It's gonna change, by golly, I even threatened a "family meeting" to sort it all out.
I'm so sick of walking out the door frustrated with my children - and then dropping them off at school feeling guilty for not making the "best of each and every moment".
Why would I be frustrated, you wonder?
A few examples:
- pokey puppy Brayden - who takes 5 minutes to get down the hallway to just get started putting on his shoes
- inevitably, the call down the hallway, "Mom, do you know where my shoes are?"
- the shoes mysteriously being located at Brayden's "dumping ground" - between the couch and and the bonus room tv
- the arguing between the children - Brayden pestering, Mikayla over-reacting
- neither child able to determine what the clock says - and just what that means as to when we need to walk out the door
- apparently I'm the ONLY ONE who recognizes the sound of Sydney needing to come out or in
- while the children are old enough and capable to get the cereal bowl out, pour the cereal in the bowl, and even (over)fill it with milk - they can't quite figure out how to get the bowl to the sink when they are done
- the arguing between the children.....
- brushing teeth, "Oh, was I supposed to do that before we leave?"
- homework not done, and somehow that's Mom's fault - and if it's not, the tears of irresponsibility only serve to slow us down
- the arguing between the children......
Get the picture?
Here's the crazy thing - during the month of December, when we had the Countdown Calendar, the kids were perfect at all of this stuff - ready a full half hour early - BECAUSE.....they couldn't access the Countdown Calendar's activity for the day until they were all done with their morning chores..... But, somehow, now that we've hit 2010, they've forgotten it all.
Change is comin'......I promise!
Perhaps a countdown calender for Flordia?
ReplyDeleteYour examples crack me up because I can picture my children exactly in the same rolls - gender specific! I'm dreading next year and trying to get my pokey little boy out the door! Good luck Steph!
ReplyDeleteI totally feel your pain....especially with the twice daily whining over brushing teeth (do I really have to remind them?? and do they really have to complain EVERY time??) and the fighting. I finally broke down and started asking for prayer for their fighting and my reactions to it, every time I am invited to share a request - I was at the end of my emotional rope. What I find is that the Lord is working just as hard to change my heart as he is to change theirs....to focus on what they're doing RIGHT...to give them more time outs upon the advice of several people, so that I can get a few moments of peace and quiet to regroup....to keep my sense of humor because when Mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy.
ReplyDeleteMy pokey puppy is Isabel, I will remind her of everything 3 times and still, as I'm stepping out the door, I will look at a girl with uncombed hair, unbrushed teeth, and bare feet and want to scream. Some days I do.
One thing that helped us lately was I actually typed up an a.m. and p.m. schedule so we all know what's expected when. Getting them to bed earlier also seems to help with getting them up the next morning, so it doesn't take 15 minutes just to coax them up. And I try to make them all do homework at the same time, either the minute we get home or immediately after dinner, before they get to do any fun stuff. My mom says it's cabin fever - let's hope when the weather gets nicer we can kick them outside and the Vit. D will do us all good! Hang in there!
I love "JustMe's" suggestions!
ReplyDeleteSorry, Steph, that you go through this, but thank-you for being so transparent to share it with us.
Here is a "confession" NOT a solution:
One morning the girls were being pokey puppies, not focusing, fighting, cranky, telling me they didn't like what I fixed for breakfast, etc
So I went into my bedroom, got a magazine, turned on the TV, and the bus flew by!
Then they had to wait for me to get ready to take them to school which resulted in them being late. They do not like being late.
It hasn't been dream mornings since, but it hasn't been a recurring morning like that one either.
Miss you!
Oh ladies - good advice! And, Hollie - we are all cracking up at your "confession". Given we have an Orlando trip coming up that we'd like them to have their own spending money on, I'm thinking of a quarter a day incentive - worthy of being earned for having it altogether - and just as easily revoked. We'll put up a schedule/list- and we'll see how it goes..... =)
ReplyDeleteGood incentive idea with the trip coming up! Charts like that work in cycles for us - even if it's just a reward for something he wants that he has to earn.
ReplyDeleteWhen my oldest can't manage to get up and out of the bed for his shower on time, or I have to repeatedly "wake" him - I tell him he has one more chance to show me he can do it right or I will start waking him up a half an hour/ hour earlier to allow for that. I notice a quick improve...
And I absolutely love what HollieHobbie had to say....great natural consequence. =D