Life in the Fast Lane

Stamina. And lots of it. That’s what I’m learning little 2-year-old boys are made of. That and bouts of extreme cuteness followed by bouts of extreme defiance then back to cute again. The back-talking has begun and we’re trying to find the best strategies to deal with the constant barrage of ‘NO!’ responses or the complete willful ignoring of our instructions.

It’s our turn to be the parents of the blissful child slipping under the pew then running laps around the chapel during church. I know (from personal experience) the thoughts going through many of the heads as he whizzes by them falls into 2 categories: There’s the novices thinking “When I have kids, they’ll be better disciplined and that sort of behavior won’t be tolerated.” Then there’s the parents smirking internally thinking “I’m so glad it’s not one of mine.” I wonder what other stages of thinking others are going through. Some people are probably pretty annoyed by unruly kids while others think it’s hilarious to have the spirit interrupted by the spontaneity of youth.

We never had this sort of issue with Zana. She was not quite as hyper as her lil firecracker brother is. I’m coming to realize a valuable trick in parenting is learning how to stay one step ahead of the next emotional or physical phase so you’re prepared to deal, distract and divert issues. Easier said than done.

On the bright side, I’m one of the lucky parents who has never had real issues being able to leave my children in the care of the Nursery. Being a working mom and having our kids conditioned towards independence through day care to deal with separation anxiety is a blessing in so many ways.

May Day is coming up in a week so all the school kids are putting in extra time practicing for their big show next Thursday. The statewide DOE Furlough Fridays are still sapping valuable classroom learning time for the rest of the school year (which ends on May 26 already!), but it would be a community crisis for many if the kids didn’t put on their amazing annual spectacular for the parents to enjoy. Never mind they are giving up classroom hours to learn & practice the dances. Don’t get me wrong, I love seeing the kids perform – they’re inspiring and adorable. Maybe I wouldn’t be as concerned if I was seeing an increase in homework to supplement but there really hasn’t been so I’m doing what I can to keep Zana’s mind active and learning new things at home. She’s still acing her spelling and math tests every week so she’s doing something right.

I’m so excited to see the return of longer days this month. It’s wonderful to see the late afternoon sun still shining on my way home from work after 6p again.

Frogs say Ribbit

Hi, just checking in. Had a cute moment with Zeth last night. I was quizzing Zana on multiplication problems and presented her with 'Two times twenty' when she didn't respond right away, Zeth blurted out 'Fourty'. I was stunned - apparently he has been really paying attention to Zana's homework recently. But just as I was trying to calm my overexcited self, I asked him the same equasion again and his reply was 'Thirteen.' OK, so it was just a really random coincidence but a really amazing one too.

Then around 4:00a this morning, Zeth comes walking in our room holding his bottle and very quietly stood beside my bed right in my face until I was conscious enough to ask him, 'What's up?' His reply, 'Frogs.' 'Frogs? I asked.' 'Frogs say ribbit.' It was then I realized the bottle he was holding has frogs on it so he was actually not totally trippin but it was his very subtle & creative way of asking if he could have a fresh bottle and curl up in bed with us. Such a cutie.