Mommy moments

I love being a mom. It is one of the best things of my life, even as it is one of the hardest. My kids make me smile and laugh and shake my head in wonder and cry and scream and... well, you get the idea. I love them with all my heart, but sometimes I just need a break.

A couple of weeks ago, I was sitting in the basement enjoying the silence, when in walks Tobey. After 10 minutes and 3 requests that he go upstairs and shower, he finally left. Yeah. He left only to return not 5 minutes later leading Raynie. He finally did go upstairs to shower, after much wailing and complaint, but Raynie stayed behind. As much as I love my little ones, I put my forehead on the desk and half-cried. I sometimes wonder if my husband even tries to understand. Being a mom is a wonderful thing, but it is also the hardest thing in the world.

This week, even with Joe out of town, my mommy-ness has been rewarded with lots of laughs and warm fuzzies. Today, Tobey walked up to me and asked me to promise not to be mad at him. It's hard to make a promise like that when you don't know what is coming, but I promised and was rewarded with this story: "Mom, *sniff, sniff* I kind of *sniff* accidentally *sniff* called my friend *sniff* a bad name. *sniff, sniff* I didn't mean to, honest, *sniff* but I kinda accidentally called him a *sniff* fathead." At that point, I couldn't hold it in anymore - I laughed so hard that Tobey got mad and cried even harder, poor kid. I asked him if he apologized to his friend, and he said he was going to try, but he thought the friend was going to tell on him. So, I had him call the friend to apologize. What a tender little heart my sweetie has. I remember calling plenty of friends names when I was little, and I don't really remember feeling very bad about it most of the time. I am so glad for him and for the lessons I learn from him every day!

Raynie, on the other hand, is just short of 2 in years and very much 2 in attitude. We are suddenly getting majorly into temper tantrums and, umm, "moments." She is exerting her independence more and more each day. Not that I want her to grow up too fast, but I love watching each new stage and seeing the things she is learning and doing each day. Yesterday she decided to draw all over herself with a pen (I'm still not sure how she found that) and paraded around on the coffee table to show off her artwork. Definitely a laughing mommy moment!