Content

At 2:00 in the morning, I started having a coughing fit and it woke me up.  Brand was laying in bed next to me watching TV, and we ended up staying awake until 4:30 chit-chatting.

We talked about a myriad of subjects, but we inevitably (as we always do) ended up talking about our kids.

Obviously as the years go by, you become concerned about different things.

We've been out of the baby/toddler/preschooler phase for a long time…we'll be back there soon enough!  But I've been thinking a lot lately about what exactly my ultimate role is as a parent and what things are important to me and what things really don't matter.

I think it's important to be able to constructively criticize your kids, to let them know you're proud of them, to be honest with them, to realize that they're not always going to agree with you and that they're going to make mistakes, and to help them have realistic view of the world.

Having realistic expectations was something that took me a long time to learn.  The world is filled with corruption and injustice, and life is not fair.  We all have to deal with it.  I don't want to raise spoiled, entitled brats.  I want to raise responsible, considerate, gracious adults.

Even though there are days that I want to pull my hair out, I'm to a point where I'm really happy.  I am by no means perfect.  I'm still paying for past mistakes and making new ones all the time, but I think I'm doing okay.

Being content is a good place to be.

Word, Abe.

Again, not winning...

When it comes to work, I am always 15 minutes early.  Every time.  I need to set up my equipment, and I hate doing it while people stare at me.

When it comes to doctor, dentist, etc. appointments, I am always on time.

When it comes to getting the kids to school on time, I'm pretty good.  There are occasional tardies, but it is what it is.  Right?

Yeah.

So Jayden got a note home yesterday that she is scheduled for a detention on Tuesday because she's been tardy 8 times since the beginning of the school year.

She was freaking out.

When we got home, I cried.  Seriously, I cried.  It made me feel like the worst mother in the entire world.  It's not her fault she's late.  It's my fault.

I'm hormonal, so I'm sure that's why it affected me like that.  But I wrote an e-mail to the principal right away and asked her to reconsider.

A child should never be punished for something their parents did.  You do the crime, you do the time.  Your parents do the crime?  Not your fault.

She wrote back.  She excused the detention.  Thank goodness.

The thought of her stuck in detention because I'm a loser is like a knife in my heart.

This whole mom thing is way harder than I thought.

:)

Springing forward turned me into a snail...

Ever since the clocks went forward, I can't get my butt out of bed.  This whole being dark at 6:30 in the morning really has my circadian rhythm all out of whack.

Jayden should be in the shower by 7:15.  She hasn't gotten up before 7:30 in over a week.  Those 15 minutes are crucial to keeping our morning routine on schedule.

Today Jayden was 5 minutes late to school.  Ryan was 15 minutes late.

I am WINNING.

Yet I sit here with my blueberry bagel and cup of pumpkin coffee (because it was on clearance and it's delicious) and still feel accomplished.

After all, we did get out of bed.

And that is not a small feat these days.

Happy Wednesday!  :)

22 week belly shot.  Looks like a 22 month belly shot.