No time to say "no"...
Today I decided to say "yes" instead.
"Mommy, mommy we can color the whole book? Not just one tiny page?" Alex whines. I always tell him "Ok but just one page and then I have to finish phone calls.". We color and color and color...and giggle and make faces and talk about snacks. I find out he likes snacks but not supper and thinks we should stop having supper instead and replace it with three snacks. He colors Elmo red and then looks at me coloring Oscar the Grouch pink and sighs and tells me that he's green and I'm wrong. I tell him there is no wrong and in my mind even Oscar can be pink and sometimes he even smiles. "Oh mommy, don't be silly. Oscar could never smile. He's a Grouch!" But he stops halfway through coloring in Cookie Monster, puts down his blue crayon, and reaches for the yellow.
"Will you watch a movie with me momma?" Jarod begs. He asks every night, when was the last time I said I would? If I can't remember it's been too long. I'm trying to get a stain out of three different shirts but I put them down, grab my tea, sit down next to him, and put my feet up. Ahhh, how nice it is to relax and sip my tea instead of gulp it. How wonderful to watch Jarod laugh at Steve Martin. I pretend I have no idea what's going on so he explains the plot to me, he's "wrong" but his version of the plot and characters are so much better. If they had consulted him about the script it would have been a block buster.
"Mom, can you talk to me while I finish my writing?" Rebecca asks? I look at the huge load of laundry on my bed and know that if I don't get to it right now I'll be up until the wee hours finishing it up. I start to say "Not tonight, I'm too busy." but I think about how fast she's growing and there won't be many more nights. I sit down and we chat about gross stuff, she loves all things icky. Tonight she says she wants to be a contestant on fear factor or Survivor because she would win and I agree. We talk about her birthday and she says she doesn't want a party she just wants to do something with her new best friend. We think about it and finally come up with the perfect day. She's happy and excited.
I didn't finish my phone calls.
The shirts are still stained.
The laundry still waits.
But three kids went to bed content tonight, with smiles on their faces.
My true "job" was accomplished.
I need to remember to say YES! more often.
"Mommy, mommy we can color the whole book? Not just one tiny page?" Alex whines. I always tell him "Ok but just one page and then I have to finish phone calls.". We color and color and color...and giggle and make faces and talk about snacks. I find out he likes snacks but not supper and thinks we should stop having supper instead and replace it with three snacks. He colors Elmo red and then looks at me coloring Oscar the Grouch pink and sighs and tells me that he's green and I'm wrong. I tell him there is no wrong and in my mind even Oscar can be pink and sometimes he even smiles. "Oh mommy, don't be silly. Oscar could never smile. He's a Grouch!" But he stops halfway through coloring in Cookie Monster, puts down his blue crayon, and reaches for the yellow.
"Will you watch a movie with me momma?" Jarod begs. He asks every night, when was the last time I said I would? If I can't remember it's been too long. I'm trying to get a stain out of three different shirts but I put them down, grab my tea, sit down next to him, and put my feet up. Ahhh, how nice it is to relax and sip my tea instead of gulp it. How wonderful to watch Jarod laugh at Steve Martin. I pretend I have no idea what's going on so he explains the plot to me, he's "wrong" but his version of the plot and characters are so much better. If they had consulted him about the script it would have been a block buster.
"Mom, can you talk to me while I finish my writing?" Rebecca asks? I look at the huge load of laundry on my bed and know that if I don't get to it right now I'll be up until the wee hours finishing it up. I start to say "Not tonight, I'm too busy." but I think about how fast she's growing and there won't be many more nights. I sit down and we chat about gross stuff, she loves all things icky. Tonight she says she wants to be a contestant on fear factor or Survivor because she would win and I agree. We talk about her birthday and she says she doesn't want a party she just wants to do something with her new best friend. We think about it and finally come up with the perfect day. She's happy and excited.
I didn't finish my phone calls.
The shirts are still stained.
The laundry still waits.
But three kids went to bed content tonight, with smiles on their faces.
My true "job" was accomplished.
I need to remember to say YES! more often.