Mindfully Mom

With my older children I was an authoritarian "children are an empty vessel" type of parent and thought that it was my job to fill them with knowledge. I was easily aggravated by their childishness and didn't really take time to know them. I was too busy telling them to, "do as I say." I was also considerably younger and less patient overall.

I still work on patience through my toddlers tantrums. Most often, our time together is limited to a few hours in the evening when I'm trying to rush through dinner and transition us to bedtime. Making this time the most peaceful by removing as many decisions from the evening as possible helps. 

Dinner tends to be the most frustrating. If I haven't planned/prepped something quick, things fall apart fast. He gets hungry and cranky, his crying and yelling makes me cranky and full-on hysteria will ensue. I've tried Hello Fresh and it was fantastic! However, it was not financially sustainable for our family budget. I'm working on a plan to designate some prep time on the weekends to give myself a similar set up with meals prepped and ready to grab from the fridge. 

Once we get past dinnertime, things usually smooth out. We flow into clean-up, hygiene, and bedtime stories together. 

Routine seems to be key for both of us. We both are happier when we do the same thing at the same time everyday. Our morning ritual is easiest since neither of us is usually hungry or cranky. I have our wardrobe down to easily interchangeable basics. 

Staying organized to make the simple day to day decisions easy, opens me up to more fluid mindfulness of the other bigger more meaningful events of our day. I stop and connect with my toddler and see what is important to him in the moment instead of reacting to his demands and frustrations with my own.