Not for you.

This post is not for you. It is for me.



The past few weeks have been pretty rough. I have met my match.

Earlier this month, I had composed a blog post in my head telling you how my children appeared to be at the “perfect” stage. They were playing well together and giving me some uninterrupted chunks of time. They were kind to each other and sweet to me. And they were cute as a button.



Then something happened. I'm still not quite sure what it was. Maybe that Supermoon??

But lately my kids have been kicking my mental butt (sorry, mom).



Eveley has no concept of patience. Or, at least she does not have the correct concept of patience. When asking for a puzzle from the top shelf, a cup of juice, or help in the bathroom, she expects immediate action. So I spent a good portion of the week explaining patience to her, telling her that she may just have a wait a few minutes while her very pregnant mom tries to get out of the chair, finishes changing Caleb's diaper, or huffs and puffs up the stairs with an armful of laundry. I hoped we were making some progress.

The next day, we were heading out the door for MOPS and running late. I loaded the car and buckled Caleb into his car seat. Eveley had run into the driveway to collect rocks. After asking her to come to the car several times in my sweet mom voice, I yelled at her to obey me NOW.

“Mom,” she said calmly, “you just need to be patient.”

Whatever.

Then there's darling Caleb. What can I say about him...



He is definitely our most cuddly child. He loves to squeeze and hug and smooch his mama. He is always saying the most adorable things and constantly says, “I yuv you, mommy!” He melts my heart.

Then there's the other 22 hours of the day. Caleb is unbelievably stubborn. My mom says he is not strong willed, just stubborn. The verdict is still out on that one. He gets terribly frustrated when things don't go his way – like when he can't have waffles at 2 in the afternoon, or when his sister comes within a 2-mile radius, or when his iPhone request is denied.

This past week was especially rough because both monkeys were sick. They had terrible coughs and colds and were running high fevers. This meant we were stuck in the house all week, I had to physically restrain Caleb every 4 hours to administer his meds, and we were all cranky. There was not much mommy love going around.

Case in point: Eveley was in the middle of a tantrum. I made her sit in a chair in the living room until she calmed down. This brought about more screaming and crying, which led to a hacking cough. You know what comes next. She threw up all over the chair and floor. As I was on my knees cleaning up puke, Caleb came around and bit me in the rear end.

Seriously?? I think that pretty much sums it up.

So this post is to remind me of my precious monkeys...

To remind me how much I love their energy, fiery spirits, and spunk.

To remind me that you can't be a toddler forever.

To remind me of the sparkle in their eyes, their plump cheeks and sweet smiles.

Aren't they so sweet??