Most of my days are spent in the house with the kids. It gets really lonely when the only people you talk to regularly are toddlers. There are only so many questions you can answer in a day. My daughter will ask the same question over and over. She either has no short-term memory, or she is just asking questions to be talking. Either way, it's really annoying. I saw on a Google commercial that the average child asks 144 questions per day. Now double that for my daughter, and then add in 2 additional children asking 144 questions per day. That's an average of 576 questions per day.
My son, Brennan (5), likes to argue with me about everything I tell him, especially if he is in trouble. I will tell him to stop doing something and his immediate response is, "I was just trying to (fill in the blank)." It doesn't matter to him that I just told him not to do that very thing 5 minutes ago. He still feels like he can somehow justify his behavior. For example, this morning he was playing with the baby gate. It is leaning against the wall near the kitchen. The kids aren't allowed to play in the kitchen. He is in the kitchen trying to roll cars behind the gate as it leaned against the wall. I knew it was going to end up in someone being hurt. I told him to get out of the kitchen and leave the gate alone 3 separate times. It wasn't long before he knocked the gate over and it scratched his foot. I told him, again, to get out of the kitchen and leave the gate alone. He starts arguing with me, "I was just trying to roll my car behind the gate."
I reply, "Yes, but I told you to stop doing that 3 times already."
Brennan argues, "Well, I was just trying to roll my car behind the gate." As if this repetitive argument should clarify that he was in the right. At this point I am done arguing and I send him to time-out for not listening. This happens multiple times a day.
My youngest, Jordan (3), is difficult on many levels right now. He wants to test me on everything. He spends a lot of time in the time-out chair these days. Some days he can be really sweet and loving. He will give me hugs and kisses and tell me he loves me multiple times a day. Other days, he will stand there in total defiance as I tell him to stop doing something. It's not until I start counting that he will stop.
During the week, I also have my niece (7), and my nephew (10). My nephew is usually perfectly behaved and I never have trouble with him. My niece is a natural smart aleck, but other than that, I don't have too many problems with her. However, the kids are constantly bickering. Most days I feel like a referee. They might play for 5 or 10 minutes in harmony, and then all of a sudden they are arguing over some toy. They always want the toy someone else is playing with. It doesn't matter that they have dozens of other toys to play with, the only toy they want is the one someone else has.
So, I spend most of my time with children. When my husband gets home in the evening, the kids are so excited to see him that we don't have time to talk. It's not until the kids have been fed, bathed, read to, teeth brushed, prayers said, and tucked into bed that we actually have a moment to talk. After dinner, he is so exhausted from work that he usually falls asleep around 10 pm. The kids go to bed at 8 or 9, so I have maybe 1 to 2 hours in a day to have an adult conversation. As you can imagine, it gets pretty lonely being a stay-at-home mom.
Recently, my husband and I have started having a date night, which is great. We will go and have a nice dinner and maybe see a movie when we can arrange for a sitter. I definitely recommend date night for all married couples, especially if you have kids. You need time to reconnect with your spouse. You need to have conversations that don't revolve around the kids.
I also try to get out with friends about once a month. We usually go to a paint and sip studio. Afterwards, we usually go and have a late dinner. It is so nice to get out with my family and friends. I absolutely love to paint. I'm not a great artist by any means, but I don't let that stop me. I have so many paintings from girls' night out, that I have a stack of them in my closet. I don't have any more room on my walls for them.
I think, as moms, we sometimes forget to take time for ourselves. I recommend to all moms out there, have a date night and a girl's night out at least one a month. You have to make time to do the things you enjoy. I really love reading books, watching movies, writing on my blog, and listening to music. However, I dedicate so much time to taking care of my children that I don't take time to do the things I enjoy most. I know as my children get older, they will require less and less of my attention. Right now, I have to be on watch at all times because it only takes seconds for a toddler to get into something dangerous. Just moments ago, I had to put my daughter in time-out for bouncing on the top bunk. About 5 minutes after that, I had to put my 3-year old in time-out for the very same thing. He copies everything his older brother and sister do. Like I said, I have to be on guard constantly.
Take time for yourselves ladies. Have date nights with your husband. Go out with your girlfriends and leave the kids with your husband. We have to take care of ourselves.
PCOS Awareness
Friday, July 3, 2015
Wednesday, July 1, 2015
Potty Training Is Awful
It's been a while since I've written. The transition to the kids being out for the summer means my house becomes total chaos. Not only do I have a 5-, 4-, and 3-year old to deal with on a daily basis, but I also have my 7-year old niece and my 10-year old nephew. That's 5 children every weekday. I'm so busy dealing with children that there is no time for me to write on my blog. Which is unfortunate, because I find my blog to be a wonderful outlet for the daily frustrations as a mommy and as a woman with PCOS.
This week, Aunt Flo is visiting. My face looks like a pizza. I've had a headache for 4 days in a row. My lower back aches. My cramps feel like a bobcat is trying to claw its way out of my uterus. Overall, I'm just cranky and exhausted. It's taking every ounce of my energy to try and be patient with my children this week. Fortunately for my niece and nephew, they are on vacation this week, so they don't have to deal with cranky Aunt Melissa. My children aren't so fortunate.
My oldest son has been a little monster this week. He has development delays, ADHD, Sensory Processing Disorder, Impulse Control Disorder, and Anxiety (and those are just the things that have been diagnosed by his psychiatrist and therapist). http://pcosmommydiary.blogspot.com/2015/02/raising-special-needs-child.html
I never know which Brennan is going to wake-up each morning. Today (fortunately for me and him), he is sweet, loving, and just wants to please me. However, he has peed in his pants twice today because he is waiting too long to go to the potty and ends up wetting his pants. He doesn't usually do this, so I'm a little frustrated with him today. However, I will take today a thousand days in a row over the last 2 days. The last 2 days with Brennan have been a real challenge. He has been defiant, argumentative, destructive, hyper, and just a real pain in the you-know-what.
Brennan has been doing really well going to the potty for a while now. He went through a phase during the last month or so of school where he was pooping in his pants on purpose. I'm not sure why he was doing it because he couldn't explain it to me himself. His therapist is trying to help him understand his emotions better so he can tell me what is bothering him. He has been mostly potty-trained since last year. He still has to wear pull-ups at night because he sleeps like a log, but other than that, he usually doesn't have many accidents.
My daughter, Summer (4), has also been potty-trained since last year. However, recently she has decided that using the potty is too much of an inconvenience to her play time. She keeps peeing all over herself on a daily basis, usually multiple times a day. When I ask her about it, she just says she wanted to play. I'm so annoyed by this behavior. Basically, she is being lazy. She will be playing in the hallway right next to the bathroom and pee in her pants. She is literally 3-feet from the toilet and won't stop playing long enough to walk those 3 steps. It's so frustrating. I stopped letting her wear underwear. She has to wear pull-ups every day now. I got tired of changing her clothes 2 or 3 times a day. I've tried rewards for going to the potty and I've also tried punishments. Neither of these methods seem to be encouraging her to use the potty.
I'm also potty training my 3-year old, Jordan. He will usually poop on the potty when we are at home, but he won't go pee on the potty all of the time. If we are out in public, he will go pee at a public toilet, but he usually won't poop on a public toilet. At home, we have a potty-training seat that goes over the standard seat. When we are out at a public restroom, he feels like he is going to fall in the toilet, so he won't take the time to poop.
None of my kids will wake up at night to go to the potty. I feel like I've done nothing but change diapers and clean dirty bottoms for 3 years. For the most part, that feeling is correct. Brennan and Summer are now old enough that I make them clean their own bottoms, but Jordan still has to have help in this department.
I know when they are finally fully-potty trained I will be relieved, but I will also be sad. This will mean that the last part of their babyhood is gone. However, I will be relieved to not have to constantly wash pee-soaked clothing and bed linens. All 3 of them usually sleep 10+ hours each night and completely soak through a night-time pull-up, their pajamas, and sometimes even their bed linens. I feel like my house probably smells like urine all of the time, so I have air fresheners in every room.
I'm so over potty training.
This week, Aunt Flo is visiting. My face looks like a pizza. I've had a headache for 4 days in a row. My lower back aches. My cramps feel like a bobcat is trying to claw its way out of my uterus. Overall, I'm just cranky and exhausted. It's taking every ounce of my energy to try and be patient with my children this week. Fortunately for my niece and nephew, they are on vacation this week, so they don't have to deal with cranky Aunt Melissa. My children aren't so fortunate.
My oldest son has been a little monster this week. He has development delays, ADHD, Sensory Processing Disorder, Impulse Control Disorder, and Anxiety (and those are just the things that have been diagnosed by his psychiatrist and therapist). http://pcosmommydiary.blogspot.com/2015/02/raising-special-needs-child.html
I never know which Brennan is going to wake-up each morning. Today (fortunately for me and him), he is sweet, loving, and just wants to please me. However, he has peed in his pants twice today because he is waiting too long to go to the potty and ends up wetting his pants. He doesn't usually do this, so I'm a little frustrated with him today. However, I will take today a thousand days in a row over the last 2 days. The last 2 days with Brennan have been a real challenge. He has been defiant, argumentative, destructive, hyper, and just a real pain in the you-know-what.
Brennan has been doing really well going to the potty for a while now. He went through a phase during the last month or so of school where he was pooping in his pants on purpose. I'm not sure why he was doing it because he couldn't explain it to me himself. His therapist is trying to help him understand his emotions better so he can tell me what is bothering him. He has been mostly potty-trained since last year. He still has to wear pull-ups at night because he sleeps like a log, but other than that, he usually doesn't have many accidents.
My daughter, Summer (4), has also been potty-trained since last year. However, recently she has decided that using the potty is too much of an inconvenience to her play time. She keeps peeing all over herself on a daily basis, usually multiple times a day. When I ask her about it, she just says she wanted to play. I'm so annoyed by this behavior. Basically, she is being lazy. She will be playing in the hallway right next to the bathroom and pee in her pants. She is literally 3-feet from the toilet and won't stop playing long enough to walk those 3 steps. It's so frustrating. I stopped letting her wear underwear. She has to wear pull-ups every day now. I got tired of changing her clothes 2 or 3 times a day. I've tried rewards for going to the potty and I've also tried punishments. Neither of these methods seem to be encouraging her to use the potty.
I'm also potty training my 3-year old, Jordan. He will usually poop on the potty when we are at home, but he won't go pee on the potty all of the time. If we are out in public, he will go pee at a public toilet, but he usually won't poop on a public toilet. At home, we have a potty-training seat that goes over the standard seat. When we are out at a public restroom, he feels like he is going to fall in the toilet, so he won't take the time to poop.
None of my kids will wake up at night to go to the potty. I feel like I've done nothing but change diapers and clean dirty bottoms for 3 years. For the most part, that feeling is correct. Brennan and Summer are now old enough that I make them clean their own bottoms, but Jordan still has to have help in this department.
I know when they are finally fully-potty trained I will be relieved, but I will also be sad. This will mean that the last part of their babyhood is gone. However, I will be relieved to not have to constantly wash pee-soaked clothing and bed linens. All 3 of them usually sleep 10+ hours each night and completely soak through a night-time pull-up, their pajamas, and sometimes even their bed linens. I feel like my house probably smells like urine all of the time, so I have air fresheners in every room.
I'm so over potty training.
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