I love my kids, but dang they fight a LOT. I remember when I got pregnant with CootieBoy in December 2003 I told Denis that they’d be the best of friends. Well, this weekend they didn’t seem like friends. They seemed like sworn enemies intent solely on ruining each others lives.
Denis dealt with them all day Saturday while I was in Raleigh, and then yesterday it was left to me since Denis was hands-off and working on errands and baking Christmas cookies all day. By about 5:30 p.m. I had had enough. Enough of breaking them apart, enough of time outs when CootieBoy pulled CootieGirl’s hair, enough of CootieGirl taking CootieBoy’s toys, enough of whining, crying, screaming, running.
“ALL RIGHT THAT’S IT!” I roared when CootieGirl wrestled CootieBoy to the ground, causing him to hit his head on the entertainment center. “UPSTAIRS, TO YOUR ROOMS!”
They both swore (for the 100th time) that they’d be good, that they wouldn’t fight, but I knew better. Up they went, each to their own room.
Ah, bliss. Quiet. Relaxation. I fiddled with the Christmas lights at the front door, which necessitated me opening the front door. It caused CootieGirl to come running out of her room in the hopes of her lenient Daddy being there to let her come downstairs. She took one look at me and spun around and went back into her room.
I went into the TV room and began watching something on the TV that wasn’t a cartoon or in any way related to High School Musical. About 30 minutes later Denis came in from the grocery store. “Where are the kids?” he asked. “Their rooms. I couldn’t take it anymore.”
He laughed, because he knew.
A little while later Denis checked on them to find CootieGirl asleep in her bed, and CootieBoy in an apologetic mood. So CB was allowed to come downstairs, where he promptly got in my lap for some snuggle time. Thirty minutes later he was sleep, so I took him upstairs, slipped him into his PJs and got him into bed for the night.
An hour later, CootieGirl came down, refreshed from her nap, also wanting a cuddle with Mommy. So we cuddled and watched “Extreme Home Makeover” as well as a little bit of “60 Minutes”. She ate some dinner and then after more cuddling went upstairs to bed for the night.
The kids? GREAT when they are by themselves. Seriously – they are pure joys when apart from each other. But together? Ugh.
Best of friends. LOL
And you only had them from noon until 5 pm. Imagine fighting and screaming from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. when you got home on Saturday. Next time you do a crafts fair, you’re taking one of them with you.
Time spent apart in their rooms is a very good thing. Maybe try setting a period of time each weekend where they have to spend “alone” time in their rooms to play by themselves. It may become a habit that the whole family will enjoy! 🙂