Unrelated and Likely Boring

I am at a loss for a cohesive blog post. Things are ramping up at work for me, and my brain is more focused on my super long "To Do" list than any topic that may interest you. Instead, some unrelated blatherings:

1) M. mentioned this weekend that he gets very angry when the kids cry. All he can think about is making the crying stop. He wondered if this made him a bad parent. I told him that it did not. I have a visceral reaction whenever the kids don't sleep (usually this involves crying, too, but it's not crying that drives me crazy, it's the lack of sleep. Which is often tied in heavily to my lack of sleep). I don't get mad, though, I get anxious. OK, I get a little mad, but mostly anxious. WHEN will he/she/they go to sleep ALREADY!?!? What can I do to make it happen? What is WRONG? Those are all the anxious thoughts that run through my head and cause my blood pressure to rise. Funny that it's a different trigger for me than for M. I wonder if that is true for most couples - in a way, it's a good thing because having two different "crazy" triggers ensures that one of you can keep your cool at any given time. Stacey mentioned that it drives her crazy when her daughter won't eat. What do your kids do that causes you to have an almost physical reaction? What gets you going every time? And do you get angry, or stressed out?

2) Finn apparently got a time out for hitting one of his "friends" at school yesterday. Of course in daycare, everyone is a "friend" even when he or she is actually a pushy whiner. As this kid seems to be. We did the whole "Oh, Finn, we DON'T hit, EVER. Mommy and Daddy are SO disappointed in your" bit, but a small part of us was cheering internally.

3) In other "Finn Behavioral Issues" news, Finn had an accident tonight. Not 15 minutes after I asked him if he needed to go potty, he let loose while sitting on his kid-sized armchair while watching "Wonder Pets" (terrible show, by the way. Just terrible). Totally soaked his chair, pants, socks, and even his shirt. All while sitting about 25 feet away from the bathroom. SO frustrating and annoying and maddening and lots of other harrumphing adjectives. This gal was pissed off, no pun intended. We've been having battles with Finn lately about going to the bathroom. He is potty trained, but hates using the bathroom. He will stall as long as possible. Some mornings he won't use the toilet until 2 or more hours after he wakes up. Usually no accidents are involved, but we are getting tired of the battle. Today was the last straw. From now on, the television is not going to be turned on until Finn has used the bathroom. Nicely and without arguing. We'll see how it goes...

4) I was approached by a colleague at work to run a leg of the Baltimore Marathon relay next October. I have lately been trying to get back in to dieting and exercising, but with only marginal success on the exercising front. Dieting-wise, I am now keeping track of all the calories in the food I am eating each day, and it is helping. But I definitely need more motivation for the working out portion of my goals. So I agreed to participate, figuring that having a race to work toward would be helpful. But so far I've only managed to run a little over a mile at a time, and when I say "run," I really mean "jog at just over a walk." I have a lot of work to go. The leg of the relay will likely only be a few miles long (4 people split up the 26.2 mile distance), but that's a few miles longer than I'm used to running. Here's hoping I can make some major physical fitness strides over the next 9 months!!

I'm sure I could find some more topics to add to this mish-mash, but I want to drink my wine instead. So I bid you goodnight.

Oh, wait, I thought of the other topic I was going to mention last night but completely forgot about.

5) Babbling. Lucy is doing it quite a bit now. Terribly cute, etc etc. But why is it that when she is happy, she babbles "Da da da da," and when she is crying, she seems to be saying "Ma ma ma ma?" Yes, yes, I know she isn't saying our names, and that dada is easier to say than mama, but come on. It's like she's already preparing for the years of crap she will give me as a teenager. As her mom, I am CERTAIN that I will receive the brunt of her rage and angst. That, after all, is what this ungrateful blogger did to her own mother. So sorry, Mom!