It's been a really long week, and it's only Wednesday. It's so hard to get back into the routine after such a long, winter break. The kiddos are sleepy. I'm cranky. We have to get up when it's really dark. I have to make lunches. And dinner. And it's rough.
So keep all of that in mind and then consider this:
As I was unpacking Jack's backpack and getting ready to help him with his homework, I noticed some Lego figures that were definitely not ours. As I called Jack into the kitchen, he mumbled something about "finding things lately," but also looked incredibly guilty and already knew he was in trouble. After a long time-out in his room and a longer chat about doing the right thing and considering how he'd feel if someone failed to return something he'd lost, he came downstairs to write an apology to his teacher.
As he was writing, I couldn't help thinking about where Brad and I had gone wrong. How could Jack, even for an instant, think this was acceptable behavior? I was proud of the way I handled the situation: I stayed calm. I didn't yell, and I stressed that everyone makes mistakes and it's what we do when we make those mistakes that matters. But at the same time my inner-mommy voice was saying that I'm not sure that taking Lego figures counts as a mistake. It felt like a mommy-fail.
Then after a half hour of listening to Hannah Bear say she was hungry as dinner was cooking, we sat down to eat, and within seconds, I could tell she wasn't going to eat the chicken and noodle casserole I'd served. She probably ate one spoonful collectively, and I knew she was hungry. I'd previously told her that after dinner she could eat the fruit snacks she'd asked about earlier, but when she realized she wasn't going to get those after she didn't eat her dinner, she cried. Oh, did she cry.
So neither little lovely was a happy camper this evening. And neither am I.
And it's only Wednesday :(
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