I have always been someone to speak my mind during any situation: classroom, ball field, bar, you get the picture. When I started teaching I did have more patience but it wasn't until I had Hayley that I finally learned what it truly means to be completely and utterly patient. Babies are born ready to learn. If you take the time to notice, around 3 months babies start looking at your mouth when you talk, not at your eyes. It's because they are trying to learn the words that you are saying. They are beginning to understand the difference in your tone of voice, the form of your mouth when you say sounds. That's why it is SOOO important to TALK (and read) to your kids, tell them everything. No they aren't going to talk back yet, but they will eventually. When Hayley was little everyone would comment on how they couldn't believe she was talking so soon. My response "well I talk to her all the time, so she doesn't really have a choice but to talk back."
Now until they start talking (and yes after) the have to communicate somehow. And how do they? They cry... Every cry means something, hungry, dirty diaper, tired, mouth hurting, sick, it means something. And it's our job as the parents to understand the difference between each cry. And now is where your patience comes in, if you don't take the time to get to know your kids, you won't have a clue as to what each cry means and you'll worry (and cry yourself) for hours trying to figure it out.
Now, I know everyone has their moments when no matter how patient you're trying to be, you have a breaking point. I had a breaking point yesterday.
I took the kids on a trip to visit my grandparents. They live in Bayse, it's about 4 1/2 hours from our house. It took 6 hours to get there on Monday between food breaks, filling up on gas, and diaper changes. Not the funnest thing, but my grandparents are getting older and I don't seem them enough. My grandfather is not doing well at all and I wanted to make sure I saw him at least one more time. The kids were fantastic during the car ride, so good! However, when it came to bedtime, it was a different story. I fought with each of them for 2 hours between dinner and finally going to sleep. Holden doesn't sleep well when he's not at home and he didn't have more than a 40 min stretch of sleep all night. Hayley is a crazy person sleeper (she literally rolls and jumps all over the bed in her sleep). So I think total I slept for maybe 2 hours Monday night.
Tuesday morning... the dreadful morning. Holden is ready for play time at 5:45 so we're up and having breakfast. A few hours later Hayley is up and playing when I notice that she has hair all over her sweatshirt... then I look up... SHE HAS CUT HER HAIR! At which point I promptly start yelling.. I was furious. So upset, I started asking her why she would do that, was that a good choice (the teacher in me). Inside I knew I had to calm down, but on the outside I wanted to scream. She was upset and crying when she realized what she had done to her hair, "I want my pretty long pretty hair back". Now, I know that this is something that most kids so, but it doesn't make it any easier when YOUR kid does it. As angry as I was, I had to hold her and hug her and tell her how much I still loved her. She had to know that no I didn't like what she did, but I that I love her.
Her hair looks ridiculous, she cut it just at the top, where there is no way to fix it, we just have to wait until it grows back out. But she's alive and she's healthy, she didn't stab herself with the scissors (or her brother), she just cut her hair. And as upset as I was (still am a little, her pretty hair :{ ) I love her. And that's all that she cares about, that she is still mommy's little girl. And there is nothing in this world that she could do that will ever make me not love her.
Despite our mishap yesterday, the kids did have a great Easter Sunday. Here are some pictures from the weekend.
"Yes little one, I love you as the stars love you, constant and bright above you, giving you joy and peace and wonder. I love you as the stars love you, forever, and ever, and always"
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