Tantrums and Life Back to Normal

Dear Hannah and Nathan, 

If I were suddenly whisked off of a ship filled with fun and food, I'd probably throw a bunch of tantrums too! But this week has been on the extreme side. Things are either great and dandy, or turn-the-world-upside down tumultuous. It's been raining here every day since we've gotten back, so we've been staying inside a lot. 

Hannah has been in a very indecisive state lately. When given a choice, say for example, do you want to eat the blackberries on the table? You nod yes, but when I attempt to put you down on the dinner table, you arch your back and make it very clear that you don't want to sit. And then when I walk away with you, you start leaning in towards the blackberries, pointing your fingers and grunting. I then bring you towards them and you flinch away. This repeats itself as you, at this point, are bawling your head off. 

I think the world has now become a bit more complicated than simple "yes" or "no." There are now lots of new options and variations that you just can't quite verbalize just yet. I know that this is a phase and it will pass soon, but let's do this quickly. 

Nathan has been exhibiting your fair share of tantrums as well. Yours are very specific and to us, nonsensical. For example, you wanted to get some water from a water dispenser. This would require getting a new cup, when you had a filled water bottle within reach. I told you "no" and immediately, the world fell apart. Eventually you calmed down, but the whole process was simply exhausting...over a cup of water. 

On the cruise ship, I had a chance to read a few books. Among them was a book titled, "10 Habits of Happy Mothers." One chapter in particular has given me a renewed outlook on Motherhood. Our children view us as the center of their existence. They love us unconditionally, and seek our approval. They value time spent with us. So simply put, next time Nathan asks for me to help him with a puzzle during "quiet time" I won't grumble about it. What a perfect reminder during this tantrum-filled phase. 

This will be a short post because we've just been relaxing and cleaning (when possible) since we've come home. 

Nathan got a chance to see a real space ship at NASA. Unfortunately, the visitor center would not open for another 1.5 hours after we got there, so we decided to skip it and head straight home. 

 With the rain and us being gone for a week, our yard is now a jungle of weeds. We attempted to pull a few before it started to rain again.

 And Daddy also decided to finally fix the broken garage lights. How many Havlirs does it take to install a light fixture?

 And then on Tuesday, we resumed soccer classes and found that Nathan, you are quite the ball hog. You kept taking the ball away from your own team mates.

 Today, Hannah and I went to Book People with another future classmate and listened to some stories,

 and got a chance to pet a few animals. Hannah, like last time, showed lots of interest in petting, this time, bunnies. We sat down, and a bunny was placed on Hannah's lap. At first, you very gingerly started to stroke the bunny's back, but after a few seconds, you started to hesitate and shook your head, "no." We then spent the rest of the time watching the bunnies escape from their baskets. When a bunny would jump out, you would say, "Hey you!" and then giggled a bit.

Well, we have a full week ahead of us and lots of cool/fun things to do. Until next week,
Love,
Mommy