Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Cry me a river

I'm going to have to hook Noelle up with an IV to maintain her fluid levels. With the amount of crying she does lately dehydration is just moments away. Holy cow. Is this normal? Here are some snippets of the traumatic things that happen here:
Me: Noelle, time to get in your pjs.
Noelle: WAAAAAHHHHH

Me: Noelle, I made you a sandwich for lunch.
Noelle: WAAAAAHHHHH You cut it in squares instead of triangles! WAAHHHH

Me: I brushed Syd's teeth.
Noelle: WAAAAHHHH I was going to brush Syd's teeth! WAAHHHH

Please contrast with how the same conversations would go with her brothers...

Me: Boys, get in your pjs.
Boys: I don't have to! (throw a toy, break a toy, kick somebody--but then gets in his pjs)

Me: Boys, I made you a sandwich.
Boys: Wrong shape! I'm not going to eat it! (throws his plate, crumples the sandwich into a gross soggy ball---but then eats it after exerting enough defiant energy)

Me: I brushed Syd's teeth.
Boys: (No comment. Because really, who wants to brush someone else's teeth??)

The irony is that Noelle rarely cries when she actually gets hurt. She's tough that way. She only cries when the most minuscule perceived injustice is inflicted upon her. It drives me crazy! Irrational crying is meant for hormonal teenagers and pregnant women and postpartum women and women anytime-they-feel-like-it, not for little girls who have no real issues!

Is this a girl issue? Am I strange to prefer angry destruction to histrionic tears? Give me holes in the wall over sobbing over spilt milk any day......

12 comments:

cold cocoa said...

Personally I'd prefer tears over holes in the wall. Tears are lovelier, cleaner, and preserve the beauty of the house. However, I know what you mean. There is definite overkill with girls and their tears over NOTHING! Sometimes you just start crying with them and see who consoles who first.

T Daley said...

Yep~ sounds about right! Except over the last 6 months or so, my 12 year old boy has gotten that way.... of course only at home. I hear that it doesn’t last long (THANK GOODNESS), but with girls it is a life time curse!

Good luck…

stephanie said...

yep, Noelle sounds a lot like Addie and your boys sound like my boys. However, Trey does both cry and throw his food when I don't leave his waffle in a circle.

The Allreds said...

Stephanie brings up a good point...Noelle could cry while throwing things - look at your cup 1/2 full : )
Is Noelle getting enough sleep? That's when I notice tears out of Sara!
Hope the phase passes quickly, I'd hate for her to need an IV!!! : )

Heidi said...

I can't tell for sure but it looks like maybe Noelle is four? They say five is the basket case age (maybe you skipped it with your other kids--lucky you!) so that's probably all it is. However, if she doesn't grow out of it, you might consider depression. My daughter fell apart (like, to the ground, sobbing) if I so much as asked her to go and brush her teeth. She was more like eight at this point and it took me two years to convice a doctor she needed meds but boy, does she ever. Anyway,just my two worthless cents. (What I should have said was this: So sorry you are having to deal with that--it must drive you nuts! Hugs!)

Nicole said...

I think I much prefer tears over destruction. Good thing I have a girl. Hopefully Noelle will pass this stage quickly. But then again, you never know what stage she will begin. It could be the mouthy, attitudey(real word?) stage that Taylor has gone through repeatedly. Good times.

Matt and Cristina said...

Oh boy, looks like I have a lot to look forward to!

big8smiley said...

LOL!!! This is SO accurate! Welcome to girls! Unfortunately Alexandra has also caught onto this from her sisters, which is why I'm really laughing about this post. I hope, for your sake, that her brothers start to rub off a little. I think the screaming stage is so hard to deal with. Good luck! If you need some sanity, maybe we could switch kids for the afternoon. Maybe they cry less with a new mom in charge.

DKAZ said...

I don't like either option. I say you post the for free on craigslist.

Oh, and about your other friendly asian friend's comment. I put one into a chinese to english translator-pretty interesting. I now do comment moderation, because I got sick of the Chinese liberation comments.

hOLLIANN said...

too funny! I have nothing to offer. My children are of course perfect angels, taking after me, and never cry!

LC said...

Don't fret. It gets better. If she's like A she'll evolve from crying to a whimper/whiny/moaning thing. Sometimes I can't even make out what she's saying. Oh well.

Unknown said...

I couldn't agree more!