Busy busy
I have been a whirlwind of productivity this past week. Well, for me, at least. Packed away many boxes for storage, packed away many more for donation or selling, and tossed out a bunch of stuff that we don’t need and can’t be donated. Removing one small bookshelf from out living room has made it look about twice as big.
Now that we’re fixing the house up at a much faster rate, I’m starting to love it all over again. Funny how that works. We put up sheer curtains in the downstairs, and all the light down there is amazing. It’s half the reason we liked the house in the first place.
There’s still so much to do, but now that a few things are out of the way, I’m less anxious.
I nursed Emmy for the last time the other night. It was sad, I may have teared up a little bit, but it’s also a bit of a relief. I love nursing, but when each feeding becomes a battle, it ceases to be a sweet bonding experience. I mostly blame the Unisom for the sudden demise of my supply. We were getting three feedings a day before I started taking it, and the morning after I took it the first time, I could only manage two. Still, being able to sleep and feel human and enjoy my children far outweighs the negatives.
I also blame her insatiable curiosity. Even before my supply started going downhill, getting her to eat in less than an hour was becoming a struggle. If there’s anything even remotely interesting going on in the room, she whips her head around every three seconds to see what it is. Bottles don’t have nerve endings or a need to wait a bit for letdown.
So, it’s not all bad, but I’m still sad.
Speaking of sleep, I’ve gotten a solid 8-9 hours every night for the last week and a half. It’s amazing. No more waking up three times a night and waiting to go back to sleep (seriously, it was like having a newborn again–except without all the happy hormones). I sometimes even wake up on my own before Emmy even starts to cry.
I haven’t written because things are just crazy between the house and two very mobile children. Emmy’s increasing mobility (she’s cruising already, folks) doesn’t just mean having to look after another kid. It also means a lot more intervention between her and Grace. Admittedly, there’s not as much of that as there could be. Grace knows that she must not hurt Emmy.
It’s pathetically hilarious. Several times a day, I come into the room after hearing Grace scream, and I find her backing into a corner, The Dreaded Emmy intent on chewing her toes or stealing her toy. Grace won’t hit her or push her to keep her away, so she just stands there and cries, poor thing. Imagine being bullied by an eight-month-old. If anyone has any solutions for me, I’d be glad to hear them. I don’t know how to teach a toddler that there are appropriate ways of defending yourself against smaller siblings. She can’t really climb onto chairs well, so getting to higher ground isn’t an option. I don’t want her to think that she can only ever run from Emmy, either.
It’s going to be a long day today, and I need to get moving. Jeremy’s going to be working outside all day, so I should probably get my carcass in gear.
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Poor Grace!
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Oh no! Poor Grace!
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ha ha! poor Grace! i can’t say i’ve ever heard of such a thing! lol – noah
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When I was a toddler (3 probably) my little cousin AJ would pull my hair ALL.THE.TIME. My grandma would tell me to hit him as would his dad. Of course my mom told me to never hit anyone! So I would just sit there and cry and say “OWOWOWOWOWWWWWWW” until someone saved me. I guess you can teach her to use the proper words but I suppose the best thing to do is ask for an adults help right? She’s not
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really old enough to push Emmy off in a gentle way or anything. Poor kid. Boy do they have different personalities! That will make life interesting! For me. 😉 Maddie doesn’t seem bothered about shoving the dog out of the way when it bothers her. She says, “No. No. No. NO!!!!” and pushes at it. And then cries if it doesn’t back off. Annoying dog. Always in our faces.
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RYN: You are a pretty fantastic mommy. Never doubted that! Those things are tough! I am sure I will be coming to you for advice soon! I really don’t know how to deal with the constant tattle telling. True, kids shouldn’t be doing some things. As a kid I got away with stuff b/c I didn’t have siblings to tattle on me constantly and I turned out ok. It gets old. And I don’t know who to deal with and
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what to ignore. Often I just say, “Thank you” and do nothing else. The one tattle tailed one heard the teller and sometimes a look is enough to adjust their behavior without encouraging the teller to keep tattling.
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I think a little mild sibling violence is to be expected and minor pushing/shoving I can ignore esp with small children but I don’t really like the idea of teaching Madelyn to hit other children. The “don’t you start a fight but if someone hits you you end the fight” doesn’t work for me (in the sense of bullying). God tells us to love and pray for our enemies. It might not make sense but it’s
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there. Of course siblings aren’t (often) enemies. And toddler interactions are nothing like older children who can talk, etc. For her to push her way past every now and then would seem to make sense it’s just hard to tell her when it’s right and wrong since she’s still a peanut herself. Once they are both old enough to talk, “I don’t like that. Please stop.” should be a good start (but not a
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common solution of course). That’s why it’s called training. They won’t do it right on their own for a LONG time. The older two I watch bicker CONSTANTLY when Sam gets home. Nate irritates his sister (on purpose) and she screams and wants to control him. It’s hard to know what to do. I tell them to not play together if they can’t play nice but then it turns into a way to be mean, “Well I’m not
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going to play then!” And then Nathan gets in the physical way of what she is doing playing his own game so she can’t play hers. OMG
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yes, I agree. It is humbling to apologize to a toddler but also amazingly comforting when she forgives me! I certainly make plenty of mistakes. This pregnancy has played with my mood in a bad way. I’m not sure if it’s b/c I’m tired or around so many kids all day and I can’t just lay on the couch when I want but…I feel like I can be pretty snappy sometimes. I seriously pray and readjust my mood
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several times a day. I often feel like I need a break. The retreat was nice but tiring. Having tea with a girlfriend a few wks ago for 2 hrs without Maddie was amazing. I should call her up soon!
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ryn: See it was clear and some red blood in it this morning but now its like a creamy brown… so i think its maybe just mucus plug?
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ryn: my sil, carissa. She’s a good friend and clearly doesn’t mean to come across as she sometimes does. There have been a few things over the yrs that I just ant believe. Generally she’s a great lady. Before we had kids our home was typically immaculate too. Even at our last place I kept it pretty clean. The less space we have the harder that is.
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RYN: Yea, my house isn’t that bad. Toys get scattered and the kitchen usually needs some kind of attention (but again when I was home during the day I found myself doing dishes 2-3times a day and now I’m just not here to do it that often). I also find it impossible to keep up with laundry as well as I used to but my husband helps a lot with that. Mostly things just get untidy. It’s a small space
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so that happens easy. She truly didn’t INTEND to offend me. She IS totally supportive and kind and a great girl which is why I didn’t say anything about it. It just hurts b/c I KNOW that I’m not “carrying my weight” at home. It was tough with the first pregnancy and it sure is harder this time around. I am really treating myself better this time around rest-wise. When I’m tired I go to bed. I
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don’t worry about spending time with A if I’m tired. He has to study anyway. The few hrs when I get home I just want a nap but I spend that time with him so that I can go to bed early. She really is a bit OCD about perfectionism and she loves to decorate and can make a small place look amazing while spending very little. I have no clue how to decorate and it’s intimidating so I just don’t bother.
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I’m guessing what she MEANT was more like, “I know I really have a problem with my obsession to make everything perfect and I’m stressed with the inlaws coming over this weekend esp considering how they have treated Jen and I in the past. I’m so glad you guys don’t have that unnatural OCD trait to deal with.” But what came out was, “You guys don’t mind a messy house.” And I’m sure it was mostly
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offensive only b/c I had been FREAKING OUT about how much of a mess our place has been lately and how little energy I have and nearly every time I’m about to loose control with my marriage it comes out like, “I don’t know why you BOTHER with me. I can’t keep the house clean, I don’t carry my weight, and we’ve had sex 3 times since moving here!” when meanwhile people think I’m just really laid back
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So yes, she’s a great lady and just made a comment that rubbed a raw raw spot. She didn’t even know it. I saw her today and I didn’t act cold to her or anything. Last night I went to bed SO GROUCHY (after scrubbing every inch of my house). When I woke up I was in a better mood but incredibly exhausted and …dare I admit…I feel asleep at work today? Like a half sleep during nap time while Nathan
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watched a movie. Not good nanny thing. Now it’s 930 and feels like….12.
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