Does Anyone Else Think This Way?
I have discovered that when the kids and I stay a home all week and have a normal, relaxed day that is planned put relaxed, I am happier. It is when I look out my window and see the ocean in the distance and the hills that I get an itch to take the kids somewhere. I think to myself, "Man it would be fun to take the kids to the beach and play in the sand or play at the park. Before I know it( if the car is available) I am off to somewhere... dragging my kids behind me. They will love it.
I wrestle with them to get them in the car...
wrestle them out of the car....
watch them run and play while I survey the area for safety purposes...
hold the baby...
feed the baby....
pick up crying child...
call wandering children back to me.....
Listen to 5 or 6 people tell me how full my hands are...
wrestle them back to the car because I can't handle them all every where.....
listen to them argue and cry all the way back home... complaining about what they didn't get to do
wrestle them out of the car and back into the house...
send them to their rooms for rest time because I am exhausted.
then I plop down on the couch and wonder, "What was I thinking".
I was thinking about doing something nice for my kids but the cost of it became more than I could handle. 10 minutes of fun cost me a days worth of exhaustion. Are my expectations way to high. Is it wrong to just want to stay at home? Am I confined to these quarters because of my kids. I want them to experience the world but ten minutes of the world cost me my strength.
May be the world will have to wait until they are all bigger or at least until Daddy gets home.....
Any ideas?
I wrestle with them to get them in the car...
wrestle them out of the car....
watch them run and play while I survey the area for safety purposes...
hold the baby...
feed the baby....
pick up crying child...
call wandering children back to me.....
Listen to 5 or 6 people tell me how full my hands are...
wrestle them back to the car because I can't handle them all every where.....
listen to them argue and cry all the way back home... complaining about what they didn't get to do
wrestle them out of the car and back into the house...
send them to their rooms for rest time because I am exhausted.
then I plop down on the couch and wonder, "What was I thinking".
I was thinking about doing something nice for my kids but the cost of it became more than I could handle. 10 minutes of fun cost me a days worth of exhaustion. Are my expectations way to high. Is it wrong to just want to stay at home? Am I confined to these quarters because of my kids. I want them to experience the world but ten minutes of the world cost me my strength.
May be the world will have to wait until they are all bigger or at least until Daddy gets home.....
Any ideas?
3 comments:
Yes, Melissa, I think you are expecting too much of yourself. Taking 4 children the age of yours for an all day outing anywhere is at least a 2 person job. There are other ways to treat your kids to some fun at home. Like ice cream cones with sprinkles. Games and activities or even a short trip in the car if there is somewhere you could go close by. Otherwise, the fun stuff at home is great and then you and Tom can take them to the beach when he's home. That's also a really good way to keep him involved with the kids. When the days get longer, going out for a late swim and a picnic supper on the beach is a real thrill. You are doing a great job with your kids, but you need to give yourself some slack too. Exhaustion does not help one's disposition even a little bit.
Love you,
Mama
I feel like that sometimes with just 2 kids;)! You are amazing.
That being said, I think the outings we want so badly to go on, are sometimes just for our sanity. Yes, the kids enjoy them too, but a lot of time, it's because we need to look at something different. And, for me, if a crazy outing will keep me from wanting to do housework or help just a couple of hours pass by more quickly, it may be worth it.
I love your stories!
Jana
Even though we are "only" three kids deep, we struggle with the same issue. I've found that the best outings are always planned in advance... the kids get warned, so they know what to expect, and what will be expected from them. There is always a hurrah at the end (a juice box or something simple but fun, nothing big), that they can hope to attain by staying in our parameters. But we don't/can't do it often. There is a cost, and sometimes it is high. If we have a day planned (to the zoo, or beach, or...) then I purpose to have a quiet day before and a quiet day after, else we burn up (as we have done many times, even this month).
But it's hard, as the mommy, to give up the things we like too - and I like the beach and the zoo AND especially being spontaneous. So it is a struggle, a constant struggle. Perhaps we should plan a park time with all seven kids, and then we kill several birds with one stone!
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