Tales from the Trenches: Mommyhood

This episode is brought to you by Silence. They say silence is golden and your chances of having silence today are the same as your chances of getting all the gold in the world. Silence: get some... even though it's utterly impossible for us Moms.

Liesel has been getting increasingly sassy. Throwing me dirty looks, contradicting me, mouthing off, etc. This has all escalated in recent weeks. Today I had a luncheon with my visiting teachers so the babies went down for a late nap and were still fast asleep as the time neared for Liesel's bus pick-up. I texted my dear, sweet neighbor Kim to see if she'd be willing to meet Liesel along with her own son. Typically Kim responds right away and when I hadn't heard for a while, I knew I'd need to wake the babies up and get everyone out the door.

Staring down the barrel of the witching hour, I decided to make it more manageable by taking the girls to the park. Everyone could get good and tired and then go down early. Brigitta was thrilled- she lives for the park. Upon collecting Liesel from the bus, I was encountered with the same bratty attitude I've been getting on a daily basis. As we headed towards the park, I told Liesel if she whined one more time, we would not go to the park.

After parking, I noticed I had a text message from Kim apologizing for not seeing my message (she'd been watching the Baltimore riots on tv and then left for the bus stop without her phone). I texted her back letting her know it was okay and thanking her for saving my bacon on countless other occasions and just before I hit "send", Liesel popped her head up to the front of the car and snidely asked, "Can we GO already?" That. Was. The. STRAW!!!! That was the straw that broke the mama's back. I ordered her back in her seat and headed for home.

Brigitta was acutely aware of what was going on and started bawling. Seriously, that girl loves the park. Every time she asked why we left the park, I told her to ask Liesel for an explanation. Liesel then made the grave mistake of insisting it wasn't her fault, it was MY fault and well, around that point I told Liesel to decide if she wanted a spank or to sit on her bed until Dad was home from work. For whatever reason, the nasty torrent of disrespect continued to gush out of Liesel's mouth and I vengefully announced she would be getting BOTH a spank and time out on her bed.

Once we were home, I didn't even wait until we were in the house. I spanked Liesel hard the second she stepped out of the car. Oddly enough, she seemed surprised by it but she quickly ran up to her room to do time on her bed. I calmly arranged snacks for the little ones and then went up to have a come-to-Jesus meeting with Liesel.

Oh I was livid!!! Even remembering the whole thing makes me see red. I unleashed a fury of pent up anger and frustration on that tiny blonde 7-year-old. I can't remember everything that I said, but I do remember screaming about how I carried her for 9 1/2 months and then lived through the most painful labor OF MY LIFE to bring her into this world and then she talks to me like I am her servant. "I AM YOUR MOTHER!!!!" I shrieked into her terrified face. "I DESERVE RESPECT!!!!!" The verbal assault continued as I demanded to know where exactly she had gotten the idea it was okay to talk to me like that. With tears streaming down her face, she insisted she didn't get it from anywhere.

I heard the door to Liesel's room open and in my periphery I saw Brigitta timidly wandering in to see what was going on. I roared for her to get out and she immediately obliged. My rant continued as I threw open Liesel's closet and yelled at her to look at all the beautiful clothes she had neatly hanging. My screaming reverberated off the ceiling and walls as I reminded her that I'M the one who makes sure she's always dressed nicely. I pointed out her beautiful room and reminded her I make sure she is fed well every day. When I had exhausted every point of motherly angst, I let Liesel know that if she does this kind of thing in the future, it will be a spank AND time out on her bed.

My face was bright red from screaming; Liesel's was bright red from crying. She apologized for her behavior and I told her she needed to apologize to her sisters as well, since she was the one who made them miss out on the park. Opening her door, Liesel found little Brigitta was waiting just outside- she'd listened to the whole thing. On her knees, so she would be at eye level, Liesel sobbed that she was sorry we didn't go to the park because she behaved badly.

Brigitta cupped Liesel's cheek and gently said, "Oh honey, it's okay" and threw her arms around her big sister to comfort her.

While I went to bed feeling like a horrible mom (albeit one who doesn't tolerate sassing), I was also comforted by Gita and her sweet love for her sister. Maybe my parenting will send the girls to a lifetime of therapy, but at least they'll have each other to help them through it all.

Easter

It seems like I become obsessed with an idea I am sure is over-the-top cute for just about every holiday. Much to Brent's chagrin, it usually costs money. This year's Easter obsession was pastel dresses and white gloves. Brent rolled his eyes, confident the girls would ruin them somehow or just rip them off but I doggedly forged ahead, looking for the sale at Janie and Jack that would clinch my plan. As such, this Easter we bring you our daughters in pastel dresses and white gloves!

Come come now, aren't they cute? Well, I think they are anyway. We sort of managed a decent family photo. I'd been running around the lawn taking the above photo and everyone was tired and hungry from church so no one was interested in whether or not I put my heels back on. It will just have to do!

The day before Easter, the girls were invited to a most amazing Easter Egg Hunt. Ireland's Primary teacher, Sister Stuart, is pretty much the sweetest woman in the world. She invited her class, and any siblings from the kids in her class for this event. To begin, the little ones got to create an Easter scene with colorful paper and stickers. At each child's seat was their own bag and a stuffed bunny. What? Yes, she bought each child a stuffed bunny. Adorable.

Brigitta was particularly proud of her Easter scene:

The older kids had Easter bags that they got to color and then use for the hunt. I can't remember how many eggs each child was allowed, but there were far more eggs than the kids could collect. Sister Stuart was worried our little ones wouldn't be able to eat the hard candy so she had Peeps and eggs marked specially for them.

Here you can see Ireland scrambling with Sister Stuart nearby.

Then the kids all had hot dogs and chips for lunch. This was the happiest little crowd this side of the Mississippi!

I honestly can't remember what was happening in our own house that prevented us from getting decent pictures of the Easter baskets and the girls digging into them. This year I bought yellow feather boas from Hobby Lobby to line the baskets and they looked so very sweet. Well, at least we got a good shot of Sydney enjoying some chocolate bunny ears!

Even though I don't have the pictures to back it up, we all had a great Easter. I'm loving our new home more and more as we fill it with holiday memories year round.

Liesel is SEVEN!!!

Again Reagan obliged in taking Liesel's birthday photos. I wasn't sure about what to do to make her photo shoot unique to her when it hit me- this book worm just needed to be photographed with her best friends: a pile of books.

Liesel does that with her lips all the time. Classic.

I really wanted a picture of Liesel in nerdy glasses and Reagan happened to have these. Then she sat on them and they broke just before she started shooting. Luckily, she had this tape which worked out perfectly. It ended up being a better shot than I'd even hoped for!

Ah the crooked, wonky smile of a 7-year-old.

Oh how I love this one! Especially since you can see her adorable freckles.

Reagan told Liesel to make a silly face and she did this. For some reason, ages 7-12 are considered "tween" years but marketers treat them like full-grown teens. I've been shocked at the sudden change in clothing I find in the stores (i.e. bikinis, crop tops, tiny shorts, skirts the size of a napkin, etc.) but this picture shows the lingering innocence of youth. Liesel's funny expression while she's holding the stuffed bunny speak to the fact that yes, she is rapidly growing but ultimately she is still a child.

LOVE! LOVE! LOVE!!!

Liesel really is the total package.

I hope she never dumbs herself down for any reason. She's smart as a whip.

This girl definitely has an introspective side to her.

Liesel is very comfortable in front of a camera. Even with the wonky teeth, she gives a beautiful smile. 

Somehow I like the photos that are not staring right into the camera best. Liesel seems so natural here.

I adore this one. Those are her "play" shoes and again, the photo shows how she's growing up but for now she's just a kid.

Like Ireland, Liesel had breakfast in bed for her birthday and we ordered an ice cream cake from Coldstone. We are really trying to keep birthdays a family affair rather than a blown out, expensive, kid-party but Liesel is mentioning the birthday parties of her friends more and more. Still, I think she had a good birthday this year, especially owing to the fact that she got her very own tablet. She feels oh so grown up with that little thing (with it's bright pink cover no less).

More and more, Liesel is becoming a sort of glue in our family. Now and again she'll mix things up with her sisters, but she's often found negotiating, sharing and mediating so everyone is as happy as possible. She's incredibly chatty and I'm convinced the only way she will ever plump up is if she becomes a mute. Liesel talks all through dinner while the food on her plate grows cold. Even Sydney now reminds her to "eat" when she gets going on a story. After spending a day at home with her sisters, I'm honestly excited to see her step off the school bus and listen to all her tales of the 1st grade drama at school. And yes, the reading. She reads on the bus, she reads in the car, she reads at the dinner table, she scours the book order form when they come in, she reads to her sisters, she falls asleep reading. Every. Single. Night. Liesel loves to read!

Seven is a special year for Liesel as we prepare for her baptism at age 8. We are reading the Book of Mormon together and more seriously discussing the doctrine of the church. Brent and I hope to prepare her to make this decision as independently as possible. More than anything, we want to make sure she understands the significance of baptism. It's going to be a great year.

Happy Birthday my Liesel Grace! We love you!!!

Shut up and Dance

I've watched this video over and over and it makes me skipping-on-clouds happy. For some reason the clips of West Side Story and Sound of Music get me choked up and teary-eyed. Luckily, everyone else in this house loves it too. I've just gotta post it!