principles

I know a man who had 10 principles....then he had 10 kids....now he has no principles....

It isn't noon yet, and I have changed 4 diapers, fed 6 kids their breakfast, fixed 3 bottles and a sippy cup....swept the floor, did a load of laundry, matched a basket of socks with the help of a little monkey named Camille who pulled herself to standing at the basket, and did hiphip hooray with the socks...and a little helper named Charlotte Claire who helped by picking up my sorted piles and adding them back to the basket......I got out playdough for Charlotte Claire, a big firetruck for Jon, after gating off the hallway because of all the toys they were dragging out...I have followed Camille around picking up the things she has scattered....I cleaned off the table, washed the counters.....but also: I managed to read the morning paper.....

All nine of the school kids got out the door to school this morning. No small feat. Yes, I seemed to have accomplished some things today....very necessary things......but you should see this living room....

Anyway, I have been thinking about princples, things I thought so strongly about.....and how I have let them go along the way...

1. I put Charlotte Claire to nap and to bed with a :BOTTLE!!!! And, she is not the first one....

2. I let three youngest school girls eat their breakfast in the living room while watching "Curious George"........

3. I let the kids go outside barefoot.....

4. I feed them in the van, even after we clean it and say we will never eat in it again....

5. Sometimes when the two year old wants something another child has, I ask the child to please just give it to her.......

6. Once I charged my McDonalds order......see, not having cash is a great deterrent to stopping at those places...the kids ask, I just say, no, no money.....so I CANNOT start using the Visa for fast food......

7. I have left the house with the dryer on

8. I have told the kids if they don't stop whatever awful behavior, I will call the police....

I am sure there are many more, and as I write this, I just remembered that Sonja lost a tooth over the weekend, it's still in the diaper bag....oops.

Jon and Charlotte Claire have these red plastic chairs. Identical. Jon was sitting in his watching Word World. Charlotte Claire did not want the other chair, just the one that Jon was sitting in. She cried, she screamed, she tried to attack Jon.....so, I asked Jon if he could just switch with her. He said no. I don't blame him....she asked for a ba-ba, go night-night....she likes to take a nap when things get rough, just like her mom....but I didn't give her one, and she moved on to bigger and better things, like playing with Jon's firetrucks, which he will soon jump up in protest about.....and she will probably grab his chair......

So I ask: how in the world am I supposed to get anything done around here???? These guys keep my hopping...but they are so funny....yesterday, I gave Jon a sippycup of applejuice....and he took a drink and said, "Oh, this tastes good. Sippy cups usually taste like throw-up...."And you usually just drink them?......hmmm.....and Camille she is just so funny. I had her on my lap for breakfast.....Jon and Charlotte Claire had wheat toast with butter and strawberry jam, and chocolate milk......I tried to share a bowl of honeynut Cheerios with Camille. She didn't want any. I put a Cheerio on the table in front of her, which she picked up and threw on the floor, while shaking her head "NO".....(Charlotte Claire was quite amused).....so, I put a spoonful into her mouth....she spit it out. Now this baby LOVES this cereal. But: she saw the other kids having toast, and she wanted toast. So, she got toast......

Well, as much as I like sitting here typing, these guys need some lunch...and then....nap time!!!How can you love your kids more than life itself, more than anything imaginable, but also love naptime so much?