One of the reasons I was once worried about having kids, was that I wasn't sure I could entertain them all day long. I mean, it seemed cruel to have a "curriculm", but I didn't think I could stand playing games all day and I certianly didn't want my children zoning out in front of the tv all the time. Now I have kids and I remembered today why I no longer worry about entertaining them.
For starters, meals can take upwards of two hours. That includes preparing, eating, cleaning the kids, cleaning where they ate, cleaning where you told them not to go because they are dirty, and cleaning the kitchen. Easy meals such as cold cereal can be shorter, but any meal can be prolonged when the kids decide to sit there and stare at their food. Now this last part only seems to happen if I am in a hurry, so I do't usually plan for staring time, but I am no longer surprised by it either. Ironically enough, the actually eating part, which was your goal in the first palce, happens in about 5-10 minutes.
Next activity of the day is getting dressed. This is actually one of our easier activities since, lucky for me, my kids aren't that picky about what they wear. But others having given me testimony that this activity can take about an hour depending on temperments, what is clean, the position of the moon, and if ANYONE has to go to the bathroom. For whatever reason, getting dressed inspires people to pee/poop/whatever. This includes adults, and yes, if we go potty, STILL give the whole "getting dressed" activity an hour. If I could go to the bathroom alone, it would be faster. But from "the throne", I have to shoo kids out of the drawers, answer questions, give hugs after one, or both kids, run into the wall, and still focus on the job at hand. I think this is why God has made women such good multi-taskers.
So now we have been up three hours and all we have done is eat and get dressed. An hour or so of playtime and guess what, it is lunch time! And the whole cook/clean process starts all over again. Oh, and since you don't really have kids but some kind of muntant locust, you can't really do ceral again but must make something hearty and nutritouis. And two hours later, if you are lucky, you don't have to change their clothes.
For the afternoon, we do playtime/slash tv time. I have blogged before that the tv is how I get Asa to nap, so I use it. Whether you have the tv on or not though is totally optional since you only need an hour of playtime before you start asking them to pick up their toys. Give this activity 1-2 hours depending on your kids. Asa REFUSES to pick up toys. I have taken away priveleges, sent him to bed early "like a baby", paddled him twice, taken away the toys in question and NOTHING has worked. (If any one has any other ideas, PLEASE, PLEASE tell me.)
By the time you finish picking up toys and doing a few hours for dinner, ta-dum, the day is over, it is bedtime and no further acitivties are needed. Throw in an occasional trip to the library, park, mall, and the kids feel like they have had a very busy week.
I know I am tired so we must have.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Friday, August 14, 2009
Call Me Crazy
I am publicly answering "Deep End's" blog. You know who you are, but I don't really have your permission to use your name. and Please, no jokes about "Deep Throat".
Deep End wrote about how women let men treat them. I am not saying you are wrong-from conversations with fellow women, I know it happens that women tend to be the ones who suffer with the bullshit while men seem to go on their merry way. And further, you are absolutely right that you have to love yourself before you can have a healthy relationship with someone else. AND, we shouldn't be relying on men to be our saviors.
But let me throw this curve ball in. Some women do the same thing to men-the mind games, the emasculation, the rudeness. Although granted statistically, it is the other way around and women suffer.
What it comes down to, is that, regardless if you are male or female, dating the opposite sex or same sex, we should be teaching our children how to have healthy relationships. We should be teaching our children to strive for self-success, AND then find someone who loves and supports who they are as a human being. That no matter who they find, or how many people they find, NO ONE will know them like they no themselves. Yikes-sounds like tongue twister.
This isn't hard. Relationships are hard, but healthy ones aren't that difficult. Ask for respect, give respect, and accept yourself.
I know this, because I am this. I never set out to get married, or stay single. I figured I would be single because book loving, politic talking, geeky girls are not in hot demand, and I wasn't marrying for marriage's sake. I refused to spend the rest of my life with some jerk just to have a ring on my finger. This isn't some feminist rhetoric. I want to teach my sons the same thing. I want them to know that marriage is but one option for them, but that happiness is required. It sure makes the bumps and bruises of life go a lot smoother. Besides, if I raise my sons to seek healthy relationships, the chances that they will enter a relationship with a healthy person are much higher, ergo bringing them more happiness.
It isn't just a women's issue after all.
Deep End wrote about how women let men treat them. I am not saying you are wrong-from conversations with fellow women, I know it happens that women tend to be the ones who suffer with the bullshit while men seem to go on their merry way. And further, you are absolutely right that you have to love yourself before you can have a healthy relationship with someone else. AND, we shouldn't be relying on men to be our saviors.
But let me throw this curve ball in. Some women do the same thing to men-the mind games, the emasculation, the rudeness. Although granted statistically, it is the other way around and women suffer.
What it comes down to, is that, regardless if you are male or female, dating the opposite sex or same sex, we should be teaching our children how to have healthy relationships. We should be teaching our children to strive for self-success, AND then find someone who loves and supports who they are as a human being. That no matter who they find, or how many people they find, NO ONE will know them like they no themselves. Yikes-sounds like tongue twister.
This isn't hard. Relationships are hard, but healthy ones aren't that difficult. Ask for respect, give respect, and accept yourself.
I know this, because I am this. I never set out to get married, or stay single. I figured I would be single because book loving, politic talking, geeky girls are not in hot demand, and I wasn't marrying for marriage's sake. I refused to spend the rest of my life with some jerk just to have a ring on my finger. This isn't some feminist rhetoric. I want to teach my sons the same thing. I want them to know that marriage is but one option for them, but that happiness is required. It sure makes the bumps and bruises of life go a lot smoother. Besides, if I raise my sons to seek healthy relationships, the chances that they will enter a relationship with a healthy person are much higher, ergo bringing them more happiness.
It isn't just a women's issue after all.
Tuesday, August 04, 2009
How Goes My Goals
So, like most parents, I am big on dreams and short on time. I wanted to be blogging WAY more than I have been, but such is life. By the time the kids are in bed, I just don't have the wherewithall to form a complete sentence. I actually feel like that tonight, but I am also feeling dangerous and rebellious so here I go!!!
I had talked about a few goals for myself at the begninning of the summer and I thought I would update the "public" on how it is going.
I wrote once that I wasn't as successful with coupons as I wanted to be. I am to loyal to certain brands, to lazy to cut coupons out, and to pressed for time to remember to use them. However, my re-adjusted goal of using what I actually buy has been great. Not only because I am getting more bang for my buck but I am wasting less to the land-fill AND using the space in my freezer more wisely. Seriously, I found pork chops from 2007. If they hadn't had a label on them, I am not sure I could have identified them correctly. The pork chops were using space ice cream could!!!
The garden has been a success but more in what I learned from it, versus the amount of produce I have actually gotten from it. First off, I realized I didn't really plant enough of anything to avoid buying it in the store. There is a reason farms have a lot of acreage and my little urban plots didn't come close. Second, not everything came up as planned. Since I hadn't the hart to thin my radishes, I basically got pretty flowers, and I don't even know what happened to the spinach. And for those of you not on Facebook, the wild rabbit visiting us has taken his/her? share of beans.
However, I learned a lot about how food gets to the table,the amount of effort farmers are expending, and I will do things differenlty next year. I learned that radishes can flower, and they are pretty!! My son also learned that we can eat some plants because my peas were awesome-he ate so many I barely got any! My tomatos are looking good and I have eaten two of those. I think it is good for kids to learn that food doesn't have to come in a container, and I think Asa got that this summer. And, as a bonus, we actually got to eat ome good stuff too!
By next summer, I am hoping to actually have a part of my backyard devoted to a garden and NOT just a few pots here and there. Although the stuff in pots excaped the wild rabbit. Hmmm, something to ponder. And yes, I have gotten advice on how to get rid of the rabbit, but I kind of like it. One, it has led to some good discussions about wild animals versus pets, because a neighbor had a rabbit. And two, it shows Asa that animals eat these things also; the Circle of Life if you will.
I guess technically, I didn't achieve my goals. But I learned a lot, and knowing is half the battle. Yo Joe!! Seriously, I feel successful and that is what counts the most.
I had talked about a few goals for myself at the begninning of the summer and I thought I would update the "public" on how it is going.
I wrote once that I wasn't as successful with coupons as I wanted to be. I am to loyal to certain brands, to lazy to cut coupons out, and to pressed for time to remember to use them. However, my re-adjusted goal of using what I actually buy has been great. Not only because I am getting more bang for my buck but I am wasting less to the land-fill AND using the space in my freezer more wisely. Seriously, I found pork chops from 2007. If they hadn't had a label on them, I am not sure I could have identified them correctly. The pork chops were using space ice cream could!!!
The garden has been a success but more in what I learned from it, versus the amount of produce I have actually gotten from it. First off, I realized I didn't really plant enough of anything to avoid buying it in the store. There is a reason farms have a lot of acreage and my little urban plots didn't come close. Second, not everything came up as planned. Since I hadn't the hart to thin my radishes, I basically got pretty flowers, and I don't even know what happened to the spinach. And for those of you not on Facebook, the wild rabbit visiting us has taken his/her? share of beans.
However, I learned a lot about how food gets to the table,the amount of effort farmers are expending, and I will do things differenlty next year. I learned that radishes can flower, and they are pretty!! My son also learned that we can eat some plants because my peas were awesome-he ate so many I barely got any! My tomatos are looking good and I have eaten two of those. I think it is good for kids to learn that food doesn't have to come in a container, and I think Asa got that this summer. And, as a bonus, we actually got to eat ome good stuff too!
By next summer, I am hoping to actually have a part of my backyard devoted to a garden and NOT just a few pots here and there. Although the stuff in pots excaped the wild rabbit. Hmmm, something to ponder. And yes, I have gotten advice on how to get rid of the rabbit, but I kind of like it. One, it has led to some good discussions about wild animals versus pets, because a neighbor had a rabbit. And two, it shows Asa that animals eat these things also; the Circle of Life if you will.
I guess technically, I didn't achieve my goals. But I learned a lot, and knowing is half the battle. Yo Joe!! Seriously, I feel successful and that is what counts the most.
Clarification
So I got some private comments about my last blog.
Although I may not be making racist comments based on the definition of racism, I still think my post was a little racist in that I am making a definite distinction between black and white.
Point blank, I think in the past, since Baby Boomers tend to have better access to health care, they tend not to want to change it. That is Baby Boomers, male or female. And yes, they are the largest voting bloc. That is why I think efforts failed in the past. However, now, a new president, who split the Baby Boomer voting bloc doesn't need white, Baby Boomer votes and therefore doesn't have to back down. AND, he has the votes of other voting blocs to make up for the votes to make up for the ones he is losing.
That is based on the polls right now, in my opinion. Obviosuly polls change, but some headlines I have seen are starting to support this hypothesis of mine.
Although I may not be making racist comments based on the definition of racism, I still think my post was a little racist in that I am making a definite distinction between black and white.
Point blank, I think in the past, since Baby Boomers tend to have better access to health care, they tend not to want to change it. That is Baby Boomers, male or female. And yes, they are the largest voting bloc. That is why I think efforts failed in the past. However, now, a new president, who split the Baby Boomer voting bloc doesn't need white, Baby Boomer votes and therefore doesn't have to back down. AND, he has the votes of other voting blocs to make up for the votes to make up for the ones he is losing.
That is based on the polls right now, in my opinion. Obviosuly polls change, but some headlines I have seen are starting to support this hypothesis of mine.
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