|
Man, three kids is much tougher than two. I'm hoping that I'm sucking as a parent just because Annabel is so helpless at the moment. Oh,.... what? I should explain? Ok.
I am finding myself being very short and demanding of Jake and Bobby these days. Jake moreso than Bobby. On nights like this when Claudine has office hours until 8:00 PM (which means she'll get home by 9 or 9:30), it's all me from picking them up at daycare/school until their respective bedtimes. The problem usually starts right way when Annie starts crying in the truck. Annie isn't like Jake or Bobby. The boys would be soothed by riding in a moving vehicle. It just seems to piss Annie off. So usually I would ask about how their days went and would listen to all their inane ramblings about what happened that day. I'm not being insulting here. They ramble. And it's cool. They talk up a storm and hit on all sorts of esoteric details that grown-ups are too busy in their normal grown-up way to even notice. So I love to hear about the world around them through their eyes.
Except when there is a crying infant around. Then I am so focused on getting that baby to shut up or at least calm down, that I don't really pay attention to the boys. And do you know what happens when a small child talks to you and you don't respond? They repeat whatever they are saying. Over. And over. And over. In the same voice and tone but progressively louder and louder until you go insane. Then you have to tell them to be quiet because they really aren't helping at the moment.
And this is the point that I am having trouble with. Telling them to be quiet. Because after all, they are trying to share their world with me. I should be thrilled because, all too soon they'll be teenagers and then no amount of begging and cajoling will allow me entrance into their world. Telling them to wait and be quiet until Annie's calm should be done gently and calmly. I need to work on that.
|
