I have to say that I am so excited because I am going to the cabin on Friday!! I wrote an entire post on how much I love the cabin earlier this year. It is one of my most favorite places in the entire world. To me nothing is more beautiful than waking up in the morning and seeing the sun glitter off the water, or going down to the dock at night and staring at the stars with my sisters. There is something wonderful and magical about the cabin that I just don't feel anywhere else.
I am both really excited and scared to death about going out to the cabin for the long weekend. You see this year my entire family is going to be together for the August long weekend. And normally that isn't a problem. I work really hard to make sure that my kids are well behaved, clean and as quiet as they can be, but I am not perfect and they are not always as quiet as some people would like for them to be. This is really hard on me because I am always worried that my children are bothering people and I don't really sleep well at night because I don't want my kids to make noise at nighttime while others are sleeping, and so I wake up at every squeak and creak. I am also the first one awake (or when Otto comes he is) so that I can make sure that the kiddies are as quiet as possible. I understand that they wake up before anyone else does and I remember what it was like to not have kids, so I try and make them as quiet as possible. I have also worked really hard at making sure that my kids aren't bothered by all the noise in the cabin at nighttime when the family is playing games. The kids are usually all in their bedroom which shares a wall with the main room and when we play games it can get really loud. I understand that this is a part of being out at the cabin and so I have never asked the other people at the cabin to be quiet because my kids were sleeping, I have simply taught my kiddies to sleep through it.
I have to be honest. Last year was so exciting for me because my kids tried and accomplished so many new things, but it was also the worst year ever. There was a huge fight and now I am not even sure if I want to go out there any more. My mom reassures me that everything will be fine, but I am so worried that I have actually been quite sick all week because of it. I just don't know. But luckily I will have Otto out there with me this time so he can help me with the kids so that they don't seem too bothersome for the other people.
Here's hoping!
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1 week ago
6 comments:
Sucks to be the only parent of children over 1 month... I totally understand how you feel!
This might sound mean, but it's not meant to be by any stretch of the word but...sometimes I think we have to let go of worrying about other people and what they'll think so that we can enjoy life a little more. You don't really have total control over the amount of noise your kids make...you can remind them to be quiet in the morning but if the other people are more sensitive to waking up to kids being kids then that's not your fault. That's the important thing to remember sometimes is that kids will be kids. I only have Tanner so I can't relate on the level of being a Mom with more than one child but I can relate to the other side.
When I was a teenager and my Mom use to babysit, I hated when the kids came early on my days off of Seminary and school because I wanted to sleep in. I didn't really get it until I was a bit older (not married but older) that kids are kids.
Maybe if your kids are a little louder than you'd like, you could take them outside on a nature walk to find things. They could collect different things in a jar or something.
Just remember to try and relax (I know that can be hard after you've had a negative experience). The vacation won't be fun for you if you're sick. I hope that doesn't come off as snobby or mean. It's just an idea. And sometimes we have to just think "what do I think the Savior would do in this situation?" Sometimes that really helps me to stay calm and remember what's really important. Good luck and I hope it goes better this year than last.
I think Mandy's right, actually. I mean...they're kids! Kids make noise. For heaven's sake, if a grown adult can't deal with that, they have got some problems. Everyone agreed to go to the cabin knowning that children are going to be there, it's time they take responsibility for their own feelings and decisions.
Besides, and I mean this in the nicest way possible - I would so much rather deal with noisy children than deal with you while you're stressed out and cranky. :)
I was going to say the same thing. Relax, tell the other people to chill out and enjoy your vacation. It's not fair to you, that on YOUR vacation you can't sleep at night because the people you are staying with (who as Michelle said, know full well that its going to be a house full of kids) are so uptight that they can't handle some happy children sounds!
P.S. It works both ways, if they expect your kids to be quiet in the morning, you can expect them to be quiet at night! They can't have it both ways!
It's always a tricky balance :) It seems to me I remember someone's brother saying "shut that kid up" about my sweet niece Megan at the cabin one year ;) It's been going on for generations Megs :) I'm sure that things will be fine - and I'm hoping that you had a wonderful weekend!
I will miss your blog entries for the next week or so - but I hope you have a GREAT time and I can't wait to see pictures when you get back!!!
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