Category: children

children, family, humor, kids, motherhood, parenting

‘Big’ Brother

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The sibling relationship is a complicated wonder.  It is the first relationship where you learn that you are not the center of the universe.  You also learn that the behavior of others is out of your control.  Whenever I hear T.Puzzle repeating everything Full Speed says in an annoying, sing-songy way, I know Full Speed is learning about patience and self-control.  Meanwhile, T.Puzzle learns about self-preservation as Full Speed physically attacks him in retaliation.  Sibling relationships aren’t always pretty, but they challenge us to be more of who we are.

I often wonder how my boys view their relationship with each other.  Are they good friends?  Are they fierce competitors?  Or, more likely, are they a bit of both of these?

I think T.Puzzle’s recent drawing of him and his brother sums it up perfectly.  Yes, he is thankful for his brother, but note how T.Puzzle’s stick figure is on the right.  Interesting that he drew himself nearly twice the size of his older, taller brother Full Speed.  As a younger sister myself, I think T.Puzzle is a brilliantly talented artist.  Don’t you?

Full Speed and the giant T.Puzzle enjoying time together.
Full Speed and the giant T.Puzzle enjoying time together.
children, family, humor, kids, motherhood, parenting

The Real Deal

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The day has finally arrived when Full Speed asked me point-blank about Santa Claus.  While he has had suspicions in the past, these were easily overcome by simple explanations.  Now, as the reasoning parts of his brain, along with those of his second grade class, are becoming more sophisticated, so are my explanations.  I didn’t mind dropping an occasional fib here and there about the ‘realness’ of Santa.  I’m started to become uncomfortable as my web of lies expands as Full Speed throws more and more complicated questions my way.

How long do I hold out before I have a sit-down with him and he knows the truth once and for all?  Unfortunately, this is feeling like sooner rather than later.  Right now, Full Speed is content to hold on a little longer even though physical evidence seems to indicate there isn’t a Santa.   In his words, “Maybe Santa is invisible.  Just because we can’t see him, doesn’t mean he isn’t real.”

Isn’t faith in anything believing even when it seems impossible and all evidence points to the contrary?

If this is the case, Santa is real.  He is very, very real.

Full Speed busts out is best Santa impersonation…
T.Puzzle’s soapy Santa version.
children, family, gratitude, humor, kids, motherhood

Thankfulness is the Game (Happy Thanksgiving!)

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I am thankful for each and every one of you that takes time to follow my little blog.  Whether you are inclined to so because we are related, because you are my friend or because we share a similar experience in life, motherhood or otherwise, I am thankful for you.  I am thankful for a husband who accepts me as I am, on good days and on bad ones, too.  I am thankful for my boys who continue to amaze me.  Sometimes this aforementioned amazement borders on mind-numbing frustration depending on the day you ask me.  Most days are awesome and some days are not and should never be mentioned again (blogging about them is the exception of course!).

I don’t know if this motherhood thing is going to get easier.  I have a sneaking suspicion that in some ways it will and in others, it will only increase in complexity.

I’m game if you are.

What do these guys have in store for me next?
children, gratitude, loss of parent, motherhood, parenting

Fill the Bucket

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My Mom and me. I owe her all the beauty, humor and light in my life. The rest doesn’t matter because she showed me what love means. Even if you make a mistake or don’t succeed, if you have love in your life, you have everything you need.

Moms don’t really get the credit they deserve.  There isn’t actually any quantifiable way to say we are successfully raising our kids.  How much are we, as Moms, responsible for the successes and the failures of our kids?  At what point do we stop shaping our children’s outcomes and allow them to take personal responsibility for themselves and their own actions?  Even into adulthood, are Moms responsible when a grown child isn’t reaching their full potential?

I don’t have the answers.  I do know that motherhood can be extremely rewarding but mostly on an intrinsic level.  Sure, we have Mother’s Day but in general, our hard work and dedication is rarely recognized on an external level.  This really isn’t such a bad thing.  I believe life is about being your personal best and if the world sees it, great, and if it doesn’t, that’s okay, too.  All that really matters is how you, and you alone feel about the way you are living your life.  It also helps if on occasion, your kid says or does something that warms your heart.

Full Speed explained to me that he learned about ‘filling other people’s buckets’ at school.  Essentially, by acknowledging others, you ‘fill their bucket’ with kindness and appreciation.  He took these words to heart.  He told me as he walked over to meet me, that he shared with the crossing guard that he was a ‘really good crossing guard’.  Full Speed also plans to tell the lunch ladies on Monday that they are doing ‘a really great job.’

I may not get trophies or a big paycheck honoring the work I do as a mother, but after I listened to Full Speed I thought, “Wow, maybe I had a little something to do with the making of this remarkable kid.”

My bucket is full.

children, family, humor, kids, motherhood, parenting

A Dinosaur Tail

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I walked Full Speed into school today to help him drop off some canned goods for the school’s annual food drive.  He asked if it was okay to stop by one of his teacher’s rooms to choose his prize for a great report card he recently received.

Why not?

Naturally, he chose the biggest, brightest, most obnoxious looking stuffed dinosaur I have ever seen.  The kicker is, he was too embarrassed to carry it (and it was too massive to fit in his backpack).  I couldn’t make him choose something else because the night before Mad Dog and I declared that if he was the one earning the good grades, he could choose whatever he wanted (this is before we knew giant dinosaurs were a prize option).  Since my back was up against the wall, I decided to set a good example and own it.  If I showed him that I didn’t care that the entire school was staring at me, then I could show him that what others think about you, isn’t so important.

I was so proud of myself.  Look at me walking through the halls with my dino pal proudly on display.  Of course I was in sweats and had not an ounce of make-up on, and let’s be honest, my hair was barely combed into place.  I didn’t care.  When the sixth graders gave me a shout out of, “Nice, dinosaur!”, I said, “Thanks!” and kept on walking with my head held high.  Of course, the younger students treated me like a rock star.  This only bolstered my resolve.

I managed to walk my shy, self-conscious self all the way to the front of the school and was home free.  That is until a teacher stopped me and pointed out that with each step I took, the dinosaur’s tail swished back and forth behind me as if I was waving a flag of attention to myself.  It was bad enough that I shook my ‘tail’ the entire length of the school (believe me, this school is big and the hallways are looong), but to have an adult call me out, it was hard to maintain my composure.

Is it bad if I hope Full Speed’s next report card only gets him into the pencil and small eraser section of the prize closet?  All it took was one dinosaur to make me a fan of underachievment.