children, happiness, kids, mommyhood, motherhood, parenting

Coast to Coast

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This soccer season has not reached the level of success that Mad Dog’s and Full Speed’s first season did.  I’m being kind here.

I know, I know, it’s not suppose to be about the winning.  It’s suppose to be about the learning and the teamwork, right? 

Who are we kidding?  It’s about the winning.

Sometimes it physically pains me to watch my boys go down in the flames of defeat.  It pains me even more when Mad Dog is in a less than cheerful mood for several hours following another heart wrenching loss.

There are some positives.  I will never tire of watching Full Speed never tire of running the field during games.  His new nickname is ‘Coast to Coast’ because the kid never backs down and will be wherever the ball is at any given moment.  It is a sight to behold. 

Full Speed gets set to head Coast to Coast.

Watching T.Puzzle evolve from the first game has been humorous and heartwarming.  The first several games he sort of ran near the ball but he didn’t like to actually come into contact with it.   Now, he’s mastered some legitimate blocks as goalie and on more than one occasion got a foot on the ball while in play.  These were proud moments for me.

Mad Dog helps T.Puzzle toss in bounds.

Looks like I’m officially a soccer Mom.

Maybe I’m evolving too.

children, happiness, kids, life in pictures, mommyhood, motherhood, parenting

Around the World

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T.Puzzle’s school hosted their annual ‘International Night’.  Each classroom had a national theme and had food to represent this theme. 

All week the boys were excited for this event.  T.Puzzle kept asking Mad Dog if he was going to come and have ‘Chinese food with us?’ about twice a day.  Full Speed was looking forward to hanging out at his old stomping grounds and playing on the slides and outdoor equipment.  Of course, he was all about the food, too.

The boys decorate our entry for Mad Dog to welcome him home in anticipation of our attendance of International Night.
I looked forward to the event because the boys were beside themselves with anticipation.  I also had some reservations.  It’s crowded, hot, chaotic and extremely noisy.  This is hard for me when my preference is solitude, moderate temperatures with a cool breeze thrown in, complete organization and extreme quiet.  The cards were stacked against me.

By the time it was done, my nervous system was on overdrive teetering on the brink of a total meltdown.  Even Mad Dog had reached his limit.

The boys however seemed to gain energy from the more people, food and ‘countries’ we visited.  They even insisted on playing outside the school for as long as we would allow.

The ride home was no different.  Mad Dog and I sat in near catatonic silence while T.Puzzle and Full Speed amped up their antics in the back.

I guess that’s part of parenting.  You do things that are out of your comfort zone and nine times out of ten you end up having a good time.  Watching your kids have a blast makes anything feel like a success.   Even if you need a nap afterwards.

children, gratitude, happiness, humor, kids, mommyhood, motherhood, parenting

Role Models

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Lately I’ve noticed that T.Puzzle has taken a genuine interest in learning to read.  He is also attempting to write letters and numbers.  He is highly motivated because he wants to do everything his big brother is doing. 

As long as he seems happy to learn these skills, I’m happy to help teach them to him.  In this instance having Full Speed as a role model for reading and writing success is a positive influence on T.Puzzle.

On the opposite end of siblings-as-role-models spectrum brings to mind a story my Mom told me many years ago.  My older sister simply refused to learn how to tie her shoes (for the record, she has since learned and is quite successful at it).  When my Mom asked her how she planned on getting them tied she replied she would wait until I was a little older and I could tie them for her.

Lucky me.

As you can see, there are pluses and minuses to having an older sibling.

children, kids, mommyhood, motherhood, parenting

Go Time

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Full Speed and T.Puzzle graciously congratulate the other team for their win. Good sportsmanship in action.

How do you know how far to push your kids?  If they were given complete control of their lives, especially in the case of my two boys, their days would consist of cookie consumption, marathon viewings of Transformers cartoons and endless hours glued to a computer or handheld electronic device.  So when one of them tells me that they don’t want to go to soccer practice, I don’t take it too seriously.

Looking back to my own childhood and the sports and hobbies I pursued, most of them didn’t ring true for me.  Softball was okay, volleyball was alright and guitar lessons were beyond my scope of muscial ability. 

I have no regrets that I didn’t pursue any of these things for longer than I did.   I did them more because that was what was expected of me and I’m no worse for the wear.  I learned about commitment, loyalty, teamwork and always finishing something you start.  These are good things.

I will continue to hold my boys to a higher standard than they hold for themselves for the forseeable future (with a marathon viewing of Transformers occasionally tossed in for good measure) and hope for the best.  

It’s not necessarily what they pursue with Mom and Dad’s encouragement, it’s about the lessons they learn while they pursue it.

Grab your cleats, boys.  It’s go time!

children, humor, kids, mommyhood, motherhood, parenting, tantrums

When to Fold Up

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We had the best intentions.  It was a family dinner to kick off our weekend.  As we sat at the restaurant, things went south quickly.

T.Puzzle was extra whiny and was having difficulty behaving (to put it mildly).  Soon he dropped his entire cheese covered burger on the floor and choked down his broccoli as if the broccoli itself was trying to kill him.

Mad Dog and I quickly lost patience.

We wrapped things up in haste and headed home.

“When do the terrible fours end?” asked Mad Dog.

“You said it yourself, age five was the true turning point for Full Speed.  We still have a year to go with T.Puzzle,” I replied.

And that folks, is why we only have two children. 

Granted, a third one may have actually been laid-back.

I’m just not the gambling kind.

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