Friday, February 10, 2012

I need me some padded cells

So we've had some doozy days of late. My little angelic girls, whom I usually relish during the school hours while the boys are away, have taken up some incredible fights with each other. They wrestle, they yell, they have big dramatic cries, they race to see who gets to hug me first in their distress....ugh. I've had many instances where I've locked myself in my room and bathroom to finish a phone call or have a shower and try to ignore the sobbing and pounding on the door.
Then the boys come home and pick on each other for picking on each other. The irony would be amusing if it wasn't so annoying. So I've had some not-so-nice feelings lately about my otherwise perfect brood. But then  I looked at some of the pix from my cell (which didn't transfer great to the blog so peer really closely) and I remembered that I actually really like my kids. And I like hanging out with them.

This is from Ethan and me grocery shopping at Maceys right before the Super Bowl (he was going for the 'patriotics'). He was in heaven since they had a ton of samples and free hot dogs! Ethan's fave food is hot dogs so he was one happy camper. They also had face painting and balloon animals and we had to make a long trip longer by waiting for the dragon to be painted on his face. Sure, the kid knocked down a bunch of stuff in the store and his balloon had popped before we left but he has such a fun outlook on life I can't help but enjoy spending time with him.
This is Mitch right after his performance of a Shel Silverstein poem in school. He happened to choose the longest one about Cynthia Sylvia Stout not taking the garbage out.  He amazingly memorized it on his own with no complaining and performed it well. He's one of those smart kids who doesn't need to brag about it and is a great and patient friend. His greatest desire in life is to be checked out of school for no good reason and I like him so much I may just give in one day.

This is Ike at the BYU b-ball game against Gonzaga. We had Grandpa C's excellent seats on row 4 and Ike was in heaven.  He's old enough now where we can have somewhat more mature conversations about kids in his class and why he shouldn't eat so much junk food. He actually will talk to adults now and is excited about earning merit badges.

I do get some good one-on-one with the girls but no great cell phone pictures to post as evidence. So the moral of the story? When all the kids are yelling and fighting I shouldn't lock myself in a room. I should lock each of them in their own padded cell (cause you should see Syd throw herself on the floor when she's mad!) and then visit them one by one so I could remember how awesome they are. The end.

5 comments:

stephanie said...

I can be a witness to the girls fighting, since I have been a on the phone with you a time or two during those occasions. However, since I have two little boys who are also always fighting, I can tell you it is quite refreshing to discover other children are equally as terrible.
You do have some pretty awesome and cute kids.

The Allreds said...

I bet the padded cells would be fun for the kids too...kinda like a trampoline place just a little less bouncy : ) I enjoyed hearing about the boys' strengths and what you admire about them. I hope they read your post so they can remember how great they are! : ) Happy Valentine's Day M Crew!

cold cocoa said...

If you don't check Mitch out of school for some fun times then I will! I'm not afraid to show him a good time at the expense of a little missed school.
I need to see Syd throw herself down. I guess she and Dyl do have a lot in common. I still can't believe she could pray like that. I am not used to her talking in long spurts! Sorry Syd!

Sherie Christensen said...

We just need a "west wing" entirely made of padded cells. Ha! Ha! That would be totally awesome! I lock myself up so that I can stay calm, with minimal success since door pounding isn't relaxing. Fortunately, we seem to be mostly through the giant tantrum faze of life and if giant tantrums show up it usually means I'd better force feed somebody so their blood sugar levels will bring out their more calm personalities. You're kids ARE great, and it's nice for us moms when they are calm enough that we can remember that.

jaredandgina said...

This is like the third or fourth post I have seen recently about kids being crazy and driving us moms crazy. There must be something in the air right now. I am right there with. It is nice to remember the things you love about them!!