Parenting Through a Child's Eyes and Back To Work

I love listening to my children "think things out" as they grow up. I have notebooks from when the older three were small, filled with things they would say that I wanted to remember. Poor Rae doesn't even have a baby book filled out. Or scrapbooks with her pictures in it, as she loves to remind me. She is the fourth child!  Rachel has always seen things a little differently. I say she sees life in " black and white". The other day we had several "typical Rae" conversations. * Sorry about all the quotes. I guess I am in a "quote" kind of mood this morning. It is 4:00am and my mind is racing*

I picked Rae up from school and she began a conversation about a girl who she has felt hasn't always been "nice". We had been talking about ways to make it better for several weeks. I think its just a case of girls learning that everyone can be friends. Drama, Drama and I don't feed into it.

Rae- Mom, she argues with her mom! Her mom tells her to do something or that she can't do something and she keeps arguing.
Me- Well, Rae, that sounds like someone I know. Haven't I been telling you that you have been talking back to me? Now you know how you sound to other people.
Rae-Mom!You don't understand! She sounds so disrespectful!
Me- I know, Rae. You sound disrespectful when you argue with me.
Rae- But , mom, she keeps it up and her mom gives in!
Me- Well maybe her mom gets tired of hearing it and does give in sometimes so she will stop.
Rae- Mom! That's awful. If your kid is being disrespectful you can't give in! Mom, please don't ever give in to me when I am acting ugly.Please!
Me- Sure, Rae, I will do my best.

I do try to stay serious in these conversations. Its amazing to me how her mind works but isn't that what all parents think?

Later on the same day we were walking out of the store behind a mom and her little boy. He was maybe three or four years old and I was half listening  to their conversation but obviously Rae was doing a much better job of ease dropping. We got in the car and she felt it was time to have another serious discussion on child rearing.
Rae- Did you hear that mom? She was saying that if he was good at school tomorrow and not hit his friends  he could have a cookie. That he has to stay on green and not get on red like today.
Me-Yes, sometimes little ones have to learn what is okay and what is not okay to do.
Rae- But he had a slushie in his hand. Why did she get him a slushie if he got on red at school?
Me- I don't know. I do know that you and your sister managed to stay on green most of the time but your brothers moved to red sometimes. They had to learn.
Rae- But hitting??
Me-Well, they didn't hit to be mean but Tyler played too rough when he was two years old in preschool. Rae, what would you do if you were his mom?
Rae- I would spank his butt and tell him " no hitting"!
Me- And if that didn't work?
Rae- I would spank him again and take stuff away! I would feel horrible. I would find the parents of the kid my boy hit and apologize and tell them my kid is going to learn not to hit!
Me- And if that didn't work?
Rae- well.....I wouldn't buy him a slushie! I do know that!!

I had to laugh then. That day Rae was taking it all in. I love when she lets me see things through her eyes. Parenting is not easy,kiddo.

Its official. I return to work on December 3rd. Because of the generosity of the people around us, I will have had six months at home to try to learn to live in our new "normal", as I have heard it put so many times. Peyton hasn't had much to say about me going back but the girls have been pretty vocal about their displeasure. Rae doesn't like the fact that I won't see her in the mornings(I leave before they get up) and I won't be able to pick her up after school. I will get home about an hour after they get out. Also that when I work, I have less patience in the afternoon/evening and I am tired. I guess eight hours with a roomful of toddlers will do that to you. I will strive to have more patience when I get home but it is a struggle. Especially with Christmas coming so quickly and all the emotions it is already bringing. Then again all we can do is try our best every day to meet their needs, no matter how tired we are. Even if we do still have the echo of screaming toddlers in our ears and when we  get home we feel pulled in a dozen different directions by people needing our attention and laundry is piled up and all we want to do is get off our aching feet and close our eyes.... can you tell I have a little anxiety over going back? Dean would like me to get a desk job that would be less stressful on my body but I can't imagine not working with a dozen(or more) little, often smelly and sticky, sweet babies. So even though it will be tough and I don't seem to deal well with stress and get overwhelmed more easily than I used to, we will settle into our new "normal" yet again.