Momma Told Me: Someday, you'll understand.
As you all know I have been up to my eyeballs with children lately. For those new to the blog, I do not have my own, at this time, so I get my 'fix' by borrowing others' cuties in the form of day care. When Sabrina's (10) mother's boyfriend won custody of his kiddos for July I stepped in to help provide day-entertainment for a 3 and 8 year-old as well. Just let me say, I have a new-found respect for full time parents, and especially the single ones. In the past I have implemented a strict 'no kid under 5' rule, for my babysitting services. I know not all agree, but I have never found babies and toddlers appealing; I get quite frustrated with the difficulty in communicating needs and feelings through developed language skills. I feel horrible for saying it, but I've honestly found kids in the 7+ range to be to most fun for me to care for. That being said, I've found a soft spot for a certain choo-choo loving 3 year-old, these past 2 weeks.In addition to finding a smooth schedule that works well with the big age gap between the youngest and the two girls, I've also come across a few gems of wisdom and a few smile worthy kid-isms. For example, the 3 year-old (boy) was heard shouting to roll up the windows for fear his hair would get messed up, from the back seat. In addition, every time we pass through a local drive-thru, with a certain charity ad on it's windows he can be heard shouting 'That's my daddy!' while pointing at a man in uniform playing with a young boy. Yes, his father is a proud member of our US military, and, to a 3-year old, every brave soldier pictured is his 'daddy.' Of course, caring for such a young-ling during the day is not without it's obstacles and tantrums, I've learned; never leave the house without tissues and wipies, spell exciting (and not so exciting) words like 'nap' and 'Chuck-E-Cheese' rather than say them (or risk hearing them repeated at 5 second intervals), and a crying kid will cry themselves to sleep eventually, but a good tickle monster attack will get the job done much faster, and with a smile.
Of course there have been a few temporary changes in our house to make it kid friendly. We've moved the giant 5' Xorbee memory foam lounge sack int the center of the living room. The first day of our impromptu day-care it became an instant hit with children flinging themselves, and each other onto it. I also made the mistake of hauling out our personal penguin and panda stuffed animal collections, and am now missing each and every tag that used to be attached. And it turns out our 4lb Morkie, Nora, is a bit too enthusiastic (in a playful puppy way) for the younger kids, and can clear out the living room in 30 seconds flat. It's a wonderful way to round up the kids, really, but also hilarious to watch them scramble on top of furniture from a 1.5' tall dog!
We've found plenty of great, and affordable, local activities to do throughout the week, in part thanks to a wonderful chain of websites (set up for communities nationwide) known as Macaroni Kid, which has a calendar of events, by day, with free and cheap activities for kids during the Summer. This week we went to the California Science Center (pictures and post to come), took advantage of free bowling for kids at the nearby bowling center, visited the local pier and beach park for kites and gourmet cupcakes, played with twirling ribbons and chalk from the dollar store (the 10 year old was seen drafting the characters from King of the Hill and Family Guy), and are preparing for the first annual 'Un-Birthday Party' tomorrow (great pics and post to come, as well). As you can see, I've been busy from sun up, to sun down; but am very excited about the fun content I'll be able to share on the weekend, and in August (once the two younger kiddos head back home).
I'm not the only one who has been worn out by all the fun, as you can see above! Excuse my poorly lit and sometimes fuzzy cell-phone pictures featured in this post. There isn't always time to grab a 'real' camera when these moments pop up, and it's easiest to be discreet when photographing kids! Well, I am off to bed- I have to be up bright and early to welcome my quasi-campers and get ready for our big bash. I can't wait to share our full adventures with you, and some more adorable pictures of these 3 cuties. Drop a line and let me know what you've been up to this Summer-
What Daughter Says: I may find myself repeating Momma more often these days, but that's purely from a new found appreciation for them!
What a fun and eventful week! Dang, I'm tired just reading it all! having the language barrier of kids under 5 is challenging but can also be very rewarding. And yes, Definitely spell out the words, don't say them. lol. It just stinks when the older ones without thinking say, "oh yes, she needs a nap!" after you spell it out. *FACEPALM**
ReplyDeleteI love that website you used to find great stuff in your area you could do with the kids. THere isn't much in our area sadly. I wish they would do more fun things for kids.
Looks like everyone is having a great time!
ReplyDeleteWhat a cute week you had! YOur kids are just the cutest!!! I am so glad you are all having a great time! You should link this up!! Adorable!
ReplyDeleteLooks like a busy and fun week!
ReplyDeleteI prefer the 7 year old range as well! Those first few years are so tough, but when they become more independent but still have those honest, childlike questions and answers? Worth every minute.
ReplyDeleteWow, you sure have your hands full don't you? I could have never blogged when my four kids were that little. I appreciate your insight into their week.
ReplyDeleteI am going to show my kids the cool ideas with pipe cleaners. They say "I am bored!" too often. We need to come up with more creative things to do. Thanks for the ideas.
ReplyDeleteCase feels sturdy and well-made. Metal phone case
ReplyDelete