Friday, September 17, 2010

It's Friday, and I'm Exhausted

So this is how it goes for me. I am awoken in the morning either by little feet kicking me in the back and a small voice that "can't find S.B." or the sound of thumping boy feet coming down the stairs to my room. By the time all three of them are up, I MAY have found time to make coffee or grab a bowl of cereal, but likely not both. The three of them then proceed to dance around me in the kitchen, dictating what they want for breakfast and what they want in their lunches in no particular order and all at the same time, never mind that two of them technically do not need their lunches packed. Oh, and they want it all done RIGHT THEN or they will proceed to do it themselves, which sounds nice but it's not. Keep in mind they are 7, 5 and 3 and it is generally not the 7 year old that will do it himself. Before breakfast is over, they will stop eating and leave their food to get cold/soggy/stale. Likely they will be back in 30 minutes to complain that they are hungry. Tate will ask to eat his lunch by 9am. If by some chance, I have managed to get the one lunch that I need to packed by the time oldest boy is up, he is sure to scream at me that he won't eat it because he is BUYING today before he is reminded that I am the one with the money and he'd better knock off talking to me like that or he won't have any lunch at all.

Today, after I got Cal on the bus, I managed to sneak in 20 minutes on the elliptical, interrupted after 10 by Ellerie asking me if she could ride it and repeating said request, while I was trying to read, for most of the next 10 minutes. I tried to shower, half shaved my legs and Elle was in the bathroom. Chatting away, she randomly interjects, "oh and Tate crying. He hurt his-self on the door." ACK! Is he bleeding? No. Well tell him I am coming after I rinse off the soap and conditioner. I rush to get out and, of course, he's just fine, but has started to pull out the paints and has a FIT when I ask him to wait until I am dressed and have a chance to clean off the kitchen table. OH NO. That is going to take WAY too long. I remind him he is lucky I am going to let him paint at all and will he PLEASE just sit tight until I am ready or start cleaning up the table himself. He starts, but whines the whole time that it is too hard and is taking me too long, then proceeds to have a tantrum over the tool used to hold the paint. We get that sorted out and they use way too much paint and make a huge mess and then, AS SOON as they are done, ask for food. No, I need to clean up the paint mess before we can use the table, please go play for 30 minutes. ANOTHER big tantrum. WHY DO WE HAVE TWO BEDROOMS FULL OF TOYS IF YOU DON'T WANT TO PLAY WITH THEM???? I threaten to throw them out unless they go play or they can sit in time out for 30 minutes until I am ready to serve lunch. What is the big deal with them playing for a half an hour??? Finally, they leave to "go clean" while I am sorting out the drippy papers in the kitchen. I finally get them settled to eat and leave to sort myself out for a moment and notice a drippy water mess from the bathroom across the hall to my bedroom. They were cleaning my closet mirrors. WITH WATER. Which has now made a lovely puddle on the hardwood floors. It is 11 am.

This is a normal day. I am never going to make it until they are adults.

NEVER.

10 comments:

Melissa Crowe said...

Well, I feel lame for saying this, but it gets easier in some ways. Annabelle can successfully make her own sandwich, her messes are smaller, and I can make her clean them up, and if she's rude, I can just send her to her room to read about the Revolutionary War. ;-)

Jen said...

I feel your pain. I do. This sounds a lot like my life, only that is all with OTHER PEOPLE'S KIDS! Then, I come home to my own, completely devoid of patience.

I was just thinking this morning that the WORST part of being a mom is the food! The constant making and cleaning up, the wrinkled nose no matter what you put on the table, the cries of "I'm not eating that!", the fact that you can not sit and eat YOUR meal for more than 5 minutes without having to pop back up and get someone else more food. AAAAHHH! I need to lie down.

Scented Sweetpeas said...

They do get easier honestly, my oldest are 8 and 10 and seem to be easier now (apart from the arguing and odd tantrum). You can leave them for 5 mins without mayhem ensuing - just about! Hope next week is better :-)

Kimmie said...

Oh gosh, I totally saw my own life in reading about yours. It's a *little* better now that the older boys are almost 9 and 7 1/2. But still lots of yelling at me, like with your 7 y.o. How is it that I do the wrong thing THAT MANY TIMES during one day??? Right now 2 y.o. is down for a nap and, though I have to listen to Super Mario Brothers in the background, at least I am getting some time to myself on the computer. Hang in there. At least know that other women feel like they are going crazy too, so you're not alone!!

Baby By The Sea said...

I'm there. And now that we're waking up by 6:30 AM for school, there's less time in my day somehow. And I'm waaaay too tired to stay up late and write and yoga and, sometimes, just veg out.

What will it be like when I'm 40? Maybe I'll get 40 minutes to myself a day. Looks like I've got to wait another six years.

Hang in there.

Ms. G said...

I hope you are getting a chance to put your feet up this evening and there is some chocolate close by!

Would it help if I told you what my 17 year old called my 15 year old, at the top of her lungs yesterday morning just as I opened the front door to take them to school, after she threw a tantrum & slammed her spoon & spilled her cereal & left it there? Probabaly wouldn't help
But, the point is 17! One more year. It happens, really. Just keep repeating, I do beleive in birthdays, I do believe in birthdays...

One Photo said...

There are days when I feel that way, that accomplishing anything, even the most mundane and simplest of things or finding five minutes to do something for me is impossible and I only have one three year old to deal with. I can't imagine how it must be with three very active and still very young children. But two or three years from now they will all be in school five days a week so keep telling yourself that and when you get thirty seconds of piece start planning what that you is going to be doing then.

feather said...

oh, elissa. how i relate. and i'm sorry. days like that make you wish for the "easier" days to come.

i'm with jen...and i think you and i have talked about this...i dispise the process of feeding children. i fail every.single.time someone asks for food. so that's like, 10 times a day. how is a mom supposed to feel good about herself with all that failure in a day? i mean, really?!

Patty T said...

Wow! I took a deep breath while I was just reading this! Yes, easier as they get older. School saves my sanity!

Stacey said...

I had to laugh when I read your post. It is SO true. I can totally relate to being pulled in a million directions. I have to remind my kids all the time that I am only one person and I can only do one thing at a time. It is impossible to keep everyone happy. Try adding a 7 month old screaming baby to the mix of a 7,5 and 2 year old, all while having your house up for sale and knowing that the phone could ring any moment with prospective buyers wanting to come look at your house in an hour! AHHHH!!!