struggles | SuburbanDaddy

Determined To Succeed

Single minded determination can be a good quality, and lead to some amazing accomplishments.? It took Albert Einstein eight years to develop his theory of relativity.? Michael Phelps trained for a decade on his way to winning 14 gold medals. These men had a single focus, suffering setbacks along the way, but persisting until they got to the finish line.

Thing 3 has the same determination qualities as these great achievers, albeit with a somewhat, how shall I say, less admirable end goal in mind.? He is determined, every waking moment and does everything within his power, to put his hands in the toilet.

Open the bathroom door the tiniest amount and Thing 3 tries to squirm his way through the crack like a mouse.? Like a dog, he can hear the bathroom door open from across the house and he’ll drop whatever he was doing and make a run for it.? All the while, with a mischievous grin that dares you to stop him.

Lately, Thing 3 absolutely loves bathtime, which was a welcome change from the screamfests of a few months ago.? Last night it finally occured to me why he loves taking a bath – because he is that much closer to achieving his ultimate goal.

I literally turned my head for one second, just to pour soap in the water as the tub was filling up.? In that time, Thing 3 managed to open the lid, put his arms in the toilet up to his elbows, and splash water all over the place.? It was one of those split second displays of pure athletism, much like Michael Phelps winning his 7th gold medal by 1/100 of a second.? Except I don’t recall Michael Phelps having that mischeivous laugh.

History Is Made, Again

History was made twice this week.? First, on Tuesday, Barack Obama was elected president.? Then, on Sunday, we shattered the record for sleeping in at SuburbanDaddy’s house and slept until 7:04am.? Who said lightning doesn’t strike twice?

I can’t understate how incredible this is.? All of the Things slept past 7 o’clock.? Even more important, I slept until 7am.? No exaggeration,? this was probably the first time I have slept past 7 since we brought Thing 1 home from the hospital nearly 5 years ago.

I’m normally happy if I get to sleep past 6am.? So this wasn’t just a new record, we shattered the previous record by nearly an hour.? This was like Michael Phelps winning 8 gold medals.? Joe Dimaggio’s 56 game hit streak.? Wilt Chamberlain scoring 100 points in a game.

And, just like we aren’t likely to see anyone approach those milestones anytime soon, I am not likely to sleep in until 7am again for a long, long time.? Yes, I’m counting down those minutes until 5:15 tomorrow morning.? Sweet dreams.

Teaching Values To Children

As parents, we try to teach our kids right from wrong.? We lead by example, and hopefully, when the time comes for them to act on their own, we pray the right values have been instilled in them.

I have already failed miserably to instill a critical value to Thing 2.? Sure, he is only three years old and there is still time to change his course.? But this value is something so close to our core, so basic, that I fear it can never be undone.

Thing 2, my son, is a Washington Redskins fan.? There, I said it, and it pains me as I type these words.

Like many in the Washington, DC area, I was not born and raised here.? I grew up in the New York suburbs, a loyal New York Giants football fan.? We now live just a few miles from Redskins Park, the team headquarters in Ashburn, Virginia, and the influence of all the local Redskins fans was apparently too much for Thing 2 to resist.

At their preschool, Fridays are “wear your favorite team jersey to school” day.? Thing 1 wanted a Jets jersey, which I can live with because it is still New York.? Even though he only wants the Jets because he loves airplanes.? Thing 2 sees all his friends wearing Redskins shirts and now that is the only one he’ll wear.? If I tell him he can’t, he’ll only want it even more.

How could I have failed so early to teach the right values to my child?? Will he pass down his own misguided values to his children?? I know what needs to be done.? I need to concentrate all my efforts on baseball now…and not allow him to become a Red Sox fan.

Back From The Beach

Another summer ends with a beach trip for Suburban Family.? It wasn’t much different than last year’s adventure.? We were happy we went, and happy when it was over.? It was one of those trips.

The kids had a great time, which is the whole point, right?? For Thing 3, it was his first time to a beach.? He loved diving head first into the water and eating sand.? When I say eating sand, I mean shoveling it in by the handful and laughing as he was doing it.? It may be all laughs going in, but it isn’t much fun when it comes out the other end if you know what I mean.

Thing 3 also had what was probably the single best time of his life, running through the spraypark fountain outside our restaurant.? It was a lot of fun to watch, even if most of the rest of the trip he was a handful.

Thing 1 and Thing 2 loved the beach, mini-golf, and getting to eat ice cream sometimes twice a day.? We decided to relax many of our regular rules while on vacation and go with the flow.? It worked for the most part.

A big surprise was how well the two of them got along.? They actually shared a bedroom which I thought would be a disaster, but it worked out great.? One night, I overheard Thing 1 explaining to Thing 2 all the stuff they would do on the beach the next day.? Something about digging a hole and making sand castles.? And Thing 2 was actually listening to his big brother, hanging on every word.? Incredible.

Don’t let these photos fool you.? The trip was not easy.? When Thing 3 woke up at his usual 5:30am, everyone else had to get up at the same time because there is no keeping the noise down in a condo.? And the rooms were far from child friendly.? Every 2 minutes someone was either bumping their head or breaking something.? Especially Thing 3.? Fifteen months is a tough age to travel with.

I’ll sure I’ll have more stories, videos, and pictures to post from our trip in the coming weeks.? But, for now, I’m just happy to have survived another family vacation, and happy to be back from the beach.

No Win Situations

There are some parenting situations you just can’t win.? Case in point: Thing 1 and Thing 2 were at it again, in the throws of a heated sibling rivalry.? For a change.

I managed to get control of the situation and both agreed to sit down and quietly watch a TV show together.? They actually agreed on which show to watch, which is quite a win by itself.? Usually, there is an epic battle between The Backyardigans and Diego.? It really doesn’t matter who wants to watch what. Just that one doesn’t want whatever the other wants.

But this time, they agreed.? This time, SuburbanDaddy wins.? Well, not so fast.

Two minutes into it, Thing 1 says he can’t hear, so I make it louder.? Then, Thing 2 says it’s too loud and it’s hurting his ears.? Another heated sibling rivalry ensues.? Lots of screaming, crying, whining.? Some if it mine.? There is no winning.

Looking Forward To Monday

By the end of the work week, I’m glad that it’s the weekend.? Well, for the most part.? I don’t exactly get to relax on weekends, but at least I don’t have to think about work for two days.

By the end of the weekend, after two days of “relaxing”, I’m ready for it to end.? There is no sadness Sunday night about having to get up early and go to work on Monday.? Maybe 5 years ago, but not any more.? No, now I look forward to Mondays.

Can’t Find A Match

We have these Glad containers all over the fricken house.? I am constantly stepping on them, seeing them on the deck, in the basement, bedrooms, and in drawers all over the house.? That’s because getting into, playing with, and moving containers are one of Thing 3’s favorite activities.? Which is all fine and good until you actually need to find a matching pair.

I just don’t get it.? These things don’t come in that many sizes.? How can I have all these tops and bottoms, with NOT A SINGLE MATCH?!? It is soooo frustrating.

Terrible Three’s Takes Over

The terrible three’s are upon us.? I don’t care what they say, the supposed terrible 2’s are nothing compared to the strengthening will and independence of a three year old.

I don’t know if it will quite reach the level we went through with Thing 1, but it is starting to look very familiar.

Thing 2, who used to love taking a bath and getting wet, now refuses to step foot in the bath tub.? We’ve reached the point where he will at least stand in the tub, but it takes a lot of coaxing.

I took him to get a haircut yesterday and it may as well have been the first time. Continue reading Terrible Three’s Takes Over