[bubblecakes]

Do you ever wonder what your kids memories will be of you when they are grown. I know you have all been sitting around in a group and talked about a time when your own mother or father went a little crazy! I just wonder what my kids are gonna remember about me. Are they gonna remember the good stuff or those ever so funny now, but not at the time moments???
I will start with I have three kids, a 9 yr old a 5 yr old and a boy that is almost 4. My worst "lose it" moments are in the morning trying to get all my kids in the car to go somewhere. No one EVER wants to do anything I ask them. They all are cranky and hungry but don't want anything I suggest. None of them want to get dressed and if they do it is in pajamas, dress-up or some out of season clothing that doesn't fit. (That is another struggle we won't even go into). When I do finally get everyone dressed, feed, teeth and hair brushed and out the door, my husband scream give daddy a hug, which sparks a frenzy of, "it's my turn", "hold me daddy", "I wanna stay with daddy", and lots of crying. Daddy peels them off and shuttles them towards the car.
Thats when my littlest one realizes he must have some toy (which he never plays with) that he can't find, that all of a sudden is his Favorite and he can't live with out! If I do finally get them in the car 1 one them will be crying, by this point any neighbors that happen to be outside are stairing at me while I am yelling at my kids. At least 2 out of the 3 will get in the car with NO shoes on (or panties, yes that has happened).
By now I am seriously frazzled, usually sweating and I know my blood preasure is skyrocketing and I am embarrassed that my neighbors now think I am the evil witch of the west. The morning ritual continues with me going back in the house for the 10th time to find someones shoe, which they will throw a fit about because they didn't wanna wear THOSE shoes. When I get back my middle child (god bless her) will be whinning about her brother touching a toy of hers, that he says is his. Now you gotta know my middle daughter, her normal non-whine voice is in the upper octaves, so a whinning voice from her is like nails on a chalk board, most of the time you can't even understand her!
So by now I wanna scream, so I snatch the toy and roll down the window and chunk it out! Now they are both crying! I look over at my 9 yr old sitting in the front smiling, she gets some pleasure out of her younger siblings getting in trouble! Then I think to myself why didn't I quit while I was ahead??? I had it all under control when I only had one kid. I thought I was the best mom in the world! My child was so well behaved and I had patients galor! I wonder if one day my grown kids will be sitting around talking about when Mom would go "psycho" when we would try to get in the car??? Probably!

[deedee1231]

Wow, it sounds like you have your hands full! My only suggestions would be that maybe you could ask the daddy to help out a bit, perhaps he could help get little ones into their booster seats in the car for your instead of creating more of a frenzy just when you are heading out the door?
Also it might help if you laid out everyone's clothes at bedtime so there will be no confusion over shoes and wardrobe and get up 15 or 20 minutes earlier so they will have time for breakfast before leaving home. Then before opening the front door do a quick check to make sure everyone has shoes and panties and then tell all 3 children, "Make sure you have everything you need before you walk out the door because once I close the door nobody is going back inside"
You might also consider a rule about no toys in the car, if it causes you so much hassle that you are throwing things out of a moving vehicle! If they need toys to keep them occupied once you arrive at your destination you could keep those in the trunk until you get to where you are going and in the meantime use the car ride to visit or listen to some kids CDs on the radio.

[MissyChrissy]

I was just informed by Bobbie and Jessica a couple weeks ago that I never washed their hair without getting soap in their eyes! Now, I don't remember it that way at all...but that's their perception.

And to add salt to the wound...Daddy never got soap in their eyes. Brats!!

[starlife]

Parenting is just such an interesting and learning journey, but i don't believe in hitting your kids, so i usually ground them - no t.v. no games, etc. i also will tell their father and i will take away a toy if its the same thing more than 3 times

[NavGabeShiJude]

Bubblecakes: have you ever thought about writing a book? I found that humorous.... sorry!

My thing is screaming/screeching. My children, aged almost 5, almost 4, 2.5 and 14 months, have screaming contests.
One will let off when they don't get their way, or when they want something. then like a chorus the other three will join in. To me it is like finger nails on a chalk board, or someone poking out my ear drums with nails.
It is worse when one of them will aim it straight into my ear cannal.... I can physically feel the vibrations on my ear drum.
I think my children will remember me for the many times we have sat on the living room carpet, each child holding a finger to their lips while mommy whispers 'quiet voices are nice voices' over and over again like a mantra!
That or the many times I have thrown a fake tantrum to show my children how silly they really look when they chuck themselves on the floor and kick and scream for a toy there is no chance they will be getting!

I remember my mom used to always threaten to leave us behind at whatever store we were at whenever we were being bad.... this back fired one day when she drove away from a gas station, forgetting that I had left the car to use the bathroom.
Needless to say that when she realized her mistake and drove up 15 minutes later, her 7 year old daughter was sitting in a puddle of tears whispering, 'I can't believe she really did it, she really left me behind!'
She still hates being reminded of that! lol!