Double-Edged Sword

Well, here we are getting ready to sit on the big girl potty and while that milestone is always monumental in terms of independence for the child and independence for the parents to have to lug a diaper bag around-I'm starting to think diapers aren't such a bad thing.

It's one of those subsequent child "things", no sooner was Alex two and we were already pushing him into pt'ing. And typical Laura, proved to the world she was ready to rid herself of diapers right around 2 with next to zero intervention from us. But Ainslee's my baby, my last baby. . . . so diapers really aren't that bad.

Kind of like how sleeping in a crib til you're 4 isn't so bad, right? Well, maybe not that old but I do have full intentions of easing from the crib to a big girl bed a little slower than the others because this is the first time in our parenting lives that we haven't had to be in a hurry for that next step.

Laura's 4th birthday is quickly approaching, and I cannot find where the last two years-let alone 4-of my life have went other than in the beautiful growing faces of my kids. I remember thinking to myself that wow, some day my kids will be 2, 4, and 6. . . . and here I am. Life, slow down!

In other news, I just wrapped up two classes which to date since working towards my bachelors were the most time consuming classes I have ever taken. A 3 and 400 level course, which both included a lot of reading, questions, case studies, and large final projects. I am very grateful to have a wonderful support group surrounding me while I work towards my degree. The last 7 weeks included calling upon my mom and mother-in-law endless times to step in and help out, with little notice because I had to run here or there for the kids, had class and Jason was working, or I just needed a few hours to dedicate to some homework. And I called upon my niece to relieve me for a few hours here and there just so I could run and get groceries, take a shower, do laundry or put in a few hours of homework, since I didn't have a whole lot of extra time to get normal things done around the house. And my sister-in-law, who offered to join us up north as an extra set of hands and eyes so the kids could still enjoy themselves, while taking countless trips into town to submit online homework, etc. Jason too has been working long hours, often varying shifts from one day to the next-so to say it's been difficult is an understatement, we could have never done it without these people in our lives. I really struggled with the "juggle" of school and home life this go around, something I really pride myself on-the ability to multitask. Maybe I'm losing my touch? So I have the week off, and then back to it next week, hoping this next set of classes is a little bit lighter load.

Oil and Water

Ah, summer is upon us, and the fact that we made it through that first week is kind of a miracle. Sibling rivalry is an aspect of parenting/childhood that I completely do not get, nor have I come up with a fool proof way to deal with it. Seeing as though my next sister is 8 years older than me, I didn't have to deal w/ sharing resources, time, or attention-and if I did, I just dealt with it, and didn't complain.

Alex and Laura suffer from this: Laura is deceitful, ignores Alex, is the typical mean girl to Alex from the mental aspect, and she always pulls out the "Alex, you're a jerk". A lot of this is Laura's personality, I think it's what separates girls from boys, they deal with conflict in a whole different way. Maybe what I'm trying to say is that girls learn to be bitches as a young age, we just don't know it;).

And Alex isn't much better, he's the naive kid that typically leaves just enough rope to hang himself. He gets caught doing and saying things to her on a regular basis, and he is the king of aggravation. I don't even need to look at him, to know what he's doing to her. I think I said "it's going to be a very long summer for you two, if you don't learn to get along" about a million times last week.

You know it's an accomplishment when for the few minutes they can manage to get along, they make a point to say-"mom, we're playing with each other". On Monday they both got sent off to summer school, which was a milestone day for Laura: first day on the bus. She was so excited, and I had to break the news to Alex that he had to be nice, possibly sit with her the first day in case she was scared, hold her hand if she needed it, and help her find her teacher/classroom. He obliged, I knew he would; as much as he doesn't like her, I know he loves her.

That first day watching them get off the bus and run to the house was priceless, Laura's smile couldn't have been bigger. Alex then broke the news to me that 1) "Sissy didn't want me to sit with her, 2) she went to her classroom herself, 3) she wouldn't hold my hand and 4) she wanted a hug, and you didn't say anything about hugging. Oh and she sat in the back of the bus on the way home, and whenever Mr. Belling would look she'd duck. Ah, Laura, makes me laugh just thinking about her, her independence and her defiance. . . .

So when somebody finds that magic answer to sibling rivalry, let me know. In the meantime, I know I can rely on Alex to conform when I'm not around or I can bet on Laura doing whatever she needs to let her big brother know she doesn't need him. . . . except for that hug.