Why I am Never On Time

"On time" is such a relative term... right? I mean... who is ever really "on time" these days any way? Ok, maybe that's just my friends.

But, not even kidding. I am never on time. Ever.

I am either really early or I am late... borderline really late.

You may be asking yourself, "Why is that?  Kind of odd to be one extreme or the other isn't it?"

Here is my answer...

Why, yes, yes it is a little off to be on both of these extremes.  But in our household, we run on Lainey Time.  So, you see, depending on how things are running in our house, that is what determines which end of the "on time spectrum" we are on.
 
Example #1: Saturday Morning

Lainey woke up (on her own time, of course) and had breakfast and then asked to get ready for dance class.  Well, I don't know about you, but I hate chasing a toddler to put tights on her so, I said "Certainly! Let's do this!!"

Well that made getting dressed drama free. But that also meant, she was ready to leave about 35 minutes before we needed to be walking about the door. But when I told her it wasn't quite time to go yet, she was not a happy camper. And, honestly, I would rather be early than hear a meltdown.  So on to the studio we went.  Not a big deal, there's classes all morning and Lainey enjoyed watching the big girls dance.  But, nevertheless, we were 40 minutes early for our 10am dance class.

Example #2:  This Morning

Lainey has been battling the plague 2.0 since late yesterday morning (because it's 2 days before a holiday and every toddler should be sick for the holidays, duh) so she slept snuggled up with me last night. This morning, when she heard me getting ready she started cry "I neeeed my mommyyyy." So, of course I stopped what I was doing to sit with her.  I told her I had to go to work and she got really cranky. So I sat some more - watching the minutes on the clock as I tried to break down the last possible minute I could leave and still be "on time."

Well, that time came and went. And a few minutes later, I told her "Ok, girl. Here's the plan. When Dad gets up here with your breakfast, I have to go to work. Deal?"

"Deal, Momma."

Seriously?! That easy! All because I gave her the few extra minutes she needed.

Other reasons we run on Lainey Time...

I hate to disrupt a nap. So if we are supposed to be at your house and Lainey is napping when it's time to go... if I know it won't mess up the day, we are going to be late. Sorry/Not Sorry.

Potty breaks. So, we are running out the door, headed to the car and Lainey stops to yell she has to go to potty. You bet your butt we are turning around and going in to go potty.  Even if we just went before we walked out the hous.  Dammit, we are in underwear most of the time now and do not want an accident in the car! So, yes, I will trade being on time for a potty break.

Her highness picked out her own clothes, let me do her hair and somehow did it all without an argument.  This means the meltdown buffer that I added to our routine was not needed so we are now 20 minutes "early."  But - as we have already discussed - if I try to tell Lainey it's not really time to go, she just gets antsy.  So I would just rather have a jam session in the car and hope our friends don't mind that we are early.

Stay tuned for some Christmas round-up posts coming later this week.... even if they are after Christmas. 

Merry Christmas Eve Eve, folks!!

xoxo,
Linda

Surviving Thanksgiving and the plague

My friend, Blair, recently posted this question in her blog:

"How does the rest of the non-childrearing world celebrate Thanksgiving without sick kids?"

Oh, how I wish I could answer that.  But the truth is... I do not know! I have no idea!!

The cold of all colds struck our house and it is still lingering! It just won't let go!! Lainey got sent home from school last Tuesday with a fever. I am not one to race to the doctor so I said, "Let it ride..." but as the day went on, she did not perk up at all.  Under normal circumstances, I probably would have kept letting it ride, but I was afraid of winning the award for "most considerate dinner guest" and showing up with a flu-ridden child.  So I sent her to the doctor with my mom on Wednesday.  Just to be safe.  I am totally ok with telling a family member, "Sorry, she's cranky. She has a nasty cold."  I couldn't in good faith show up and say, "Happy Thanksgiving! Lainey brought you all a present... it's the flu!!"

Diagnosis: Nasty cold

Prescription: Benadryl and Tylenol (aka let it ride)

Well lucky for us, Lainey is on a medicinal boycott! How fantastic and well-timed!! Doesn't matter what I offered as bribery, she wants absolutely nothing to do with medicine.  And the few times I got medicine in her mouth, she just spit it back out. Lovely!

After 2 days of holiday fun, I put Little Miss on lock down - house arrest - quarantine. Whatever you want to call it, she wasn't going out.  My goal was for her to sleep this plague away.

But this medicinal boycott is new at our house.  Usually, Lainey takes her cough medicine or Benadryl and Tylenol like a champ.  But I kid you not, her antics could have been a commercial - they were that over the top.  I mean, hiding under the bed, screaming, spitting... you name it, she tried it to avoid taking her medicine.

So, what's a mom to do? 

Oh, you know... hold her down and force it, right? Nope - that didn't work either.

This took some real motherly work.

I took to google, of course. 

Here's what I came up with...

Benadryl is what the pediatrician usually tells me to give her to dry up the ick and then Tylenol for the fever, if there is one.

Thanks be to God - Benadryl makes a dissolving chewable magic "candy."  Yes, I told her it was candy. Don't judge me.

I also found a sample in the medicine cabinet of a honey-based all natural cough medicine called Zarbee's.  Got my girl to drink honey.

Never call either of these wonders medicine.  You will ruin the trick.  Just tell your toddler, "Ok. It's time to eat candy and drink honey!!"  Who in their right mind can say "No" to that?! 

Even amidst the screaming, the fevers, the stress, we must still take time to be thankful.

I am thankful for lots of things this year, but I am especially thankful for these ladies.  I'd be lost without the next generation of Clowers girls.  I know we make our Papa proud every day and he would have loved this picture.

Hope all of ya'll enjoyed your Thanksgiving and that you are keeping well!

xoxo,
Linda