toys. Perfect time to learn about earning money, right? Adam thought so. He told Ben that he could earn $1 if he cleaned his bedroom and helped Presley clean hers. We're all about cheap labor around here! Anyway, he agreed, the rooms were in excellent condition after about 1/2 hour, and he insisted on showing Adam and me the rooms....then he attempted a negotiation for $2 because it looked so nice! (He didn't win the negotiation, but E for Effort!) After this he begged to do some more chores to earn more money, we insist he use the word "earn" rather than "get" in our home...we also insist he grow up self-sufficient and not on public assistance! Anyway, Adam told him that if he cleaned up the main floor of our house (picked up his own toys) he could earn some more money. As you can imagine, this didn't go as easily or eagerly as the first $1 earned went! After a few minutes of crying and attempting to argue his point about how he should have "gotten" $2 for cleaning two rooms upstairs, he came up with another strategy. Now, I have to commend my little man, I forsee a high paying career in which he is definitely the boss.

Ben: "Mommy, Daddy said if I clean the downstairs he will give me more money."
Me: "Buddy, Daddy said if you clean the downstairs you can earn more money."
Ben: "Yeah, so I need you to clean the downstairs for me."
Me: "I'm not sure that's how it works, Bud, but nice try! You can clean up if you want the money."

Four years old and he's got the skill of delegation down! I didn't do it for him, nor did he do it...nor did he earn another $1.

Current balance to purchace a "minja" turtle: $1
This may take a while!

I'm Awake!

It's inevitable, your kids start to become independent, things seem to fall into place, you feel caught up on sleep after what seems like approximately four years of exhaustion...and you think you want another baby. And then you're reminded why life may just be simpler with two...or not.

Ever have one of those nights where it just seems that sleep isn't in the cards? I'm positive that I saw every single hour on our bedroom clock. The dogs bark, I'm awake. Husband snores...I'm awake. Presley visit #1, I'm awake...she just came down stairs to ask if she could be carried back to her bed. Logical. One hour later, Presley visit #2, I'm awake...came downstairs to ask to sleep with me, Adam's turn to get up, but of course I'm STILL awake because:

"MOMMMMMMY!"
"MOOOMMMMMMYYYY!"
"DON'T WANT DADDY...MOMMMMY...."

and on and so forth...

And after that calmed down, we found ourselves asleep yet again..until Presley visit #3, standing next to my bed staring at me holding a bottle of Sunny D (original flavor in case you were wondering) and a cup.

Me: "What on earth are you doing?"
Presley: "Juice."
Me: "No. Why do you have juice?"
Presley: "Want to drink."
Me: "IT IS BEDTIME."
Presley: "Juice."

Another trip up the stairs wasn't happening, I settled for plopping her on the couch. Sounds simple, but it wasn't...in the process of digging through the cupboards, and strategically placing a chair by the cupboards to reach her favorite cup, and then making her way back into my bedroom with a gallon of juice in hand, she lost her blanket. Obviously there is NO WAY for a 2 year old to sleep without her "buddy." It wasn't in her bed, it wasn't in my bed, it wasn't on the couch, and it wasn't by the floor. Mother of the year, right here, left her crying on the couch...eventually she fell back to sleep. And in the morning as I woke up and got myself around for work
, and watched the little precious sound asleep on the couch, I found the "buddy." It was by the fridge, obviously!

And then when you ask her about it this is what she does...

Because I Want To

Most days I wake up just in time to feel rushed, then I go to work and typically feel rushed, then rush home to pick up the kiddos from daycare, then rush to make dinner, then if we're lucky they get a very rushed letter or number teaching lesson for the night, then some rushed baths...and finally a rush to bed, and if time allows...a quick book or two. After kid bedtime rolls around, it's a rush to get the kitchen cleaned from dinner and the dishwasher started, and then...maybe a favorite TV show or two, then to bed only to begin my very rushed days all over again. In case you're wondering, I have plopped the kids in front of a movie and am rushing through this blog...sometimes TV NEEDS to be a babysitter for my own sanity (I was the perfect parent who swore off TV babysitting...until I actually had children of my own...don't judge.)

So, Why the rush? Because I want to. I wake up in the mornings and WANT to give my kids something other than processed foods for breakfast, so I cook...or prepare the morning meal. I rush home from work most days to pick my kids up...because I WANT to. Daycare from 7 AM-4 PM is plenty long enough for me to feel that my kids are getting too much parenting from people other than myself. Dinner, much like breakfast, is something that I feel is important. Afterall, it is the last "gasoline" they will be putting into their bodies for approximately 12 hours, it should be good gasoline, so my husband and I do our best to "home make" most meals (No, I don't hand roll my pastas or make all of my own sauces...my definition of "homemade" may be different than yours, get over it!) And after dinner, why work on lessons the kids should be learning at school? You guessed it, because I WANT to. I do believe that both of my kids (preschool ages) get wonderful care and education at their daycare center/school, but when they grow up to be Doctors, Lawyers, or the President of the United States, I want to be able to feel proud that I was part of their first class education! And why rush to clean the house...well, to be honest, that was a lie before, that's typically the very last thing that is accomplished in my house...and it's not uncommon to go to bed with a sink of dishes, or a load of laundry that needs to be done...oh well.

Nonetheless, everything else feels like a rush...most of the time because I WANT it to, but sometimes because I'm one of those people that struggle to balance my life priorities. It's difficult to admit that one part of my life isn't as good as the next, or in other words...one part fails in order to excell at another. Perfect mom...crappy wife. Stellar employee...tired mom. Regular gym member...kids "live" at daycare for an extra 1-2 hours. Great teacher to my kids....horrendous housekeeper! I've come to the conclusion that those people on facebook that post all of their excellence are LYING! Focusing on one or two things to perfect in my life is ENOUGH...and I use the term "perfect" very loosely! So, next time you're in the neighborhood, please stop by and join us for a homecooked meal, but don't expect that the table will be free of crumbs when you sit down or the dishes will be washed when we're finished!