The circle of life for a stay-at-home-mom & Day 107. 258 Days Left.

It all began Sunday afternoon…

As previously posted, Sunday we decided to take apart Jackson’s crib and transition him to a toddler bed. Today I can say what the fuck were we thinking? We decided on the toddler bed for two reasons 1) he was climbing out of the crib. Though he never got hurt, this paranoid mom watched a Dr’s episode and Dr. Sears mentioned that any baby climbing out of their crib should be put into a toddler bed; climbing out can result in serious injury. Me: we have to get a toddler bed NOW! 2) Addison decided that their room, when the TV is off, is spooky and she talked me into allowing her to invade Jackson’s crib. The two of them had no space to comfortably sleep. Me: this is never going to work. We have to get a toddler bed NOW! We did exactly that. I will point out that even though Jackson was climbing out of the crib; when it was nap and bedtime, you never seen a baby happier to climb in than him. He loved his crib. What I loved is he slept during naps and through the night. So what were we thinking? Right?

We have been out of the house since Friday. Jackson has not had a good nap in five days. You may think sans nap he would be eager to bed earlier but with Jackson it is the exact opposite. If he does not get a decent nap he has an awful time sleeping at night. The past two nights he has been up until 11:30pm- 12:00am and waking at his normal time 7:00am. He is cranky.

Cranky Jackson= cranky mom.

While out, the three cats and three dogs have had the run off the house. Five days. As you can imagine, five days without vacuuming and moping while owing six pests pets, the house is a fucking pig sty.

Messy house= cranky mom.

Today, our first full day home, I decided to clean… I dusted, having to stop every five minutes to get Jackson and each time he would throw a fit complete with screaming and head banging. Once I made my way to the hall, I smelt something burning; the dryer. Fantastic. Call the hubby to bitch. He tells me if I notice smoke to take the kids and dogs with me to get the landlord. “But the house is a fucking mess. I can’t have him come in here.” Hang up. Light a couple of candles to rid the house of the pungent animal odor. Vacuum as quickly as possible. Lock the kids and dogs up in the nursery so they are together in one place. Mop the floors. The mop breaks. Clean the bathroom that has the washer and dryer in it and notice the smell is gone. Think to myself: good the hubby can check it when he gets home. Lay the kids down for a nap. Jackson won’t stay in toddler bed. Lay the kids down for a nap. Repeat. Call mom to bitch. Go pee, the toilet doesn’t flush; try again it starts filling up. Seriously! Lay the kids down for a nap. Sit down with a cup of coffee. Start this blog post. Lay Jackson down for a nap. Hear a popping sound and notice one of the candles flaming. Try to blow out candle but continues to flame. Grab pot holder rush candle to the sink and douse with water. Lay Jackson down for a nap. Think to myself: why did we take down his fucking crib on Sunday!

Tonight the crib is going back up so all will be right with this mom's universe.
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day 107
"Look at the camera for mommy"

Love how neither are looking and both wearing the same expression

The Stay at Home Mom Syndrome & Day 47. 318 Days Left.

Though rewarding, being a stay-at-home mom isn’t easy. In fact, I was surprised to find it’s the hardest job I have ever had. Most days are spent without a single adult conversation, quieting my child’s screams at home or in the store, wiping poopy butts, making bottles, making five different things for breakfast and lunch, disciplining, splitting up battles, getting toddlers to nap (at the same time), doing laundry, hauling a double stroller while entertaining two toddlers and walking three dogs, cleaning house and planning nightly meals often leave me wondering, “Is this really worth it?” The “I’m just a mom” syndrome attacks routinely, suggesting the world is moving on without me while I watch Yo Gabba, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and the Wiggles with my 3 & 1-year-olds for the one millionth time.

Like anyone, I have good days and bad days. Admittedly, even a bad day at home is better than the worse day at an outside job. But I often find myself answering most how do you do it questions with “Well, I am just a mom.”

On a really good day, Addison and Jackson are cooperative, playful, hungry at food time and actually eat what I make, sleepy at nap time, the housework gets done, I find a bit of time to write a blog post and most importantly, to enjoy one-on-one time with the kiddies.

Most typical days for this stay-at-home mom go like this:

Wake up when Jackson wakes up (between 5:30-6:30am), change him, get him a bottle. Rub open my eyes and luckily if he is not screaming I can find time to pee. Addison is usually just waking up (7am-ish). Make Addison juice and get her on the potty. Make them breakfast. Jackson throws it overboard. Make him something new to eat. Pour a cup of coffee and pray I can get at least 2-3 cups in me. Clean up Jackson. Clean up his highchair. Clean up the floor. Clean up after breakfast while the kiddies are watching The Cat in the Hat. Start the laundry. Play with Addison and Jackson. Get them down for a nap. Clean up any bottles. Check email. Start writing a post. Until they wake for lunch. Prepare food, let them eat, clean up Jackson, clean up his highchair, clean up the floor. Change them into daytime clothes. Take the dogs for a walk. Stop a pint sized meltdown. Call the hubby and hound him about when he is coming home. Dinner...bath time...bed time. I sit down on the sofa.

Now during this constant activity I am often rewarded with dancing, talking, laughing, playing, hugs and kisses. Addison even helps take the laundry out of the dryer (while leaving a trail behind her) and once folded Jackson likes to throw the clothes on the floor. They both really enjoy helping.

My life, as a stay at home mom, is not glamorous or relaxing but I do get paid with "I luv yous", hugs and kisses that just melt my heart.

I think friends are shocked by how easily I slipped into this life. Hell, I'm more shocked than they are (especially by my hygiene issues).

And p.s. hubby it is so not hot to ask how many days it has been since I have showered… that will not get me moving. Because by this point, I have had all I can stand of other humans hanging off me. So sorry. No shower tonight. Rain check please…
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Day 47
We play Jack-in-the-Box

The Battlegrounds & Day 19. 346 Days Left.

My home has turned into a battlefield.

The wars generally begin in the morning, at the first sight of their orange juice filled sippy cups. Addison has Tinkerbell. Jackson, any one of an assortment of trendy boy cups. Jackson takes sight of Tinkerbell and charges thus causing the first battle of the day.

I guess I see the allure of Tinkerbell. For girls she is a magical fairy. For boys she is a feisty, hot little fairy with great boobies. And for Jackson and his new found obsession of boobies, why not Tinkerbell. Yes, Jackson has become quite obsessed with them, he even discovered a new game; smack mommies boobies. He plays this every time I hold him. Not so fun for mommy but a blast for Jackson. The more I tell him no or pull his hand away, the harder he smacks. Typically leaving my bobbies with tiny red hand prints. Although, they are not Tinkerbell’s. Hers are perky. I want her boobies. (but I digress). To solve this problem Jackson's juice is poured into his very own Tinkerbell cup. So much for the Toy Story, Cars and truck sippy cups. What was the point of buying them?

Battle two takes place in the nursery. If you have seen my pictures you know that there is no lack in the toy department. There is plenty to choose from. So why do they have to grab, push, hit and fight over the same toy? I will never understand. The battle is generally over a Fisher-Price Little People Bus. They have the plane, SUV, horse & carriage, tricycle, and truck. Why can’t they each pick one and be on their happy way? I have yet to find a solution to this problem. Even trying to distract Jackson with another toy or giving him one of the other Little People does not seem to help. He will get up, walk over to Addison and hit her. I can’t imagine where he learned that…

The third battle takes place over any meal. This is always caused by Addison. She will only eat what she thinks is Jackson’s food. Why? I make his meal on the highchair tray only to have to transfer the food onto Addison plate and make Jackson’s tray again. They have the same amount of the same exact food. So why do I have to do this three meals a day? Every. Single. Day. And I do.

The day is played out by a number of other battles; snack time, movie time, coloring, puzzles (which by far are the worse) and more toy battles.

Nap time will also stir-up a war over who is sleeping in what bed. Jackson climbs up on Tinkerbell bed to eat his bottle. Addison gets pissed, throws a fit, pushes and screams to get Jackson off. Why? She never wants to sleep in her bed. Five seconds later, she now wants to sleep in Jackson’s crib. After 30 minutes of fighting an almost one year old and three year old, I get them to sleep in their own beds. They are up 20 minutes later. It takes longer to get them to sleep then they actually sleep.

My personal battle is not to lock each in a different room and open up a bottle of wine at 11am.

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Day 19
Jackson 2 months