Tag: kids

children, gratitude, humor, kids, mommyhood, motherhood, parenting, self-discovery, Taekwondo

The Sparring Truth

WFAM

Now that T.Puzzle is a camoflauge belt, he technically is allowed to spar.  This means I am technically allowed to be completely neurotic about it.

the good ol' days when T.Puzzle was still a non-sparring yellow belt.

Oh, my denial runs deep.  I keep wishing and hoping that his sparring days are far, far in the future.

In class as I grabbed a seat another Mom asked me, “Has T.Puzzle sparred, yet?”

I went into this long explanation about how he has not, how I’m not ready for it, he’s too young, too timid and maybe Mad Dog can take him to a sparring class because I don’t want to see it.

I think a simple ‘no, he has not’ would have sufficed.

Needless to say, as soon as I’m done with my crazy little speech, the instructor approaches me and asks if  T.Puzzle has his sparring gear.

Today is the day.

Yikes!!

The more I thought about it the more I realized my concerns about T.Puzzle sparring had nothing to do with him.

I am associating this with him being grown-up.

Newsflash— he is growing up.

Sometimes knowledge like this is worse than a flying high kick to the head.

After it was over, it was all relatively harmless, and T.Puzzle shouted, ‘that was the most awesomest!’, I paused and tried to be grateful for how well he handled it. 

Me? 

I still have a ways to go yet.

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

Pinch Me

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More often than not, Mad Dog and I have these surreal moments, especially as a weekend draws to a close, where we look at each other in disbelief and say, ‘the boys were really well behaved, weren’t they?”  It’s almost like we need someone to pinch us or that we need to thumbprint our kids to make sure that they are really, truly ours.

When public outings for so long have been a battle ground, it’s refreshing when they simply become enjoyable.

I didn’t see that coming at all.

And, for those who read this blog regularly, I bet you didn’t either.

Fun at the Alligator Farm.
gratitude, happiness, kids, marriage, mommyhood, motherhood, parenting, self-discovery

2, 4, 6, 8 Who Do I Appreciate?

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Do you ever wonder if your partner understands how hard you work to make everything seem easy? 

How when he may (or may not) reach for clothes for the kids, they are clean, neatly organized and always at hand?   This goes for karate uniforms, too.

Or, when he walks in the door, the kids are playing with each other in a respectful manner (someone had to teach them this and they need almost daily reminders of how to continue to do so), the house is clean (relatively speaking) and dinner is cared for (most nights).

And, what about all the learning these kids need to do that you have to help them with?  Eye appointments and doctors visits, too?

Believe me, I’m just getting started here.

Now, before you stop reading in protest Mad Dog, let me flip it around.

Do you ever feel like your partner understands how hard you work to provide for her and the kids?

How about all the long hours spent alone in an office (with no windows, mind you!) on endless phone calls trying to accomplish seemingly impossible business feats and doing so while making it all look easy?

What about trying to manage a team that is scattered across the nation that looks to you for leadership and expects nothing but excellence from you? 

Or the myriad of calamities and unexpected projects that pile up on your already overtaxed work schedule?

And what about the time spent away from your boys?  You know they are incredible and they grow by leaps and bounds every day, and you have to miss some of the really important and downright cool stuff.

You are handling all these things and doing it well even at great personal cost.  Does your partner get this?

Really?

I don’t know that I do.

Sometimes I’m so focused on feeling underappreciated in my own corner of the world that it begins to feel like a part-time job.

Are life and relationships ever going to be exactly how you want them to be?

Nope.

What can I do today to take care of myself, give myself the recognition I desire and honor and appreciate my partner in the process?

I love you, Mad Dog and appreciate you!

I guess that’s a start.

children, gratitude, health, humor, kids, mommyhood, motherhood, parenting, self care (or lack thereof)

Help Me!

WFAM

It’s not easy to ask for help, is it?

I’m trying to let go of control a little more and give my babysitter more responsibility.  I know this will get easier with time and my life might even feel more manageable.  Imagine that!

First up, I gave her a litany of instructions and let her pick up Full Speed from school.  This way I could go get my monthly allergy shots which are available at the most inconvenient times. 

She picked him up without a hitch and I survived my three shots of lord knows what and all was good.

Once I returned home, I picked her and Full Speed up and we headed to T.Puzzle’s school.  I added her to my child pick-up list and showed her the ropes.

Again, smooth sailing.  I was so proud of myself.  Look at me, everyone!  I’m letting someone help me.

It was liberating.

We get in the car and my boys were being, well…., boys.

They were chatty and loud.  They were fighting and hugging.  They were boisterous and sassy.

The babysitter looks at me.

“Well, now I know why you stopped at two,” she joked.

Smart girl.

mommyhood

Miracle

WFAM

Full Speed insisted his stomach hurt all day.  It was so critical at one point he had to go to the nurse’s office.

“Okay, then I guess you can lay down when we get home and you can go to bed super early to get better fast,” I sweetly insisted.

Suddenly, he felt better.

The miraculous recovery spilled over to the next day. 

“If you tell the teacher you need to see the nurse again, I will make sure you go to bed right after dinner when you get home.”

No nurse’s note appeared in his take home folder.

He is healed. 

So much in fact, check out this action: (disclaimer–T.Puzzle screams really loud at the end of this for no apparent reason so you may want to cut the audio before viewing)

[wpvideo HnBvLKDu]

So, all is well with Full Speed and he learned how to ride a bike without training wheels in one day this week. 

It seemed the harder I pushed him to learn, the less motivated he was.  I gave up the fight and six months later he got on his bike and rode off into the sunset sans training wheels.

A miracle here, a miracle there, everywhere a miracle.