So we made it - all 4400km and several adventures later. We had a lot of fun as family and got to enjoy the company of good friends and relatives along the way.
During our trip, I was fortunate enough to meet up with family, some that I have not met with in quite some time - let's just say years otherwise we all feel old... It was such a fun experience. I met up with my aunt, who really has not changed all that much, and my cousin and her family. It was so great to meet this family as very quickly it seems that my cousin and I have similar parenting patterns. It offered a glimpse of what the future potentially could hold. It was almost like seeing a fortune teller. The best part about the visit was the reconnection of family. I am looking forward to future visits.
I have an update about my quest to ban corn from our house. When I wrote about corn and how much it was in our food, we were traveling in the United States. It was incredible how much they use corn syrup to sweeten their food. Anyways, when we returned to Canada, we noticed that it was not in food near as much as it is in the US. I still am reading labels of everything as I am finding it hidden in a number of different foods, generally in the form of starch. An example is peanut butter or yogurt - crazy I know - things I would not have thought would contain corn. Oh well, a little longer at the grocery store for the sake of better sleep and a happier baby is worth it! Not to mention the health benefits for the family.
So we are home enjoying the summer routine (?) of home. We are home though only for a short time, soon I take off with the kids back to see family in Ontario. I am nervous about the flight and a bit about the trip. I worry that Nolan will be tricky to handle that day/time at home. I worry that it will be exhausting for me with managing the kids.
It is funny, I thrive on being busy, I can live on a few hours of sleep and still perform well at my job. My job demands that I am capable of making critical decisions in a short period of time and to make the correct decision regardless of how tired I may be. But I feel like I fail when it comes to my own children or home life! I struggle with keeping it together when I am tired or overwhelmed. I feel like I am forgetting a ton of things every day and letting people down. Some days I feel like I can take on the world - the kids and I have a great day, everything (almost everything) goes smoothly, nutritious home cooked meals are served, the house is clean and laundry mountain is a molehill. Other days I struggle and I feel the kids are struggling too, they are fighting with each other - which in turn drives me around the bend and I feel like I am referring a WWF wrestling match. On those days NOTHING gets done, and meals....well they are nutritious but not ideal. I despise those days, I feel worn out and cranky when I go to bed on those days. I am forever trying to avoid those days and yet I know they are a natural part of life. May be this is why I feel like I would never make a good full-time stay at home mom.
Right now I am finding Nolan to be a big challenge. He is such a strong, spirited, funny and bright kid, but boy oh boy can he drive you crazy. It especially urks me when he plays "dumb" for attention or because he feels he can manipulate the situation to better suit his needs. Perhaps this bugs me the most as I am still sensitive about how his development is perceived, as I know this kid is anything but. A funny example of Nolan playing "dumb" was when we were at Whistler. The boys wanted to go on the go-cart ride, so we paid and each chose their vehicle. The girl operating the ride was a young, tall, Australian who was quite pretty. Anyways, she explained to the boys how to operate the go-cart, pull the lever for gas and steer. Well there was Nolan, pretending that he did not understand and he would not squeeze the lever. The girl then sat on the back and held Nolan's hand showing him how to operate the vehicle. Well Nolan turns and looks at me with this mischeivous glint and puts his hand down to his side. Sure enough the girl then drove Nolan around the track for the allotted time. At the end of the ride, the girl hopped off to help the other kids and Nolan quickly grabbed the wheel to try to get it to go. Such a turkey!
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