Last night I couldn't sleep. It was midnight and I was as bright-eyed and bushy-tailed as ever. When I have insomnia, there is a problem. At 36 years old, it has taken me numerous consultations with medical doctors and emotional counselors to learn this. If I can't sleep at night, I have a problem.
Here are some examples from my past:
1. I couldn't sleep the night that I had a horrible argument with my ex-husband's mistress two years ago. Yes, I have been there and lived to talk about it. And yes, I said VERY inappropriate things to her. Christie can tell you all about it. Yes, she and her sister were on three way so I could have ear witnesses.
2. I couldn't sleep the nights I found out I was pregnant, any of the three times. The outcomes were great, having three children in 3.5 years was very overwhelming. No wonder my thyroid gave out!
3. I always have insomnia if I have a crazy boss. Ummm...that would mean that I had regular insomnia from August 2005 until May 2008.
4. I couldn't sleep well last week, in light of my sweet firstborn's lying and hitting issues.
All of this brings me to last night. I couldn't sleep. I am FREAKING OUT about the state of our country. I am nervous about the banks, the mortgage industry, the government, the Dallas Independent School District, and my future. (I realize that some of you do not live in Dallas and don't understand that reference. Click here to find out more information.)
I follow blogs for a hobby. Some of my favorites relating to financial success and motherhood are: The Millionare Mommy Next Door (I am determined to become one), Single Ma's Fabulous Financials (this woman is making it happen...I love her willingness to blog about her financial issues...I am working on getting there), and The Hustle of the Sistah Ant (A single woman who overhauled her personal credit and financial issues who now has a credit score of 808! Yes, you read it right...808!)
All of my finance blogs and other recent research has given me the urgency to change the way I view life, money, and preparation for the future. This week (barring a mommy emergency that I need to blog about) I am going to write about my plans admist the turmoil.
I haven't watched any news yet today....should I brace myself for any other shockers?
Showing posts with label children. Show all posts
Showing posts with label children. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
We Made It Through the Start of the School Year
We made it!
Not only have I not had that crazy chest tightening feeling about the stress of school, I am also volunteering at the school so more than I could have before. I do have some observations of the new school year that I am dying to share:
1. The determination of whether or not your child is "in a good class" is based on how much you like the other parents in that class.
2. 2nd graders do not want their mommies to kiss them goodbye at school. You can walk them in sometimes, but no kisses, not ever.
3. Everyone loves a good mojito, margarita, or martini. This isn't some cryptic/ code language, it's the truth. I just want you all to know it. The may come up at the next parent meeting you attend.
4. If your kids are not enrolled in a school that they will attend for sure next year, you have already started having anxiety about where they will go next year. Take a deep breath and pray about it. It will all work out.
5. You cannot make every soccer game, every tennis lesson, every event that surfaces. You can do your best and prioritize. Everyone has conflicts all the time. Don't beat yourself up (or let your children beat you up) over it.
6. Schools that encourage children to interact with their teachers from last year are amazing. I can't tell you how many kids I know (including my own) who get to school a few minutes early so they can grab a quick hug from their previous teacher. Its' still happening, and we've been in school for a month already.
7. Breakfast clubs are back, and here to stay. (That one was a little cryptic, but it referred to my earlier post from the summer. I'll blog about it more this fall, I promise.)
8. If you have a 1st or 2nd grader, homework should NOT be a horrible existence for your family. If it is, something is wrong. This subject alone was the topic of my prayer and meditation this morning....I don't have anything else to say about it, because I haven't figured out how I am going to rectify it in our family. Bottom line though, it should not be stressful.
9. The public library is a very cool place to take kids afterschool for about an hour to chill out. My kids love it, it's free, and there are no battles about the tv.
10. Volunteering at the school gives you an excuse to be nosy. My precious firstborn who just turned 8 had a mishap where his backpack encountered another child's face yesterday. (ie, the boy made him mad and he used his backpack to hit him). Because I was there "volunteering," I got all versions of the story (my child's, the other child's...2nd graders love to tattle, my younger child's...1st graders are so nosy too, and an eyewitness...the kids' cousin also goes to school with them...she saw everything! In my words to the children, "You might as well tell me the truth...I'm up at that school so much...and I know everybody...I'LL FIND IT OUT!"
What are your thoughts on the new school year? Share! Share!
Not only have I not had that crazy chest tightening feeling about the stress of school, I am also volunteering at the school so more than I could have before. I do have some observations of the new school year that I am dying to share:
1. The determination of whether or not your child is "in a good class" is based on how much you like the other parents in that class.
2. 2nd graders do not want their mommies to kiss them goodbye at school. You can walk them in sometimes, but no kisses, not ever.
3. Everyone loves a good mojito, margarita, or martini. This isn't some cryptic/ code language, it's the truth. I just want you all to know it. The may come up at the next parent meeting you attend.
4. If your kids are not enrolled in a school that they will attend for sure next year, you have already started having anxiety about where they will go next year. Take a deep breath and pray about it. It will all work out.
5. You cannot make every soccer game, every tennis lesson, every event that surfaces. You can do your best and prioritize. Everyone has conflicts all the time. Don't beat yourself up (or let your children beat you up) over it.
6. Schools that encourage children to interact with their teachers from last year are amazing. I can't tell you how many kids I know (including my own) who get to school a few minutes early so they can grab a quick hug from their previous teacher. Its' still happening, and we've been in school for a month already.
7. Breakfast clubs are back, and here to stay. (That one was a little cryptic, but it referred to my earlier post from the summer. I'll blog about it more this fall, I promise.)
8. If you have a 1st or 2nd grader, homework should NOT be a horrible existence for your family. If it is, something is wrong. This subject alone was the topic of my prayer and meditation this morning....I don't have anything else to say about it, because I haven't figured out how I am going to rectify it in our family. Bottom line though, it should not be stressful.
9. The public library is a very cool place to take kids afterschool for about an hour to chill out. My kids love it, it's free, and there are no battles about the tv.
10. Volunteering at the school gives you an excuse to be nosy. My precious firstborn who just turned 8 had a mishap where his backpack encountered another child's face yesterday. (ie, the boy made him mad and he used his backpack to hit him). Because I was there "volunteering," I got all versions of the story (my child's, the other child's...2nd graders love to tattle, my younger child's...1st graders are so nosy too, and an eyewitness...the kids' cousin also goes to school with them...she saw everything! In my words to the children, "You might as well tell me the truth...I'm up at that school so much...and I know everybody...I'LL FIND IT OUT!"
What are your thoughts on the new school year? Share! Share!
Friday, August 8, 2008
Good Friends, Old Times and Non-Violence
When we were in Florida, there was an incident with my son and another child we did not know where my child got punched in the chest. The children were playing football and apparently the child that hit mine took the game rather seriously. Once he was hit, my child burst into tears and ran to tell me and his uncle who we were visiting at the time.
The incident spawned a big discussion about how you teach a 7-year-old to respond appropriately in contentious situations. I have always preached non-violence, and his uncle tried to explain that sometimes non-violence works, while other times you need to react. I thought we handled the situation well, particularly since he gave the child much more insight into manhood than I could.
Fast forward two months and a child calls my son a "Bobblehead" at school. What does my son do? He hauls off and hits the offender. I think there may have been some memory of the incident from the summer, I most definitely think that there was some repressed anger toward his father, and I think he had just had enough of this particular child.
The teacher saw the incident and called me. I'm interested in hearing your thoughts on what I should have done, and then I'll share what I did do. Here is some background you may want to know before you give me your opinion:
1. My son's birthday was the day before the incident. His father did not call or acknowledge the child's 8th birthday in anyway.
2. My son's initial reaction to everything is to cry. He got that from his mom. In this instance he did not cry until his teacher told him she had to call me.
3. He is the oldest of three children, the girls are 5 and 6.
4. The incident happened near the end of the school day.
5. One week earlier, the same child that called my son a bobblehead also told him that he should not support Barack Obama because Barack is proposing to put a $100 tax on toys for children.
The last one was irrelevant to hitting issue, but I couldn't help but mention it. :)
What would you do?
The incident spawned a big discussion about how you teach a 7-year-old to respond appropriately in contentious situations. I have always preached non-violence, and his uncle tried to explain that sometimes non-violence works, while other times you need to react. I thought we handled the situation well, particularly since he gave the child much more insight into manhood than I could.
Fast forward two months and a child calls my son a "Bobblehead" at school. What does my son do? He hauls off and hits the offender. I think there may have been some memory of the incident from the summer, I most definitely think that there was some repressed anger toward his father, and I think he had just had enough of this particular child.
The teacher saw the incident and called me. I'm interested in hearing your thoughts on what I should have done, and then I'll share what I did do. Here is some background you may want to know before you give me your opinion:
1. My son's birthday was the day before the incident. His father did not call or acknowledge the child's 8th birthday in anyway.
2. My son's initial reaction to everything is to cry. He got that from his mom. In this instance he did not cry until his teacher told him she had to call me.
3. He is the oldest of three children, the girls are 5 and 6.
4. The incident happened near the end of the school day.
5. One week earlier, the same child that called my son a bobblehead also told him that he should not support Barack Obama because Barack is proposing to put a $100 tax on toys for children.
The last one was irrelevant to hitting issue, but I couldn't help but mention it. :)
What would you do?
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Take the Stairs
CJ, Jada, and my mother got stuck in the elevator yesterday. For an hour. My father was home packing for an upcoming trip to his high school class reunion, I was working on a presentation for my consulting business, and Tyra was watching TV. She opted not to go because she said we needed to spend "mother/daughter time" together. After I gave her a snack and played with dolls, she decided that "mother/daughter time" was over and she would get an equally beneficial bonding experience with me by sitting in the room with me watching tv as I typed.
Needless to say, our afternoon was quiet.
Until my father heard banging coming from outside the apartment....in the elevator shaft! My mother, CJ, and Jada were on their way back in from the errand running (which did include a trip to Rib's n' Bib's for barbecue-sauce-covered fries).
My father called the building maintenance people, who in-turn called the elevator company, who said their emergency crew would be here in minutes. Tyra lost it...she said she never got to tell CJ and Jada how much she loved them...and now they were going to die with her Nintendo DS! (They had her DS with them on the excursion).
The minutes droned on....and my father became increasingly impatient with the elevator people. It turns out that what was an emergency for us wasn't necessarily an emergency for them, and it took a while for them to arrive.
The building doorman ended up calling the Chicago Fire Department (think Backdraft!) and they set our loved ones free. The children remained surprisingly calm....CJ and Jada both said that they were fine until they saw "big Fire Fighter men with huge wrenches bust in the elevator."
(My children are the offspring of a police officer...in their minds, the police can do no wrong...if it's not a fire, call the police...it's something I have to live with for life....one of those things....it is what it is...public service competition at its finest)
Sigh, and so I digress.
An hour later they were free and back in our apartment. I wanted to take photos of the empty elevator, the "stairs" sign, them once having recovered, but Tyra told me that was soooo innappropriate and that I would just be making fun of them but taking photos and putting them on my blog. From the mouths of babes...enjoy your day!
Needless to say, our afternoon was quiet.
Until my father heard banging coming from outside the apartment....in the elevator shaft! My mother, CJ, and Jada were on their way back in from the errand running (which did include a trip to Rib's n' Bib's for barbecue-sauce-covered fries).
My father called the building maintenance people, who in-turn called the elevator company, who said their emergency crew would be here in minutes. Tyra lost it...she said she never got to tell CJ and Jada how much she loved them...and now they were going to die with her Nintendo DS! (They had her DS with them on the excursion).
The minutes droned on....and my father became increasingly impatient with the elevator people. It turns out that what was an emergency for us wasn't necessarily an emergency for them, and it took a while for them to arrive.
The building doorman ended up calling the Chicago Fire Department (think Backdraft!) and they set our loved ones free. The children remained surprisingly calm....CJ and Jada both said that they were fine until they saw "big Fire Fighter men with huge wrenches bust in the elevator."
(My children are the offspring of a police officer...in their minds, the police can do no wrong...if it's not a fire, call the police...it's something I have to live with for life....one of those things....it is what it is...public service competition at its finest)
Sigh, and so I digress.
An hour later they were free and back in our apartment. I wanted to take photos of the empty elevator, the "stairs" sign, them once having recovered, but Tyra told me that was soooo innappropriate and that I would just be making fun of them but taking photos and putting them on my blog. From the mouths of babes...enjoy your day!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
