BALANCE

There are some days when I feel like all my children do is fight with each other and with me, disobey, throw tantrums, etc. I feel like I don't even see them because they spend so much time in Time Out. I am tempted to think, "This is not what I signed up for when we decided to have kids. Kids are supposed to be fun and enjoyable, and siblings are supposed to play nicely together and, therefore, make my job easier."

Motherhood is tougher than I thought it would be. But, the rewards are amazing. I think about those little kisses on my cheek, my oldest lisping that she loves me, my little one running into a room just to give me a hug and then racing back to her play. I look at all the potential packed into those little bundles of energy - all the compassion and humor and imagination and intelligence.

I may not get out much, and I may have an elevated stress level most of the time, but I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world!!!

QUIZNO'S SAVES THE DAY

It was raining all morning. Well, raining is probably too strong a word. It was actually misting all morning, and was gray and dull outside. So, my cabin-feverish girls were in quite a mood. It seemed from the moment they woke up, they were pushing, kicking, and hitting one another. I tried feeding them, I tried putting on their favorite Noggin shows, I tried getting them involved in separate activities at opposite ends of the house; they kept ending up together, pushing, kicking, hitting ...

So, the exasperated Mommy spent 45 minutes squeezing wriggling, screaming children into some weather-appropriate clothing and headed off to Quizno's. There was screaming for the entire 10-minute drive to the restaurant, but Quizno's saved the day!!! Cheesy Toasted Cheese meals brightened the mood and made the girls happy to be alive, out, and about (at least for a while). Upon returning home, Cakes took a nap, Bean went outside to blow bubbles, and then both girls took a nice, relaxing bath before Big Daddy came home to give me a break.

HOORAY FOR QUIZNO'S!

THE WEANING CONTINUES

And, we have another puke day. Things were going well, and then there was some frustration with putting a toy "Daddy" into his minivan. That inevitably led to requests for "boobie," which were denied, thus resulting in 30 minutes of screaming, one vomit, and no nap so far today (it is now 3:19 p.m.).

In happier news, we all went to the bank and Blockbuster today, and Bean was wearing her big girl panties. This is the first time we've ventured out without some form of bladder/bowel protection on her, and she didn't have any accidents!!!! Very exciting!

ADVENTURES IN WEANING MY 18-MONTH-OLD

So, today is Day 2 in the weaning of Cakes. Yesterday did not go so well. There was an hour and 30 minutes of tantrums, interspersed with five projectile vomits. The rest of the day was relatively calm; and, I must admit, I nursed her when she woke up at night. I was planning to go cold turkey with her, but I was just so paranoid about more vomiting at 2:00 a.m. So, we're going "boobie-free" during the day. Once we get that down, we will tackle those night-time feedings.

So far this morning, Cakes has only requested to nurse once, and she was easily distracted by a sippy cup full of "appa-jee" (aka, apple juice). I heave a tentative sigh of relief, and hope that the rest of the day goes this well.