Teenage Delusions

So motherhood happened. Not once but three times. Yet despite my experience I really don’t feel like a mother nor do I feel like a grown up. It’s like a poster I saw on Facebook. I think they call them memes or something even though I have no idea what that means or how to pronounce it. When a crisis occurs and you look for someone more adulty than you. Woah there Nelly. I’m the adult. Well I must have missed that memo.

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My son told me I was just a kid cause I still had a Mammy and Daddy.  And yes he used the word kid. Because, yes he watches too much American television. He even asked me for candy one day. I was like I’ll candy stripe your arse for you and attempted to get him to watch Fraggle Rock on tg4. That’ll snap any Yankee notions out of ya boyo.  By his estimation I’m not an adult and I’m beginning to think he’s wise beyond his years.

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And they call it Puppy….. insanity!

 

 

 

You have your hands full

These words are directed to me at least once a day. I get it. Three children is a lot. The fact that I’m no longer with their Dad probably makes it seem like more. I don’t do as much as I should from a motherly perspective but between the jigs and the reels life is fairly busy. When they go to their father’s I really do enjoy the peace. The doing nothing way of life suits me down to a tee ( or is it tea ??). In the midst of one of these marathon nothing sessions in which I relish  a post that often pops up in my newsfeed reared it’s head again.

The post was a heart felt plea from Cara Rescue Dogs for foster homes for puppies in their care. Now I’m not overly mad about animals and I’m not overly mad about the number 1 and number 2 that comes from said animals. I’m not overly mad on the smell of dog hair, dog breathe or dog farts. That being said my fingers started moving and I was texting and I was having some sort of a turn because the next thing I knew I was going to be considered as a foster parent for two very small puppies.

How the hell did that happen!!!

Sunday afternoon at 5pm after a home check was completed I became the rather petrified carer of two teeny balls of fluff. One brown and white the other black and white. Cara provides everything you need to take care of the pups for how ever long they are with you. All you have to do is love them. Well feeding and watering them wouldn’t go a miss either but you know what I mean.

The best part is the children had no clue and when they arrived home at 6pm tired and hungry after a busy weekend I was gonna reveal two puppies. Sure what could go wrong?

Two minutes after my grand reveal all hell broke loose someon wet themselves there was whimpering and begging  and that was just the children ( that joke never gets old). The two boys didn’t end up in bed until ten. Yes, Monday morning was torture.

Once everyone calmed and settled in the lovely part of the experience began. I have never heard the children laugh so much. The TV has hardly been on in days and the house has never been as clean. I’m really enjoying having the dogs as my guests.

Our little  fur babies are called Flake and Krispy kindly named by Karla at Cara. My children keep calling her Caramel so Aunty Caramel gave us our dogs to mind. I have explained to them that the dogs won’t be staying and I am fully aware that they will be upset but I’m hoping they will see the good that we are doing. Let’s face it they get upset when I give them the wrong the wrong coloured bowl for breakfast so I’m prepared for the hysteria.

I suppose the purpose of fostering for me is to see if I’m willing to put the work in that is needed to care for a dog. I don’t want to be the type that takes on an animal and realise that it doesn’t fit in with my lifestyle or my children especially. That’s one of the reasons why Cara are kept so busy. People think it’s all cuddles and sleeping. It’s far from it. I can tell you one thing though it’s very rewarding. I’m teaching my children about giving back in this world. Doing what you can when you can. How to care for something other than yourself. Also how important it is to respect other living things. I’m hoping this will be something that I can do regularly.

Cara Rescue Dogs Facebook page is <<<<< there if you click on the link. You’ll find everything you need to know all the contact details. If you feel like taking on a dog is not for you there are loads of ways to donate. You’ll feel great and you’ll make some dog’s day. I would like to just say that it’s a completely vouluntary orgainsation run by people with full time jobs and familys and lives of their own so if you have more than you need build a bigger table… not a higher fence.

Be well

Ellen

 

 

 

I’m eating nothing!!

If you have read other posts you will be aware of my battle with the bulge. Without trying to sound dramatic, that wouldn’t be like me at all, I liken it to a serious addiction. Food is my drug of choice and I don’t know how to become rehabilitated. I literally flip flop from wanting to loose weight and swearing to make a massive effort to throwing in the towel and accepting that I’ll never be slim. That switch could happen at least four times an hour. Every time professing to anyone that will listen…. this time will be different…..and it never is.

Writing this tonight I’m in binge mode and weight loss is the furthest thing from my mind I’m having a fat food Friday and I’m loving every minute of it. Until tomorrow when I try on my jeans and I’m like 7 pounds of rice shoved into a 5 pound bag. (I think the correct  phrase is 7 pound of shit but you know… I didn’t want to be vulgar).

Birth Story Numero Trois

There’s not a mother alive in this modern age that hasn’t shared her birth story with her nearest and dearest. In fact I’m pretty sure a lot of us have shared it with complete strangers from time to time.

Solo Warrior

We have many firsts as parents, first time to change a nappy, first time to be puked on, first time shopping for school uniforms…. the list is as long as it is varied. Well today I had a first. I probably won’t forget it in a hurry but not for the same warm fuzzy feelings that other ‘first’ memories bring to that corner of my tummy. Today I had my first, I suppose the only word for it is, altercation, with a fellow parent over one of my children.

A knock came to the door and I was greeted with a very irate man wanting to know why his daughter was upset over something that I had said to her. Yes me! Not my son but me, a grown middle-aged woman had upset a young child. Not one of my finer moments I can admit without hesitation.

Now I’m not going to go into the nitty-gritty of the conversation because I would be extremely tempted to fill in my part of the conversation with many phrases and quick-witted remarks that I wish I had said, as opposed to what actually occurred. I will expect plenty of private mails looking for the finer details. What I will say is that I did  speak to the children and tell them to play nicely with one another and asked them not to exclude my son.

In hindsight maybe having words with other people’s children is not a great idea…. lesson learned. This upset the child and in turn upset her father and a conversation followed where we both defended our own as you do and parted agreeing to speak to the children about their behaviours towards each other.

Of course for the rest of the evening my mind was flooded with thoughts of what had happened. My role in the events and my son’s role and how could I have behaved better and how do I help him improve his behavior towards others?

Do I stand by my son and defend him to the death….

My child would never do such a thing!

When I see a parent approaching my door do I turn my head and automatically assume his guilt regardless of the circumstances?

What did you do?

It’s one of the first times in a long time that I really felt like a single parent. I had no one to bounce the situation off of. No one to help me rationalise. No one to debrief after the big scary man came up and gave out to me. No one to have my back. No one to calm me when I swore blind that the children would never see the light of day again and no one to hug me when I felt extremely vulnerable.

The conclusion I came to was that I couldn’t come to a conclusion. I couldn’t wrap this up in a little bow and tidy it away. I realised that I don’t want to be a naive parent and pretend that I don’t think that my child is capable of being mean to others. Of course he is. Along with every other child on the planet. They are all horrible to one another at some stage. I also feel like I want to defend him to the death because he’s my cub and I’m a mama bear and if I won’t defend him who will?

I did learn that I won’t be talking to other children about their behaviors. It’s a modern approach to parenting because in my childhood days if any adult spoke to you, you did what you were told and if you complained to your mother you were told where to go. I’m not sure that it’s a great parenting development but it’s here and it’s not going anywhere. I’m also going to shift my focus. I can’t control how other people treat my son but I can help shape how he responds.

I’m off to have a vodka because this scummy mummy has had enough for one day. Can’t say I’m looking forward to the summer. I may pull the curtains and pretend I’m not here!

Be well

Ellen

 

Imaginosity

I’ve only just recently overcome the fear of bringing my wee family places by myself. All too often I have recruited family and friends with the inner feeling that I just couldn’t cope  alone.

Service with a Smirk

Although I am a stay at home mother  every year at Christmas I am fortunate enough to get work in the local Ice Rink. Every year the owners recognise the skills that I have and implore me to become a vital part of a vibrant team of young ambitious workers. There’s that and the fact that the owners are my aunt and uncle!! Either way I love being a part of the work force even for such a short time.

Serving the public is not for the faint of heart. The vast majority of people are kind and courteous, wait their turn and are grateful for anything that you can do for them. Then there are the others……

A great source of amusement at the box office was the numerous people who would attempt to get a ticket at a reduced rate. 12 and over is a adult ticket so therefore logic would dictate you had to be 11 to get the more appealing price for a child. Men at least 6 foot tall with a mustache would plead innocence when challenged about their age. You gotta  love a trier.

Standing in the skate dock one afternoon a lady on the ice grabbed my attention. She sat her child over the barrier and said to me without a smile on her face said. ‘Is he supposed to have skates on him?’ It took me a minute to actually understand the situation. She had come to a rink, paid €13 to bring her child out on the ice and somehow thought that he did not have to put ice skates on to go ice skating on ice. My jaw still drops when I think about that one.

Working behind the shop could be full of fun. Once such phenomenon is the six giggling teens who all want a diet coke and a bar. Here’s the catch… they all stand behind one another and order individually… the…. exact….same….thing. No chance of…. Oh while you are over there all five of us want drinks. Nope. They would rather see my little legs work like a flintstone outcast over and back and over and back. On the plus side it was great exercise.

Well it’s all said and done for another year and I feel lucky to have been a part of the team. It gave me an outlet from the children and also made me feel very lucky to be able to stay at home and watch them grow. See you all for the next big freeze!!!

 

 

 

 

 

Christmas Carnage

I do enjoy Christmas. I’m not fanatical about it but i’m no Grinch either. As the childer will be with their Dad the next two weekends, today was the day to erect the tree. I wanted them to be a part of it and not just… sit there and watch me do it type of participation but I was fully prepared to allow them to adorn the tree however they saw fit.

This is a special Christmas for me and my family as it is our first one in our new home. Since December ’13 until August of this year myself and my brood were lucky enough to live with my mother. In August I got the amazing news that I had been housed with a housing agency. So this year will be memorable to wake up to Santa in my own gaff!

Enough of the sentiment and back to the fun we were all going to have putting up the tree. My mother arrived with the stuff. As I pulled out the tree I remembered the day it was bought. I said to her…. guess how much this tree cost me?……. €18! As I removed it from it’s cardboard jail it was all too apparent why it only cost €18. I’ve come across more lush cactus than this tree.

Undeterred we soldiered on. I fleshed the branches out as best I could and then looked to where it was going to stand. The whole sitting room had to be changed around to fit in the tree. So what started out as tree time had turned into 60 minute makeover. I was already exhausted. We found it’s home and I put on the lights. Ready to allow the children to put on the baubles.

The enthusiasm was heart warming. I handed them some baubles and let them at it. We all sang Christmas carols as we put them on…….. no we bloody didn’t, it’s not some true movie you are watching here with your one out of little house on the prairy… this is real life!!!! The Sun and Moon put on literally two decorations before they got fed up.

But my wee little Star…. she showed so much determination. Back and forth into the container and tried with all her might to put them on. She wasn’t very successful but she was really enjoying it. When the lights went on… all four of them…. she ooohed and aaaaahed. Bless her little cotton socks.

The finished result was decidedly underwhelming but I don’t care. I have my own home and I have plenty of time to build up my collection of festive ornaments. It’s not the decorations that makes the season special. It’s family and friends, my own home and my three (sometimes) lovely children gathered at my feet…. killing each other!!!

Thanks For Reading

Be Well

Ellen

 

 

Other Mothers

Yes i’m talking to you. You dear other mother that is reading this blog. I would like to address this strange dynamic that you and I, as mothers, have with one another. We both have children. Whether you gave birth, someone else gave birth for you or you took on a child, we are both now blessed in our role as mother. This role might involve one or more children but the title remains the same. You might have a partner or a husband or mulitple sexual partners that you call on from time to time ( you lucky bitch) but again we are both mothers. You may have a job or a number of jobs or you may be a stay at home mother but guess what yes at the risk of being predictable we are both mothers. So now that we have established that we are part of the one team. Why is it we compete and compare?

When I had my first son I had a feeding schedule that I adhered to at all costs. I was rigid to a fault. If I broke from my routine the universe would surely implode of that I was convinced. I did it by the book and was doing everything ‘right’. Then guess what I discovered?  My besty who I genuinely consider to be an excellent mother had her own feeding schedule and it was so different to mine. How could this be? I found my inner voice muttering things like…. it’s not how I’d do it? surely that can’t be right? is that even good for the baby?……when I calmed because we all know you go a little crazy on your first I realised there is no one way to do anything and that all you have to do is your best.

Potty training, soothers, screen time ( american way of saying watching tele and playing video games) consumption or lack thereof fruit and vegetables, co-sleeping, breastfeeding and allowing them cordial are all subjects that could cause two otherwise sensible mothers to row like children in baby infants.

I took the soothers off my boys when they were 11 months old. I found other mothers who were happy for their own children to have a soother make excuses to me once they realised mine no longer had theirs. The truth being it’s none of my business if your child had her soother until the day she heads off to college. That is your parenting choice and the only one that has to be happy with it is you!

I lay with my boys every night until they finally give up the will to be awake! It’s a long drawn out process that I used to hate. I now try and see it as an intimate time when they both have my full attention and I enjoy it. My mother thinks it’s madness and she’s probably right. I’m the only one that has to deal with it though so I am going to continue as I am. If your child sleeps with you until his wedding night it’s no skin off my nose because that is your parenting choice and the only one that has to be happy with it is you!

I allow my children have more treats than I’m happy to admit to. I’m not asking you to come mind them when they have the ‘e’ sugar rush and are literally licking the walls. I’m also not asking you to comfort my child when the chocolate goes up his tooth and pains him which I’m sure is a direct result of too may sweets. This is a poor parenting choice that I make. For what reasons I’m not sure but I’m the one that has to live with it.

So I suppose the point of this little rant is to encourage us as mothers to support each others choices. If we need to be critical we always have the Kardashians to pick on.  A high horse is not a good vantage point to have because when you fall it’s gonna hurt! I’m speaking from experience.

I’ll give it a good go!!

I don’t often have many good words to say about myself. Part of the reason is a really bad habit that I have gotten into of running myself down. Sometimes I don’t even believe what I am saying but I might just say it for comedic effect. Other reasons are low self esteem and lack of confidence but there’s nothing funny about those attributes so we shall swiftly move on.