NAG and WHINE

Yesterday wasn't a particularly good day for me as a mom...And in the end, I ended up eating a LOT of chocolate to make myself feel better. It started off crummy because my phone call with Jeremy ended abruptly, and I took offense. After that, everything was horrible. The tiny noises that Joshua was making to entertain his sister were really grating on my nerves...the horrible drivers on the road that normally only get my disapproving head shake, got my crusty stare and my upraised arms that said "WHAT THE HECK DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING YOU FREAK?!?!?!?!" and the tantrums thrown by my children when I wouldn't give them candy at Wal-Mart which normally would just cause me a moment of frustration, were the last straw. The rest of the day, I was ONE CRABBY MOMMY. What I don't think of when I am in such a mood is that I need a time out to think about how I am behaving. Instead, I nag Joshua to do what I want him to do NOW, MISTER! OR ELSE! There is a direct relation to tones of voice: If you speak nicely, the child will respond in kind. If you speak in a slight self-pitying, nasal whimper, the child will respond with a motherly tone. If you nag your child, your child will, in every case, whine. And when you are already in a mood where you are inclined to nag, the ensuing whine is really agitating. This happens a lot. I guess I am kind of dense. It is a good thing my kids are so happy most of the time in spite of their mommy. For example:

We were driving in the car, and Joshua was making some sort of "EEEK! EEEK!" noise for Eva's benefit, and since I had been dealing with Utah drivers, it was rubbing me the wrong way.
"Joshua," I said as nicely as I could. "Could you please stop talking?"
"EEEK! EEEEEK!"

"JOSHUA."

"No, I am just talking to Eva," he said. "I like her. She is my cutie. EEEEK! EEEEKK!"

Eva is just laughing at all of this as she blissfully throws her shoes and socks on the seat....another thing that is really bothering me.

"J O S H U A. STOP."

"Okay," he says brightly. "I will stop talking. Hey, mommy...blah blah blah blah..."
Sigh...See? I think something is wrong with me...

Of course, I spent the rest of the day trying to ignore my children, much to their chagrin, and my regret. I hate having Bad Mommy days. I think the lowest point was when Joshua told me he liked Eva but not me. Sniff... The best part was setting a bowl of M & Ms in front of the kids so I could cook dinner. THAT is entertainment! It inevitably ended in tears, however, since Joshua doesn't like to share. He sat there holding the bowl with his back turned to Eva and was popping in as many M & Ms in his mouth as fast as he could. He was sent to his room, and the bowl was given to Eva. Her style of eating them was to suck on them for a while, and then spit out the brown, melted middles. I wish I had taken a picture.

P.S. I just made Joshua and Eva envelope cards, and I had to fix Eva's since she had loved it too much, and I told Joshua she had crumpled it. I gave it back to her, and he, with a great deal of consternation, said "She's going to crapple it!" LOL!