Tuesday, August 19, 2008

False Starts

This is my 3rd attempt to begin a new post. I started writing about how I've been working with Cub Scouts, but then I realized there wasn't much to tell, at least not that I'd want to blog about. Then I was going to write about Kent's upcoming graduation in December until I realized that the only thing I had to say was that we don't know what that will mean for our family - and now I've said that in one sentence. Truthfully, the most entertaining part of my life is my children. Lately, Maija has been making me laugh and surprising me with her comments: "Mommy, I didn't hear you say please!" or "Mommy, you are making me so mad!" Yeah, she thinks she's in charge. For the hundredth time this week I reminded her, "I am the mommy." Then she said, "Well, I am Maija." Aha! The "Maija" trumps all.

Mainly, the last week has been a juggling act - getting Maija to preschool and dance class, taking Rebekah to tumbling class, going to Cub Scouts training meetings, planning meetings, den meetings, visiting with relatives on the Farny side, and trying to keep up with my house in the meantime. I'm pretty confident that most of the women I know, especially those with children, are in the same boat. Even though it sometimes feels overwhelming, the truth is that being busy makes me happy. I love seeing my girls learn new things and have a chance to be active, even though it is WAY too hot to play outside. I love learning something new myself with Cub Scouts and other activities. I love the feeling of seeing my house clean for the 2 minutes it will actually stay that way. Overall, things are good.

Monday, August 11, 2008

Life in Music - My Life as Alicia Part 3

You can see pics of Maija's first day of preschool by clicking on this picture -

This is yet another Maija story, but I just had to blog about it. There's a Bekah story, too. I know. You're all waiting with baited breath for the next installment of "Life With Kim's Kids" or what I am affectionately referring to as the "Life As Alicia" series.

Dinnertime presents all sorts of fun challenges, as I know it does for most households with children. With Maija it's getting her to stay in her seat long enough to actually eat something! Usually when she proclaims that she's done, that means she has eaten 1 or 2 bites of food, and she is pretty sure that's enough to get her through until the morning because we all know how important it is to get back to playing.

Tonight she said she was done eating after the usual 2 bites, and Kent told her that she had to wait until we were all done eating. He tried to get her to eat more to no avail, so he told her that even if she didn't want to eat, the rest of us did. She continued to insist that she was done and should be allowed to leave the table. Finally, Kent told her to sing a song while she waited for us. This was, of course, a desperate attempt to divert her attention from the issue at hand. So what does she do? She starts singing, "When can I get down? When can I get down? When can I get down?..." over and over and over!

The Bekah story may not be as funny in writing as it was to see, but I'll give it a shot. She has started standing on the back of our love seat to see over the half-wall into the kitchen. Most of the time she'll practically climb right over the divider wall trying to reach some tempting item on the kitchen counter. No matter how many times we tell her that she is not allowed to climb up there, she will inevitably try again. Once again, this afternoon she climbed up on the back of the couch and was standing on her tippy-toes to see over the wall. Kent told her, "Rebekah! Get down!" She immediately burst into tears, collapsed onto the couch sobbing, then rolled (purposely) onto the ground where she continued to cry as she sat there face down for the next several minutes. At 18 months, Rebekah is already a drama queen, and she knows how to throw a tantrum!

Other than my tales from the front lines of motherhood, there's not much to report. We're just trying to live each day the best we can.

Sunday, August 3, 2008

Who's The Boss?

Continuing on the vein of Maija's need to pretty much run our lives, yesterday she was on one! Rebekah had taken a CD which I needed for work. I told her that she needed to give it back, which she really didn't want to do. Finally, I said, "Rebekah, no, no, no. Mommy needs that CD." I tried to take it out of her hands which led to a short tug-of-war. When I got the CD out of her hands, she immediately collapsed on the floor in a pool of tears. It was just about her nap time; I decided it was time to put her down.

As I picked her up, I heard Maija behind me, "Remember, Mommy, no fighting! OK? No fighting, Mommy." I started chuckling a little to myself and replied, "Maija, I wasn't fighting with Rebekah." "Yes, Mommy, I saw you. You were fighting. Now, no fighting, OK? Remember!" This made me laugh more, but I was trying really hard not to let Maija see. Of course, Rebekah who I was still holding did see me laughing and thought she'd join in, so she started laughing and laughing. Then I hear Maija say, "Now give Rebekah a hug and a kiss and say you're sorry!" All I could get out between laughs was "sorry".

Later in the day, Maija began to reprimand me for something else, and I finally told her, "Maija, I am the mommy. You don't tell me what to do." To which she quickly retorted, "But I want to!" Heaven help me!