So Many Dilemma's...Not Enough Di-lemmonade
Gracie's new school schedule continues to take a toll on everyone in the house. You would think after a month of classes that we would be used to it by now, but we continue to struggle.
Thanks to the lack of sleep we have all had colds and the ickies. Poor Thomas continues to struggle with a runny nose. Gracie seems to be nearly over her weeks long cold, but still has a cough. And, while I am germ free (for now), I still remain exhausted after all night baby duty and then up at dawn to battle with my Kindergartner to get ready for school.
So, that brings me to dilemma #2 (#1 being SEVERE lack of sleep and rest for all 4 of us!). Gracie's body has not adjusted to the new demands either. Her lack of enough sleep and rest have made her almost unbearable at times. She hits her peak of crankiness right around dinner time. It is clear that her fatigue is the cause, and most nights she is just too tired to eat. So, with the crankies and her exhaustion, getting her to bed in a timely fashion creates more of a problem for us. She can't seem to push herself to go any faster than a slow moving worm, and we need her to get into bed and have her eyes closed by 8pm in order to get a minimum of sleep. So, in lies the vicious cycle. She is too tired to get things done, eat, shower, and get ready for bed by 8pm, which gives her less sleep at night, which makes her even more tired the next day.
Night time is not the only struggle we face thanks to exhaustion.
Dilemma #3: Trying to get Gracie up for school is a nightmare. Garren took a stab at it this morning and let me tell you it was not pretty. She is so tired that she doesn't want to get up, and then her crankies rear their ugly head and she starts shouting at me "I am too tired! It is too early! This is the LAST time I am getting up early!" You get the idea. Now, once she is up it is an anxiety filled morning as I try to prod her to get dressed, eat breakfast, brush teeth, etc, all before the bus arrives. Now, we can't see the bus from our house and it is a rather large uphill hike to get to the stop. And, with him arriving earlier and earlier we can not leave the house later than 7:30am. So, do I wake her up earlier insuring less sleep and a harder battle in the morning, or continue with the very hurried pace that leads to rushed mornings and mommy having to be a drill sergeant before she sends her baby off to school for the whole day ( I am not liking the tone in which I spend my few moments with her before I lose her for 8 hours)?!
Once Gracie is up and moving Mommy finds herself in dilemma #4: finding clothes. With the fall season here (thank goodness!!!) the weather is very unpredictable and swings wildly. Though it is cool in the mornings I have been putting her in shorts for her PE days, because it gets super hot during the day. But, this week that seems to be changing. The cool weather is sticking around all day. And the beginning of October is a bad time for mommy to realize that Gracie outgrew all of her pants (another reason I LOVE dresses!). Now, Garren didn't tell me her height, but between her Kindergarten physical at the end of July and the doctor's visit Monday (2 months time span), Gracie gained more than 2 pounds, and apparently several inches, as we can't zip up her pants, and they stop at mid calf. And to top it off, the pants I bought her for school are too big in the waist. She is so skinny that they fall off. So, I need to find size 7 pants (nearly impossible!) and lots of them. I got a few pairs yesterday at the thrift store that I am hoping will fit. And, yes I know that there are such things as retail stores and I will likely have to resort to that option as I need them fast.
But it doesn't stop there. Nope dilemma #5: Gracie's new attitude. This is likely to be blamed on #1 (SEVERE lack of sleep). She just isn't herself. She is talking back, she is getting mad and storming off. She is telling us what she will and won't do.
Now, I am sure that some of this goes with growing up, and even more goes to this new sense of independence now that she is in school. But, there is so much more. This just isn't my little girl, and I am so exhausted and worn out that I am not handling it well and it shows. Thomas demands so much attention and I find myself sniping at her when she snips at me. If you know me at all, you know this is NOT my parenting style. I am always the calm parent that finds a creative way to solve my child's problem, I don't say things in haste and with a brusk tone.
So, we have a LOT of things to work out here in this house, and I know we will. I just want to figure it all out before we kill each other, and more importantly, before we say or do things that might hurt each other and will take a long time to heal.
So, here's hoping we can find enough sugar to make some of that di-lemmonade very soon!
Thanks to the lack of sleep we have all had colds and the ickies. Poor Thomas continues to struggle with a runny nose. Gracie seems to be nearly over her weeks long cold, but still has a cough. And, while I am germ free (for now), I still remain exhausted after all night baby duty and then up at dawn to battle with my Kindergartner to get ready for school.
So, that brings me to dilemma #2 (#1 being SEVERE lack of sleep and rest for all 4 of us!). Gracie's body has not adjusted to the new demands either. Her lack of enough sleep and rest have made her almost unbearable at times. She hits her peak of crankiness right around dinner time. It is clear that her fatigue is the cause, and most nights she is just too tired to eat. So, with the crankies and her exhaustion, getting her to bed in a timely fashion creates more of a problem for us. She can't seem to push herself to go any faster than a slow moving worm, and we need her to get into bed and have her eyes closed by 8pm in order to get a minimum of sleep. So, in lies the vicious cycle. She is too tired to get things done, eat, shower, and get ready for bed by 8pm, which gives her less sleep at night, which makes her even more tired the next day.
Night time is not the only struggle we face thanks to exhaustion.
Dilemma #3: Trying to get Gracie up for school is a nightmare. Garren took a stab at it this morning and let me tell you it was not pretty. She is so tired that she doesn't want to get up, and then her crankies rear their ugly head and she starts shouting at me "I am too tired! It is too early! This is the LAST time I am getting up early!" You get the idea. Now, once she is up it is an anxiety filled morning as I try to prod her to get dressed, eat breakfast, brush teeth, etc, all before the bus arrives. Now, we can't see the bus from our house and it is a rather large uphill hike to get to the stop. And, with him arriving earlier and earlier we can not leave the house later than 7:30am. So, do I wake her up earlier insuring less sleep and a harder battle in the morning, or continue with the very hurried pace that leads to rushed mornings and mommy having to be a drill sergeant before she sends her baby off to school for the whole day ( I am not liking the tone in which I spend my few moments with her before I lose her for 8 hours)?!
Once Gracie is up and moving Mommy finds herself in dilemma #4: finding clothes. With the fall season here (thank goodness!!!) the weather is very unpredictable and swings wildly. Though it is cool in the mornings I have been putting her in shorts for her PE days, because it gets super hot during the day. But, this week that seems to be changing. The cool weather is sticking around all day. And the beginning of October is a bad time for mommy to realize that Gracie outgrew all of her pants (another reason I LOVE dresses!). Now, Garren didn't tell me her height, but between her Kindergarten physical at the end of July and the doctor's visit Monday (2 months time span), Gracie gained more than 2 pounds, and apparently several inches, as we can't zip up her pants, and they stop at mid calf. And to top it off, the pants I bought her for school are too big in the waist. She is so skinny that they fall off. So, I need to find size 7 pants (nearly impossible!) and lots of them. I got a few pairs yesterday at the thrift store that I am hoping will fit. And, yes I know that there are such things as retail stores and I will likely have to resort to that option as I need them fast.
But it doesn't stop there. Nope dilemma #5: Gracie's new attitude. This is likely to be blamed on #1 (SEVERE lack of sleep). She just isn't herself. She is talking back, she is getting mad and storming off. She is telling us what she will and won't do.
Now, I am sure that some of this goes with growing up, and even more goes to this new sense of independence now that she is in school. But, there is so much more. This just isn't my little girl, and I am so exhausted and worn out that I am not handling it well and it shows. Thomas demands so much attention and I find myself sniping at her when she snips at me. If you know me at all, you know this is NOT my parenting style. I am always the calm parent that finds a creative way to solve my child's problem, I don't say things in haste and with a brusk tone.
So, we have a LOT of things to work out here in this house, and I know we will. I just want to figure it all out before we kill each other, and more importantly, before we say or do things that might hurt each other and will take a long time to heal.
So, here's hoping we can find enough sugar to make some of that di-lemmonade very soon!
Well, I hate to tell you this, but it will only get worse as she gets older! She'll take longer and longer to get ready and be harder and harder to get up. Just wait till you are getting two kids ready for school!
ReplyDeleteThe attitude and actions are LEARNED from others at school. You won't believe what some kindergarteners are capable of. They are NOT innocent as you think. You must remember that Gracie is in class with children that are from all walks of life. Not all of them have a loving home with two parents. So, she will learn new ways to talk to you all and LOTS of new phrases (good and bad) to say. We had a child come to our school that had been homeschooled, and her mom couldn't believe what a different child her daughter became in only a week. She pulled her back out and homeschooled her.
Could she sleep a little later if you drove her to school? Garren could stay home with Thomas, or he could take her while you stay with Thomas. My poor bus riders have to get up sooooo early!! We start at 7:50am, and many of them get on the bus at 6:15.