parenting – Page 10 – Writes for all Mommies

Three Weeks

25/07/201824/07/2018 WFAM

This summer has me so overwhelmed with change that I feel like part of me has shut down to cope. I am operating more in logic and less in feeling.

The feelings will have to come later.

Before we knew we were moving to a new state, we signed Full Speed up for a three-week academic class held on a college campus. Even then, while I was thrilled for him to have this unique opportunity, I was not particularly happy about him being away for three weeks. Throw some travel and our family changing addresses into the mix and I am surprised I am still standing.

The most unsettling part of this process with Full Speed was how extremely collegiate it all felt. We had to make sure he had linens and towels. He also needed shower shoes and a caddy for supplies to be used in the dorm showers.

976183CA-7560-4245-9C8C-56578AAE7393 — Mad Dog and Full Speed unpacking and organizing his dorm closet.

Once we arrived at his dorm, it continued to take on a surreal quality. A feeling of yes, he is only thirteen, and yes, he will return home, but also a feeling of what our future without Full Speed may look like.

It’s not great, folks. Not great at all.

The positive is we obviously love our kid and should be grateful that we are missing him.

It would be rather telling if we broke out the bubbly and celebrated his departure with a joyful clink of glasses. There was no toasting. Only a sinking sensation that Full Speed is well on his way to carving out his own life.

I cannot tell you the willpower it took to not cry when we left him at his dorm. I held it together. I don’t know how, but I did.

My goal is to stay focused on the present moment and be mindful of what will feel supportive to him in terms of how much I communicate with him.

Unfortunately, him live-streaming his day to my phone is not an option.

Weird, I know.

Instead, I sense he is consumed by new routines, meeting new people and mastering the intensive curriculum ahead.

Texting his mom should not be a priority.

I get it.

I don’t have to like it, but I get it.

I have always known that my children have never really been mine. The most â€˜ownership’ I can claim over them has maybe been the nine months I carried them. Once they arrived in the world it has been my one of my greatest honors to walk along beside them as I do my best to let them go.

Now, more so than ever before, it is time for Full Speed to walk ahead alone.

I love you, Full Speed. I am so proud to be your mom.

May this opportunity open your eyes to the infinite possibilities of life.

And remember, I am only a phone call away.

Three weeks.

You’ve got this.

Me, tooðŸ’•

For the record, I can neither confirm or deny if T.Puzzle is missing Full Speed.

Ok, I lied.

I can confirm he totally does though he would never say it out loud.

And, I thank my lucky stars to have this one-on-one time with him.

He is a funny dude and makes me laugh … a lot.

children, humor, kids, motherhood

Well Done!

18/07/2018 WFAM

By the time the boys and I met our friends at a local restaurant, it was well past lunchtime. My friend and I took advantage of the post-lunch lull and asked to be seated in separate booths from our small gang of boys (she has three all around my boys’ ages).

We were hoping to have some quiet conversation and allow our guys the independence to order by themselves. We had no illusions about the process. We were fine with burgers and fries for all.

Later, when we were home. The boys cracked up over how long it took all of them to order. But, they did it.

T.Puzzle was particularly amused when two of his friends ordered their burgers ‘well-done’. Through the years we always have coached him to choose ‘medium’.

“Why do you think this is so funny, T.Puzzle? Some people happen to prefer their meat to be cooked all the way through,” I said.

“Oh! I thought they were telling the waiter to let the cook know they wanted their burger to be good or else.”

It’s a learning curve for sure.

One of my all-time favorite pictures of T.Puzzle. He was told to pick up toys in the living room and proceeded to put himself in the toy bin. Well done!

children, humor, motherhood

Survival Mode

11/07/201809/07/2018 WFAM

We have been incredibly busy as we manage all the ins and outs of moving. It seems for every action-item crossed off the to-do list, twenty more eagerly pop up to fill its place. While I have been outwardly focused on all these necessary tasks, a part of me is aware that taking time to smell the roses with my boys is essential.

Full Speed stopping to smell the roses when he was two adorable years old.

In the midst of this craziness I am making an effort every day to be present for them and to keep up with many of our traditions. We have made it to the pool, the movies and for ice cream. These are the pillars of our summer.

One day, as I contemplated the complicated logistics of our schedule, I had the strangest thought. A Target run was first-up and I actually wanted my boys to go with me.

Well, that was a first.

I scanned my body for illness. Then I did a quick mental-health status check.

I seemed to be functioning ‘normally’.

Was this what end-of-days feels like?

I don’t know.

I do know that my boys are so much fun! They have the ability to entertain me while on errands and sometimes, they are actually helpful!

Truthfully, T.Puzzle is still a bit of a loose cannon when we are out and about, but I can take it. I survived the terrible twos, threes and fours…

Twice.

family, humor, kids, motherhood

A Writer’s Life

27/06/201827/06/2018 WFAM

When I started this blog nearly nine years ago, I had some lofty writing aspirations.

These have yet to be attained.

Over time, I have come to accept that though my audience is small, it is mighty. I also appreciate WFAM as a precious container of my little family’s memories. This blog has given me so much more than I have given to it.

With summer break in full swing and the boys needing ways to stay entertained, they have been voraciously reading WFAM from its inception forward. I keep getting these WordPress alerts on my phone that my ‘stats are booming!’, when in fact, it’s just my two boys reading dozens of posts in a day.

Still, it makes me feel cool.

So, my advice to any writer out there, it’s super helpful to give birth to at least two members of your readership. They are invested in what you write more than most and your stats will thank you for it.

Since summertime consists of an abundance of free time, we are constantly negotiating how much screen time is allowed each day. Just now I had told both boys that at 5:00 they could resume video games. At 5:23 T.Puzzle comes up to my writing desk (really, where else would I be?) and says, “It’s 5:23! I’ve been reading so many WFAMs I lost track of time!”

“Wow!” I said. “That’s quite a compliment.” Then, I thought about it for a beat and said, “Is it the writing or the content that you find so compelling?” (who wouldn’t want to read about themselves all day long, right?).

T.Puzzle, ever so hard to impress said, “It’s actually pretty funny.”

I’ll try not to let it go to my head.

family, humor, motherhood

A Father’s Wisdom

20/06/201820/06/2018 WFAM

On the morning of Father’s Day, I magnanimously promised Mad Dog that I would only have 1.5 meltdowns in honor of the holiday. You might say I’ve been slightly emotional this week as the stress of moving continues to stretch my inner resources.

In typical Mad Dog style he lets the seasons of my many moods all roll right off him. He told me that he only remembers what is perfect about me and easily forgets the rest. This, he told the boys, is the key to a happy life:

Forget about what isn’t perfect and remember the rest.

“Is that why sometime you forget about Full Speed?” T.Puzzle said.

Hopefully, Mad Dog has some wisdom on improving interpersonal sibling communication.