Oh, Boys

It's been one of those days.

I love my boys.

Connor didn't nap today, resulting in a complete meltdown match-only to be outdone by Ian. I was pretty sure that I was next in line, except I was supposed to be the one keeping the peace.

During Connor's speech appointment, Ian created his infamous pillow fort and proceeded to play hide and seek with Connor. Connor was game to play and enjoyed it with huge laughs. He then climbed into the fort to take a turn to hide. Only, his way of being found was to leap up and collapse the fort, which he also enjoyed.

Those who know Ian well will see where this is going.


Ian: "NOOOOO, Connor! You're ruining the fort! You always ruin things!"

Connor: "One, two, three....." (hiding again)

Ian: "NOOOO, CONNOR! It's not your turn again! RRRRR!!"

Connor (leaping out from cushions, making more disarray)

Ian: (in tears) "Connor always ruining my life! That's not the way the cushions were!" (Collapses weeping to the floor)

Mommy: "Let's give Ian a turn again." (Pulling Connor out from the wreckage)

Ian: "NOOOOO, MOMMY! You're making it worse! NO!"

Connor: "NOOOOO!" (begins wailing as he is removed)

Ian: (now desperately rebuilding the fort) "This isn't the same!"

Mommy: "Let me help you rebuild it." (places pillow in "wrong" spot)

Ian: "MOMMY! NO!" (Connor grabs a pillow) "CONNOR!" (collapses again)

Mommy: (to speech therapist/witness) "So, do I get any therapy in all of this?"

Speech Therapist: " You should." (laughing, although I am clearly not kidding)

Ian: "MOMMY, Connor has the pillow again! He's ruining it every single times!"

Connor (wailing because Ian has pulled the pillow away from him, now rolling and kicking on floor) "NOOOO!"

Speech Therapist: "So, I'm gonna go now, but hang in there."

Mommy: "You mean you don't want to stay?!"

Speech Therapist: (kicked hard by Connor in leg as he tantrums) "I'll see you next week."


You might be laughing. Maybe you have been there.

I decided to gather the boys and get Ian to karate. This miraculously works, only because Ian's latest quest to become a black belt instructor so he can "tell others what to do" took precedence over the pillow fort. Connor falls asleep in the car within seconds. Ian has a great class and earns a third stripe on his yellow belt.

Dinner back at the ranch is lasagna. This brings protest from both children, who later realize that this is all they are getting. Ian's friends from next door stop by to see if they can play in our backyard. Dinner becomes more appealing once he realizes they are not allowed over unless he eats some dinner. Connor eats only because Ian has tried his dinner first, so he has no reason to continue his protest.

I take a glorious half hour off and Tom takes the kids in the backyard. He later brings the boys in for a bath, where the boys begin to lose it once again. Ian continues shrieking after Tom asks him to stop several times. He is removed from the tub much to his dismay. Connor later screeched when he was removed from the tub. It was like every man for himself.

We got the boys into bed, Tom went for a walk and I watched the Biden/Palin debate. We have been quietly decompressing.

Deep breathing helps me. I tend to remain fairly patient and calm as the boys escalate. I could feel the fire burning in the back of my head as the speech therapist watched the pillow fort scene unfold. I felt my eyes watering as she told me to hang in there.

Breathe.

As Connor slept on my shoulder during Ian's class, I practiced serious breathing. It felt cleansing and renewing so I could continue through the rest of the evening-even as it continued to escalate-without my own meltdown.

And as my son would say, "IDONWIKEIT", but tomorrow's another day.