Showing posts with label mom. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mom. Show all posts

Friday, February 10, 2012

Mom Jobs (aka The Things We Do For Our Kids)

Here's a (partial) list of jobs moms do, day in and day out, from birth to the teenage years and beyond.

-  Butt Wiper
-  Nose Blower
-  Boo Boo Kisser
-  Tear Dryer
-  Housekeeper & Maid
-  Cook
-  Dish Washer
-  Teacher
-  Homework Helper
-  Dispute Manager/Peacekeeper
-  Entertainer (Movies, Books, Games  Etc)
-  Chauffeur
-  Stylist (Hair & Clothes)
-  ATM/Money Maker
-  Cheerleader
-  Negotiator
-  Event Coordinator/Social Calendar
-  Alarm Clock
-  Nurse
-  Problem Solver
- Advice Giver
-  Listener

Where do we pick up our paycheck?

These jobs change and evolve as children get older.  Many stay around way past their expiration.  It's a tiring, often thankless job but someone needs to do it.

I'm happy and proud to be a mom.  Though through it all though there are definitely days I question it and my abilities.  I wouldn't change it for anything. My children mean the world to me. 

What mom jobs would you add?  What ones do you enjoy and which ones could you totally do without?

I LOVE bring my kids biggest cheerleader whether it be on the sidelines of a sport/ activity or in school. Being their chauffeur and maid, not so much.

Wednesday, March 02, 2011

A Mom's Gotta Do, What a Mom's Gotta Do

So, this weekend I was sick. Achy, sore, exhausted sick. Kids and hubby to the rescue. They were great about letting me rest, kept the noise level down and continuously check on me and brought me food/water. Love them to pieces for that. I swear aliens took over their bodies temporarily, but you won’t hear me complaining.


Hubby took the kids out during the afternoon to the skating rink. They had open skating for a few hours and then my daughter had lessons a little after that. The kids had a blast. One of my son’s friends was there and they got to hang out. My princess skated the whole time with her daddy. And I got peace and quiet. Heaven, right?

Not so much. That’s because I’m a bad, sick mommy. I’m my own worst patient. While everyone is home it’s easy to stay in bed and relax. I know if I don’t one of two things is sure to happen. I will either over do things and no one will stop me or I will be told to sit on the couch in the middle of the chaos, all the while wanting to straighten up. Better to hide in the bedroom and force myself to relax.

At this point, most of the aches and pains were gone and my energy was slowly coming back. I had to take it easy because I didn't want to become exhausted. Within minutes of that front door closing I made my way slowly downstairs to find something to eat and a book to read. Too bad I can’t have tunnel vision because I saw the mess. Granted, not a major mess but still a mess that my hands itched to clean. I don't like clutter, but I can deal with it.  A house is not a home without clutter...I just wish I could hide mine better. It's the little things laying thrown carelessly about or piled up where they're not supposed to be that drive me slowly insane.

I figured I’d straighten up a bit and that would be that. Seeing the tracked in dirt on the kitchen and entryway floor drove me crazy. So I got out the broom and started there. Then I saw that our stairs could do with a good sweep so I did that too. There were a couple of dried up food spills on the floor so I cleaned them up. I didn’t have the energy to actually mop. Plus, I detest mopping.  Was that food crumbs I spied under the coffee table? I try to limit the kids eating in the living room because crumbs just can't be helped at their age. I grabbed the dirt devil and sucked those up too, along with other tiny miscellaneous things clinging to the carpet. I finally made my way to the cupboard to get a snack only to find it gone…fodder in someone else’s tummy. Dang it all to heck! I expended all my energy cleaning up and wanted to reward myself with a treat. That’s when I noticed some Tupperware crammed into the wrong space, so I rearranged that too. I went back to the living room. I folded up blanket laying on the floor and put it neatly over the back of the couch. I straightened the pillows. I picked up my daughter’s pillow pet and various kitty Webkins and put them on a corner of the couch. My son had left a waded up t-shirt and a few toys laying around. Those went onto the other corner of the love seat. His Crayon Maker was laying outside of it’s box so I tidied that up and put the box back under the end table where we keep it hidden.

I was finally ready to make myself something a bowl of oatmeal and a cup of tea. I went to grab my book and noticed the dust collecting. So, I grabbed my duster and quickly cleared away the dust.

FINALLY, I made it back upstairs; just a bit winded from my mini cleaning spree.

Sunday, January 02, 2011

My son...the itchy blob

On New Year's Eve my son told me his feet were itchy.  He plays hockey so I figured that maybe he got athlete's foot from his sweaty skates.  I had him wash  his feet with warm, soapy water.  It seemed to work and all was fine.  Later in the evening he mentioned that his wrist and arm were a bit itchy too.  I had him shower.  It seemed to help but he was cranky the rest of the night.
The next morning he woke up itching again.  So, I told him shower again, in what was supposed to be warm water (told me later he had it on hot...but didn't seem to effect outcome).  I couldn't figure out what he was coming in contact with that was making his body react this way.  I had him slather lotion all over and I found some athletes foot cream lost in the top of the closet.  That seemed to do the trick.  The weather's been crazy here...blizzarding one day and temps in the 50's days later.  It's killer on skin.
Too bad that it was suddenly obvious at 5:45 that things hadn't truly cleared up.  His face was swollen, red and blotchy. A check of his back and neck revealed the same thing.  I've had this happen to me before and never pinpointed what caused it because it would clear up before I could see a doctor.  I just found out a few years ago I have eczema, so maybe those symptoms were a precursor to it.  I'll never know.
Knowing that it was a holiday I decided to call the Urgent Care Centers in the area rather than wasting time driving him to places that were closed.  No one answered and only one had a message for callers.  It seems they all closed by 3pm.  Grrrrr!!!  Taking him to the ER wouldn't have been cost effective and we would've been there for hours on end.  His symptoms weren't life threatening and I'd honestly prefer to take him to the pediatrician.  So, we stayed home.
I wish it would have been as easy as slathering cortisone cream all over him.  But, there's no way I could put it over his whole body.  So, I turned to my friends.  Totally forgot about Benadryl and Oatmeal baths.  I should know this since I have eczema. Maybe I forgot because I only use prescription cortisone cream, sparingly.  He took the Benadryl last night and it helped curb the urge to scratch, though the blotches didn't clear up all the way. 
He looked much better this morning.  The blotches are no longer on the surface of his skin but I can see the remnants of it underneath.  If that makes sense.  So, I gave him more Benadryl and had him take an oatmeal bath.  I'll give him more Benadryl before bed.  I'm hoping it'll finish clearing it up by morning.  If it's not gone I'll be driving him to the doctor after dropping his sister off at school.
He's at hockey now so he'll be taking a warm shower when he gets home and we'll slather moisturizer all over.  Praying that morning brings normality!  I'm very thankful for my friends for their help!