More than just a haircut- an awakening!

Before- blahhhhhhhhhhh

Last Friday afternoon I went to get my first hair cut in about a year. That's right, a year. I have been feeling rather frumpy lately. My hair had gotten CRAZY long and I spent almost everyday with my hair pulled back. I was starting to feel like one of those people who gets turned into a talk show for their lazy looks and lack of fashion. It was quite possible that Tyra or Maury was gonna show up at my door for an embarrassing confrontation about letting myself go and loving myself more. Ugh.

I am very particular about where I get my hair cut. I know that's probably silly to some of you who go to Hair Cuttery or dare to cut your own hair, but I like for my trips to the salon to be an EXPERIENCE. I want to leave feeling like a new woman. I want someone to offer me coffee or water. I want a wonderful relaxing head massage while I get my hair washed. I want to chat with my hair dresser about life and just relax. I want to come out looking forty pounds lighter. These things aren't too much to ask are they?

So, I made my appointment at my salon. I don't have a regular hair dresser because I don't go enough to have one. I just asked for the first available appointment. The only person available was, of course, a senior stylist...a.k.a.  the more expensive stylist. It was going to cost me fifty bucks to get this frumpy haired girl back into shape. It was more than I wanted to spend, but I justified  the fifty dollars because I don't go except for once a year, evidently.

The appointment was for 5:00 in the afternoon. I was going to take Ruby with me. Ben was leaving work early to get his hair cut too.He was going to some sports clips place. They get him in and out pretty fast. He really doesn't care for the fluff  that I crave, but he enjoys going to the places with sports on little t.v.'s in front of him. He would be there by 5:00 or shortly there after, to take her and give me my much desired salon experience. They usually make you wait for a while anyway, so I wasn't concerned about her being with me for a few minutes.


WRONG! The moment I walked in the beautiful salon doors with Ruby, my stylist was at the front desk waiting for me. I could see the panic in her eyes as I struggled with Ruby chasing after her to keep her from touching everything in site. "My husband will be here in just a moment to get her," I assured the beautiful stylist. "Ohh it's fine! ( Translation- What are you doing lady? This is no place for a kid!) What are we doing today?" she said running her hands through my blah hair. Out of breath, still chasing Ruby, and feeling a bit like an idiot, the honesty came pouring out of me, " I have no idea. I just know I need something. It is ridiculously long. I feel frumpy and ugly. I just need to feel better. I don't care what you do. I just don't have a ton of time to mess with it. RUBY! Stay with mommy!" The stylist assured me she could help ( THANK THE LORD!) and we headed back to the sinks for my favorite part. The Shampoo!!!


It should have been nice and relaxing. It was supposed to help me relax and feel better. But instead... It was, "No, you can't get down. Why don't we sing a song? Can you sing your ABC's? No, since when are you shy? ha ha ha, ummm What is that lady doing to mommy? That's right! She's washing mommy's hair! No, you can't get down. Daddy will be here in a minute. Ruby, if you are a good girl, I bet they will give you one of those nice balloons." Ugh. WHERE WAS BEN? The stylist found some suckers. We gave her one as we moved to the cutting chair. I could feel my dream haircut experience slipping away.


I spent the next 30 minutes, trying to keep Ruby still with every bribe I could think of. The child had so many suckers that when she put her hands on her face, they actually got stuck. She thought that was funny, so for the next 5 minutes, she would put her hands on her cheeks and peel them off. The hair dresser was GREAT. She asked one of the other ladies to take Ruby for a minute so she could cut the front of my hair. But before she could blow dry it, I had to ask her to stop so I could give Ruby a potty break. The last thing I needed was a pee spot on the floor.

I came back after the potty break and the stylist started blow drying my hair. She did her best to keep my rambunctious darling happy by blowing air on her face every now and then. Ruby was just about to send me into orbit, when ( insert Hallelujah  Chorus here) BEN CAME!!!!! I gladly handed her off to him, sat back in the chair and took the biggest breath. I apologized again and again to my stylist. She was wonderful," Please, I understand! I was a single mom for many years." Huh? This girl can't be much older than me. How many kids could she have? " I have 3 kids and I had to do it all by myself. I had to make things work. So, don't feel bad. This was fine. I can deal with anything." THREE KIDS? Really! " How old are your kids?" I asked her. "15, 13 and 10." WHAT??? I asked the next obvious question but added a compliment first so it wouldn't offend her, "Wow! You don't look old enough to have kids that age. How old are you?" "I'm 31! I had my daughter when I was 15 and my second 2 years later. I was young a stupid."

She explained that she had been on her own since she was about 14. She had a serious boyfriend and decided she needed to have a baby. She had planned her teenage pregnancy, not once, but twice! She had to figure out how to finish school and get her styling license. She said she believed in herself  and never listened to the people who told her she would never amount to anything. She realized it was a poor decision now, but she wasn't going let anyone tell her that she couldn't be successful just because she chose to have children so young.

After                  

She finished up my hair cut and turned me around. I looked amazing! I felt so much better and I looked like me again. My spirits were lifted. Even though I didn't get the full pampered experience, I did feel like a new woman. I realized just from getting my hair cut just how depressed I had been feeling lately. I really didn't even realize that I was feeling down, until I felt a little better. Part of me feeling down has to do with being inside all of the time because it is soooo cold and snowy here this winter. I get a little of that every year. I am realizing though that there is more to my wintry blues. I am not sure quite what it is. I am still feeling a bit lost.

I would love to have some of that confidence that my hairdresser had.The confidence not to care what anyone thinks about me and to find value in myself by myself. I think I've lost a bit of that since leaving "the work place". Believe me, I know that what I do everyday is REAL work and I shouldn't feel less because I am home with kids. Anyone who doesn't believe me can certainly try a day in my shoes. However, there is this feeling I get when someone asks, "What are you doing for a living these days?" I wouldn't say I feel shame, because I am happy with my decision to stay home and keep kids. I don't know what word would describe it best. Maybe you can tell me. I have just noticed that once I say, " I keep kids out of my home." or "I'm home with Ruby and I watch other children so I can stay home." the conversation stops.


When people asked me about my job when I was a music teacher, there was always a bunch of follow up questions. Like:

What age do you teach?
What instrument do you play?
Voice, so does that mean you teach chorus?
How is it working in schools?
Do you have trouble with parents?
Do you give grades?

I could go on and on. But now, most of the time I could hear crickets chirp. At most I here:


Daycare?
How many kids?
WOW!


AAAAND that's pretty much it. I guess wiping poop and snot isn't exactly a great conversation keeper. I shouldn't take it personally. If you don't have kids, you won't get it. If you have kids, you're already dealing with it, so you don't want to hear me talk about it.

Before-borrringgggg

It is amazing that a haircut has made me realize that I have been feeling down. My stylist even commented on how tired and weighed down I looked when I came to see her. She told me I looked younger too. I did look younger. I noticed that before she even said anything.

 After- ahhh so much better

So, which came first? Did feeling down lead to me neglecting myself and becoming frumpy? Or did becoming frumpy lead to neglecting myself more and feeling down? Maybe it's both. Maybe it's a cycle. All I for sure is, I felt like a million bucks when she was done. I am positive I was in a better mood the next day, which means I was probably a better mom and child care provider.The moral of the story is... I need to take better care of myself,I need to believe in myself AND... I should never take Ruby to the salon with me again!

AND one more After just for fun! That's right!ohhh yeah!

Silly me!

Happy Friday Follow everyone!

The Great Day!

I was having a great day! I really was. The kids were in a good mood. We had done some fun sponge painting and gluing shapes to make cards. Bell's sister had her tonsils out and we wanted to make her feel better. The kids were into the card making and were having a blast. I was so pleased with the cards, they were precious and I knew A would just love them!
The kids had destroyed the playroom in what seemed like seconds. They weren't being bad, they were just playing so, I just let them play. Getting them to clean up is usually a challenge. They loose focus and start playing with the toys again. But today, they were on task and cleaned everything up. They were so happy with themselves. They new exactly where everything went and if someone didn't, another one would show them. It was soo great! I was having a great day!

I decided to reward the kids with some quality Tent Time.If you don't have a tent, I highly recommend it.  For Christmas Ruby got this little pop up tent. I love it because the kids just go crazy for it! I make sure I keep it as a treat toy and not an everyday toy, so it won't loose it's hypnotic quality.  They run in and out of the tent. They love how it makes their hair stand up from the static. They push on it and knock it over and put it back up again. This tent can take a beating. The best part is if their behavior gets out of control, all I have to do is say I'm going to  take it down and the kids are instant angels.

So, some tent time was in order for the kids hard work on the cards. Plus, it was Friday and I was feeling generous.  All was wonderful in the land of children, but then... BOOM! The disaster bomb exploded and I had three children with three different problems at once.

It started with K, who was running like a spastic monkey in and out of the tent. He forgot that he left his socks on his feet when he took off his shoes. SMACK! Face to the hardwood floor. The wind up cry began as pushed air and quickly escalated to siren mode. No big deal. I'm a pro. I have handled bumps and bruises many many times. I began trying to get him to calm down enough to figure out whether this fall required ice or just some hugs and kisses. K requested ice himself and I was headed to get it for him when... Ruby came running to me to tell me, "Potty, Potty! I go potty." At first I was pleased she was remembering to tell me she needed to go, but then I saw her pants were wet. UGH!

So,K is still crying Ruby is standing legs spread yelling at me to help her and Bells is still in the tent which evidently was the scene of the accident. I rush to get Bells out of the tent and step in a second puddle of pee on the way. I ignore my own pee foot and grab Bells, who has luckily avoided the first pee puddle. Bells begins her cat fight sounding scream because I am removing her from the tent. I put Bells on the couch telling her not to move because there is pee pee on the floor. She calms down and sits for me. "Thank you Bells!" K is still at my leg begging for ice and Ruby is still walking around legs apart because she is covered in urine.

" K, you are fine. I will get you ice in just a minute. Ruby had an accident and I need to help her get on the potty first. Then, I promise, I will get you ice." K agrees still crying a bit. "Thank you K!" Okay, two kids were under control, so I dealt with Ruby so she didn't have to sit in her pee pants anymore. I put her on the potty to see if there was anything more for her to do that wasn't already on the floor. "Ruby, sit here and go potty, I am going to help K get ice for his boo boo. DON"T MOVE!"

I walked to the kitchen to grab K's ice pack. I handed to him just in time to hear Ruby scream, "BELLS BITING ME!!!!" I walk around the corner, to see bells leaving the bathroom. I walk into the bathroom where Ruby is still on the potty. She wasn't crying anymore, but she was still claiming Bells bit her. "Where?"  Ruby responded, "On the leg! It hurt!" Sure enough, there was a nice round circle of teeth marks on her leg. "Why did she bite you?"Sometimes Ruby provokes things, but I couldn't figure out how she could have done that from the toilet. "On the leg!" "No, I know she bit you on the leg, why?" "On the leg!Right here mommy," Ruby said with a bit of disgust. "Never-mind. Bells! Get in here." Bells answered in her perky voice," Okay! I comin!"

Ruby was still sitting on the toilet, Bells is at the bathroom door, I'm sitting on the step stool in front of Ruby and K is peeking around the corner. "Did you bite Ruby?" "Yeah!",Bells says with a smile. "Bells, are we supposed to bite?" "Yeah!", she says with the same smile. "Noooooo ma'am. We do not bite! That is ugly." Bells finally responds with a worried face,"yeah." YES! I'm making progress, "What do you say?" Bells quickly returns to her smiley face and says," Thank you!" UGH. It's sooo frustrating talking to two year olds sometimes. " No, not thank you. You say sorry when you hurt someone." "Sorry," she responded still smiling. " You need to go sit in time out." "Okay!" Bells answers and almost skips off to time out.

Finally, I get to clean up Ruby, my own pee foot, the puddles on the floor, and the tent ( which wiped up VERY easily, I must say. I love that tent!). I had broken a sweat and was as exhausted as I would be if I had run a marathon. I was having the most amazing day, and then in less than 10 minutes, I felt as if I had just been through world war three. I tried hard to shake it off and get back to happy. I knew that if I was in a bad mood, the kids would feed off of me ( see post "Snappy Attack) SO, I put on some party music and we danced. Instead of feeling defeated, I decide to celebrate my accomplishment of handling everything like a pro. " Good job! Jessica! Now get your groove on!"

It seems silly to pat myself on the back like that, but there is no one else here to do it. I don't have a boss who is watching me handle these high stress situations. I certainly won't get a promotion. I won't get a pay raise either. I have to learn to reward myself and be proud of myself. That's hard for me. I am a person who needs a lot of "attaboys!" I know I am high maintenance in that way. That's one thing I wasn't prepared for as a mom and a daycare provider. Sometimes, it is a thankless job and I have to just thank myself. I also had to learn to laugh at these things. At the time I am in the middle of them, I feel tight chested and stressed, but I try to remember to breathe and laugh. These are the moments I need to remember and cherish. They will be gone soo soon.

I saw this video on a blog I follow called Perfecting Imperfection. I happened to see it on the day that all of the drama above happened. It really puts things in perspective. Get a tissue and Enjoy!






.

The Gift that keeps on giving. Blogging

Since I have become a blogger writer, I have also become a blog reader. I love to read other peoples blogs and learn from them. I love to hear their thoughts about things. I love to hear about where they live and what goes on in their life. I guess it is a little voyeuristic of me, but there is something very therapeutic about it for me.

Some of these fellow bloggers have become followers of mine too and we have developed a little online friendship that I just adore. We can laugh with each other, provide some much needed prayer and encouragement, and we can even dole out advice as needed. It doesn't matter that we are hundreds of miles away, we can grow from each other though posting and commenting.

Each blogger has his or her own strengths. Some are funny. Some are very insightful. Some are technical. Some are creative. The best part is that each one of them is willing to share a piece of themselves and their talents with me and the rest of the world. How wonderful!

I am especially grateful because most days my adult interaction is limited to a five or ten minute conversation when Bell's or K's parents come to drop them off or pick them up. Until I started blogging and blog reading, my poor husband got bombarded by me when he walked in the door. "How was your day? Why did they do that? When's the bid due? What's re-bar(spelling)?" All of the sudden construction management was the MOST exciting subject to me.  Please don't be offended if you like and understand all of that stuff. My point is, that is not the norm for me. I knew it and Ben knew it.

So on this Friday Follow, I would like to thank my blogging community for letting me into your lives. Thanks for sharing the private pieces of your life. Thanks for making me think about something other than diapers, letters, number, and sippy cups. Thank you for making me laugh. Thank you for keeping me inspired to work on my posts and try new things. Thanks for reading my posts and making comments.Thank you for not judging me based on my terrible spelling and possible grammar mistakes.

Thank you for Being YOU! 

Happy Friday Follow blogger Friends! Readers and Writers too!

Take a look around and as we like to say in the South ( Yes, Virginia IS still the south)...

Y'all come back now ya' hear!?

Having Fun with Letter P! And the first installment of YOU GOTTA SEE THIS!

This past week we celebrated the letter P. P is such a GREAT letter. There are so many things to do with the letter P. In fact, P maybe my new favorite letter. I never really had a favorite letter, but I do now! I bet after reading this, it may be your favorite too!

Celebrating letter P this week we got to eat PANCAKES! My kids LOVE pancakes. We have them quite a bit, but we never had a reason to celebrate it before! They also had peach yogurt which was another nice P word. I know Banana doesn't start with P, but they needed some fresh fruit, and that was all I had. SO, we had PIECES of banana??? Come on people... give it to me. I know I'm stretching!

We also enjoyed some painting! This was a huge hit. I cut sponges into different shapes and the kids used them almost as stamps. They had brushes too. It was very self directed art. All of the work turned out very differently.  They glued the letter P on the paper first, but that was the only part of the project that was the same. Everything else came from their creative spirits. And my little ones are VERY creative!

And let's not forget P is for Play dough!!!

 

 Here is a little peek into our fantastic P is for Pajama Day circle time.

We had a picnic and a movie! With healthy pretzels and veggies. Our pet Dozer decided to join us. After all, P is for PET too!

But there is no question what was the kid's favorite part of our week of celebrating the letter P...

P is for Pizza with Papa!

 

 My dad came to have pizza with the kids. My mom came too, but P is not for Gamaw!!! So, she was a nice bonus surprise for the kiddies. The kids had a great time with Papa. He even took the time to read a little bit to the kids. The kids were all piled on top of him. At one point he couldn't even see to read. It was quite a hoot! 

Here is a small bit of his participation with our P celebration!

It was a great week of celebrating the letter P! 

YOU GOTTA SEE THIS!

 I decided to add a new section where I could highlight some great pictures and videos. I have found that sometimes I have videos and pictures that I think you will enjoy, but they don't necessarily go with a blog post. So, here  is the first installment of YOU GOTTA SEE THIS! ENJOY!

This first one is my niece A. She is Bell's older sister. She decided she wanted to look like a clown, and this is what that looked like to her. Notice the face when her mommy asks her if she is sorry. The answer is clearly no! She isn't.

 

In case you were wondering... It didn't come off and she did have to go like that to school.
 Sad Clown, not really

Too Cute not to share... Here is Bell's belting out Happy Birthday with her play dough birthday cake! 

I tried to add this video a while a go when I was talking about all of Ruby's amazing qualities. She is quite the little actress and here is the video to prove it.  Bells and another little one that I use to keep are in it too. They are quite the little hams!

Friday Follow is BACK!

YEAHHHHH IT"S FRIDAY!!! 

It's P is for Pajama Day at my house today! I think we'll have an in door picnic and eat pancakes to celebrate!I'll be posting more about our letter P week which will include some GREAT pictures from Pizza with Papa( aka-my dad)! Come back and check out my new P post tomorrow! 

But for today...

Friday Follow is back! This is my 3rd week participating and I am really enjoying reading the new blogs that pop up on the list each week. I love getting new followers too! It's an awesome idea for bloggers to check out other blogs and learn.  It is also great for blog readers too! Readers can find new blogs to enjoy! So, Show your support and participate in your own way.

Here is how it works for Bloggers!

--Link up your blog name and URL using the MckLinky below. Only need to add on one blog to be seen on all the blog hops.

 --Follow the Friday Follow hostesses listed in the first 3 slots. 

--Follow as many blogs as you'd like.

--Take a moment to comment on the blogs telling them you're from Friday Follow.

--Follow back when you get a new follower through Friday Follow.

The Blog Hop is the same at each of our three hosts blogs so you do not have to add your blog at each site. Just one - but you can follow each blog. Follow a few or follow them all.

The list is new each week. The links do not carry over. Please link up each week for new participants to find your blogs. The list is only open to add your blog links on Fridays. It will be visible all week to visit the blogs listed.

Due to the overwhelming number of entries each week, we understand everyone may not be able to follow every blog including ourselves. To keep it fun, follow what you can at your own pace. We appreciate your understanding and thank you for your continued participation!"

Snappy Attack.

Sometimes, I feel a little Snappy. 

 Not a good Snappy.

Not the kind of snappy to describe music.

Not the kind of snappy to describe an outfit. 

No, I feel the BAD, Snappy. 

The... grumpy kind of Snappy.

The... I woke up on the wrong side of the bed Snappy.

The... I need MORE COFFEE ,Snappy.

The... NO, I am not in the mood, Snappy.

The... DO what your mother told you, Snappy.  

I don't like when Snappy rears her ugly head.

I am positive no one else likes Snappy.

I can feel a Snappy attack coming.

I try to stop the Snappy attack.

But sometimes, a little Snappy sneaks out.

Snappy is contagious.

If I feel a little Snappy, 

Everyone feels a little Snappy!

A little Snappy becomes VERY Snappy.

Go away Snappy!  

I need to stop the Snappy attack!

I know! Where's the Chocolate??

A poopy poopy poopy poopy day! Literally!

I apologize in advance for the poopy  topic, but I KNOW someone out there has either dealt with this, or will deal with it. Perhaps this blog will be helpful to them. Maybe your comments can be helpful to me. And for those of you who don't have kids, you can just laugh at the fact that I am dealing with this and you aren't. I will do my best to talk about this the least gross and most tactful way I can. I can't believe I am writing this, but I am. Here it goes!

For the almost 2 weeks now, Ruby has been in big girl underwear. She has been really great going pee pee in the potty, but was saving all of her BMs for nap time or overnight. I noticed things getting getting more and more runny ( you know what I mean). I was a little concerned, but I there was no change in her behavior and she never had a fever. Every once in a while she would say her tummy hurt. I would encourage her to go poop to feel better, but she never would.

Well yesterday, things got worse. It was a poopy poopy day! Ruby had 3 BM accidents in the morning and 1 in the afternoon. Each time, I had to put her in the shower, clean her up, and do laundry. At that point I started to really worry that she was sick or something was REALLY wrong. She was obviously caught off guard by the episodes when they happened and she was VERY embarrassed.  So, I called the doctors office and spoke to the nurse.

The nurse was very helpful. She told me that it could be a bug, but she was willing to bet that all of this upset stomach was due to Ruby refusing to go to the bathroom. Stool- holding syndrome??? She said that if it didn't get better Ruby was going to have to get put on a stool softener. UGH! She said to put her on the potty and just let her sit for a long time. THAT is no easy task with Ruby. She cries and cries and says she is all done. I feel like I am just making things worse and that I will scar her about going potty for life.

So, we have to increase fiber, lay off of the milk, and encourage pooping. LOVELY! We'll see how it goes. I guess my little darling really is full of it! I just hope this gets better soon. ANY advice or sympathy would be greatly appreciated.  Today has been a less poopy day. I would have thought that was a good thing, but now I am not sure! OHHHHH. Ruby, Ruby, Ruby! I love you girl, but seriously I'm tired of dealing with your poop! No pun intended... maybe just a little.

Valentines Day Disaster

If you have been following my blog, you know that each week I focus on a new letter with my daycare kids. This week I did not pick the obvious letter V for Valentines Day. Instead, I decided to do the second most obvious letter H for heart. I figured doing the letter H for heart would be more fun and easier to comprehend than V for Valentine. If the kids were out and about with their parents, they would no doubt see hearts up as decorations. It would be a fantastic opportunity to focus on a shape and a few basic colors.

We started out our week doing our normal letter activities. We hopped on one foot. We made out bodies into the shape of the letter H ( This letter was a little tricky.) We colored the letter H, a house, and a heart shaped hot air balloon. We read H books like Hop on Pop, Humpty Dumpty, and In a People House (These books are available in my store as well some others). We danced to Valentines Day songs. We sang a song about a heart. The kids brought in H items in the letter bag.

Here is K proudly showing off his Hulk action figure.

Bells pretending to eat the toy hamburger she brought in.

Ruby is enjoying the fuzzy hat that Bells brought in for her H item.





Finally, it was the end of the week and I had BIG plans for our Valentines Day celebration. When it comes to holidays, I try to have things...no, I OBSESS about things being perfect.Not just for the daycare kids, but even in my family life. Christmas, Halloween, and Easter all have to be AMAZING. And I wanted this to be no different. So, I stayed up very late getting things ready for the kids. It was going to be perfect. I had visions in my head of a whole day of HEART filled fun. From the moment my little ones walked into the house it would be valentine and heart central!

The kids would eat hearts for breakfast!

And they would eat hearts at lunch!

They would make Amazing heart filled valentine cards.

They would sing and dance to Valentines Day songs.

They would exchange their Valentines Day cards and treats.

And at the end of their heart-filled day of fun, they would get to take home their homemade heart shaped crayons. Or would they...

DISASTER!!!!!!!!!

Are

YOU

KIDDING ME??????

I had just spent and hour and a half pealing the paper off of old broken crayons to create the PERFECT Valentines Day treat. WHAT HAPPENED???

Well, lets go back to earlier that day when I scored these AWESOME silicone trays in the dollar spot at Target. The trays were in the exact same place I had found the muffin tray I had used before to make our circle crayons. Unfortunately, I was so excited to find them that I never paid attention to what packaging said.

 

ICE CUBE TRAYS!!!!!!

I

 Ugh! So, there would be no crayons for the kids to take home as favors.

Angry and heart broken I cleaned up, sprayed some air freshener to get rid of the putrid burned plastic smell and crawled into bed. 

As you can see from the pictures above, everything else went perfectly and the kids did have an unbelievable Valentines Day celebration. No, they didn't get to take home the crayons I wanted them to have, but their Valentines Day cards turned out amazing and they were soooo proud!

 

Happy Valentines Day Everyone!

Friday Follow is back!!!
I love Friday Follow! Here my 2nd week of Friday Follow the 5th week for the hosts. Come join the party. I loved reading and following all of the blogs last week. I hope you find something else you like here too!

Welcome to the Friday Follow celebration hosted by One 2 Try, Hearts Make Families and Midday Escapades! We invite you to join us every Friday to get more blog followers and to follow other interesting blogs. It is all about sharing and having fun.

Here's how YOU can join the celebration:

--Link up your blog name and URL using the MckLinky below. Only need to add on one blog to be seen on all the blog hops.

 --Follow the Friday Follow hostesses listed in the first 3 slots. 

--Follow as many blogs as you'd like.

--Take a moment to comment on the blogs telling them you're from Friday Follow.

--Follow back when you get a new follower through Friday Follow.

The Blog Hop is the same at each of our three hosts blogs so you do not have to add your blog at each site. Just one - but you can follow each blog. Follow a few or follow them all.

The list is new each week. The links do not carry over. Please link up each week for new participants to find your blogs. The list is only open to add your blog links on Fridays. It will be visible all week to visit the blogs listed.

Please be patient with following or getting followers. With the tremendous response there are a lot to visit. The Mcklinky will stay here all week so you can visit blogs at your own pace.

What's wrong with Mommy?

The snow is melting and life is getting back to normal around here. I enjoyed the days of playing in the snow and hanging out with Ruby, but we were both ready for her playmates to come back. Being here with her alone was far more difficult than I expected it to be. I thought these snow days would be lazy pajama filled days of cuddling, playing and resting. Instead I got whining, grumpy, indecisive, and ALWAYS hungry Ruby. It was annoying. I feel terrible saying that about my own precious child, but it's true she was a real pain in the rear.

It was beyond frustrating trying to keep her happy. She would ask for a toy to play with and I would go and get it for her. When I returned with the toy SHE had requested, I was met with GRUMPY RUBY (grrrrrr)! GRUMPY RUBY would look at me with disgust and then throw her self into a heap on the floor. Face down, she would yell/whine, " No, I don't want the toy! Don't want it!" UGH!

Next, I would try to figure out what would be the thing to keep her happy. Here is a scene from the possible one act drama, What's wrong with Mommy?

Me: "How about coloring? Would you like to color?"
GRUMPY RUBY : No!!!! I don't want color! I don't like a color!
Me: Here Ruby, let's play with the puzzles! Help mommy play with the puzzles.
GRUMPY RUBY: ( whining voice- similar to nails on a chalk board) Ehh hu, Ehhh hu! I sooo tired.
Me: ( slightly upbeat and hopeful voice) You wanna go night night?
GRUMPY RUBY: ( throws self in heap on floor, face down) I don't waaaaannna go night night! No, No Yogurt Drink! Yogurt Drink!
Me: We are all out of yogurt drinks Ruby.
Grumpy Ruby: ( still face down, whining voice escalates) NOOO! YOGGGGUUURT!
Me: ( takes deep breath) Ruby, stop whining or I am going to put you in time out. We don't talk to mommy that way. Stand Up. Look at mommy, take a deep breath. Tell mommy what you want.
GRUMPY RUBY: (Hug) Sorry mommy
Me: Thank you Ruby. Now, what do you want to play with?
Returning to normal Ruby: I want the toy. ( points to original toy that started the fit)
Me: ( twitches and shakes) Here! ( Walks away twitching and shaking mumbling about a head ache.)

AND SCENE!

I know I am not the only one out there, who went through this. I was on the phone with Bell's mom, Sonia. She didn't sound much better than me. She too admitted that she might go insane if there was much more of the bickering and whining at her house. My dear friend Sarah said she was soooo ready to go back to work after dealing with her little darling. We are all great moms, but we just needed a break.

SO, While I LOVE the alone time with my sweet Ruby, I did NOT enjoy the extended visits of......
GRUMPY RUBY!!!!!