It Was All I Could Do Not To Scream

I wrote this post a few days ago.  I will start by saying, I am SOOO glad hubby is home from Florida.

These two cuties missed their daddy and they let me know it.  Usually when the hubby is out of town I plan a few activities outside of the house to take their mind off of daddy not being home.  I did the same thing this week.  Let me tell you about our outings.

{Night 1}

Went very smoothly.  Hubby left early this morning.  The girls and I went to church.  A pretty typical Sunday.  In the evening an old friend came over.  She and I rarely see one another so this was a real treat.  We sat out on the porch catching up while the girls showed off for her. Most of the time I think it is adorable when the kids have a new audience.  It was also strange that LD (4) even went near my friend.  LD does not like strangers.  But boy she showed off this night!

{Night 2}

The moment I walked into the babysitters I could tell AL (1) was not going to be nice.  She was already screeching at me and running around like a maniac and climbing all over her sister making her sister scream.  LD (4) had an accident at nap time and our sitter was washing her blanket, so we had to wait for the washer to finish.  Longest 15 minutes of my life!!

With AL still being a maniac once we got home I decided to take the girls to the pool.  We have not been in a little while and AL (1) has not been sleeping well so I thought this plan would work two-fold.  I have to say by the time I got the girls and myself dressed and packed for the gym, I was ready to be back home.  I was exhausted.

We get to the pool and there were no family rooms available, so we undress in the hall of lockers - a very public walkway to the pool.  Not that big of a deal because we all had our suits on.  However once it was my turn AL did not want to stay still and kept running off.  Let me tell you how much I love running around in my swimsuit.

Finally to the pool, not 1 minute in and LD has to go potty.  I have to get both kids out of the water and walk soaking wet to the bathrooms.  We get back in the pool and LD is clinging to me like a cat in water.  This is difficult to handle when you are trying to help a 1 year old swim.  They both had vests on but LD is not a trusting/relaxed kid.  She finally lets go a little and I realize she is hanging onto one of the strings of AL's lifejacket.  Sound safe?  We finally get comfortable in the pool and the life gaurds make everyone get out.  Now comes the funnest part - getting everyone dressed.

{Night 3}

I decided to take the girls to the mall.  I did not bring the stroller in because I thought AL could run around the mall and tire herself out.  Bad idea once we were getting food.  She was throwing the biggest fit while I was holding her, I did not think we would make it to the table with our food.  Once we begin eating I realize AL is not going to eat anything because she starts pounding all of her food with her hands.  Her only interest was her juice box.  She was doing fine with her juice box until she started to get restless and decided to squeeze the box.  The straw circled around like an ocsilating sprinkler.  So I cleaned up and moved to the next task.  The playground. 

We get to the escalator and all of a sudden LD starts screaming like I am stealing her.  People are staring at this point and I am at the end of my rope.  She does not want to go down the escalator she is suddenly scared.  I try to reason with her that this is the only way to the playground.  She is having non of it.  She is screaming so loud I begin to just walk off towards the car.  Of course this really makes her scream. To top the situation off a man comes over and just decides to watch - NO JOKE!  So of course I am extra embarrassed and I start rambeling about the situation and he says, "well I woul dhelp if I could."  How about just going away?  I am sure he thought I was beating LD by the way she was screaming. 

So let's skip to the end of my story because this goes on for awhile.  Know how do I get down the escalator?  By carrying the 1 year old and the 4 year old.  Did I mention the 4 year old is scared and I am wearing a skirt with a very loose elastic waist band?  So LD is wrapped around me - arms and legs - and her shoes are pulling down my skirt - on a glass elevator.  Oh and because of all of the wresteling I had been doing with AL my tank top was completly stretched out and hanging very low.  Yes ladies - I was looking pretty awesome at that moment.  Hubby is lucky some guy didn't just snatch me right up. 

Now that I have written this out part of me feels much better, the other part of me wants to sit in the corner and rock back and forth.

Truly when I have experiences like these as a mom it is very upsetting and here is why; I am embarrased and I feel like I am not in control.  When the moment is over I can reason with myself.  I know almost everyone has these moments, and as badly as I wanted to just start screaming and yelling, I was able to control myself.  We did make it out of the mall alive, which felt nothing short of a miracle. 

Hubby is home and things are getting back to normal.  Unfortunatley he leaves again Sunday, for 2 days longer this time.  Wish me luck!