Let’s be honest, most of parenting is an uphill struggle. The winning at parenting moments can sometimes be so few and far between that we fail to recognise them. Yes, we love them. Yes, they are cute. Yes, eventually they do sleep through (that or you almost die for a few hours each night whilst your body attempts to reboot itself – whatever, at least your eyes close!).
But mostly it is hard, it is exhausting, it is heartbreaking, it can be humiliating and it is definitely expensive! One key to surviving it all is to have a sense of humour. With that in mind, read on.
Is Having Kids Worth It?
This “life sentence” is peppered with wonderful moments that keep you going. Moments when you realize that you might actually be winning at parenting … in the long run.
Here are a few of my ‘winning at parenting’ moments from yesterday:
Your Own Kids Are Really funny!
They make you laugh. My youngest was “threatening” me this evening because I refused to hand over the iPad that I was actually using! She looked at me sideways, raised her eyebrows (no idea where she got that from) and said :
“I am about to get some tears!”
Ooohhh … scary!?
Needless to say my husband and I just burst out laughing. She put in a good effort, but in the end, the only tears were from her parents. Tears of laughter.
Note: Laughing at your kids = Winning at Parenting!
Slow Progress Does Happen!
My husband and the girls finished a large packet of crisps without offering me one … not even one! The fact that I don’t even like Salt & Vinegar is not the point, they could have at least offered. Then one of them (I’m not sure which) just threw the empty packet on the floor! On the floor!
I stood up, blocked their view of the T.V. and declared that the foil packet will naturally disintegrate before I pick it up so somebody better do it, and I don’t care who!
My youngest looked me in the eye whilst stepping over it! *Breathe!*
My husband pretended that I was transparent and that he was deaf! *Breathe some more*
And my eldest said,
“Sorry mommy, I will help you.”
… and picked it up and took it to the bin. And put it IN the bin!
I felt like crying. So she does know where the dustbin is! No guesses who my current favourite is?!
Note again! Winning at parenting!
Protectiveness Between Siblings!
Now you may never get the perfect age gap between siblings right, but if you have more than one child there will be an element of sibling love. There was the touching moment yesterday when the little sister offered to ‘beat up’ the school bully for picking on her big sister (yes, the irony is not lost on me); followed by the big sister helping the little sister buckle her seat belt in.
I am so proud that they are sisters who actually love each other and put each other first.
It’s these small moments that get you from ‘throwing up for 9 months then surviving birth’ to ‘remortgaging your house to pay for dancing/swimming/art classes!’. I can’t speak for the future, I’m only six years in, but it’s been a long six years so far!
Long, but worth it.
This little snapshot of my day with my family yesterday is proof that despite the fact that the day is full of hard moments, and it is an uphill struggle, I will forget the difficult moments but these happy, progressive and funny moments are the ones I have chosen to write down, and the ones I will remember.
I also won’t forget the eyeballing and littering, but I might choose not to mention them again. Today.
Winning At Parenting!
Everyday is a struggle but I wouldnt change anything
I think every night that I go to bed with a little sanity left is a mom win . lol
Haha … so true.
Oh yeah lol…
Love this
You doing great. The girls do love each other lucky you
Thank you x
Ah these are all so cute, my kids make me laugh on a daily basis and it really helps to balance the long and hard nights. X #blogstravaganza
Exactly. I sometimes worry that they are learning my particular dry and sarcastic sense of humour, but I guess they will have I pick it up eventually! ?
I long for the day when my two start to like each other so you’re obviously doing something right! Well done! #blogstravaganza
Thanks, it’s not constant, they still fight a lot! lol
‘I am about to get some tears’… aaah, bless her! And even I would have cried at the ‘Sorry mommy, I will help you’… it’s really these little things that make all the other crap worthwhile!
#Blogstravaganza
It’s important to grasp these fleeting moments with both hands otherwise you’d drown in the other stuff. #blogstravanganza
Haha I love this! Especially the chip packet ? #blogstravaganza
?? thanks.
Kids really are hilarious, my husband and I have never laughed as much as we have this last couple of years! Thanks so much for sharing with #Blogstravaganza xx
So cute one helps the other with the seat belt!
Sometimes the little moment mean the most. So cute when they have that affection for each other :) #blogstravaganza
Right now my husband and I are at the end of our respective tethers with our kids, so it’s nice to read someone else’s successes at parenting! I must admit though, when one of our boys is especially naughty, the other one seems to over-compensate by being especially good. All hail the precious over-compensation! #Blogstravaganza
Big hugs. No matter how wonderful you might be feeling about your parenting journey, without a doubt your kids will find a way to pull you out of the clouds and back down to earth with a damn good bump!
Ahahaha! “I’m about to get some tears” is my new favourite line ever!! Brilliant! Fab post and all so true – lots of hard time but a few good ones along the way that keep us going! xx #Blogstravaganza
Thanks so much. She’s really funny.
Aww I love this – so cute! It sounds like you are totally nailing this parenting malarkey to me! And your little ones sound gorgeous (and hilarious!) :) #blogstravaganza
Thank you. They certainly do make me laugh. Precious angels. X
Your words puts so much in perspective!! love it..
I live this. It sounds like my house too with me having to remind people to pick things up lol #blogstravaganza
affection between siblings too. i know youve put being protective, but when my two give each other a hug and a kiss, for no reason at all, well… it kills me every time. Then they go back to smacking each other over the heads with hard plastic objects, but nevertheless – still winning!
Haha! “I am about to get some tears!” – brilliant! It deffo is stuff like this that keeps me going. My kids are infuriating but hilarious. Oh, and when they sleep – my heart bursts when they sleep… Not so much when they wake up at 3am though but still… #ItsOK xxx
These moments do make it all worthwhile. Even reading the comments above, its heartening to know that we are all in the same boat muddling through! #ItsOK
So funny!! I love the way you wrote this – I could totally put myself in your shoes. It’s so true that the good moments far outweigh the bad ones and those are what we remember and look back on with fondness. I’m now 16 years in and still a bit clueless but love the developing adult relationships I’m starting to have with my older two. We laugh together at shared jokes now. #itsok
Oh you’re right – it’s those little precious moments that make time stand still and you think ‘hang on, I wasn’t completely mental getting into this parenting lark…’ great post. #itsok
This is such a lovely idea! Maybe I should start writing down all the little good/cute things that happen in our house too – I have such an old granny memory it’ll probably all be lost in a year or two otherwise!
#itsok
You’re absolutely right, despite all of the crap that can go on during the day it is always the good moments that stick right? My daughter is four going on fourteen and can be so difficult at times, especially when it comes to bathtime and getting into pyjamas. Honestly I could cry sometimes with frustration. But then she gets into bed and asks me to come and check on her after she is asleep and asks me to give her a big hug, big enough that she will feel it…Suddenly all of the other nonsense just fades away. That’s the good stuff! #itsok
The main thing is we remember the good things & forget the bad! #itsok