I am learning to count to ten.
Some days I can not take the chaos that surrounds me.
Mornings are the worst part of my day. From the moment I wake up it all begins and I dread just getting out of bed at times.
Little B is NOT a morning person and will scream as loud as he can for two hours straight. Not a normal scream. A scream that sounds like someone is sliding their nails down a chalkboard. Did that make you shiver? That is pretty much what I do every time I hear his blood curdling scream.
He wants food… He doesn’t want food…. He wants to be held…. He doesn’t want to be held…. He wants milk…. He doesn’t want milk….
I play the guessing game for the first part of my morning, while he cries and pushes my legs away from the counter as I am trying to get breakfast ready for my 4 year old who is now crying that he is hungry.
And it doesn’t stop there.
The boys fight over every little thing. It could be a piece of crumb on the ground and they will fight over it.
Big A is trying to show is dominance by taking things from Little B who in return puts up a good fight. They scream, fight and cry all day.
But what really gets me is when they don’t listen or acknowledge when I ask them to do something.
I will call Big A seriously 5 x’s before he even responds to me. I actually have to tell him that I am taking him to the doctor’s to get his hearing checked since it seems he can’t hear. This ALWAYS gets a quick response.
I have to admit they have pushed me to my breaking point and I have lost my cool on a few occasions. I am not proud of it and felt completely horrible afterward.
So I am trying a new tactic.
When I feel myself getting upset I take a deep breath and count to ten.
Surprisingly it has been working and I have been staying calmer during the crazy parts of my day.
I tell my boys all the time how lucky they are to have each other and that they have to learn to share and play nice.
So while they are working on that….I will be counting to ten!
Stop on over to Things I Can’t Say where other moms Pour Their Hearts Out!
{ 33 comments… read them below or add one }
ugh! I can totally relate to those mornings. My two year old is so crabby some mornings…and a lot of the time I know it is because he is starving. But he won’t eat or tell me what he wants to eat.
Glad you found a tactic that works for you…for now. I might have to try the counting to 10 thing! Sounds good to me!
.-= Sarah @ For the Love of Naps´s last blog ..If you like Seinfeld… =-.
Yeah it is working for now….but I am sure come next week it probably wont, haha.
What a hard thing to deal with. My boys challenge me in different ways, but they do challenge me. I will have to remember to count to ten more often. Because I know it can help.
Thanks for linking up!
I realized how easy my 4yr old was when he was a baby….so calm and never cried. Maybe because he was the first one dont know but my little guy has quite a temper and is very feisty!
YOU ARE NOT ALONE!! I made a promises with my 4 year old on Monday.
Mommy promises not to yell if Jacek promises TO listen
and let me tell you, Monday AND Tuesday were great days!!!
We reminded each other of our promise to one another. It might not last long but it’s what is working for today.
Take a deep breath…count to 10…other Moms are in the same boat…
we’ll get through it…
Good idea….my 4 yr old can usually be calmed down but the 18 month has his own agenda. I actually started time outs with him in the morning when he screams. I want him to learn that he can’t do this. Because he gets angry and will throw stuff! Crazy kids!
I am counting too.
Glad someone is counting with me
I think we all have those days when we lose our cool for sure!! Your post reminded me that I don’t need to have a second child though. I can barely keep up with ONE!!
I have tried the counting thing and it does actually work!
.-= The Mommyologist´s last blog ..In Honor of Mother’s Day =-.
Haha my husband said the other day, wasn’t one child so easy?! My oldest was so easy I did everything with him, the baby seems to be so advanced probably because he is the second child and tries to keep up with his big brother!
My 2nd babe has that same ‘spirit’ too! Only, it’s not in the mornings that he’s a crab, but after his naptime (he’s a fussy mess for at least 20-30 minutes)
I’m usually taking some deep breaths to try to keep my focus and calm – I’m sure the counting would help as well.
.-= heidi @ wonder woman wannabe´s last blog ..Parenting by the Golden Rule =-.
I can totally relate to this post. Good luck with the counting thing. You have to do whatever works when it works right? I am sure my 6yo is having a hard time hearing and I’m tempted to get his ears checked, but the teacher assures me he is fine at school and if I even whisper the word “lolly” (candy) he can hear it.
.-= Shelly´s last blog ..Just Call Me ‘The Baby Whisperer’…too. =-.
I can relate to this. My older one can be very bossy while her little brother can be very stubborn. This does not always mix well. Some of their fights are b-a-d! I’ve lost my cool more than I like to admit, but I’ve been working on stepping back. I go outside and take some big breaths. Either my husband will step in or I will return to them a little more collected.
.-= Evonne´s last blog ..PTA – WTH?!? =-.
My step son will be here in three weeks and he tries every ounce of patience I am able to muster. I may have to learn to count to 20..or 50…maybe 100. I feel you though – its a struggle no matter how well behaved the children are!
.-= Diana@ A Little Bit of Life´s last blog ..Pour Your Heart Out – No more Apologies =-.
I just sat here reading this going ME TOO ME TOO!
They listen less as they get older it seems. :S
.-= Marylin´s last blog ..There’s been something on my mind… =-.
That is definitely a hard stage for moms. Glad you have found a way to decmpress and keep a level head. All us moms have lost our cool at times. I hate it too but it is life.
Ahhhhh there are more moms that just me counting. Thank you sharing your humanness. Sometimes my oldest will ask why I yell so much. Because you don’t listen til I’m at the yelling point! Argh.
Keep breathing for soon, they’ll be out of the house and we’ll be holding our breaths, praying for them, for safety and success, happiness and no sadness.
My oldest is 14. I’m beginning to realize I only have 4 more years before he hits the big bad world.
Ps: we have a Big A and Little A as well. And four more A’s after’nn
My husband has to remind me to count all the time. Of course we have started counting to five to get Turbo-our six year old-to move. Bruiser is not old enough for it to work on yet. It only took once with consequences to get Turbo moving and listening better with the counting warning. So for us counting works two ways.
.-= VandyJ´s last blog ..RTT: The Dentist Edition =-.
Oh, I hear ya on the “I’m SOO taking you to the doctor to get your hearing checked”! We actually DID take our son to an audiologist because our family doc thought that there actually was something wrong with his hearing. Turned out to be a false alarm (thank goodness!), but all I have to say now is, ” Remember the time when we took you to the special ear doctor?” Works like a charm!
And I count to 10 all the time, sometimes to 20!
.-= Katie´s last blog ..Pearls of Wisdom (Not!) =-.
{{HUGS}} <– i can relate!
.-= Devan @ Accustomed Chaos´s last blog ..Biocard Celiac Test Kit – Profile & Giveaway =-.
You are not alone. Sometimes my son gets me so darn mad, I have to leave the room before I can “calmly” discuss the situation. While after the fact you can see the whys of the behavior…in the moment…. we all can loose it. Counting to ten is a great idea!
.-= Kelley´s last blog ..Happy to be at work; now I can relax! =-.
I love the counting to 10 method..I think I need to adopt that too. Boys are tough and quite a challenge for sure! Good Luck and I hope it works!
.-= Jenny´s last blog ..Pour Your Heart Out . . . Happy Birthday Mom =-.
Hey chickie. I feel like I haven’t been over here in forever. So while no I don’t have kids, I think I still totally have a need to count to 10 to calm my nerves down. I have some serious anxiety issues lately, and reading what you wrote, while it was common sense… I haven’t tried it. But def. plan to!
Yeha, I am going to learn to count to ten real fast when my husband retires, THAT could be worse than 2 littles ones fighting…. I will keep you posted on that w o n d e r f u l event
Don’t feel bad, we all have been there! Parenting guilt is the hardest. I am not a morning person and so they are rough for me too. Kids are grumpy, don’t know what they want, they don’t want to go to school…etc. Hang in there! Your counting 10 sounds like a good solution to all of us!
.-= Tammy´s last blog ..A Change of Pace =-.
I totally lost it yesterday. I knew I needed to calm down, but could not. Those two little knuckleheads were in rare form and driving me nuts! Next time, I will count (possibly to 1000 instead of 10)!
It’s nice to know I’m not alone in dreading parts of my day. I just feel sick about it, and feel like I should focus on all the good. But ahhhhh, those kids can push every one of my buttons!
I get it. Believe me I totally get it. With five boys I lose my cool more than I would like to admit.
Maybe counting to 10 should be my solution.
Mornings are rough. It seems like counting to 10 is a good trick that anyone could use.
.-= Catherine @ Evolving Mommy´s last blog ..Running Towards Progress =-.
I work during the day, but the afternoons are all me and my son. And yes, I have to count to 10 a few times.
I have a few awards for you. Please stop by.
http://www.myperfectlittleworldblog.com/2010/05/passing-on-awards.html
.-= jackie´s last blog ..Walgreens $5 Challenge =-.
Ugh, I’m so glad to here of someone else who feels my “do not wake him up unless you want to hear about it for the next hour” woes. People look at me funny when I say I don’t want to wake my son from a nap or in the morning, it’s because he’s plain miserable if I do and he makes it miserable for everyone else.
I think I need to start counting to ten…
.-= Pepper´s last blog ..Super Surfing Sunday =-.
I think every mother relates to this – yes, counting to ten!!!
Counting to ten and having contact with adults!
That’s where the blogworld has saved me.
.-= Alexandra´s last blog ..Flaming Skulls in the Sky =-.
So true!
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