HOW DO I DO THIS AGAIN?
Written by Sheree Hoddinett
Ten steps forward and about a million backwards. That’s parenting in a nutshell really. Well that simplifies it somewhat, it’s possibly a little more complicated than that. But it feels like you finally crack through the surface and achieve something big and then your child manages to propel you back into what feels like another dimension. So then you start again and just repeat. Some days feel like Groundhog Day, the same things over and over again. Other days just feel never ending and those days are when my girls choose to go absolutely crazy! Those are the days they hit my very last nerve, multiple times. Think steam coming out of my ears and a face that is tomato red. Those are usually not my finest moments. But you know what? They always seem to forgive me. I don’t know why. Maybe it’s the possibility of a toy or some chocolate (yes, they know where my stash is) that pushes them back to nice mode.
My eldest daughter is 7 and she’s very much my princess. Jumps at the tiniest of spiders or bugs, a little moth can freak her out and a small injury lasts much longer than necessary. But she’s also a very switched on kid and will usually help when asked, after about 5 times mind you. She’s not afraid to talk back to me, which irks me something fierce and yes she has even sworn at me. Not hard when she’s heard it all before, haha! I can’t help but feel proud that she has inherited a lot of similar character traits as her mumma (minus the princess side). Not sure, her father shares the same thought process, hahahahaha!
Her sister on the other hand, is a different kettle of fish. While she can often display similar behaviour to that of her older sister, sometimes mimicking her which often starts another fight, she has more of a headstrong and fight mentality, which also seems to come from me. I’m definitely a bit of a mixed bag. Nothing seems to intimidate her. She stacks her bike one day, grazing all the limbs she possibly can and she’s back on it the next day. She trips over and splits her knee open, but she gets on with things. She pulled her first tooth out with only a hint of hesitation. Sometimes I wish I had more of her bravado. Don’t get me wrong, she can be a downright turd too!
My girls are polar opposites a lot of the time and then sometimes they just click at the right moment. I wish it was all of the time, but that would make parenting boring right?! No chance for me to play referee (favourites if you ask my kids) either. How awesome would some days be if we could just hit the pause/rewind or even fast forward buttons to skip over the horrible stuff. Yes I know, we don’t really learn anything from the experience if we don’t live it. I guess you could say I have learnt a lot, both about myself and my kids as they grow up. I know what to do in some crazy messed up situations (like, don’t panic) and others – where a child drops a full roll of toilet paper in the toilet – I’m just left gobsmacked. There still is no right or wrong answers in a lot of parenting scenarios, you just have to go with your gut and hope for the best. Otherwise I really have been doing this all wrong from day 1!
Someone really wise said to listen to everyone’s advice but just go with what works best for you – oh wait that was me! Haha! Whether your child is a princess, a pain in the bum or the perfect angel (still yet to come across said child!), they are yours to help mould into the best human you can. Good luck and yes you will mess it up, that’s called life! Sorry I can’t sugar coat it any other way. For more of my messed up parenting head on over to www.shereekim.com – it’s nothing fancy but it might give you some relief on how you feel as a parent in today’s world. Until next time….