One of "Those" Days

It wasn’t really a bad day.

Just one of those days I question my decision to become a parent, and especially to become a mom of three. And one of those days that solidified my desire to be the mom of ONLY three.

First, let’s set the stage. It all started with the time change. Now, my kiddos are older, and they have taken time changes in stride before. Not this time. This one has thrown them for a loop and they are just, shall we say, off. It doesn’t help that the great bunk bed transition has made for a little less sleep all around. They are adjusting beautifully to sharing a room, though.

Add in a Monday. Mondays are hard. Sundays are busy, and we are tired on Mondays. This Mom-of-the-Year scheduled a checkup on a Monday. During quiet/nap time. Mistake #1.

So, we pick up big sis from school and she is in a mood. Daddy warned us that she was tired when he dropped her off, and this was not a bit changed. After warning after warning that she will be laying down before we leave if she did not adjust her attitude, she finally did adjust.

So, we head home. Mistake #2 (at least in their eyes), mommy does not offer junk food for lunch. Apparently healthy sandwiches and fruit are no longer desired, but only spaghettios. Oye.

After a compromised lunch (homemade lunchables), we commence to play. At this point, Mommy thinks the day is going to be just fine. We play well together for a while, mommy gets some work done, and we pack up to leave (on time!) for the appointment.

We play nicely in the lobby until we get called back. We get put in the room with minimal books (uh oh) and children commence to playing “store” with the books that are in there. The nurse asks her questions, and leaves. So far, so good.

Then, the kids get bored.

When they were younger, my oldest was typically a mild child. She would sit on my lap and let me read those same books over and over until the doctor came. The younger one would happily sit in the stroller and eat cheerios.

No longer so. Now, they are wild children. After “store” got boring, we started tossing a toy we brought from home back and forth. Innocent, yes? Until tossing ended up meaning all of the paper from the exam table got pulled off. So, we tried to set up a different tossing zone, only this ended up being “let’s run the doctor’s stool around the room and crash into the walls as hard as we can.” Of course, our wait is much longer this time than normal, so by the time the doctor comes, we are completely and totally riled up.

Now, lest we think that mommy was not trying to ward off this scenario, we talked about what to do when the doctor came before he showed up. We talked about sitting down, talking quietly, and looking at books so mommy could talk to the doctor. I had some concerns to discuss with him, and I needed some sanity.

This, though, was not at all what they did. And the thing is, they were not being “bad.” They were just being kids. Wild, crazy, energetic kids who are ready for some outside time in a bad way.

While I was talking to the doctor, we once again pulled all of the paper off the exam table. Oye.

And to think I used to pride myself in how well behaved my kids were at the doctor.

Finally, we were done, and we headed out with sugar-loaded lollipops in tow.

Enter, Mistake #3. Mommy decides to swing into the Goodwill to look at dressers, as we need one badly and are not on this end of town often.

The Goodwill is not a store to shop at with children. It is not kid friendly. It does not have any entertainment value.

After assessing the fact that there were, in fact, no dressers, but the 1970s inspired rocking chair was, according to my children, quite comfortable, mommy made Mistake #4 – deciding to glance at the maternity clothes. See, I am outgrowing my stash, and since we are likely done having babies, I don’t wish to buy new ones to use for two months. So, low and behold, they had some clothes. Only, they were only 90 cents. I cannot use my debit card on two 90-cent shirts. Thus, we “had” to look at a few kid’s items.

In reality, my kids behaved well, they were just hyper and crawling in and out of racks. I really don’t blame them, because after all there was nothing to do. But, it was bit much.

So, lesson learned – we are not going to Goodwill when we are already tired and bored and energetic, and the next time we go to the pediatrician, we will bring the Leapsters.

And this mommy needs a nap.

I guess, in the end, we all have days like this as parents. I am blessed to parent two beautiful girls who are tremendous blessings and overall very well behaved. No one can be perfect all of the time, right?

On a side note, how on earth do you allow kids to be kids while still teaching them appropriate times for craziness and appropriate times for sitting and being quiet?