My Helper

When she was good, she was very, very good. And when she was bad, she was horrid.

This weekend Kaia started out as horrid. There was a complete meltdown before the 16th Birthday Party we attended Friday night. Dana and I refused to let her wear a pair of leggings with a t-shirt. The leggings are the kind that are meant to be worn under a skirt, or under a drss that's a little short. She was great at the party though, much better behaved than 90% of the teenagers. We were out late, and she had actually crawled up on my lap and fell asleep she was so tired. (Mo on the otherhand was still going strong at 11 p.m. He was busy grabbing the teenage girls' butts and showing off for them. Yes, he's all boy!)

Saturday, I could quickly tell was not going to be a good day with the kids. Both Kaia and Mo were WILD. I tried my best to convince them that because it was Mother's Day weekend they should be well-behaved. It didn't work. I did take them both with me to the nursery next door. I picked out a few tomato plants, but will have to go back for my favorite Oregon Spring variety and also to get jalapenos. Kaia was goofing off and fell and skinned her knee while we were there. Her dramatic reaction to this earned both kids a free tomato plant from an employee. I didn't think it was necessary, but I wasn't going to argue. After arguing with Mo over the wagon, and having him almost de-pants me while paying for our plants, I got the kids home.

We all worked in the garden and when Dana came home he took some great photos of the kids with his motorcycle. The evening just continued to be fun, trying to keep Kaia and Mo out of the newly planted garden. Trying to keep the house from being destroyed. It was pretty much non-stop until bedtime.

Sunday was much the same, although Kaia was on her best behavior during church. She also listened moderately well at Grammy and Papas. They arrived home from Hawaii, and we had a bbq there after church. When we got home, there was no listening and just being rotten. At 8:22 pm I had had enough. I made both kids brush their teeth, get dressed for bed, and then I read them a short book, before tucking them both into their own beds. I turned off the lights, and retreated to the couch with Dana.

What happened next was amazing. Both kids went to sleep in their own beds, on time! Then this morning, both kids got up and Kaia got herself ready on time. When it was time to leave, I forgot a booklet in the house, so I asked Kaia to please open Mo's car door so he could get in while I ran back upstairs to get the booklet. Not only did Kaia help Mo get his door open, she helped him in his seat, and buckled him in! She was proud as she's never been able to figure out the car seat buckles before. I made sure to tell her how proud I was of her being a big girl, a responsible girl and for being my big helper. There were times this weekend where I thought, "I am so screwed. There is no way I can handle 4 kids, when I can't handle the 2 I have now." Funny, now this past weekend looks a lot better after a good night and a great morning.