Monday vents and celebrations

[akafred]

Vent: DD is so awful right now. It's so hard to deal with all the lying and the literal and figurative running away. Example: Last night DH caught her chewing gum in bed. She lied, said she was chewing her blanket, and then tried to distract him so she could spit it out onto the carpet through the bed crack at the wall, then refused to open her mouth and ultimately swallowed it. Example 2: Yesterday morning about 8 she wanted to go outside, but I told her it was too early and helped her do some chores first (celebration lol). Then I let her go out at 8:30 under strict orders that she was not to go on the neighbor's yard or knock on their door. 5 minutes later she comes in the front door with a dead mouse! I chase her outside to see the neighbor mom heading my way freaking out because DEAD MOUSE. So apparently what happened is this: My neighbor's cat brought them a present overnight. DD "somehow" saw it from the road, through the bushes, because she definitely didn't go in their yard. So she decided it was an emergency and knocked on their door and showed it to her. (I learned this after she first tells me she caught it and then says she found it in the tree bed on our property). Then I had to literally chase her because she didn't want to throw it away. "It might still be alive!" So there I am with a broken toe, not even taped yet for the day, practically chasing my child down outside at 8:30 on Sunday, no bra, wild hair. I'm going to sell her ass to the circus.

Celebrations: I haven't committed any acts of violence or destruction (yet).

[twinmomma]

akafred, DD2 sounds like a mini version of your daughter. Her behavior and impulsiveness and lying is exactly the same. On Friday night she snuck out of the house while we were making dinner so that she could hang signs in our shrubs telling all the neighbors we were having a party. This required her to walk on the road, which is forbidden. It's not a busy street, but our rule is they don't leave the driveway alone. Then she flat out lied about it. And then did it again to hang another sign. The rest of the weekend continued the same way. It culminated in me banishing art supplies, yelling, and DD crying. Not my finest parenting. So I send you sympathy coffee this morning. Cheers!

My vent is silly. But I forgot my lunch box in the fridge at work on Thursday and then was out of the office on Friday. It's not here today. Pretty sure they tossed it. They're super strict about fridge clean outs on the weekend, so 99% sure it's all gone - lunch box, tupperware, silverware, all of it. I'm pissed at myself, because now I have to go buy a new one and try to remember if some of my real silverware was in there, or if it was junk stuff I try to use for work.

[sweetptater]

akafred, that sounds rough. How old is your DD?

My vent is that I woke up completely disoriented this morning. I actually thought it was Saturday. Spoiler alert: it's not.

[akafred]

twinmomma, she does sound like Char. Were you having a party, or did she just decide that you should? Char knocked on all the neighbor doors last summer inviting them to a concert at our house at 6pm. She didn't technically break rules (it was a very placid neighborhood and she was allowed to leave the property).

The above stories were just 2 from Sunday. One oh so fun one from Saturday: At about 5pm, C comes in my room where I am watching tv, and tells me she has a surprise for me, close my eyes. I do, and I realize she is rustling the bedside table. I open my eyes and she is leaving my room with my wallet. She is stealing my wallet! She was going to buy "me" some ice cream from the ice cream truck. There was so much arguing. I explained that when you take money without asking, that is STEALING, and that while it may have been a nice gesture to buy me ice cream, it is not a nice gesture when it is my own money, and furthermore it is almost time for dinner, and furthermore furthermore she needs to ask before buying ice cream from the ice cream truck. In the end I said in no uncertain terms "You may NOT buy anything from the ice cream truck today." So she went back outside and took a little sign that read "You are my Sunshine" and went to the busy road and sang the song to cars passing by in hopes they would give her money so she could buy ice cream from the ice cream truck.

sweetptater, she is 8. May not make it to 9.

[twinmomma]

akafred, No party. The second sign said "We need volunteers." Because she decided we should have a party with whoever wanted to help out.

I'm honestly not going to be surprised if after like, two weeks of public school, they want her evaluated for ADHD. This summer has been ROUGH. I'm hoping some structure back in her day helps.

[k3am]

Surgery day #1! DS is confused about being up and about so early.

[akafred]

Aug 28, 2017 7:32:44 GMT -5 twinmomma said:

akafred, No party. The second sign said "We need volunteers." Because she decided we should have a party with whoever wanted to help out.

I'm honestly not going to be surprised if after like, two weeks of public school, they want her evaluated for ADHD. This summer has been ROUGH. I'm hoping some structure back in her day helps.

Yeah DD definitely has ADHD. Which, I'm not going to lie and say the decision to try meds was easy. It was grueling. The grief, the guilt. But all of that was nothing compared to the realization that the meds don't help DD. ADHD stimulants make her anxiety worse, which exacerbates everything. And now we are trying anxiety meds and honestly I think they are making the ADHD worse. Yesterday I actually tried both (her doc said she could, but we never did) and obv that wasn't very helpful, it just kept her up til 10pm (but it's ok, she woke 2 hours early too - ugh). I seriously need help.

[akafred]

k3am, thinking of you.

[twinmomma]

akafred, I'm sorry, it must be so tough to see the meds not helping. I find myself already trying to use strategies for managing ADHD to help DD2. My sister is a special ed teacher and actually found some great yoga moves for little kids to help ground them when they're freaking out or can't focus, so those are going to make their way into our routine soon. I can send you the info if you think it would help Char! I hope you find some help soon!

[mustardseed2007]

Aug 28, 2017 7:32:44 GMT -5 twinmomma said:

akafred , No party. The second sign said "We need volunteers." Because she decided we should have a party with whoever wanted to help out.

I'm honestly not going to be surprised if after like, two weeks of public school, they want her evaluated for ADHD. This summer has been ROUGH. I'm hoping some structure back in her day helps.

I mean...that's hilarious though. 

That is crazy kiddo there. ETA: I don't mean to make light. It's got to be crazy trying to manage that. I feel for you guys, I really od.

[judyblume14]

Good luck, k3am! Keep us posted
twinmomma, akafred, good luck to you guys, too. In general. I have a completely normal almost-three-year old and find myself yelling and wanting to break things almost daily. In my mind, you guys have the patience of saints.

[judyblume14]

Celebration - I think I managed to make it through the whole weekend without truly yelling at my big girl.
Vent - my sweet, perfect baby has decided she no longer wants to sleep through the night. And we're not looking at just one or two wake-ups either.
Celebration - as of 9:13am, I have ZERO meetings on my calendar today.

[twinmomma]

mustardseed2007, I'll be honest - it was pretty hilarious. She spelled out the signs herself, so they're special. But, I was NOT laughing at her going into the street. Twice.

[k3am]

Paperwork says... "you will be in pre-op 2 hours before your procedure begins."

They know he's 1, right? I'm supposed to entertain a hungry, thirsty, cranky kid for another 2 hours how? We already waited almost an hour in the waiting room. Grrrr.

[ilovelucyvv]

Good luck k3am!

Dying about the signs for a nonexistent party twinmomma. That is both hilarious and horrifying.

[ilovelucyvv]

Vent 1- We lost DD's glasses for a few hours yesterday and H made a huge mess of the house looking for them, which of course I had to clean up. Dumping the contents of everything onto the floor was completely unnecessary, especially stuff like the contents of my gym bag because obviously the glasses were not in there (on top of the kitchen counter). We determined that DS took them because they were in the middle of the back of the bed by the headboard. Again, dumping the contents of everything onto the floor did not aid in finding them.

Vent 2- The Monday after vacation.

Vent 3- H told his parents (without talking to me about it first) that we will be going on a vacation with them again next year in addition to the Disney cruise I have already started to pay for. I hope 1) he realizes how much all of this will actually cost us and/or 2) his parents contribute toward the cost of renting the house (not necessarily 50 or 100% but something). They are always complaining that the houses we rented were not in the most desirable location, not close enough to the beach, don't have a pool, etc. but we aren't going to pay more without anyone else contributing, especially not for a 2nd vacation.

[Covergirl82]

Hope all goes well, k3am!

akafred and twinmomma, I hope you are able to find some strategies that help your DDs.

[Covergirl82]

Not really a vent or celebration: The kids started school today! DD is in 1st grade and DS is in 2nd grade. DD has a good friend in her class this year, so I'm hoping that helps make the year better, friend-wise. DS has a number of friends in his class, so that is great, but is class is huge (30 kids), so I just feel a little concerned that he won't be challenged as much as I (and DH) feel he should be.

I guess my celebration would be that I was able to catch up yesterday afternoon on a few shows I watch.

[HeartofCheese]

twinmomma, akafred, loling over here. But no advice. I'm useless to you. But, FWIW, I find your kids' stunts very endearing.

Celebration: DD had a great playdate. As in, I met a mom with good friend potential. DD already liked her friend so really just talking about me. *I* had a good playdate.

Vent: I'm losing confidence in H's ability to parent on his own. I try to stay out of their hair, but it seems like he just alternates between yelling and ignoring them. Even when he's playing with them, he sounds like he's yelling or ignoring them... Last weekend, he threw DS's gokart after DS ran *hard* into DD. And he's worse when his mom comes over (which is weekly). And his mom also tries to parent DS. Hopefully the weekly visits stop when H moves out. Still hoping things shake out once we're done with this big transition.

[mommyatty]

Vent: So much gray and rain. And I feel guilty because we aren't flooding up here. But damn, I'm developing Seasonal Affective Disorder.

Another vent: The trip I thought was for one night is actually for 2 nights. But I really need to be back here because we have a ton of flooded facilities in S Texas. I may change my ticket. So that part would be a celebration.

Celebration: My kids were pretty great this weekend considering we were stuck inside. We bought new Lego sets, which are always fun. And good for DD's fine motor skills.

Another celebration: DD really loves her teacher. So do we. She's very warm. I think we really lucked out!

[phdmomma]

Celebration: Had a really nice weekend with the kids, DD and DS and I went to MIL's on Saturday after swim lessons, and I got to see my two newish (they were born in June) twin nephews. DD is really into babies right now, and was so excited to get to help take care of real ones.

Vent: DH was supposed to work on our never ending basement project on Saturday but had a work crisis, so he worked all day. I don't think that the basement will ever get finished, and we need it finished because that is where the guest room is.

Semi-Vent: School here starts on the Tuesday after labor day, and all of the day camps and most of the daycares are closed this week. Thankfully the new one we moved DD to is not closed this week, which was a factor in our choice. For me this is the week before classes start at the university, so I have billion faculty meetings, retreats, and stuff like that. Which always leaves me in shuffle mode. This year DH took the week off to be with DS, however, said work crisis means that they won't be doing much in the way of fun stuff.

[saraml13]

Vent 1: DH has a bad habit of getting distracted and ditching me, usually with both kids. On Saturday, we went to a food truck festival at a nearby park. I wore DS2 the whole time. DS1 was happily playing on a hill, so DH announced that he was going to get himself more food and would be back in a few minutes. DS1 promptly decided he needed to do the bouncy obstacle course with an annoyingly long line. I texted DH to let him know where we went. We wait in the long line and DS1 eventually does the obstacle course. Then he wants to do the regular bouncy house. I text DH for an update, but he doesn't respond. DS1 happily bounces for awhile, then decides to lie down in the middle and pretend to sleep. This freaks out the bouncy supervisors. All my attempts at persuading DS1 to get out failed, and I couldn't exactly climb in there with a baby strapped to me. Finally I called DH and told him to get his ass over here, and he was able to get DS1 out. 40 minutes after he originally left and told me he would be back in a few minutes. And it had started drizzling and I got wet, while I could see DH on the other side of the park under a tree talking to people.

Vent 2: At the festival, I dropped my keys and didn't realize at the time that my car key broke open and the electronic part fell out. Now that key will unlock the car but won't start it.

[2chatter]

Remember the slip and slide injury that occurred at the party when DH and I floated the river? Last week a lump appeared. It got big. Saturday DH took DD to After Hours pediatrician. They drained it. Sunday morning the doctor called and wanted to see it again. She was with her Dad overnight who didn't want to take her and eventually told her I was making him. It was refilled with infection so they drained it then cut it open. They can't stitch it so it will drain. So a month later, with the original cut totally healed, she's walking around with a dime shaped open wound. I have to clean it twice a day and it's disgusting. I don't do blood. At all. I almost passed out during the procedure, didn't sleep last night and am still queasy from packing the wound with ointment this morning. Oh, and she can't do recess, gym or anything and walks very slowly (it's at the top of her leg/groin). We also have to cancel PT for the week as it's the same leg with the quad injury. The weekend Dr said her lymph node is infected and to see her ped today so that's the plan....

You guys I know this is stupid but I am really struggling with her not being able to be active. She's my middle and is like akafred's DD in many ways. She's having a super hard time, is falling behind at soccer, feels excluded at school because she can't run around and now can't do anything at recess...I am just really bummed for her and have barely survived two months of restricted movement. Another more restrictive month ugh.

Celebration - DD made the middle school volleyball team this year!!!!! She had almost psyched herself out as only 20 girls make it - but she did! I am so proud of the hard work she has put in to get here and I am so glad Biofeedback is working!

[supertrooper1]

Good luck with the surgery k3am.

I'm sorry to all that had rough weekends.

Vent: Saturday, I was at work and a few things pissed me off. I couldn't stand to be there another minute and realized I would end up with OT I didn't want, so I went home sick. I've never had a panic attack, but I felt like I was on the verge. I took a nap when I got home and felt a million times better.

Celebration: DS was horrible for the last two weeks and magically over the weekend, he was back to his normal happy self. I hope that was the end of that phase.

[rere]

Vent - my stomach us upset for some unknown reason. I didn't sleep much last night for some unknown reason. I just woke up at midnight with the biggest sense of dread. I don't know if it was a dream, anxiety, stress or what.

Vent 2- Dd said one of the girls in her class hit her with a ball on purpose as they were lining up for recess. It upset her and she sent her a txt after school about why the girl hit her on purpose. I read it, and didn't see anything inappropriate. I felt she needed to work it out-these two have a history of squabbling. The mom gets her daughters phone and sends Dd a message that the need to be nice. No. You don't message a kid as a adult. I sent a message back that this is rere. You all need to work it out. Yourself.

[traveltheworld]

k3am, good luck with the surgery. 2chatter, sorry about your DD - that sounds tough.

We had a nice weekend and today is possession day! Hopefully everything goes smoothly. I'm at work so DH is going to do the walk-through with our realtor to make sure everything is in order.

Vent: we finally got our letter outlining DS's staggered entry kindergarten schedule. School here starts on Tuesday, but he is not slotted to go till Wednesday, then has Thursday off, and then everyone goes on Friday. I approved a day off for our nanny on Tuesday, so now I don't know what we'll do with DS on that day. I'm hopeful that my ILs will come for a visit that week and then they can watch him.

Another vent: DD (2) is into this new game where she pretends to be the mommy and I'm the baby. It's adorable until she starts screaming "NO BABY, YOU LISTEN TO MOMMY!" I never scream at her like that, so I don't know where she is getting that from. She does it all the time, and it's annoying.

[erinshelley21]

akafred, your DD is my niece that I wrote about in Open Letters last week. MIL and SIL could probably tell the exact same stories.
Good luck k3am!

Vent: DH is cranky for some reason and it's annoying. My computer keeps freezing so I'm sure it's about to die. I've had it for 6 years so I guess I shouldn't be surprised when it happens.
Celebration: My kids both slept all night. In their own beds and not on me or next to me.

[akafred]

Aug 28, 2017 10:17:57 GMT -5 erinshelley21 said:

akafred, your DD is my niece that I wrote about in Open Letters last week. MIL and SIL could probably tell the exact same stories.
Good luck k3am!

Vent: DH is cranky for some reason and it's annoying. My computer keeps freezing so I'm sure it's about to die. I've had it for 6 years so I guess I shouldn't be surprised when it happens.
Celebration: My kids both slept all night. In their own beds and not on me or next to me.

erinshelley21, IIRC your niece has undiagnosed ADHD? Yeah. Well it is dx but the meds thing is a whole other nightmare.

[supertrooper1]

traveltheworld, yay for the new house! That's a great idea to do a walk through before closing. I wish we would have done that. The seller of our house had cut off a flat screen mount so screws were sticking out of the wall and paint ripped off. There were holes in the wall from where she had things hung. We thought the house has been completely repainted on the inside, but apparently they painted around the stuff on the walls. She took all of the batteries from the smoke detectors and left them on the floor. A bunch of odd things that we didn't know we would have to fix once we moved in.

[2chatter]

supertrooper1 the paint thing especially is crazy!! Did you hunt for things the same size or larger to cover or could you match the paint?