(no subject)
First of all, though I aspire to update more often, I don't actually ever sit down and do it. I'm reminding myself to elaborate on a few recent events in here:
-My trip to New York to visit meine Lieblingsamanda
-My taste of life as a rockstar (or, me being a retarded karaoke singer)
That being said, I came home tonight to discover my parents poring over a box of old (read: ancient) pictures they discovered in our basement. When I say old, I mean OLD, as there are photo albums from my grandfather's stint in the army during World War I (yes, I did not omit the other 'I' accidentally). The thing that piqued my interest, however, is a writing piece from 1988, of which the subject is me. It is painful to read, not because I seem to have annoyed my entire family, but rather because of its repetitive nature and numerous grammatical errors and misspellings.
I encourage you to skip the writing piece, unless you really want to indulge in my self-centeredness (I just precedented that word).
CHANGES IN THE LIFE OF A LARGE FAMILY
INTRODUCTION
Life in a large family can be tough. Having to deal with people whose lifestyles clash with yours can really get on your nerves. But when you have to deal with them day after day, year after year, it can get really annoying. As the children get older they learn to deal with one another the best they can. However, arguments break out, but as time goes on they get farther apart.
Three years ago when my mother gave birth to my sister Heather, life changed in our family a lot. When Heather was born the ages of the other children were: Barbara 21, Michele 20, John 19, Gail 17, and Catie 14. During the past three years our family has had to learn to deal with living with a small child and five older brothers and sisters.
A lot of the changes that occurred were in our daily lives. The events that took place every day changed. We had to learn to deal with the changes in every day events, along with learning to deal with the new things we had to do.
SLEEP
There are four bedrooms in our house. One is my parents', one is my brother's, one is shared by me and Catie, and the fourth is shared by Barbara, Michele and Heather. The obvious change is that one bedroom is a little more crowded, however changes have occurred in everyone's sleeping.
"Our room is pretty crowded," Michele said. "Me and Barbara have a lot of stuff. Throwing an extra bed in our room just makes it a little more crowded."
"Sure it's a little more crowded but most of it isn't because of Heather. The only thing that she really has in our room is her bed," says Barbara. "The major difference for me is being woken up in the middle of the night. It is also pretty annoying to go upstairs and find everything from stuffed animals to food on your bed that Heather had put there during the day. Now that she has a bed she likes to climb out of her bed and into mine in the middle of the night. God, what a pain."
"That room is a nightmare. I don't know how many times I've tripped over things in that room when I've been woken up in the middle of the night," said my mom. "Luckily sleep has gotten back to the way it was befor eHeather was born for Tom and me. We used to have to get up and change her or feed her, but now she his just as happy to wake Barb up by climbing into her bed. Sleeping through the night is really nice."
Catie's outlook on sleep took on a different meaning. "I'm glad I don't live in that room. She used to wake me up a lot when she used to cry. I hate it when they send her in to wake me up. It isn't like she comes in the room and just wakes you up. She has to make sure you get out of bed. Usually it is much too early in the day for someone to be pulling on your arms and legs."
CAR TRIPS
Car trips can seem very long when there is a lot of people in the car. Other words that come to mind are hot, crowded and loud. Like most large families our family car has always been either a station wagon or a van. The large family car is definitely not made for comfort. With a car seat and a small child car trips can be described as hectic, noisy, crazy, and just plain work.
"Sometimes I just dread getting into the car with Heather," says Catie, "especially when there are a lot of people in the car. I don't like sitting in a car for very long when you can't move around. When Heather is in the car she takes up two seats, one for her car seat and one for her toys." Catie continues by elaborating on the toys, "you can't get into the car with her without her bringing at least one toy. It can be very annoying because if she drops her toy, or whatever she is playing with, she'll yell and scream until you pick it up for her. Sometimes she thinks it's funny and she will keep dropping it. I hate when she does that."
"Driving with Heather isn't really that bad," states Barbara. "Sometimes it can get noisy, and crowded, but not usually. I mean most of the time not everyone is in the car at the same time. The worst time in the car is when Heather gets yelling and everyone has a solution to the problem. Then everyone starts yelling at everyone else, which pisses off Dad."
"Trying to keep her occupied is the hard part," says Mom. "I usually have to bring some food with us. And of course Heather has to bring a few toys with her. Sometimes she puts her stuffed animals in different seats in the car. Then if you try to move them to sit down she gets upset. It can be really funny." Mom continues on how problems can occur even before a car ride starts, and even after it ends. "Since Heather was born you have to plan to leave about five to ten minutes before you actually do. Sometimes I have to struggle with her to put on her coat or to put her in the car seat. Sometimes I have to struggle to get her out of the car. Sometimes when we get home she likes to get into the driver's seat and pretend she is driving, or she likes to go to the back of the car and play with the spare tire. Car trips can be really trying."
"Trips in my car are a little different than in the family car," states my father. "I think it's because it is a smaller car and there is less to occupy her mind. Usually I just have to talk to her a little, or give her a snack."
CHORES
Chores are definitely a part of everyday life. When there is a small child in the house, chores can and do change. Simple everyday type of jobs can take a lot more time. Or the time of day you may do a chore can change. Chores can get really nervewracking because Heather thinks that things can't be done without her help.
"It can get really hard to try to do something around the house," says my mom. "I can try to cook and Heather will be right there. Especially when I'm cooking I have to keep an eye on her so she doesn't pick up a knife or something like that. She thinks she can help, but she usually becomes an obstacle. She likes to know everything that is going on."
"Sometimes it is like she is a foreman or something. She has to supervise everything, from Julie cooking to me working on a car. Sometimes it is like she is my boss or something," my dad said.
"WE try to get as much done before Heather gets up in the morning or after she goes to sleep at night," my mom continues. "Washing dishes is one of the things that I do at a different time of day now. I try to do it after she goes to sleep because she likes to play in the water. She thinks she is a big help."
Along with changes in old chores comes new chores. Caring for a new child is a lot of work, and when my sister was born we all took on new responsibilities. Luckily our family is past the diaper and bottle stage. However other jobs remain like giving Heather baths, reading to her, playing with her, and babysitting.
"When you are babysitting her you have to keep her occupied. Usually she will stay quiet if you sit her in front of the television with a video tape in the machine," Michele said. "However sometimes you have to read or play games or take her for walks. But usually you do those things with her if you're not the only one watching her."
"I like giving her baths," Catie said. "She is really funny. She just has the best time playing with the bubbles. However when the bubbles disappear she starts splashing. This is the part I hate. I also like playing and reading to her, but she really tires me out."
CONCLUSION
Life in a big family isn't all fun and games. Especially when there is a small child in the family. It takes a lot of time, understanding, and patience. My family life is often busy, tiring and annoying. Everyday life in my family is a lot of work, as time goes on it probably will be less work. But probably not, I mean isn't life a lot of work? The work will just change as life goes by.
-My trip to New York to visit meine Lieblingsamanda
-My taste of life as a rockstar (or, me being a retarded karaoke singer)
That being said, I came home tonight to discover my parents poring over a box of old (read: ancient) pictures they discovered in our basement. When I say old, I mean OLD, as there are photo albums from my grandfather's stint in the army during World War I (yes, I did not omit the other 'I' accidentally). The thing that piqued my interest, however, is a writing piece from 1988, of which the subject is me. It is painful to read, not because I seem to have annoyed my entire family, but rather because of its repetitive nature and numerous grammatical errors and misspellings.
I encourage you to skip the writing piece, unless you really want to indulge in my self-centeredness (I just precedented that word).
CHANGES IN THE LIFE OF A LARGE FAMILY
INTRODUCTION
Life in a large family can be tough. Having to deal with people whose lifestyles clash with yours can really get on your nerves. But when you have to deal with them day after day, year after year, it can get really annoying. As the children get older they learn to deal with one another the best they can. However, arguments break out, but as time goes on they get farther apart.
Three years ago when my mother gave birth to my sister Heather, life changed in our family a lot. When Heather was born the ages of the other children were: Barbara 21, Michele 20, John 19, Gail 17, and Catie 14. During the past three years our family has had to learn to deal with living with a small child and five older brothers and sisters.
A lot of the changes that occurred were in our daily lives. The events that took place every day changed. We had to learn to deal with the changes in every day events, along with learning to deal with the new things we had to do.
SLEEP
There are four bedrooms in our house. One is my parents', one is my brother's, one is shared by me and Catie, and the fourth is shared by Barbara, Michele and Heather. The obvious change is that one bedroom is a little more crowded, however changes have occurred in everyone's sleeping.
"Our room is pretty crowded," Michele said. "Me and Barbara have a lot of stuff. Throwing an extra bed in our room just makes it a little more crowded."
"Sure it's a little more crowded but most of it isn't because of Heather. The only thing that she really has in our room is her bed," says Barbara. "The major difference for me is being woken up in the middle of the night. It is also pretty annoying to go upstairs and find everything from stuffed animals to food on your bed that Heather had put there during the day. Now that she has a bed she likes to climb out of her bed and into mine in the middle of the night. God, what a pain."
"That room is a nightmare. I don't know how many times I've tripped over things in that room when I've been woken up in the middle of the night," said my mom. "Luckily sleep has gotten back to the way it was befor eHeather was born for Tom and me. We used to have to get up and change her or feed her, but now she his just as happy to wake Barb up by climbing into her bed. Sleeping through the night is really nice."
Catie's outlook on sleep took on a different meaning. "I'm glad I don't live in that room. She used to wake me up a lot when she used to cry. I hate it when they send her in to wake me up. It isn't like she comes in the room and just wakes you up. She has to make sure you get out of bed. Usually it is much too early in the day for someone to be pulling on your arms and legs."
CAR TRIPS
Car trips can seem very long when there is a lot of people in the car. Other words that come to mind are hot, crowded and loud. Like most large families our family car has always been either a station wagon or a van. The large family car is definitely not made for comfort. With a car seat and a small child car trips can be described as hectic, noisy, crazy, and just plain work.
"Sometimes I just dread getting into the car with Heather," says Catie, "especially when there are a lot of people in the car. I don't like sitting in a car for very long when you can't move around. When Heather is in the car she takes up two seats, one for her car seat and one for her toys." Catie continues by elaborating on the toys, "you can't get into the car with her without her bringing at least one toy. It can be very annoying because if she drops her toy, or whatever she is playing with, she'll yell and scream until you pick it up for her. Sometimes she thinks it's funny and she will keep dropping it. I hate when she does that."
"Driving with Heather isn't really that bad," states Barbara. "Sometimes it can get noisy, and crowded, but not usually. I mean most of the time not everyone is in the car at the same time. The worst time in the car is when Heather gets yelling and everyone has a solution to the problem. Then everyone starts yelling at everyone else, which pisses off Dad."
"Trying to keep her occupied is the hard part," says Mom. "I usually have to bring some food with us. And of course Heather has to bring a few toys with her. Sometimes she puts her stuffed animals in different seats in the car. Then if you try to move them to sit down she gets upset. It can be really funny." Mom continues on how problems can occur even before a car ride starts, and even after it ends. "Since Heather was born you have to plan to leave about five to ten minutes before you actually do. Sometimes I have to struggle with her to put on her coat or to put her in the car seat. Sometimes I have to struggle to get her out of the car. Sometimes when we get home she likes to get into the driver's seat and pretend she is driving, or she likes to go to the back of the car and play with the spare tire. Car trips can be really trying."
"Trips in my car are a little different than in the family car," states my father. "I think it's because it is a smaller car and there is less to occupy her mind. Usually I just have to talk to her a little, or give her a snack."
CHORES
Chores are definitely a part of everyday life. When there is a small child in the house, chores can and do change. Simple everyday type of jobs can take a lot more time. Or the time of day you may do a chore can change. Chores can get really nervewracking because Heather thinks that things can't be done without her help.
"It can get really hard to try to do something around the house," says my mom. "I can try to cook and Heather will be right there. Especially when I'm cooking I have to keep an eye on her so she doesn't pick up a knife or something like that. She thinks she can help, but she usually becomes an obstacle. She likes to know everything that is going on."
"Sometimes it is like she is a foreman or something. She has to supervise everything, from Julie cooking to me working on a car. Sometimes it is like she is my boss or something," my dad said.
"WE try to get as much done before Heather gets up in the morning or after she goes to sleep at night," my mom continues. "Washing dishes is one of the things that I do at a different time of day now. I try to do it after she goes to sleep because she likes to play in the water. She thinks she is a big help."
Along with changes in old chores comes new chores. Caring for a new child is a lot of work, and when my sister was born we all took on new responsibilities. Luckily our family is past the diaper and bottle stage. However other jobs remain like giving Heather baths, reading to her, playing with her, and babysitting.
"When you are babysitting her you have to keep her occupied. Usually she will stay quiet if you sit her in front of the television with a video tape in the machine," Michele said. "However sometimes you have to read or play games or take her for walks. But usually you do those things with her if you're not the only one watching her."
"I like giving her baths," Catie said. "She is really funny. She just has the best time playing with the bubbles. However when the bubbles disappear she starts splashing. This is the part I hate. I also like playing and reading to her, but she really tires me out."
CONCLUSION
Life in a big family isn't all fun and games. Especially when there is a small child in the family. It takes a lot of time, understanding, and patience. My family life is often busy, tiring and annoying. Everyday life in my family is a lot of work, as time goes on it probably will be less work. But probably not, I mean isn't life a lot of work? The work will just change as life goes by.