Thank You

I would like to take a moment and thank my children for the lovely week they have given me. People always say to me how do you do it? Your kids are 15 months apart, isn't it hard? I can't believe your next two are going to be 15.5 months apart, that will be 3 kids under 3 years old. I shrug my shoulders and say its no big deal. I say this because most of the time it really isn't a big deal. I just have to remember that every day is different, and that I can't get mad or upset the first time they do something that is naughty.

For example...
How can I get mad at my daughter who has started walking and getting into things when clearly she is doing something I would have done myself? (Like rearranging the plastics drawer!!!)








The answer is simple. I can't because earlier she let me pull and tug on her hair to get some pigtails on her head. I will mention that, the entire time I was doing this she was staring at herself in the mirror, cooing and laughing at herself because she knew she was so pretty. Hahahah Oh girls!

How can I get frustrated at my son for picking up the slack in the kitchen? I had just rinsed all of the dishes to put them into the dishwasher and he decided to paint them with yogurt... "Cool" he says to me and then begs to wash the dishes for the second time, so he could put them in the dishwasher.
See what he neglected to tell me I forgot to ask was, how much soap he had put in already. I just put in the cascade tab when Lucas screams "No Digy, too much too much, put it away" I run upstairs and see my kitchen floor covered in SUDS. Lucas thought Bridget had done it when in actuality he had not rinsed the dishes all the way and squeezed the soap all over the dishes on the bottom rack. Did I get mad? How could I? The floor needed to be mopped, he was saving me a step.

How can I yell at my kids for dumping toys all over the floor? Especially when I had just organized and relabeled them all into new bins? How could I? They were sharing.
Sharing means dumping and pushing all of the toys to cover Bridget. See she was happy. How could I get mad? I needed to vacuum that other area anyway.

You all are probably thinking, where are you Valerie when all of this is happening? Why aren't you preventing any of this? The answer is simple. THE OLYMPICS!!! I have been watching the Olympics!!! Not all of the time, but it is the only thing that has been on for the past 14 days. I will run a load of laundry or heaven forbid go to the bathroom, check the mail, answer the phone and when I am done with these little tasks, this is what I have found my children doing. I have realized that getting mad isn't worth it. They are awfully cute and haven't been fighting...
well, until they saw Grecco roman wrestling. They weren't fighting they were demonstrating their unique Witte wrestling skills. The Witte's have this thing where whenever they are together they always end up wrestling each other. No joke. They even wrestled when they all were together this April for Nathan's birthday. What do you expect with 7 boys?
I just would like to thank my children for keeping this week un-boring! Yes, un-boring!

There are so many other things like filling the washer with crayons and toys and blankets while I was in between loads. Putting real rocks in the fish tank so Hiccup the froggie would dance. I just think to myself after synchronized swimming is over and the Olympics are over, and Nathan stops traveling, maybe just maybe my kids will get back to normal. But what is normal? I guess that will be another post...definitely for another week!

17 comments:

  1. Please tell me you are actually ready to pull your hair out. I can't possibly believe you are that calm. . . and if you ARE that calm, then you SHOULD be having 3 kids in 3 years. You are a saint of a mother.

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  2. You are a great mom Valerie...not all of us would be that patient!!! BTW - I love to read your blog!

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  3. Where was the line when God handed out the gift of patience? I missed it!
    You are amazing! It took a muscle relaxer and an anti-depressant to calm me down enough to look at my life and laugh!
    My girls are one day shy of 16 months apart and I won't do that again!
    Bless you ValerieRay...Bless you!

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  4. That is really sweet. :) It's a great lesson about all of life: attitude really is everything. Thank you for the reminder!

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  5. Courtney Lynn8/21/08, 1:15 PM

    With your patience and your husbands determination you could have 9 kids and be totally fine with it! Way to Go Val!

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  6. DITTO! Nobody can tell you that you're crazy unless they see first hand what a patient awesome mom you really are. I think I missed the day that God handed out the patience card too. But thanks for that. I really needed to re-analize my situation this week, and this blog post has helped me to do that. Look for the good in every situation right? Love ya!

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  7. It makes me laugh how strict and mellow you are at the same time. It is weird for me to think that stuff like this doesn't make you go crazy. Just thinking about all of your clean up gives me a headache! At least you never complain! Some people just complain and complain about how hard it is to be a mother. Cheers to you for looking at the bright side. -Trish BBC

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  8. I love Briggys hair! So cute. Your kiddos will love this post when they are adults.

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  9. I really think that you should put the captions of what was said during the great wrestling match!

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  10. you said it PERFECTLY. great post!

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  11. keepin it funny, real, exhausting, and thought-provoking...

    Thanks! You ARE a saint!

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  12. You are such a great mom!

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  13. I love that perspective on life! It makes ones world that much more fun, doesn't it! And my kids are 16 months apart, totally perfect. I wouldn't have had it any other way. No jealousy when the baby was born, they are best best friends (my daughter goes into my son's bed in the middle of the night if she's scared) and they go through stages close together. I love it! Good for you! :)

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  14. You are awesome!!! One day I will be a cool mommy like you! March 9th eh....YAY!!!

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  15. Hey Val this is Chrystal Cleverley. I have to say I understand. My kids have "painted" the office in red paint, scattered powdered sugar all over my living room, and colored all over my couches. I feel your pain, and your right, all you can do is smile, snap a picture, and use it as black mail when they refuse to do chores as teenagers. HA HA! I don't get mad I just plan my revenge.

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  16. Good job keeping a positive attitude! Not always easy to do, but you are a great mom! BTW - my birthday is March 10th, so maybe...

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  17. Ha, I'm so glad I'm not the only one. I already knew that, but it always helps to have a little reminder.

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