Category: kids

kids

health, kids, life in pictures, mommyhood, self-discovery

Clean Socks

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little Frick and his Legos

The life of a stay-at-home Mom is pretty exciting. I mean between the laundry, the cleaning up and food preparation it’s a wonder I have any time left in my day to blog. Take today for instance. It was action packed (insert sarcasm here). First, I played Legos with little T.Puzzle  (this actually was fun because he was super-giggly) and then in the afternoon I took him to the allergist (this actually was not fun). I told you my life was exciting.

little T.Puzzle snacks while waiting for the doc

Lately I am forgetting that my ‘job’ really is a sum of all its parts. Every sock I wash and put away and every frozen waffle I prepare (I know I am a culinary genius!) are all leading up to something greater. I’m raising children to become what I hope are kind, caring and self-fulfilled adults. When I say it like that, then who am I to defy the laundry gods another round of clean socks?

I don’t struggle with the value of what my job means overall. I do struggle with the seemingly mundane tasks that it sometimes entails. I know at the end of the motherhood trail the journey will be worth it; I’m just not in the mood to vacuum my way there.

kids, mommyhood

Celebrate Good Times

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Full Speed had a birthday party at his school which also happens to have a huge ‘fun-center’ attached to it (turns out it’s not a bad way to go party-wise, the staff organize and care for almost everything). I was grateful to only be taking Full Speed . Playing him man-to-man in the sure to be chaotic party-setting was the only way to go. I left little T.Puzzle in the care of Mad Dog. The last I heard of him before I left was him screaming ‘no!’ and not listening to Mad Dog. No surprise there.

I’m somewhat confounded by the modern day children’s birthday party. My childhood birthday memories consisted of a cake made by my Mom and celebrated with a handful of family. Birthdays are in a different league these days and I’m afraid I’m still in the minors. I have a feeling I’m going have to step up to the plate for Full Speed’s next celebration (thankfully still months away). Luckily, I think little T.Puzzle will still be satisfied with a tiny, homemade affair. That’s more my style and much more conducive to my waning parental sanity.

At Box Seats. They are serious marksman.
happiness, kids, life in pictures, parenting

Kung Fu Fighting

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A lot has happened in the past 24 hours. First and foremost there was some serious kung fu fighting. I think these post pictures will prove that my boys could cause serious damage with bow staffs. I am allowing them to use nerf swords with the stipulation they only play against Mad Dog one at a time. The sparring matches were hilarious. The boys may have a ways to go in terms of technique, but they have the spirit of true warriors (just a note, Full Speed’s eye is patched for vision issues, not an injury sustained during the fighting).

For a lady who enjoys quietly sitting on her lanai watching birds as a favorite pastime, it was a bit much. I was more than ready for bed by day’s end and I didn’t do any of the fighting. Unfortunately, little T.Puzzle’s allergy symptoms had other plans for all of us. He was incredibly fussy and couldn’t be soothed by the normal routines. He wound up in our bed late in the night and the only way he would sleep is if his head was nestled in the crook of my arm with his face smashed (and yes I mean SMASHED) up against mine. He also could only lie in a mostly perpendicular angle to me and had to (and yes I mean HAD to) have his feet resting on Mad Dog’s back. Little sleep was gained by anyone.

I took him to the doctor the next morning and prayed (and yes, I really did pray) that he would be cooperative. Shockingly, he was an absolute angel. Maybe he was just too tired to be feisty. Turns out he is on the verge of a sinus infection and was prescribed an additional allergy medication to use as part of his daily regimen. Because not only did he inherit my incredible kung fu skills, my little T.Puzzle inherited my allergies. Now, if only he could inherit my love of sitting quietly. Then, we’d be on to something.

kids, mommyhood

Attack Bubble

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When I was a small girl, I played lots of quiet lady-like games. I often played alone and would make up games like I was a teacher or that I was a bookkeeper just like my Mom (all this required was access to a calculator). My imagination was as boundless as the variations of games I used to concoct to entertain myself. In most of these self-created games, they tended to run on the calm side. For instance, if I was an imaginary teacher I wouldn’t break into spontaneous karate moves or try to high-kick a student’s head.

Playing outside is a fundamental aspect of raising two active boys. I try to come up with new ways to engage their attention and attempt to expend some of their endless reserves of energy. Most activities I did as a child just don’t cut it.

Since the Easter Bunny was so kind and generous and left the boys with several types of bubble-blowing options, I thought I’d give them a try. I used to adore bubbles. I would play with them for hours as I would lazily chase one bubble to the next. I figured my guys would be bored out of their minds.

Within seconds it became the most ferocious game of attack bubble I had ever witnessed. Maybe this is their gift. T.Puzzle and Full Speed can take any quiet, calming activity and turn it into something physically aggressive in seconds. It’s important to play to our strengths.

kids, parenting

Unbreakable (Kind of)

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Full Speed comes down the stairs and informs everyone that he will not be wearing his glasses to give his eyes a ‘break’. Mad Dog asks the obvious question (neither of my boys can go without glasses), “Full Speed, did you break your glasses?”

“Well, maybe a little,” he replies.

Mad Dog goes upstairs to investigate and finds the glasses in the corner of Full Speed’s bed. He places them on Full Speed’s face. The sides of his frames are jutting up at about a 45 degree angle. Saying they are a ‘little broke’ is a gross misrepresentation of the facts.

Fortunately, Mad Dog was able to gently reconfigure the frames into a workable order. If only mischievous behavior could be that easily corrected. I’d be all set.