It’s a quarter to seven in the morning annnnd, here we go:
“Mom! Can you get me some breakfast? Can I have toast but just with jam, but lots of jam so that it squirts out the side when you put the other piece of toast on top? No, not that jam, the other jam! Yeah! Thanks. Can I watch Treehouse? Hey, that’s not Treehouse! Where’s Treehouse? There! Good. Can I have some water, too? Thanks! Hey, this water isn’t very cold! Can I have cold water in my cup, please?”
One kid’s breakfast down (and yes, the TV gets turned on as soon as we wake up). Repeat with an ornery toddler:
“Can I have gum?”
“No, you can’t have gum for breakfast,” I reason.
Cue frothing, writhing tantrum and ensuing time-out. Nice way to start the day.
Now Brinley’s awake. She’s got a hot dump of rice cereal and peaches waiting for me in her diaper and is hungry again. Even though I’ve fed her SIX times in the night. Change smelly diaper, set her in the high chair, mix up some cereal and fruit while she munches on a baby mum-mum rice cracker. (Don’t forget, Karenna is still SCREAMING in her time-out, body-checking her body against her bedroom walls in revolt against the injustice of No Gum.)
Retrieve Karenna, get her to apologize, make her a decent breakfast (cereal and gum), feed Brinley.
Now it’s 7:02 am.
Are you tired yet? I am.
I know I’ll look back on these times when my kids were little and relied on me for everything and I’ll miss our bond, our connection. But I’m having one of those weeks where the incessant demands have left me reeling and exhausted and bitter and grumpy.
Supermom, out.
PS: I’ve got that image above as a magnet on my fridge. It makes me smile (through the tears).
Oh Amanda, it really does pass and kids do outgrow the tantrums. Stick to your guns and don’t give in. I know the screaming is tempting but your kids learning that when you say no it really means no will be beneficial in the long run. You are the boss and when they are teens you will be glad that you stuck it out. You will survive and soon they will all be in school (and you will miss the daily grind!)
Oh my gosh, well it’s nice to know none of us are alone in this oh-so-challenging, chaotic stage.
Reading these posts made me cry. Not even sure why…pregnancy hormones? Terror of the impending doubling (remind me to get my head examined as this was purely voluntary!) of the chaos with baby #2? Realistically, probably both. I am excited to meet baby number 2 which I can feel moving around a lot now but oh my goodness is it all exhausting.
Anyway, thanks for sharing ladies…We are in this together and must keep telling ourselves: it is a stage…it is a stage…repeat ad nauseum!
I spend a sick amount of time with my one tantrumy toddler explaining that he can’t eat in front of the TV, which usually ends in him 1) not eating anything or 2) demands of birthday cake and cookies (don’t ask).
I am beyond scared of what will happen when I birth this second baby. Maybe toddler will get his way and eat all meals in front of handy manny and diego while eating large helpings of birthday cake and cookies. Sigh.
Oh man I got the chills reading this….i will never complain about my one…having the same frothy tantrum because he can’t have chips for breakfast. I love your magnet…. HANG IN THERE!!!!
Our TV goes on first thing too. And, they ask for candy first thing. Like Tracey, I don’t give in on that one. But I do give in far too often after they’ve eaten something healthy. My fridge magnet (and matching coffee mug) says “I dreamed my whole house was clean”. I’m still dreaming.
Spring is coming and soon you’ll be able to spend more time outside with them. Hopefully that will be easier. Of course, you’ll still have the breakfast routine, that one never goes away.
Sometimes I sing “I will survive” in my head.
Being a mama IS hard and you’re doing a great job.
OMG that sounds like my life!!! It’s soooo hard being a mama! I have been a grumpy/bitter/no-fun mom for months, it seems. And dressing two boys in full winter gear (yes we’re still wearing it in March/April in Montreal) and then buckling them into their friggen carseats makes me in such a bad mood! Can’t wait until they’re out of the carseat and can just jump into the car themselves…bad eh?
You are amazing and JESUS MURPHY your hair always looks good
Honey, you are me… only with a third child, and you seem way sweeter than I am – mos def. I think my kids think the only word I know, is “No.” And I’m certain they think I’m the Meanest Mum Ever. (Ava Scarlett is completely addicted to sugar and does the very same if she doesn’t get a Swedish Berry or something the minute she cracks her eyes open in the A.M. I never give in, and lordhavemercy I could kill that child some days.)
The morning routine is crazy-making. As is the witching-hour between apres-school and bedtime. The years are short – yes – but the days are l-o-n-g. I’m not sure I’m going to miss much of these times. Bitter and grumpy. Word.
I empathize and I sympathize. You’re doing a GREAT job, mama. Sending hugs and wine.
Oh I can so empathize with you. I remember the days so vividly when I was at home all day with little ones.
I have the perpetual toddler in my 8 yr old with autism. I wonder if we will ever get out of this phase that we’ve been in for 6 years…
Same with Jen – feeding, dressing and organizing all 3 kids plus myself and corralling everyone out the door by 9am is exhausting.
My grace is that I get some time to drink a hot coffee while they’re in school.
And then we start all over again from 3:45. Snacks, homework, dinner, baths, showers, snacks and then bedtime – usually I’m on my own with all of them with Sean either at work or out of town.
I still can’t figure out how I am up til after midnight every night after making through every exhausting day.
Sounds like my mornings but minus 1 kid.
I can see you’ll be like me when your youngest finally gets on the school bus for the first time. All three kids off to school and you standing there with a BIG smile on your face and doing a little dance. 🙂
Your day will come. Patience my little grasshopper.
I only have 2 and we have similar mayhem. They both know when one show is over the TV goes off. T/O for the fit when the TV went off (3year old Girl). Soon followed for by the T/O for the 2 year old boy for throwing Percy at his sister’s head, and hitting her. All before 7:08AM! Thank you for sharing and making me feel normal.
TV gets turned on here first thing too and Isabelle gets sat on the potty with a drink infront of it which basically means that as soon as I start nursing the twins she poops and I have to listen to treehouse and smell poop odours fill the living room as I sit, trapped by a nursing pillow and hungry babies on the couch……that is the relaxing part of my morning, then it gets crazy demanding for about 45 minutes and then the babies nap and I am back to 1 kid for an hour. It is pretty manageable as long as I don’t add any crazy unrealistic expectations like getting showered or dressed, doing last night’s dishes, me having anything to eat or drink or thinking about ever leaving the house.
Smile through the tears. haha! So funny.
I feel like that a lot of mornings too. So much work to get all these little people up and dressed and fed and out the door. I feel like I run from 7:30-9:00 without stopping to catch my breath.