The Terrible 2's, 3's, 4's and 5's

I kind of expected that the terrible 2's would last into year 3 and 4.  I have girls.  It takes a while for them to outgrow that terrible stage.  My 10 year old and 7 year old (while they do still have terrible moments) basically were finished with the terrible 2's by the time they turned 5.  Well... we are well into our 5's with the last one and there is no end in sight!

There is terrible on a daily basis.  Don't get me wrong... I love my 3rd daughter.  I just really, really HATE having to still deal with mall tantrums, baby talk, hitting, spitting, fighting and general "terrible 2's" type of behavior.  We've been through kindergarten once... and yes, every day I thank God that we made the right choice of repeating.  She'll be 6 in a few months and I don't think I can bare the thought of her todder behavior following us into the 6's. 

It's hard to say but I am embarassed and humiliated by her so often that I dread taking her out in public.  I know, my husband will be totally pissed off that I even had these thoughts much less put them down in print.  But honey... we can't possibly be the only parents on the earth with a 5 year old daughter who acts like she's 2.

No... she won't eventually outgrow it.  My best hope is that she at least tries to tame it.  One day she'll make a great lawyer... she lies and tells stories with the best of them.  Maybe she'll be a politician... she seems to like living in a fantasy world.  I kind of think she'd make an amazing actress.  She likes to be the center of attention... and she likes sparkly things!

My little girl... so much trouble... I'm hanging by a thread for that one day I can finally say, it was all worth it.

Adopted Russian Boy Returned - My Commentary

The latest story in the news that has my blood boiling is about a Tennessee woman who adopted a child from an orphanage in Russia.  She recently just put this 7 year old boy on an international airline flight ALONE back to Russia with a note saying she no longer wished to parent the boy.

OMG!!!!!!

The woman and her mother both said that they feared for their lives and the boy threatened to burn their house down.  Can I just say that anytime I say no to my 5 year old daughter she tells me she hates me and is going to kill me?  Now, I will admit that I don't know this child... or the adoptive mother.  I will also admit that this boy could very well have had emotional issues.  But...

The adoptive mother never took the boy for counseling.  She never had him seen by a doctor.  She didn't have him in school because of the language problem.  And may I say that any child coming out of an orphanage is bound to have issues.

I have never adopted a child (I have three of my own) but I personally know several couples who did adopt from Russia (both as babies and as older boys).  Yes, there were issues and yes, it wasn't always an easy transition, but the way I see it - adopting is no different than birthing your own child.  You just never know what you're going to get.  Plenty of healthy, newborn babies grow up to be disturbed adults.  Hello... that's why there are doctors and counselors. 

A real parent doesn't give up on their child.
A real parent doesn't send their child away.
A real parent knows what unconditional love is.

I don't know this Tennessee woman but I do know she isn't a real parent.

Rainy Day Blues

So I've got three kids home sick today... my 10 year old, my 7 year old and my 45 year old.  The two youngest are watching TV, eating cinnamon toast and drinking tea with lots of  lemon and honey.  The older one is still sleeping.  Something tells me he'll be sleeping most of the day.

It's pouring out and I still need to go out and pick up my 5 year old.  Yuk!  All I really want to do is build a fire, cover myself with a snuggie and read a good book.  Mom never gets a break.

Chicken soup is on the stove simmering and the 7 year old has only asked me about 25 times when the soup is going to be ready.  Give me a break... homemade chicken soup takes time... lots of time... mixed with lots of love.  It'll be ready when it's ready.  Besides, I need to make matzah balls too.

Not What We Had Planned

It was going to be a great weekend... just me and David in Las Vegas. Staying in a nice hotel, enjoying great restaurants, spending time lazing around the pool. It all came to a halting end. Child sick! Parents come home!

Amanda had a fever... a really high fever, so we packed up our stuff just 8 hours after we arrived and drove 4 hours back home in the middle of the night. Amanda is fine now, but she did spend the day yesterday with her fever rising and falling and it was a good thing we came home. Grandma may be the second best person to have around when you are sick, but nobody beats Mommy (and Daddy). So, much Gatorade, chicken soup and jello later, she is resting comfortably and will make a complete recovery.

My favorite saying is, "Life is what happens when you're making other plans." How true. Things usually turn out for the best somehow. We got to spend an entire day with Amanda alone (her sisters were with their grandfather). And... we were able to get a refund for the night we didn't stay at the hotel, not to mention all the money we saved not gambling and eating our way through Vegas.

So... no adult-only trip for us this summer. We still got Boston in October (if the grandparents will ever agree to watch our kids again).

Moment of Silence

Just when you think you are going to go crazy.... Grandma takes two kids swimming and the littlest kid falls into a deep, deep sleep. Ahhh... soaking up the peace and quiet.

I didn't write yesterday because anything I would have said would have seemed really negative, like I'm a bad parent or something. (Heaven forbid!) Kids are getting a little stir crazy being around each other all the time (I know the feeling). 3 weeks from today and they are back at school torturing their teachers while I get my whopping 3 hours home alone. Why, oh, why don't we have all day kindergarten?

So... playroom is coming along nicely. I put together our wonderful (and cheap) Ikea furniture. Big kudos to my husband for knowing what to do with his power tools. (Go ahead... make a crass comment.) Now, just have to put up the bulletin boards and the picture wire (will explain later) and we're done.

Two more days and we will be child-free. The kids are spending the weekend with their grandfather so that Mommy and Daddy can actually go out of town and have a mini grownup vacation. You know... swimming and eating and playing... gee, same things the kids do. But, it will be nice to be able to do it all without little people tugging on me all day. Problem is, we haven't decided where to go yet. This will most likely be decided by whichever hotel wants to give us a deal through Priceline.

By the way... I wrote another article for ehow.com... this one is about finding friends on Facebook. The more you read, the more money I make.

Mom Needs A Break

Today is one of those days where you wake up in the morning and think, "I really don't want to be a Mom today." My throat hurts, my nose is stuffy, I'm tired from being up the past two nights with a sick child, and the thought of little people running through the house screaming, "Mommeeeeeee" is just a little too much to bear.

I need a break.

I need peace and quiet. I need a pedicure and massage. I'd like to make myself something to eat without having to make three other meals along with it. It would be nice to watch what I want on our big screen TV for a change (I usually get the little one in the bedroom). iCarly and Hannah Montana just don't do it for me. It would be nice to take a shower without a 4 year old climbing in with me and using up all my shampoo.

When you hear something crash from upstairs and you yell out, "What was that?" and the response is, "Nothing," you know you are in big trouble!

When you ask your child to clean their room and you get the rolled eyes and the response, "Your the worst mother in the world", you know it's going to be one of those days.

I was in Trader Joe's yesterday and the kids were fighting and getting in the way of everybody and I kept telling them to "Move it", "Watch out", "Leave it alone".... when the Manager looks me in the eye and says, "Funny to think that a few years ago you thought it was a good idea to have children." Oh yes... one day long ago we thought it would be fun to have kids. No one ever said the fun would only come in spurts. Mostly it's just a lot of work.

So, my two oldest thankfully got out of the house this afternoon and went to my mother's to go swimming and have dinner. And although they drive me crazy and I know for a fact that when they get home there will be more fighting and yelling... I still miss them and want them home. I guess when you boil it all down, a good mother will always want the kids to come home at the end of the day. I guess I'm not so bad after all.

Day 2 - Route 66

So we did the buffet thing this morning for breakfast. Can't stay in Vegas without doing the buffet thing. I had oatmeal, David had eggs benedict... the kids... well, the kids had dessert!

Now, we thought it would be fun to drive down old Route 66 in Arizona. Neither David or I had ever been in this part of Arizona before. We drove from the California border along the old road to Kingman, AZ where we are staying for the night. The drive is definitely interesting... the scenery is beautiful and the road really does take you back in time. Other than a few cars here and there, we were pretty much out there alone. Very curvy and very isolated. The highlight was the little almost-ghost town of Oatman. The town was once thriving but it's pretty much a tourist attraction now. It still looks like it did years ago but the stores all have tacky souvenier stuff. The best part was the donkeys (burrows?) that roam wild in the town. They are all over the place and the stores sell bags of carrots that you can feed them with. The first donkey we saw was only a week old and was nursing from his mother. Awwwww.... can you say the cutest thing I've ever seen?
So by now it was around 2:00 and we were all starving. Just our luck... none of the restaurants were open in Oatman (hub of civilization that it is). Well, we just got ourselves back on the road and headed to Kingman.

A few words on Kingman (a few words because that's really all it warrants). There ain't hardly anything in Kingman... although we did get to see the Kingman High School cheerleaders (the Bulldogs) who were getting photographed at Mr. D'z Diner for a spread in Arizona Highways magazine. Great 50's Diner... I do recommend it if you are ever in these parts. I got the cheeseburger, Mandy and Lauryn had grilled cheese and Temera and David got the Day Old Spaghetti. Don't ask... I'm hoping it was just the name, not the real thing. Oh... the desserts.... heavenly. Chocolate cake with hot fudge and brownie sundae.

Bedtime... the sun and heat really wear you out. Tomorrow, off to Flagstaff.

Getting out of Dodge

Vacation Day! I'm up and dressed while the rest of my family is still sleeping. Typical! I still have a few things to do before we go and I like getting it done before "they" get up.

So today we'll be heading to Las Vegas. Since it's a Monday the roads shouldn't be too crowded. Of course, we'll stop for lunch at the Mad Greek in Baker, CA. Yummy! If you haven't been there, I highly recommend it. Unless you really have an aversion to Greek food and then don't bother. Then on to Sin City. Hey, what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas. (But I'm sure I'll be writing about it so it won't stay secret for very long.)

Oh good... I hear children stirring... time to go do the mommy chores and get this show on the road.

Bon Voyage!