me: say bye to daddy

ben: BYE!

me: too late. he’s gone.

ben: snap!

lymi

i try hard to live by the dr. seussian mantra, “i do what i say, and i say what i do.”  or whatever it is that horton intoned throughout his tenure as elephant cum bird.  but, MAN, is it hard to set out a verdict, and then live (and die – in small doses) by it.

it is an understatement of mammoth proportions to say that b. is testing my patience this week.  yesterday, i chalked it up to exhaustion.  and given that i was, in large part, responsible for his sleep deprivation over the weekend, i tried to cut him all kinds of slack.  but, given that i was/am exhausted too, that was no small feat.  so, today, on day 2 of the exhaustion/patience-testing, i’ve had to mete out “consequence” after consequence.  and into punishment.

there is no doubt in my mind that b. is rescinding his nomination of me as mother of the year.  and frankly, i don’t blame him.

i’ve had to cancel a playdate for this afternoon.  i’m not sure who’s more disappointed, b. or me.  sigh.  i’ve been getting a lot of, “hey!!!  that’s not FAIR!!!”  what can i say, life’s not fair.  get used to it, kid.

lymi

i asked t., “what are the best things about returning to the states?”

1.  seeing family more often

2.  american cheese

3.  we don’t have to memorize the british things

4.  dad doesn’t have to say “kip” anymore

5.  less smoking

funny, funny boy.

lymi

the one-minute writer inspired this post …

deep fried turkey bliss

hot, bubbling oil; crackling skin

oh, such juicy joy!

lymi

b. is having a mini-meltdown.  n. offers this astute assessment of the situation,

sometimes b. is a whiny boy.

sometimes i’m a whiny boy.

sometimes YOU are a grumpy girl.

truer words have never been spoken.  especially by a 3 year old sage.

lymi

i’ve been remiss.  you miss?  (wasn’t that a clever little word play??)

another friend started blogging and i was reminded of my own little plot of the blogosphere, languishing, collecting dust and cobwebs … did you fall asleep at the monitor awaiting (in vain) for my next post, m’dear?  oh yeah, i know you have nothing better to do

well, my life has been a bit too, dare i say (oh, i shouldn’t!!), uneventful of late.  or perhaps, i’m just too busy to find drama in the ordinary?  or too cold?

n.’s slamming doors … repeatedly.  b.’s growing up, taunting n. when he gets bored of being “mature.”  S. is NOT growing up.  i’m taking pics and editing them, until i’m bleary-eyed.

so, um, wow, boring.

anyhoo, just checking in.  logging on so that my space doesn’t get cold, like me.

lymi

conversation from downstairs, overheard:

b, did you pick ‘little einsteins?’

yes.  i thought of you.

thanks!  now, you say, ‘you’re welcome.’

lymi

over the weekend, we were in the car discussing what snacks to bring to school this week.  cheddar bunnies came up.  b. asked when we would get more.  i replied that i had no plans to get more, given that they don’t really eat them that much.  (we used to get them, last year, to have in the car for his carpool buddy, a devout consumer of all things cheese.)

b. considers cheddar bunnies not being on my shopping list anytime soon, and asks,

mommy, why are you too “lousy” to get more cheddar bunnies??

“lazy” was what he was going for, but upon consideration, perhaps “lousy” was just what he meant.

lymi

at breakfast, n. (displaying the usual delayed reaction of a child), asks,

where’s daddy?

“he left for work.”  (uh, like, half an hour ago, silly bo billy!)

i wish he stayed home.

aww.  “why?  do you like it when he stays home?”

yes.

b. chimes in, tom cruise style, jumping up on his chair,

*I* like going to the zoo!

at which point, a cape magically appears on his back, and theme music cues,

NON-SEQUITUR BOY!

lymi

b. asked about my meeting last night, so i told him that i was learning how to be a better mommy.  i asked the boys if they thought i needed to be a better mommy (i know, why do i ask these things??).  b., said,

no!  you’re a perfect mommy!

(he’s now my favorite)

n. chimes in,

yes!

i try to clarify, because i know that sometimes kids get confused (“do you want this?” “NO” “are you sure?” “NO!”).  i ask, “why do you think mommy needs to be better?”

not at all confused, he says,

because you ALWAYS get mad at me, and then i get mad, and YOU get mad!

he does seem to understand the vicious cycle well.  sigh.

then, just now, i gave each of the boys a bowl of apple to snack on, while watching some tv.  b. says (quite nonplussed),

why did you give us sagwa??

“because i thought you might like to eat some,” i replied calmly (not that the situation warranted more dramatic emotion).

oh.

what?  i don’t usually feed them?

they’re a mystery, these little beings taking up temporary residence in our home.  don’t even get me started on how their “boy-ness” just makes my head and insides roil.

lymi