Something to think about when seeing RED

I believe I'm not in the minority when I say there are times my kids can make my blood boil! As hard as I try, I just can't live up to Mrs. Cleaver from Leave it to Beaver. Unlike her, my hair is typically a mess, I'm usually in a rush, and the house is not perfectly clean. But I don't think that makes me a bad mom. There have been several instances when I felt like I was seeing red such as when Wacky Zacky woke Zany Janie after it took several hours to get her to sleep, when the two monkeys follow me around when I clean the house and put fingerprints over everything I had just cleaned, or when I'm expecting a visitor and the dynamic duo decide to empty every bin of toys throughout the house. I know that in a few short years the two will be at school and won't be home during the day to take naps, their fingerprints will no longer cover every inch of the house, and they will ditch their toys for video games and bikes. Nevertheless, there are still those times that it's hard to take a deep breath and remind myself that this too shall pass...

Today I was leisurely reading...Scratch that-I was attempting to read Parents Magazine while being splashed by Wacky Zacky from the baby pool and being smothered by a dripping wet Zany Janie while she ran back and forth from the pool to my lap. That's when one of the articles seemed to jump out at me and smack me in the face-or was that the rubber ducky that Wacky Zacky threw at my face...Oh well, anyway it really made an impact on me. So much of an impact that when the whole Zany family was playing on the bed and the two monkeys slammed into me causing me to have my first bloody nose I didn't get mad. I wanted to share this information because for me it was exactly what I needed to read to help center myself.

The information below was taken from Parents Magazine September 2008 issue by Mary Mohler:

Memo to Mommy

You have a lot of lessons to teach your little one, but he has a few words of wisdom for you too.
*Stop freaking out about the mess! There's always time to clean-but how often do we get to make mud pies?
*Be patient, I do everything for a reason, but I don't know enough words yet to give you an explanation.
*Let me do it. I know you can do it faster and better, but sometimes experience is the best teacher.
*Don't expect too much of me. I want to do what you ask and make you happy, but I'm still little.
*Don't try to reason with me when I'm having a tantrum. Trust me-I can't hear you over my own screaming.
*Keep your promises. It's all about trust. When I'm a teenager, you'll understand why it's so important.
*Don't keep asking me if I've been good. I'm not even sure what that means, but if I was bad I'd never admit it.
*Don't let me think that you're perfect. I feel a lot better knowing I'm not the only one who makes mistakes sometimes.
*Set limits. I can't actually eat a whole box of cookies-I just want to see if I'd get away with it.

Zany thought of the day: When was the last time you read or heard something that was the exact thing you needed to hear to deal with a situation?