Todays letter is the letter H . . . .

As the years have gone by during our child rearing many questions have come to my mind. Is Sesame Street really a good thing? Are liquids damaging to children? Do people really believe that children look peaceful while sleeping? Over the years of pondering these questions I have come to some conclusions. Whether they are right or wrong or whether you agree with me or not these are my answers.
1. Is Sesame Street really a good thing?
conclusion: Sesame Street is a classic, we all grew up watching it and we want our children to watch it too. One has to wonder though, what are we really teaching our children? Do they really need to know their letters and numbers at a young age? After raising three boys, our youngest only weeks away from turning five, and having all of them watch these educational shows such as Sesame Street I have come to a conclusion that these shows are not really necessary and they will only allow you to have sleepless nights. This has been proven to me over the course of the last nine years. Each one of our children have crawled into bed with us to sleep at night, the reasons have all been different but the end result is the same . . . dad & mom have a sleepless night. Many times our dreams are filled with things that we have done or seen during the day. If you allow your children to watch Sesame Street and the letter of the day is H more than likely your child will ( in their sleep ) make the letter H by turning sideways shoving their head into your ribs and shoving their toes into the ribs of your spouse. The Letter D is always fun too! Of course you are at the edge of the bed and your child has their head on your shoulder, their bum is shoved out just far enough to touch the other parent, and their cold feet are on your shins. The letter N will find both parents at the edge of the bed, each on a side, with the child at an angle. Their head touching one parent and their feet touching the other.
2. Are liquids damaging to children?
conclusion: My findings have led me to believe that yes, liquids are damaging to children. I know that liquids are essential to our diets and our lives. So with that in mind we should only allow our children to drink the amounts that are essential to sustain their lives. I would say that 80 percent of the liquids your child takes in are wasted almost immediately. Thirty percent is usually spilled onto the floors of your home, tables at restaurants, or the devastating red punch on a friends beige carpeting. Spill proof cups are a waste of the American dollar. Considering at some point during there use they will not work, especially when thrown or dropped. The other 50 percent of liquid waste will usually happen while potty training. A toddlers body seems to know when they are potty training and it will more than likely allow extra fluid out of the body and more frequently.
3. Do people really believe that children look peaceful while sleeping?
conclusion: Most people do agree that children look peaceful, sweet, and innocent while sleeping. I believe, however, that it is a conspiracy between children to mislead adults. They may appear to be angelic but in truth they are recharging themselves to cause more destruction to your home for the next day. This is also the time when all of the pillows get their mysterious stains. When their teeth are ruined from the grinding and also when you awake to find that someone has gone to the bathroom somewhere other than the toilet. It may be in a corner of the room, a register, or even the hamper.

I love all three of my sons and though it has been exhausting it has also been joyful to learn from them. They give me so much to laugh about and cry about! To be quite honest I do enjoy watching them sleep, I just know that my nights are not as peaceful as theirs! Being a parent is hard work but the benefits are unlimited. To all of you parents out there, cherish your children no matter how young or how old. Laugh at the sleepless nights and be grateful that you were able to have them. It makes me sad to know that some day my husband and I will no longer be woke up in the middle of the night with someone crawling in our bed, or a bad dream, or even a wet bed. Wait a minute . . . .what am I saying . . . yeah right . . . I doubt that I'll be sad. I enjoy my sleep and will probably be in heaven when I can get a full 8 hours of non-interrupted sleep. I won't be sad to watch my children grow either. The current age of each one of my children is my favorite. When they are 19, 21, and 24 that will be my favorite age for them. I will always cherish the memories of their youth but will always enjoy them at their current age. I think that is another lesson I have learned over the years. Let your children know how adorable they were when they were babies and toddlers but more importantly let them know how wonderful they are at that very moment. I hope my recent findings will leave all of you with a smile on your face, as was intended. Happy parenting!!

Rant & Rave . . .

I must vent to somebody . . . before I go crazy. How is it that you love your children so much that you would die for them and yet you'd like to kill them too. It just doesnt't seem right. It makes absolutely no sense. If anyone ever tried to hurt my babies I'd come unglued and spend the next 30 years in prison. Yet on the flipside I feel like slamming their heads into the wall, shoving full bars of soap into their mouths, tying their hands together, and locking them in a room far, far, far away from where I am. Every day I wake up in a rather good mood, and within the first five minutes of my children being awake I feel like a monster. My muscles are tight and my back is hunched over, my eyes have become thin little slits, I have foam and druel oozing through my teeth, and my voice is several octives lower. I feel like a mad-woman. This is not the mom that I envisioned being. I realize that my children are all the same sex and very close in age, but I was hoping that it would make them closer, not fight every waking moment of the day. I pray that when they are older this closeness will happen. As of right now they can't seem to breathe the same air without a disagreement that turns into a huge battle. Of course Asher has absolutely no sympathy that his older brother is handicapped, he'll push him off chairs, drag him around by his legs, and take something from him and start running knowing that he can't be caught by his brother on the crutches. Then again will uses everything as a weapon. Asher has been hit many times by remotes and crutches. Wil likes to pinch him and I think Wil has run over his toes (on purpose) with his wheel chair too. Not to mention Wil is older and smarter and does very well manipulating Asher to do things for him or get things for him, especially the 'off limits' things. When 'busted' it is Asher at the scene of the crime not Wil. For the most part Saige is out of the picture with the little ones, but once a day you will hear him yelling at one of them. Saige's issues are primarliy with me. He wants to be independant and have the freedoms of a 16 year old and he doesn't like to hear the word no. Once the word 'NO' is uttered in our house by a parent you would think that world stopped spinning.
Don't get me wrong, my children have more good traits than bad. There are so many things that I love about them. So many things that make them individuals and special. Lately though, the sibling rivalry has been getting to me. This morning I felt that I was at the end of my rope, and it took everything inside of me to stay calm while disciplining them. I think I need a spa day or maybe just a day and night - 24 hours- without any of my children. Go to a hotel and sleep without being woke up by a child getting into our bed or Wil's ostomy bag leaking, soak in a bathtub that I don't have to clean first and empty out toys. Order room service so I don't have to cook. I could have the t.v. all to myself and I wouldn't have to watch any cartoons. I could . . . I should . . . I should probably get my head out of the clouds and back to reality. I have dishes, laudry, and cleaning to do and Asher will be home soon from pre-school. Whewww!!! I do feel better now , getting all of that out. Thank you for letting me vent and realizing that even though I may get fed up with things from time to time, you all know how much I really do love my children.