Wordless Wednesday

The Runaway Pumpkin

One of my favorite things about autumn is pumpkins. Carve them, paint them, glue glitter and pom-poms on them. Make pumpkin pie, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin cookies and pumpkin bread. Roast pumpkin seeds. Or just set them out and bask in their rotund oranginess (or whiteness or greenness, depending on the type of pumpkin you may have). So when I found a children’s book about pumpkins, I was sold.

‘Round and ‘round

Across the ground

Makin’ a thumpin’

Bumpin’ sound

Came that

Thumpety,

Bumpety

Thumpin’

Bumpin’

Round and roll-y

Runaway pumpkin!

 ~Kevin Lewis

The Runaway Pumpkin is a delightful adventure that is fun to read, entertaining to listen to, and even educational. Join two mischievous brothers and their little sister as they chase a giant pumpkin through their farm, which in turn causes their family members to reminisce on their favorite edible pumpkin creations. The fantastical sequence of events keeps my kids glued to the story and asking me to read it to them again and again.

Needless to say, this cute little tale has become a must for our autumn literature collection.

Momma Confession #1

I love yoga pants. I own more yoga pants than jeans. And that may be well and good, but I have never actually done a yoga class other than a video I did a couple of times when I was pregnant with my third. I don't even work out, unless you consider constantly picking up after my kids a form of workout.  But I do love my yoga pants. I DO wear jeans if I have to go out, other than taking my daughter to and from school, but even then I prefer to just wear my favorite, oh-so-comfy, "lounging" around, "Most Loved Yoga Pant" from Victoria's Secrets. If you don't have a pair of yoga pants and are looking for some good ones, I highly suggest you get yourself online at Victoria's Secret and order yourself a pair... Or two or three.ツ

Wordless Wednesday

I Love You Just the Way You Are

That popular phrase “I love you” is abundantly thrown around in my home. Some of our favorite variations, particularly with my kids, consist of banters and one-uppers: I love you one, I love you two, I love you three, etc.; I love you more, I love you most; I love you one hundred; I love you to the moon and back. But I have found one love expression seems to make the biggest impact on my children: I love you just the way you are.  

The first time I told my oldest that I loved her just the way she was, her eyes lit up and a sizable smile spread across her face. When I told my son that I loved him just the way he was he sheepishly smiled and said, “Me? You love me to be me? Being Gavin is great?” It made me realize that my children know I love them, but maybe they don’t realize that I truly love them for who they are, even if who they are frustrate and irritate me at times. It became clear to me that my children needed to feel that they are loved simply by being, not because of what they do or say or achieve. And though I DO love them as they are, perhaps I have been remiss in showing them that.

The wonderful thing about recognizing where we might be going wrong is that there is always a chance for change. And when it comes to kids there seems to be an endless supply of forgiveness and acceptance of our positive changes, which just makes change that much easier and more valuable.

Fletcher and the Falling Leaves

Of all the four seasons, autumn is my absolute favorite. The air whispers through the trees with a bit more crispness and the vurduous leaves transform into brilliant shades of red, orange, yellow and brown. The season invokes feelings of change as the harvest is gathered after the blazing summer and the fields are prepared for the chilling winter.

In Indian mythology the chosen season for the goddess of learning, Saraswati, is said to be autumn. In fact, autumn presents many opportunities for learning, including historical and geographical. So what did I do when autumn was upon us? I stocked up on autumn books to read to my children to inspire their curiosity about this much-loved season.

The first book I read with my children was Fletcher and the Falling Leaves by Julia Rawlinson. I absolutely love this book. The art is magnificent and the prose is beautifully written. When the leaves on Fletcher’s favorite tree begin to turn brown and fall from their boughs the little fox begins to worry that something must be wrong, and he makes a promise to the leaves and his tree that is as sweet as any promise an innocent child can make. While reading the book my son would question the changing of the tree just as little Fletcher did, and it was a delightful introduction to autumn and the transformations that it brings.

Stayed tuned for more autumnal literature that my children and I have enjoyed. ツ

Wordless Wednesday

Not Who I Want to Be

Being a good mom is my main priority in life. But I have come to discover that the more I criticize and dislike myself, the more self-absorbed I have become, which pulls me away from that priority I value most. Though I don’t feel I have a narcissistic personality, I do feel that my negative opinions of myself cause me to withdraw into my own depressive state. And this is not the kind of person I want to be, or the mom I want my kids to learn from.

Despite the fact that I always find it difficult to pull myself from my bouts of withdrawal, I do believe that I am capable of being “that” person and “that” mom that I want to be, and my only real obstacle is the defeatist attitude I afford myself. 

Today I choose to step away from my self deprecation and step toward being a more proactive, more understanding, more attentive mother, and from there I know I will become someone I can respect.  

Less Stress, More Fun

As summer comes to an end, making the most out of the last week before my oldest goes back to school has been a must for my kiddos and I. Today we decided to visit the Discover Science Center, which means three little bodies running every which way while my two eyes are constantly tracking their every move. I'll be honest, taking my three kids to crowded places by myself is not at the top of my "Things I Like to Do" list. The minute I get the kids out of the car the anxiety sets in, and it only gets worse as the day goes on and the movements of my kids gets faster and further away from each other. But unless I want to be a literal stay-at-home mom, braving those crowds is something I just have to do. For me, it's all about attitude, since mine is not very encouraging to begin with. What if they get lost? What if people judge my parenting skills? What if Gavin falls and cracks his head again? What if someone tries to steal one of them? The "what ifs" could go on and on, and that little gray cloud of impending doom grows larger and larger. Changing my attitude going into an activity that would normally cause me anxiety has definitely helped make the activity more enjoyable for me (and as a result more enjoyable for my kids). It also makes me more clear headed and aware of what is going on around us. Another thing I have begun doing that has helped put me a little bit more at ease is taking photos of my kids when we arrive at our destination, something made easy by the fact that I almost always have my iPhone with me. That way I have a current photo of each of my kids that also shows what they are wearing that day.

Just the fact that I am taking that extra precautionary step makes me feel like I am in more control, and feeling like I have some control helps boost my confidence that I can take my kids out by myself without having a major anxiety attack.

Wordless Wednesday

I... Am... Frustrated!!

Frustration and an inability to communicate that frustration to those around you can be difficult to handle, especially when the frustrated party is a 17-month-old. My littlest has outbursts almost constantly when we are out in public, and after suffering from the looks of judgement and anger from absolute strangers, I have resigned myself to just staying home than going out in public (though of course that can't always be helped).

My littlest seems to get easily frustrated and she is not shy to express that frustration with screams and cries and physical flailing. I don't understand why people think a toddler who hasn't mastered the intricacies of speech or the ability to cope with their emotions/feelings and the overstimulating world around them should act like an adult: quietly, peacefully, and "perfectly" (though most adults I encounter don't act that way, either). Even my 6-year-old has only recently learned to appropriately confront her emotions and feelings, and my 3-year-old is at the point where he can experience his emotions and feelings, but the closest he comes to coping with them is by putting words to them instead of lashing out (which is only a fairly recent accomplishment, and even then is not consistent). So how can one fairly expect a 17-month-old to deal calmly to the ever changing world around them?

Kids are kids, and they will continue to learn about themselves and the world around them for years (even at 32 I feel like I am still learning a thing or two about myself and this world I live in). If people could just leave it at that, and drop their judgements and insolence, being a mother would be just a bit less stressful (as if there are not plenty of stresses we parents have already).

Wordless Wednesday

Monkey Girl

Today my baby girl went across the monkey bars all by herself. She has mounted the ladder at the foot of the monkey bars for the past three days without getting up the courage to push off from that top step. But today, she conquered her fears!! She didn't want me to watch because she thought it would make her mess up, but I happened to have my iPhone out and noticed she was hanging from the first bar out of the corner of my eye. So of course I opened my camera and captured her progress across. I'm so proud of my brave girl!!

Healing Hugs

I have felt stressed and overwhelmed the last 24 hours. But the simple, selfless hugs my children give me can truly make everything better. How bad off can I be when I have three unconditionally loving children surrounding me on a daily basis? Not bad at all. ❤

Anger Overload

My three-year-old son is easily angered. My now five-year-old daughter was like that at his age, but she has a much better control over her emotions now, and often uses art as her outlet. My son has yet to find a way to unleash his anger without damaging objects or injuring people. And I realize he is only three, but helping him find a more acceptable means of expressing his anger would benefit not only those at the receiving end of his outbursts, but also him.

After quite a bit of Googling on how to handle angry children, I’ve come across a pretty universal list of “don’ts” that make perfect sense but can be so difficult to actually comply with when in the throes of a heated episode with an angry child. Things like don’t yell or challenge the child, don’t try to reason with the child, and taking a break from the angry child can be hard to remember, at least for me, when my son is throwing a fit and my stress level is doing nothing but going up through the roof. In the end, my anger is fueling his anger, and the fury we are creating together is engulfing everything in its path.

But I am the adult, and I should be able to manage my own anger and frustration, thus allowing my small son to feel his emotion and hopefully cope with it productively. I need to be the role model that shows him how to confront his anger, and be his support as he learns to calm himself down. I am not only the adult, but I am the mom. And being mom means my emotions come second (or third or forth) to my children’s emotions. Only then can I help my son find his way through those difficult feelings of anger, upset, and frustration.

I just have to remember: Breathe… Relax… Stay calm…

Easier said than done. ツ