These are supposed to be fragments, like random thoughts consisting of a few short sentences. Random I can do, no problem! But the keeping it short? Not so much. Oh my at the wordy! My apologies. I just cannot convey my thoughts succinctly. Somebody should kick me out of Friday Fragments!
_____________________
Two weeks ago when I was packing for our beach trip, I had the kids gather some things they wanted to take, I gathered the essentials and then we packed that stuff together. I also had a few new workbooks and books I'd gotten for them.
My 6 year old daughter loves stuff. She's my pack-rat because she doesn't ever want to part with anything. When she was a young toddler she often carried 2 blankets and a stuffed animal anywhere we'd let her. So, the fact that she over-packed for the trip was not surprising, but when I told her it was too much stuff and that she'd have to choose, she just agonized over it all.
It was comical! I was running all around the house trying to get things in bags, trying to think straight about everything we'd need. And each time I'd run up the stairs there would be my 6 year old lying on the floor crying, "Packing is too hard!!! I can't choose!" I'd stop and try to help reason her through a decision like not taking the life-size baby doll, but rather a smaller one, but then she'd just wail, "But, I LOVE Baby Olive!"
Meanwhile, my 3 year old daughter had seen me get out her swimsuits to pack, and all she wanted to do was put one on and go swimming right then.
"Mom, can I put on my swimsuit? Swimsuit? M-O-M, swimsuit!"
I tried explaining it all to her, that we were going on vacation and we'd swim once we got to Florida, that we were not going to put on our swimsuits right now because we needed to pack them. It didn't work! No matter what room I went in, she'd pop up asking, "Swimsuit?"
That combined with the "Packing is too hard!!!!" really I just had to laugh at the ridiculousness of it all.
And my boys? Everywhere I went in the house they seemed to be underfoot wrestling. Trying to get to a dresser to grab underwear for a child? They were in the way. Getting shorts out of the closet? I couldn't even open the door for boys rolling on the floor in front of it. They were having fun and nobody was getting hurt, but man, I did keep fussing about them being so in my way!
Somehow only by the grace of God, did I manage to get us all packed and not leave behind anything important.
_____________________
The packing scenario probably adequately illustrates it, but we've been dealing with some girl drama lately. Really in the last
month it has escalated to epic proportions!
I have no idea if the new
level of drama is a result of having 2 little girls in the house now and
it just took us a few months to get here, or if the ultra-drama was
brought in by Littlest Girl who is unquestionably a drama queen and my
older daughter has just caught the flair for dramatic, or if there's
something about my older daughter's age - 7 tomorrow (a birthday post to
come, but for now, I'm too tired!) - that brings some sort of high
drama phase.
I'm really hoping whatever the reason, it
ends soon but I'm a little afraid we're just in for it for the next 15
years! Running out of the room in tears over the slightest thing,
saying things like, "You NEVER let me do anything fun!" or "You ALWAYS
get me in trouble and not him/her!" or Little Girls favorite, "You
ALWAYS be mean to me!" Then there's the silent sulking or moping which
my boys never do, but my girls -- oh yes! Someone told me once that
boys were harder as toddlers because they were definitely more active
and getting into things more than girls, but that it switched after than and then girls were harder. Maybe there is some truth there.
_____________________
On a positive note, I've been working on teaching my 9 year old to cook some basic things this summer. And he really likes it and now he offers to cook dinner every night! Of course he's not quite able to do it all without my help, but I see promise for the future! I just hope his excitement over getting to turn on our gas stove never wears off!
Making Organic Choco-Crispy Treats
_____________________
Looking for some real, actual fragments? Find Friday Fragments.
Gosh you have a beautiful kitchen! and I love your granite countertop!
ReplyDeleteBless her heart, I totally get where she's coming from. I too can't decided what to take so I just take it all. :) Good luck with that.
ReplyDeleteI love your header picture, darling!
Visiting from Fragments ~ Have a great weekend!
You have my sympathy with drama queen daughters. I don't remember my girls being that way, but there were five kids, so we had our share of conflict. Thank God they grow up, and like each other. Usually.
ReplyDeleteSounds like good times. :)
ReplyDeleteMy little girl was always about drama! She is 28 and, continues
to have a flair for the dramatic. :) Funny now her little girl
is 5 and, my daughter calls to tell me how dramatic she is!
It is true my granddaughter is dramatic too. But, she is
dramatic over different type issues. My daughter was mostly
dramatic over being slightly uncomfortable...to hot...to cold..
..to hungry etc.... Once when she was hungry....a young teen
locked out of the house with her teen brothers. (they forgot the house
key) She dramatically whined that she was "a starving Ethiopian."
Her brothers couldn't wait to tell on her when I got home. :)
Her little girl is dramatic about her knowledge. She is very smart
and, quite literal. She likes to plan her days. :) She will get
up first thing and, tell her Mom "Ok here is the plan......" It is
funny to me. But, I am not the one hearing it everyday. :)
Oh, I hope you don't think to badly of my daughter's immaturity.
She is quite aware that she has been highly blessed and, hasn't
a clue what it is to face starvation/devastation.
Here, let me HELP you.
ReplyDeleteThese ARE fragments. There are multiple tid bits and each is far, far shorter than it COULD BE.
I love your fragments.