“MOMMY, I GOT THIS!”

Spring semester is officially over, and I am ready to do all the things that I said that I would do. I have started re-painting my deck and even began planting a few things in my little garden. I will show pictures soon. Most importantly, I wanted to spend time with my son, who had to spend many days playing alone while I tackle school and work. I was sure that with school out of the way for a while, I would give him some quality time, but I was held captive by that feeling of exhaustion that occurs after a hectic night shift. I am so dog-tired most days, and all I want to do was sleepzzzzzz. Darn it!

Recently, my son was doing his usual play on the floor all by himself, and I felt the most incredible guilt. Since he was building a block tower, I walked over, sat next to him, and immediately he excitedly invited me to play with him. He gleefully looked into my eyes and said, “mommy, build with me.” It felt so good at the moment, even though I had to follow his every rule. After allowing me to lay three blocks, he said indignantly, that is enough, I got this! Ouchhhhh! that stung. My first thought was that he had gotten so used to playing by himself that our fun lasted for less than five minutes. I was not sure if I should feel hurt or happy that he has gained so much independence. At that moment, I wouldn’t say I liked school or work and thought that it is was causing me to miss out on valuable time and experiences with him. I mean, I really wanted to build with him some more. I was happy when my daughter joined in and he was opened to playing with us.

Now that I have licked my wounds, I am currently planning a few adventurous things to do with my kids with the bit of free time I have. God bless summer breaks. I am open to suggestions as well, so please share some fun ideas with me. Thanks.