Well, i haven't posted an Emma story on here in awhile and boy, do I have a doozy, so I had to break the dry spell.
Yesterday, Emma's preschool class took a field trip to Wonderscope over in Kansas. I, being the minivan mom that I am (ha!), went along and used my seats in the van to seat other kiddos. Emma had an okay day - she had fun, but had some instances with "running feet" versus "walking feet." No big deal, plus she listens so well to Mrs. Gann, it was all handled no problem.
Now, listening to me, that's another story. Emma has hit some sort of growth spurt or something like that, but what's really grown is her attitude. She is into saying things to me in a real snotty, disrespectful manner. Things like, "Stop asking me that, MOM (this part she says especially annoyed!)" or just grunting in her oh-so-like-her-aunt-diva-i-mean-dara way whenever I even think of speaking to her. We've had many a word over this new issue, many a timeout - and her daddy comes home each day and gets pretty upset with her the minute she pops it with him!
So, back to the van ride home from Wonderscope - she's in fits over everything, her seat belt, the CD choice, the fact that she is still wearing her preschool nametag and t-shirt - you just think of something and I'm sure it set her off! So, we get to the school and drop off everyone but Emma and Jae (Lexi was with us, too) and Lexi and I told the girls they could pick somewhere to drive through for lunch. Something that should be a treat, but I'm afraid I've already given my daughter a demanding sense of entitlement about eating out! So, they are excited, but Em continues being snotty and shouting at everyone in the car. It's about all I can take, so after a quick stop at the grocery store, I mention to Lexi that I think it's time for me to have a defining parenting moment - I'm going to drive-thru and get us all food - everyone except Miss Emma. She looks at me and I know I have her support and good wishes and so we proceed...I order the kids meal for Jae and Lexi's food and then we leave. Emma asks, "Where's my kids meal? I want a kids meal!!!"
And so we begin - the screaming, writhing, kicking and yelling! It's 1:20. We drop off Lexi and Jae and I pull in and unload Gabe and put him in bed for his nap - meanwhile Em is still screaming in the van. I ask her if she'd like to come in - she just screams, so I unbuckle her and pick her up and carry her to her room, set her on the bed and set the timer for 7 minutes, shut the door, and sit in the hallway. She knows during her "bedroom time" that if she opens the door I will add a minute to the timer - and she already thinks it takes "forever," so she stays put, all the while screaming and jumping from bed to floor, complete with all of the drama she can muster! After her timer beeps, I stand to open the door and she pushes it back shut at me, telling me to "stay out!" I enter and ask if she's ready to talk like a big girl, 'cause then we can go downstairs and have lunch together. She asks if it's a kids meal and I say, "no that's a privilege you didn't earn today - we'll eat here at home." ...And she's off again, so I leave the room setting the timer to her screaming, "No, mommy, stay - don't leave." So I ask if she's ready to talk, a resounding, "NO!" So I leave. This routine repeats 3 times! I'm on the phone to Paul asking just how long I should really let her go on! He is fully supportive of me, thankfully, so I persevere. By the time she's done it's 2:45 and there's no way she's doing anything but sleeping - a fit makes you tired! So she drifts off to sleep and I emerge victorious - this time!!!
Once she's awake, we have a nice big snack and she tells her PawPaw about her fit and how she didn't listen. Wow! So, then the rest of the night, everytime I call her, she answers as pleasantly as possible, "Yes, Mommy?" or "Okay, Mommy." Are you kidding me? Today has been a fairly good day as well - moral of the story? Maybe 45 minutes of screaming in a bedroom is good for us all!!!
These are the days I dread before they're here, am miserable during them, laugh at the next day and will terribly miss when she's older!
Thanks for reading, hope you got a laugh out of our adventures!!!
We finally bit the bullet and cut this boy's crazy long-sticking-up-all-the-time hair! Paul ran the clippers and I held the squirming 8 month old. I was upset at first, but as I look at him now - I know it was a good thing! He just looks like a big kid to me, not a baby anymore! I think that's why I was so upset when I first looked at him. Paul says I had to let him be a boy sometime...needless to say, he loves it!
