Yes, You Can Touch

In my constant efforts to be a more fun Mommy, I am trying to let my kids touch and do in most circumstances. Gone are the days of cringing when my kids get dirty, come into contact with germs, make a ton of ridiculous noise for no reason, or do a "kid friendly" job of "helping. " So, "yes Sawyer, you may splash in that puddle while wearing your good shoes." "Yes Madeline, playing in the dirt is totally acceptable in that new shirt." Yes kids, you can frost the cake your way and I will do my best to let go of the need for constant control over everything. I surrender. My kids are now allowed to veer from their strict bath schedule and be a bit dirty from time to time. If all meals do not include the recommendations of the Food Guide Pyramid, oh well. Three children has been an eye opener; it has pushed me to the limits as I try to do it all. I have come to the conclusion that I cannot do it all. And that is ok. So this is a little bit blog post and a little bit self-induced therapy.

Recently, I have been embracing the fact that kids need to touch, feel, splash, get dirty, be loud, wear mismatched outfits, brush their own teeth (before I finish the job, I married a dentist), help with tasks that they are less than proficient at completing, smell everything, inspect every leaf and rock while walking, open and close an umbrella 100 times per day, use a flashlight when completely unnecessary and so on. It is all part of it. Yes, everything I do with my kids takes 45 minutes longer than it should but my kids are enjoying the experience. And I am enjoying watching them. The extra 45 minutes that I build into each task is probably the reason regular bath time has gone out the window. (ie.."hey Jas- do you remember when Eamon had a bath last?)

The kids "made" me a cake for my 34th birthday. It was all I could do not to "fix" their decorations. I took deep breaths and repeated my mantra, "kids learn by doing, kids learn by doing...."