Day 47: Can't Blame This One on the Deployment

Ok, so, my kids tried to make a liar out of me. It is like they read my post last night about how I am feeling stronger and deliberately tried to prove me wrong. That may be a bit of an exaggeration, but you get the idea. Today was supposed to be simple. Daniel needed to clean up his room, the girls needed to do theirs and work on one other simple chore before lunch. After lunch we were going to go do something fun. Even given child speed, the things they had to do should have only taken a hour to an hour and a half tops. I wanted to get some laundry done and get the floors ready to be mopped tonight while they worked on their chores. Well, that didn't happen. I was so busy trying to get the children to do their chores, that I got nothing done. Seriously, about 5 hours after we started, we finally got things done. It was painful. Like I said, it was like they wanted to prove I would break and that I was not as strong as I thought I was. Well, they learned otherwise. I did not break, and they did do their chores, no matter how long it took. By the time they got done, there was no way I was going to take them to an indoor bounce house that we have here. I was not going to reward their behavior for the day. Luckily for them, and me, they had an evening VBS (vacation bible school) to go to. It gave us a small break from each other, and when I picked them back up, we were all pretty happy again.

So, here I sit, bummed about the day, but knowing I made it through anyways. I would like to blame this one on the deployment, but I really can't. I mean, it is Monday. My husband would not have been home today anyways, so I would have been the one to deal with the kids all day and get them to do their chores. Now, granted, if he were home, he could have taken over a bit at lunch time or after work, but other than that, this was something I would normally have to deal with, with or without him. I mean, I would prefer to do this with him, but I can hold down the fort until he is here again.

I do have to laugh because when Ian talks to the kids over Skype and they do something that is not ok, he reminds them how they need to behave.When the girls were being rude to each other while on video call with Ian, Ian asked them to quit and just talk to him. When they didn't, he sent them to their rooms for a time out. Then a few minutes later asked me to get them and he talked to them about why he sent them to their rooms, then carried on their normal conversation. It shows them that miles apart, Ian and I are still a parenting unit, and the kids will still need to listen to their daddy, even though it is over the computer.

I miss him, but I am getting along. With God's help, I am getting through this. One day at a time.