I have been having a hard time lately as I am trying to adjust to life in a new place. I don't know what is making Philadelphia so much harder to adjust to than Florida, but for whatever reason, it is. It seems like everything is just taking more effort on my part (budgeting, grocery shopping, keeping my kids engaged and entertained, meeting friends, driving places). I always feel better if I write down my feelings and hopefully some of you can relate and know you are not alone.
Being a mother of three is so rewarding and makes me happier than I can describe, but it does have its difficult moments...like this morning. It was Griffins new student orientation and so I packed up the crew and took them into the school. Things were already a bit stressful before we walked in because parking anywhere here is a joke...even more so when you have to parallel park in a spot that leaves about 5 inches between the car in front and in back of you. Proud to say I did it though despite the screams of my kids that I was going to hit a car!
Well we made it in to the library and sat down and the first thing I noticed was that I was definitely the youngest parent (probably at least by 5 years) and I had the most kids! This is actually not unusual for me, but nonetheless stresses me out sometimes! It must be because we go to church every Sunday and during Sacrament meeting when the kids need to be quiet I bring lots of snacks to keep them occupied! Because today, on cue with the silence, Maelie and Reece start an inconsolable whining that you could hear around the room that they are hungry for a snack (they just had a big breakfast an hour ago) so I tell them that you can't eat in the library and try to distract them with technology (my best friend). That only lasted so long with Reece...she started throwing the Kindle on the floor and then insisting on having it back, which I couldn't reach, forcing the man next to us to grab it. So I took her out of the stroller and gave her a pen and paper to color with and a cracker that I tried to hide behind the stroller. That lasted about 2 minutes and while screaming, she decided to throw the pen across the table hitting another man in the chest. Luckily everyone laughed and was very nice. She threw her binkie as well at the same man a little later and at that point I was so embarrassed and overwhelmed I just took the girls out to the hall... Sorry Griffin, you may not make it to the bus for school because I missed that part!
Walking out of the school one of the parents said to me, "You certainly have your hands full!" I think I have heard that from people about 1000 times.
Moments like these deserve Chipotle so I told the girls how sad I was that they didn't act nice during the orientation and drove straight there! At least when they are naughty I get treats!
