FINALLY Friday!!!

There is a quote that goes something like "Any day I wake up alive is a good day." I don't know if those are the exact words and I don't know who said it but I am certain that person was not living his or her life as the parent of a special needs child. Today is not a good day and right now I would rather just go back to bed and sleep for about three days. But alas, I haven't gotten a full night's sleep in over four years, much less spend days in bed.

Our morning started out with Reiss telling me approximately 1637 times that he wanted to leave for playgroup. It wasn't time to go yet and that wasn't satisfying him. When we did finally go to playgroup, he harassed every child there, some of them more than one time. He got a break (this is just Reiss's name for a timeout but again, for some reason, he gets bent out of shape if we call it a timeout) after being told two times not to do whatever he was doing (it was different with each child) and then given a final warning. After his break, he continued going from child to child doing various different things: shoving toys in faces, slapping hands, pushing, putting his arms tightly around the other child, taking toys from others, squeezing their hands as hard as he could, you name it.

Before Daddy left for work this morning Reiss was given the usual talk about the behavior that was expected of him at playgroup. He and I had the same talk on the way to playgroup with an additional warning: If he acted up at playgroup, we would leave and he would not get to go see Daddy and take him something to eat at lunchtime. Well, here it is - a time at which we are normally at Daddy's office on Fridays - and we are at home. So you guessed it, Reiss did not heed either of the behavior talks and we came home without taking Daddy lunch. We ate lunch at home. Well, we didn't really eat lunch but that explanation is to come.

The playgroup we go to on Friday mornings is actually called a Share Group and it's a few women - all with young children - who get together and in between all of the chaos of the children playing around us, we have a little bit of Christian fellowship. Most of the moms can generally let their children play and they sit and talk with one another. In the years I have been going, I have only occasionally gotten to sit and talk while most of the time I have to get up about every 14 seconds to get Reiss back in line. As with the library playgroup we used to attend, it's getting old chasing him around and not getting to enjoy the same break that the other moms get. If it sounds like I'm complaining, call it what you want, but seriously, I would just like a break every once in awhile. I'm tired of having to spend my life getting up every few seconds because no form of discipline seems to be effective at getting Reiss to behave and do as he is told. I'm tired of being THAT parent out in public.

ANYway.....

We came home because not getting to go see Daddy was Reiss's punishment for not behaving at playgroup. Reiss waited until exactly four seconds after I sat down and had gotten situated with Milla breastfeeding to tell me he wanted something to eat. I told him I would get him something in just a few minutes and OF COURSE, this prompted a tantrum. I was just over it. Normally, there is nothing more effective at getting me to move quickly than having to listen to one of my children cry, but I was just over it. Let him throw his fit. It wasn't even 11AM yet and I was exhausted.

Milla got done breastfeeding. I got up and made lunch. Milla wasn't very hungry - obviously - since she had just nursed for a few minutes. She started throwing her strawberries (actually just single strawberry, but cut up into pieces) on the floor. Reiss thinks he has to do everything she does so then he started. Another warning about throwing food on the floor. I took her food since she obviously only wanted to play. Reiss continued throwing his food everywhere. Come on! This is an almost-four-year-old! An 18-month-old throwing food is somewhat expected, especially when said child is not hungry, but a 4-year-old throwing food is just plain unacceptable. He had only eaten about three or four bites of his lunch when his food throwing started, and since I was over that too, I took his lunch away. Now, under normal circumstances, I don't believe in depriving a child food as punishment but when nothing else has worked today and I'm at my wits end, that's what it has come to.

It's finally Friday, but right now it just feels like Hell. Mommy needs a nap.