Who is that crazy woman yelling? Oh, it's me.

I am trying to stop yelling at my kids so much.  I feel like I spend half my time with them angry and with the ugly scream face on.  They are 2, things are going to be crazy and I gotta learn to roll with it.  Pick my battles.  But, I'm having a little trouble deciding which battles to choose.  I may have over reacted to Thing 2 trying (and succeeding) in eating cheese and bread crumbs off a raw pork chop - it's gross, but not likely to kill him.  A firm spanking was not over-reacting when he let himself out onto the watery, snowy back patio in his socks while I putting laundry in the dryer.  

It's potty time and taking off the diapers that are making me crazy.  How do people stand the constant cries of wanting to go to the potty?  I can feel my blood pressure rising each and every time we go into the bathroom.  It doesn't help that we have a cramped, narrow bathroom and putting a step stool and two potty chairs in it has made it an obstacle course.  Or that it's the hottest room in the house because the door stays shut all the time.  

Picking my battles and deciding what to freak out over  is proving hard.  All I know is that the Hub told me tonight I need to quit being so angry all the time and I'm sure my poor kiddos will need therapy later because 'mommy was cuckoo.'

I cringe at the words "ucky poop"

All I want to do is get the boys ready for day care so I can come home and get ready for work.  The Hubs usually is the one taking them to daycare since I work obscenely early hours.  Today, I'm working later to help out a sick co-worker and I get drop off duty.  

Up at 0600 and immediately the cries of "potty, potty" begin.  Thing 2 wants to be potty trained but isn't completely ready.  I've talked about his lack of focus in FB posts and last week he fell of the big potty and blacked his right eye because he hit the little potty.  That kid can't sit still for 2 seconds.  Up and down, big potty, little potty, on and off 10 times in the span of a couple of minutes.  Finally he squeezed out a few drops and LOVES dumping it in the big potty to flush.  He loves it so much that he proceeded to squeezed out a little pee 3 mores times so he could dump it.  

Enough, I say.  Outta of bathroom, I say.  Get your diaper back on, I say.  That diaper lasted about 5 minutes till he was yelling for the potty again.  Repeat of our last visit minus the droplets of pee.  Back to the living room for a diaper.  Then he goes off to play.  Of course, 5 minutes later he comes to me and says, "Ucky poop Mommy."  Yep, indeed there is yucky poop in the toy room floor.  Thank the good Lord above that it was the kind you could pick up with a baby wipe and not the kind that sinks into the carpet.

All the while Thing 1 is contentedly watching Dora.  He's in a Dora trance.  I change his poopy diaper while he watches Dora from the couch.  He's oblivious to me until I try to slip pants on him, then he comes alive!  "No pants, Mommy!  No pants!"  The chase is on and the threats begin.  

  

This is Thing 1's "No Pants" face!

Sleep. Or my lack of it.

The boys are not good sleepers.  Never have been.  The Hubs and I have spent the last 2 years hoping that when people say 'once they are this age or that age it will get better' it will be true.  I think we've come to the conclusion that it is a lie.  

I don't think our friends purposely have deceived us; I just think they are better parents than us.  Well, better parents in the sleep category especially.  Crying it out has not been very popular in our house.  I'm especially quick to run grab up a crying child because I don't want 2 crying children up in the middle of the night.  

It's gotten quite a bit better since we moved and put the kids in separate bedrooms.  Knowing Thing 2's propensity for getting through all gates and doors in his way, I have door knob covers on the inside of both their bedroom doors so they can't wander.  I still had to put duct tape on the covers because he figured out how to pop them off in about 10 minutes the first time I tried them.  I was hopeful that once they realized they couldn't got any where they would get back in bed, but instead they start to cry, then they call for "mama", and if I haven't opened their door at that point the banging begins.

My attempts at blogging!

I've been posting about my boys on my facebook page for 2 years.   Each time I post some fantastical status a couple of my friends tell me I should write a blog.  Maybe so, maybe not, but I'm going to attempt to entertain and enlighten those of you who choose to read my muttering.

In the past several days I've posted about the pooptastrophe that took place in the Thing 2's bedroom, the multiple ways he has attempted (and succeeded) to get access to the downstairs sink, and his sudden discovery that he can open the sliding doors.  

I have little to say today.  I sent the boys to daycare so I could take my BLS recert test and shop for Easter/picture wear.  I did get them adorable matching sweater vests.  I wanted to buy them these cute little plaid caps, but neither of them will wear a hat other than a winter beanie.  I got them metal Easter egg pails that lasted about 10 minutes once I got home and let them have them.  Yeah, those are going back and being replaced with plastic or foam ones, something not quite so weapon like.