Love/Dislike List

I LOVE my boys with all my heart. It is so astonishing to see little replicas of Kyle and myself running around. God is AMAZING!!!! I have been so blessed to stay home with my kids. Both of them.....since Day 1 of Landry's life. Praise God.....I am truly thankful. I am not going to lie though.....we have rough days....in fact we have some VERY rough days. There are so many things my boys do and say that I LOVE. And, there are also some words/actions that I HATE!!!!! I try to stay calm, to be cooperative, to pick my battles. But, some days are better than others. I don't want to scare my pregnant friends (and there are a lot out there.) Every bit of having kids is an experience. And, it is ALL so worth it. But- know this.....there are times you will love it and believe it or not, there are times you wont.

I have had a bad day. Nothing horrible or bad happened. I just don't feel good. I am tired. And, I didn't want any whining, complaining, or fighting (in which all three of those happened before 10 this morning.) So- I really just needed to vent. Since Kyle also has had a long stressful day at work, I really didn't want to bother him with my nonsense. So- I am proclaiming it to you. Here is my list of Loves and Dislikes about my boys:

DISLIKES:
1) Whining! I can't stand it. The whining that happens for no reason. If you are scared and you are crying...I'll comfort you. If you are hurt or don't feel good.....understandable! If you want something to eat or drink.....tell me! But, to sit there and moan about every little thing.....HOLY CRAP!!! Enough is enough. That is number one BY FAR in my book.

2) Picky Eating! Ugh...this one just annoys me. I wish my kids (especially Landry) would eat better. But, honestly I can't complain much about this one right now. I have been living by Jessica Seinfeld's book Deceptively Delicious, and all has been going well. Just to brag about her one more time.....another recipe was a hit last night. They were called Tortilla Cigars (with chk, squash, and carrots.) Landry had no clue the veggies were in it and he had 2 servings.

3) Manners! We have our days with this one. Some days Landry is the "please" and "thank you" king. Some days he is a bossy 3 year old. On those days I really pray for patience.

4) Bathroom Help! Landry is FULLY potty trained. Has been for a YEAR now! He has walked to the bathroom, done his business, and washed up all alone for a LONG time. But recently, he wants me to "help" him. He literally wanted me to walk to the bathroom with him, help him pull down his pants, and leave. I KNOW he knows how to pull down his pants. So glad he is potty trained, but REALLY? You were able to get dressed/pull down your own pants since before you were potty trained! Sigh!

Even though that kind of stuff drives me bonkers.....then they do something like this:

LOVES:
1) Love they have for their Momma! My boys love me. I KNOW they do. You can feel it when they always want to be around you. When they come up on the couch and cuddle with you while watching TV. When they run up behind you and hug your neck. When you pick them up at Mothers Day Out and they come running to the door with the HUGEST smiles on their face. It is just an amazing bond that is unbreakable. You feel....and you feel that they feel it!

2) Manners! When they DO use their manners I feel like we accomplished something. All the obedience Kyle and I try to teach pays off. Please, Thank You, Welcome.....it is music to my ears! And my biggest is Yes/No Maam, Yes/No Sir. I was raised to say it....my boys WILL say it. I am a true believer that it just shows manners and respect for those older than you.

3) Love they have for their Daddy! Kyle walks in from work every day and yells out, "Where's my boys?" They completely stop everything they are doing and run to the door. It is the sweetest. They love him. Gavin throws his little arms around Kyle's neck every time. That is the coolest thing to see.

4) Joy! I love when we do something the boys love, eat something they love, or watch something they love. Their little happy smiles just make me smitten. I love the dimples and bright blue eyes with the spider leg eyelashes. Seeing joy on their faces brightens my day!

5) Sleep! I am very happy with the sleep we have been getting lately.....all of us. Don't get me wrong, we are tired because we are physically tired by the end of the day. But- the boys have been sleeping a good 9 hours straight lately. I am probably jinxing myself right now.....but I really have been happy with that lately. Having the boys so close together, I really went almost 2 years without getting a good sleep for numerous days in a row! Ahhhh....the power of sleep!

Thanks again for letting me vent. I guess I just wanted to make sure I am not the only Mom that has bad days with her kids. As of 1:00pm this afternoon I swore off every having any more kids. I was done FOR A FACT!!!! But, give me until tomorrow!

Speaking of babies....one of my best friends found out she is having a little girl today. So sweet! They are naming her Cecelia Jo! Adorable. She is a very brave lady. Kari (my friend) currently has a 9 month little boy. She is having their 2nd in Nov. Her babies will be about 13 months apart. So happy for you Kari Lockwood. Ian is going to be a terrific big brother.