I love being mom to these two characters, but there are definitely things that drive me bat-caca crazy sometimes. This is probably true for any parent, but I find myself wondering if others foam at the mouth about the same things I do. Things like…
…how much time it takes to get out the door. Seriously: The other day I tried to leave for the grocery store at 11:00 a.m., and we actually departed at 1:13 p.m. The baby dolls had to be changed, then they had to get packed up in the backpacks — along with their baby gear, of course, some of which was upstairs, and S and H are afraid to go up there alone, so off we all went to find it. Then someone had to pee; then someone else had to pee; then neither of them could figure out which footwear they wanted to put on, and both decided they didn’t like their raincoats anymore. Not to mention the other distractions in between… Versions of this happen around here all the time. How does anyone ever get out the door even close to on time with little kids in tow?
…the inability for my children to wait — even two seconds — for anything whatsoever. These girls are smart; surely they can see that I only have two hands, and right now they are holding a sharp knife or taking something out of the oven. What is it that prevents them from using those gorgeous brown eyes to see that I can’t be wiping one bum while also in another room helping the other put on her tutu skirt? (Yes, I know a lot about child development, but really.)
…the incessant need for my attention. I’m very happy to focus on these two much of the day, but is it necessary to have my undivided attention every. single. second? Mummy, look at me! Mummy, look! Mummy, do you see? Mummy, come here, come. Mum! I thirsty. Mummy, watch this! Mummy, look at H’s belly! Mummy, stop, look! Play donkey! This kind of stuff is why it can take me two hours just to boil some hot dogs.
…the uncanny ability to sense when I’m on the phone — and the uncontrollable urge to sabotage it. I don’t know what the deal is about the phone. S and H can be watching their favorite program or immersed in play, but if I get on the phone, they’re suddenly at my side going berserk. My attempts to shush them only make it worse. Texting and email have become my best friends; I’d otherwise never be able to connect with anyone anymore.
Okay, that’s enough: I need to sink into a comfy chair and have a drink! This blood-orange margarita on Smitten Kitchen has been calling my name ever since I laid eyes on it. Given that spring is approaching, it’s best to get blood-orange goodness in wherever we can, don’t you think?
Here’s my high and low of the week:
High: I can’t believe I’m going to admit this, but here goes: My high is finally getting the girls’ stool samples done and dropped off at the lab. (They were supposed to be done soon after we came home from Ethiopia.) Do you know how hard it’s been to do this? There were timing issues; there were things put in the collecting container that rendered the samples useless; there were other issues I won’t get into. But finally, it’s done. Oh, the things that now make me feel like a champ!
Low: My real low of the week crosses the line of protecting my daughters’ privacy, so what I’ll share instead is that I have already — in just two short weeks — pretty much broken or dropped the ball on all my Lenten resolutions. I just can’t seem to be mindful of the particulars: I’ll be gulping down the last of a chocolate shake I made the girls and will suddenly remember I gave up chocolate. Sigh. Maybe next week will be better.
Bonus question: If you had to move to a different country next month, where would you choose and why? Tough one, since there are so many places I’d love to see. Maybe I’d choose France and travel around from there. I could work on my rusty French and eat lots of pain au chocolat (after Lent’s over, of course). Or perhaps B would talk me into Germany — he lived there as a child and loved it, and he still has relatives there. Then again, I might just have to pick my home and native land: Canada. I miss it and could see myself happily nesting there again.
Okay, how about you? Grab one of those lovely red drinks and tell me about your high and low of the week, and also where you’d move. Then have yourself a slow weekend, and I’ll see you back here on Monday!
Images: Zoe Saint-Paul
Hello, I'm Zoe Saint-Paul. I'm a writer, life coach, and new mama to twins who's trying to live "slower" in a speed-obsessed world. Here we chat about life and love, food and design, and everything in between -- all at the right pace. So grab some tea, pull up a chair, and join the conversation. Feel free to 
That is a hard question. Right now I just want to be somewhere warm! Winter is weighing heavily upon me. I’ve been rereading some of Mary Stewart’s novels lately (specifically, her Greek ones), which always bring me vividly back to the ten wonderful days I spent in Greece. Raw mountains, blue water, lemon trees besides doorsteps, baklava swimming in golden syrup, white buildings, sun baking the ruins. Greece would definitely be high on my list. But I might have to go with Italy. I spent a semester of college studying outside Rome and returned for ten days a few years later, and Rome is deep in my bones. I smell verbena, or the soap that I used in Rome, and I am back there in a minute. The feel of being on its streets is almost as deeply engrained in my mind as the feel of being on the street I grew up on. One of my chief reasons for choosing Italy would be the chance to eat and to improve my cooking. I LOVE cooking Italian food — generally, if I’m trying a new recipe, it’s Italian, and probably pasta. Living in Italy would also allow me to make forays to eat my other favorite foods on their home turf — Greek, Spanish, and Middle Eastern, particularly Lebanese. My heritage is largely Northern and Eastern European in origin, but my heart belongs to the Mediterranean!
I adored Italy and would love to go back. The food, the beauty, the layers upon layers of history — amazing! And I’ve always wanted to visit Greece — I have a feeling life on the Mediterranean would suit me very well — the climate, the food, the laid back vibe, the people.
I had already bookmarked that blood-orange margarita recipe, so I will definitely be having one of those.
My high: Buying a new phone! I knew my old one had been running slower and slower, but I hadn’t realized quite *how* slow it was until I got the new one. It is my precious.
Low: Realizing that all my plans for productivity this week…never really came together. I’m not sure where the time went, but it frustrates me to think of how completely I wasted it. Sigh. Going to try to make a more detailed plan of attack for next week’s goals; any tips or tricks for Getting Stuff Done are more than welcome!
BQ: Normally I’d probably say somewhere like Scotland, but I really don’t think I could handle any more cold and gray weather at this point, no matter how picturesque. I’m with Rosalind: Something Mediterranean would fit the bill quite nicely right about now…
I have *got* to go to Scotland one of these days. Luckily, I have a very close friend there and her door is wide open when ever I can make it happen!
Love the photos! I can also so totally relate to the things that make you crazy. The phone thing is so bad that my family has noticed… as soon as I get on the phone, noise increases, if not directly in front of me, in other obvious ways, like piano being played. Loudly. Big sigh. It isn’t just the inability to get things done that bugs me, but the nagging feeling that they are telling me that I don’t pay enough attention to them, which of course grinds on my tired-mom soul.
So! Highs: Nice comment from a student after class and a great presentation I did the next day to the university community. I think I did a good job in front of this big crowd specifically because I was buoyed up by the nice student comment. Also, a wonderful wild day with the group of kids we lead – perfect weather, great company, lots of fun discovering and learning.
Lows: Itchy and tired eyes – allergies, I assume.
A country to move to? As East Coasters are in the mood for warmth, I am in the mood for less stimulation – a quieter place, more nature, more natural beauty, less to do. Somewhere in the mountains – Nepal, Switzerland, Argentina – but not Kathmandu (for long), Geneva, or Buenos Aires – it must be high up in the mountains to fit my “ideal” at this moment. Much of Canada or even above 10,000′ in the California Sierras would make me happy.
I think there’s just something about the phone that signals to children “she is not paying *any*attention to me now!” and they can’t take it.
Switzerland… that would be so much gorgeousness! I don’t know much about Argentina, but would love to. Some neighbor-friends went to Nepal recently — had a great experience, but I don’t think they came back wanting to move there. Someday maybe you’ll find a home in the mountains…
This week’s low was learning that my son’s Intervenor was sick one day and that he was horribly neglected by the school. He came home with all the lunch and snacks I’d sent for him and nobody had taken him to the bathroom so he was soaked through. When I called to ask what had happened I was told that it was his fault for not eating and that he didn’t say he needed to use the washroom. I’m sorry, you’re telling me that my DEAF and BLIND child is supposed to navigate school and meals all alone – don’t forget that he’s only learned to chew during the past year and is still a bit behind in the fine motor skills required to manipulate utensils, what with being BLIND and all! So, he just got neglected and nobody took care of him when he tried to tell them he was hungry and needed help. I feel sick knowing he spent the whole day hungry and neglected and it’s hard to know how to respond appropriately. I think screaming about neglect and handing over studies on the effects of neglect on children’s brains and psyche might be a bit much, but I’m still at the stage where I want to do that.
In terms of weekly highs, well, I had three amazing days of swimming this week (1.6K each day) and finished all my sets of 500s in under 15 minutes – closer to 12:30 actually. It is helpful to be able to get into the water and work through the anger and frustration that often accompany my role as Mom to an exceptional child.
Although I will always consider myself a Californian, it’s too deep in my blood and memory for me to ever be anything else, I would move to the Rock in a heartbeat. I love Newfoundland and the culture there and I dream of the ocean at night. This is basically the town where my husband’s family is from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPu6cAvkGC4&list=PL17573CE0C3E5E6A9 and I’ve been there when a dance party basically just started up in someone’s kitchen. It’s an amazing and beautiful part of the world and I wish it was close enough to the specialized hospitals that our life requires to be where we could call home.
First, aren’t you lucky to have a connection like that to Newfoundland! It is indeed a very special part of the world. And the best of people. Talented, hilarious, and kind.
Second, that low of yours had *me* fuming. I would have been furious and would probably be making it clear to the powers that be that if it ever happens again I’ll be taking some serious action.
Congrats on your swimming accomplishments!
Zoe, those girls are absolutely adorable! I understand the frustrations–I never believed a time would come that I wouldn’t be strapping somebody (or somebodies) in a car seat, and going everywhere with a double stroller and diaper bags–but it happened, as I see it now, all too soon.
My low of the week was hearing the voice of one of my 19-year old twins over the telephone at 4:45 a.m. the other day, telling me she was on the bus to the hospital. She–and her twin–and lots of other kids on their campus were sick, sick, sick–vomiting, etc.–I won’t go into the details! (Note: They are doing a bit better and the university is investigating into the cause of the outbreak.)
My high of the week was having the day off from school on Monday. I love teaching, but a Monday holiday makes for such a nice long week-end!
Where would I live? Italy sounds good. The food, the wine, the more relaxed pace (work is not the focus there), the art and architecture…I could go for it!
Ugh to that low, Karen! I hope she’s feeling better.
Hello ladies,
My thoughts on this are, when you need to use the bathroom facilities, make or recieve a phone call, this is a que for our children to have an emergency, have a fight, or just carry on. I think when the phone was invented a child said, “fun time”. like most of you when I was younger I thought my childrens antics while I was on the phone, was about attention, “WRONG”, children are just smart enough to know that your attention is elswhere and they can get away with what ever. As moms we have enough guilt, dont wait till you are sixty to realize, a few minutes on the phone or to yourself does not constitute any degree of neglect or warrant a sliver of guilt. It is ok for the children to learn that they to have to be patience when your attention is elswhere. With age comes acceptance, you can not do it all, all the time: you can not be all things to everyone all the time. Prase the blessings and the efforts, embrace the rewards..
Good advice, Kathy!
That margarita looks GREAT! I’m not sure where to buy blood oranges in my area. I think you could add computer to your comment about kids’ ability to sense when you’re busy on the phone! It’s like a magnet for them.
High: My Lenten resolutions have really helped me to focus more on my relationship with God over the past few weeks, plus pray for others more often.
Low: I was flying solo with my two young kids most weeknights this week. Everything went great until late afternoon Thursday when I was just too tired to keep on. But, I made a simple dinner and sent them to bed early and then we started fresh the next day!
BQ: Italy, for sure!! Specifically, in the Cinque Terre area on Italy’s coast. I love the laid-back and friendly people, the incredible food & wine, and less focus on materialism and productivity. Plus, like others have said – I could really use some warmth!!
One other thing — I wouldn’t beat yourself up too much about not being able to stick with your Lenten resolutions. It sounds like God might have other Lenten sacrifices in mind for you this year. I think when we’re in a stage of taking care of someone else 24/7 (whether that be needy kids or an aging relative), we’re in survival mode and just need to offer up the many irritations and inconveniences of that stage of life!
Great photos, BTW! They are so cute.
Italy is clearly a favorite destination!
And thanks for the comments about Lent. I think you’re right — I am already seeing that my Lent is really more about entirely different things this year than the usual.
Hope you find some blood oranges around — though they are just about to leave the shelves for another year.
I just want to say that in my own way I have shared ALL the frustrations with life with children that you have listed. After I’d been a Mom for a couple of years the things used to tell expectant first-time mothers was, consciously enjoy how easy it is for you to just grab your purse and walk to the car, because after kids the process of getting out the door will take longer than you ever could have imagined. The good news is, you do become accustomed to it eventually, and learn to budget absurd amounts of time for getting ready to leave (plus involving discipline when your kids can handle that). And yes to the phone thing, I think this may be a universal phenomenon.
So true, SarahD. I remember thinking this before the girls came home because I KNEW. I am getting a bit more used to it, but it really tries my patience!
Love the bat-caca crazy reference.
My high: Hearing my daughter call me Mama for the first time (well, the first time I was sure she meant it). Priceless.
My low: Realizing I’m going back to work in less than a month. Sigh. (Only 3 days a week, though, so that’s helping me a bit…)
I, like you, would move to France in a heartbeat. Or Italy. Or pretty much anywhere in Western Europe. Ah…
Bellying up to the bar late, but I’ll have one of those blood orange margaritas — I love blood oranges and I love margaritas!
Low: Missing my sleep and breastfeeding start-up woes.
High: Enjoying my newborn.
BQ: Probably France because I love the food and it’s the only foreign language I have some grasp of (well, there is Latin, but I’m in the wrong century).