Friday, March 04, 2011
Controlled chaos
As moms, we learn to go with the flow, pretty much on a daily basis. Survival mode isn't always our preference, but it is a learned discipline that we must perfect. Today was no exception. The morning routine seemed fairly uneventful... toast and fruit for breakfast, lunches packed, backpacks thrown out the front door. And into the van we raced!
Then, my squeamish middle daughter saw a slug on the ground which made her gag inside the van, which turned into full-fledged vomiting. So, I ran into the laundry room through the garage to grab the Oxi-clean and five small towels. After cleaning the van as fast as I could, we darted into the chilly morning to drop off my son. At least one Bright would make it to school today.
The drive home was relatively peaceful and the morning seemed typical: cleaning, emailing, writing, laundry, and preparing snacks. But at around eleven in the morning, my littlest ran downstairs crying really hard. I knew something horrific had happened. After calming her down a bit, I discovered she had fallen down with a pencil in her mouth. Blood was oozing from her nose and her mouth, so my response was pretty remarkable, given that my nervous heart was racing like a cheetah.
Off to Kaiser we zoomed. At this point, I was convinced that my middle daughter did not actually have the flu, so thankfully it was safe again for her to ride in the van. But my littlest could not stop crying and her state of shock was freaking me out. We got to her pediatrician in a flash, thanks to my super-mommy driving and my wizardry performance for a same hour appointment.
Thankfully, the injury did not cause any permanent damage and no stitches were required. A McDonald's Happy Meal (she got the new Barbie) and some anesthetic mouth-wash transformed her sad face into a renewed princess smile. And we continued on with the day. She might even rally for her ballet class later this evening. And she is certainly enjoying the soft food regimen: melted caramel, ice cream, and lots of fun kid-drinks.
Just remember that as moms, we are called to something greater: the ability to live amongst controlled chaos at all times! Keep it up ladies! You are doing an awesome job! Share one of your crazy stories here. We'd love to hear from you. :)
Then, my squeamish middle daughter saw a slug on the ground which made her gag inside the van, which turned into full-fledged vomiting. So, I ran into the laundry room through the garage to grab the Oxi-clean and five small towels. After cleaning the van as fast as I could, we darted into the chilly morning to drop off my son. At least one Bright would make it to school today.
The drive home was relatively peaceful and the morning seemed typical: cleaning, emailing, writing, laundry, and preparing snacks. But at around eleven in the morning, my littlest ran downstairs crying really hard. I knew something horrific had happened. After calming her down a bit, I discovered she had fallen down with a pencil in her mouth. Blood was oozing from her nose and her mouth, so my response was pretty remarkable, given that my nervous heart was racing like a cheetah.
Off to Kaiser we zoomed. At this point, I was convinced that my middle daughter did not actually have the flu, so thankfully it was safe again for her to ride in the van. But my littlest could not stop crying and her state of shock was freaking me out. We got to her pediatrician in a flash, thanks to my super-mommy driving and my wizardry performance for a same hour appointment.
Thankfully, the injury did not cause any permanent damage and no stitches were required. A McDonald's Happy Meal (she got the new Barbie) and some anesthetic mouth-wash transformed her sad face into a renewed princess smile. And we continued on with the day. She might even rally for her ballet class later this evening. And she is certainly enjoying the soft food regimen: melted caramel, ice cream, and lots of fun kid-drinks.
Just remember that as moms, we are called to something greater: the ability to live amongst controlled chaos at all times! Keep it up ladies! You are doing an awesome job! Share one of your crazy stories here. We'd love to hear from you. :)
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Total Chaos
The thing about family life is that it's totally chaotic most of the time. I'll give you a taste of my last twenty-four hours. Full sink of dishes, like even when it's empty, it's still full. So much laundry that I can hardly find the detergent in my laundry room to wash all the towels, sheets, and clothes.
Turn twenty degrees to the left and you'll bump into my refrigerator. Total chaos...how do people keep all their bread loaves organized anyways? I end up with like ten bags, each containing the two end pieces. And another point of fridge contention is the way that apple juice and milk containers literally have some kind of mysterious drip system during the night. Even if we replace them every single day, they run out before the next morning. It's weird.
There are so many snacks and meals to prepare that I get tired just thinking of what I'm going to make the kids for breakfast and it's almost 10:20AM as I write this (poor kids are starving to death...gotta love summer). They're young and resilient though, so I'm sure they'll be fine. In fact, I'll just stretch it out a bit longer and serve them some brunch instead. :)
Take a visual of my morning. 5:50AM, my sweet husband tears off the pee-pee sheets from our daughter's bed while I take off her wet clothes. 6:30AM, I slither my way down to write for a little bit while my laptop hums quietly amidst the temporary silence.
Then, I gather the ingredients to make my hubby's breakfast and to pack his lunch. While sipping my medium roast sanity-saver (aka coffee), I glance through my family room where our area-rug is still drying due to a pee-pee accident from the night before. It's a good thing it's got a swirl pattern on it. Aren't solids the worst?
Chaos is so adventurous though; you've gotta love it. Stepping into the kitchen has never been so exciting; I look down to find a plethora of small shards of glass blanketing the tile floor. This was the result of the previous night as well, when one of my kids grabbed the salt jar against my will during dinner and subsequently dropped it all over the floor. I guess my sweeping job was a little sub-par, but it was late, so I can't really be blamed.
A few hours later, my youngest child floods our bathroom with toilet water. Thankfully, the soothing sound of rushing water was so anomalous that my ears shot up like a basset hound and I salvaged the situation before water flushed out into the family room. I can't fault this daughter for her enthusiasm; she's like an Olympic toilet flusher who thinks that somehow if she jiggles the handle faster and more fervently, the toilet will flush more effectively. You get the picture; it's total chaos.
If you're a parent, you can totally relate. I mean, I don't even have to describe my upstairs because you're like, "Stop, I get it. I can picture it." So, my question for you is this: "How do we survive this season of parenting chaos with any remnants of sanity by the end of the day?"
The answer is this: "Love your kids well." Even though I don't have time to read the ten best-selling parenting books collecting dust on my shelf, somehow I must be doing something right. My kids laugh a ton; they're all growing according to the doctor's charts. They're doing well academically and socially... and I'm having a ton of fun along the way. Sometimes I can't tell if I'm laughing or crying, but that could just be PMS.
I could give you something deeper than this little kernel of wisdom, but the truth is that I have to run and get my kids some breakfast before their stomachs cave in. Plus, my littlest is about to go potty again and knowing her... she's going to race into another flush-derby.
Share some of your funny parenting moments here. We'd love to hear from you. :)
Turn twenty degrees to the left and you'll bump into my refrigerator. Total chaos...how do people keep all their bread loaves organized anyways? I end up with like ten bags, each containing the two end pieces. And another point of fridge contention is the way that apple juice and milk containers literally have some kind of mysterious drip system during the night. Even if we replace them every single day, they run out before the next morning. It's weird.
There are so many snacks and meals to prepare that I get tired just thinking of what I'm going to make the kids for breakfast and it's almost 10:20AM as I write this (poor kids are starving to death...gotta love summer). They're young and resilient though, so I'm sure they'll be fine. In fact, I'll just stretch it out a bit longer and serve them some brunch instead. :)
Take a visual of my morning. 5:50AM, my sweet husband tears off the pee-pee sheets from our daughter's bed while I take off her wet clothes. 6:30AM, I slither my way down to write for a little bit while my laptop hums quietly amidst the temporary silence.
Then, I gather the ingredients to make my hubby's breakfast and to pack his lunch. While sipping my medium roast sanity-saver (aka coffee), I glance through my family room where our area-rug is still drying due to a pee-pee accident from the night before. It's a good thing it's got a swirl pattern on it. Aren't solids the worst?
Chaos is so adventurous though; you've gotta love it. Stepping into the kitchen has never been so exciting; I look down to find a plethora of small shards of glass blanketing the tile floor. This was the result of the previous night as well, when one of my kids grabbed the salt jar against my will during dinner and subsequently dropped it all over the floor. I guess my sweeping job was a little sub-par, but it was late, so I can't really be blamed.
A few hours later, my youngest child floods our bathroom with toilet water. Thankfully, the soothing sound of rushing water was so anomalous that my ears shot up like a basset hound and I salvaged the situation before water flushed out into the family room. I can't fault this daughter for her enthusiasm; she's like an Olympic toilet flusher who thinks that somehow if she jiggles the handle faster and more fervently, the toilet will flush more effectively. You get the picture; it's total chaos.
If you're a parent, you can totally relate. I mean, I don't even have to describe my upstairs because you're like, "Stop, I get it. I can picture it." So, my question for you is this: "How do we survive this season of parenting chaos with any remnants of sanity by the end of the day?"
The answer is this: "Love your kids well." Even though I don't have time to read the ten best-selling parenting books collecting dust on my shelf, somehow I must be doing something right. My kids laugh a ton; they're all growing according to the doctor's charts. They're doing well academically and socially... and I'm having a ton of fun along the way. Sometimes I can't tell if I'm laughing or crying, but that could just be PMS.
I could give you something deeper than this little kernel of wisdom, but the truth is that I have to run and get my kids some breakfast before their stomachs cave in. Plus, my littlest is about to go potty again and knowing her... she's going to race into another flush-derby.
Share some of your funny parenting moments here. We'd love to hear from you. :)
Labels: chaos, family, kids, parents
