Duh!!!

Sometimes kids say the funniest things and sometimes parents say the dumbest things.

The other night Dotty and I were playing "restaurant". It was late and I was tired but Dotty was not tired so I was trying to be a good patron and pretend to be enjoying my plastic corn on the cob and watermelon feast.

After a few minutes Dotty decided that I needed to go outside and come in again. I guess my acting skills were not up to par and Dotty thought my "play eating" needed fine tuning. Thus she demanded I "take it from the top".

So I stood in the doorway and was instructed to "call" for a table. I held up my thumb and pinkie to my ear (the universal pretend phone) and stood waiting for Dotty to "pick up" her phone (an actual phone that is broken but she plays with). After several rings (I guess the restaurant was either too busy or loud to hear my "brrriiinngg" noises) Dotty finally answered "Hello, Dotty's Restaurant. How may I help you?"

Me: Hello Ma'am. I would like a eat at your restaurant.
Dotty: Okay. When are you coming?
Me: Do you have a table available for me now?
Dotty: We only have one table but you can have it.
Me: Okay. What are you serving to eat tonight?
Dotty: (after a long pause and a confused glance in my direction) Food.

And that right there was my "Duh Mom" moment. I laughed so hard. I am not sure if it was that funny or I was just that tired but I started laughing and could not stop. After about 2 minutes of me rolling on the floor laughing so hard I started crying, Dotty got tired of playing pretend restaurant and decided it was bed time. I am sure she thought I needed the rest more than she did but either way we headed for bed...me still giggling as we went down the hall.

Food...Duh Mom!

Wet and Wild...

This past Thursday Dotty got "Wet and Wild". Actually, that is how I remember the water park from about 15 years ago but now it is called Six Flags Hurricane Harbor. Although Dotty just called it the "water park". Tony, Dotty, and I spent around three and a half hours floating in the Lazy River, splashing in the Wave Pool, and playing in Captain Hooks Lagoon.

The park opens at 10:30 and we were there pretty close 11:00. After getting Dotty in her swimsuit and spraying us all down with SPF 55 we were off to find some fun in the sun. We started in the Lazy River and Dotty loved "swimming" in it. At first she didn't have her floaties on and she wanted us to let go of her but after a few times going under (just for a second) she was convinced she couldn't swim without the floaties.

But before we went back to the locker to get the floaties we hit the Wave Pool. Dotty loved seeing all the people and the big waves but I think she liked it best when the waves stopped and she could play "shark" with Mommy and Daddy in the BIG pool.

After the Wave Pool we took a quick trip to Captain Hooks Lagoon that is geared for smaller children. There were slides to go down and a "boat" to climb and lots of water spraying everywhere! Again, Dotty had fun just swimming in the water. While we were there we played Dora, Diego, and Boots all trying to get past Swiper...this girl has quite the imagination. (By the way I was Boots...some stranger was designated Swiper.)

After that, I demanded we go reapply sunscreen...I would hate to get a single tan line or 10 more wrinkles...and so we headed back to the lockers. Dotty got sprayed down as did Tony and I and we grabbed Dotty's floaties and headed back. Dotty really loved the Lazy River and the Wave Pool with her floaties on because then she could really "swim" ALL BY HERSELF...my child's new favorite phrase.

To end the day we tried to find the one (and only) big ride that we could all go on together. The "Bubba Tube" was it. This ride consists of an 8 foot raft that will hold up to 3 people going down a slide with 2 large bumps in it. After an hour of waiting (and Dotty getting a tad fussy) we boarded the blue tube and slid down the orange bumpy slide. The 10 second ride was great fun. Dotty's face was priceless and I was so proud of my "big girl" going down a big slide.

Dotty was pretty worn out at that point (she had been up since 6:45 that morning...so excited to go). So we changed clothes, found a sippy, and headed to the car. We got to the car at about 2:30pm and before we could load all our stuff and get down the aisle in the car Dotty was out!

Dotty woke up this morning and when I asked if she was ready to go to school she said "No. I want to go to the water park!" I bet we will be going back next year!

Good Days...

The day starts off so much better when Dotty is excited about going to school and doesn't beg to NOT go or look so sad as she enters the classroom. Today I picked Dotty up from Papaw (Dotty stayed the night with Tony) and at first Dotty said she didn't want to go to school but it was not a large protest...just sort of said in passing.

We drove back to our house to get some toys for her to take to school (we had time to kill anyway) and by the time we got to school Dotty walked in to her class and seemed happy to be there. What a relief!!!

I was able to leave her school not feeling guilty, not feeling like a crappy mother, and not in tears...all of which was wonderful!

I hope Dotty has a "wonderful day" as she usually does. To be honest I can't wait for the time to come when I get to go pick her up!

Be careful what you say...

I have always been told to be careful what I say. That words can never be taken back...both the good and the bad. Once you say something you can always ask for forgiveness or try to explain why you said it, but you can never erase those words from the mind of the one(s) who heard them.

Many times in my life I have said things out of anger, hurt, fear, foolishness, sorrow, etc. that I have wished I was able to take back. I have often apologized for my words, but I have also had them repeated back to me a time or two which is always a reminder to me that once I have said them...there is no taking them back.

I learned this lesson again with Dotty. I wasn't the one who said the words but I saw first hand how much words can impact everyone who hears them...even those who the words are not aimed at.

Last week, Presley was having a rough day and she was tired and cranky and she had quite the meltdown and threw a rather large fit. Now Presley is almost 5 and her vocabulary is larger than Dotty's and during her fit Presley said the words "I hate you" to me and then said "I hate my family". All of it was said with tears flowing and feet stomping...a full blown fit.

Now I knew that Presley didn't mean those things, but I made her go sit in Timeout any way and told her that was not a nice thing to say to me or about her family. Like most temper tantrums the whole episode was over in a matter of minutes but a the damage had been done.

Little did I know that Dotty, who was also in the room, was watching wide eyed all that her cousin (who she loves and adores) had said and done. She took in the whole show but said nothing at the time. A few days later though Dotty gave her new knowledge a spin.

Dotty was getting tired and not wanting to do as I said and so with great emphasis and just the right mean look on her face Dotty told me "I hate you." I have to say it broke my heart.

I knew my baby did not hate me and really didn't even understand the full meaning of the phrase but she said it. Then we I calmly told her that was not nice, she said it again. She said it numerous times until I told her to go sit in Timeout.

I was trying to not make a really big deal out of it but I was hurting inside. I don't want my baby to hate anyone...especially me. And I don't want her to say things like that. I know she doesn't understand totally but it still hurts.

I should also say I am not mad at Presley. I know kids hear these types of phrases from tv or other kids and there is no way to shield them 100% from such a thing. In fact, I was glad I knew the exact source where Dotty heard the phrase and knew how it was being used. I still didn't want her to say it though.

I talked with Tony about it and I am sure we will figure out a way to handle it if it comes up again. I hope it is a passing thing but only time will tell. I am sure I will have many more moments like this in Dotty's life. I am glad to have been reminded once again that children have big eyes and ears and they are watching everything we do and say...even the things that are done and said around them.

Wow...Time to Recap...

So a lot has happened in the last couple of weeks. We will just have to start from the beginning and go from there. Here we go...

May 20th,
Dotty had a "Moving On Ceremony" at her school. The celebration included a picnic with family and friends. Dotty got to walk across the gazebo at the school's park and get her certificate. At that point Dotty exclaimed "I won!" Tony, Nana, Memaw, Jake, Keri (Presley also got to "Move On"), and I were all there with videos and cameras to capture the entire event. I am not sure Dotty understood the significance of the day but it was sweet, touching, and at times I had to fight back a tear or two...my baby is growing up.

That same day I closed on a house for Dotty and me. The house is in Wichita Falls and is very close to Memaw (which thrills Dotty) and is handy for both Dotty's school and the Pecan Shed. I spent several days painting the inside (thanks to the help of a lot of family and friends the job went by much faster than I originally thought). Dotty and Presley even did some painting too (then the adults did some clean up).

While I was painting and getting the house ready Dotty spent a lot of time with Tony. One of their adventures included a trip to the Fort Worth Zoo (Nana went too) and I heard they had a great time. Dotty told me all about the monkeys and the lions! I am glad they got to go before it started hitting 100 degrees on a regular basis.

May 24th,
Dotty started in a new classroom at her school. She is now in Mrs. Connel's 3 year old classroom. The transition was a little hard. Dotty really missed Ms. Taylor and while she likes playing on the "big playground" she is still too little to do much without help. She is getting better though. I think sometimes it is harder on me. I have to remind myself that allowing Dotty to go through a few "tough-ish" times will make her a stronger adult. She will learn to handle problems in a good way and she will be okay when life does get tough. I always want to smooth out Dotty's path (just like every parent wants to do for their child) but I try to resist the need at times. Dotty will learn to swing on her own, she will learn to make new friends, she will learn to be a big girl...she will just have to keep trying along the way.

May 27th,
Dotty and I spent the first night in our new home (Memaw stayed too). About all that was ready was Dotty's "Doll Room" (a tribute to Kathy's Doll Room), Dotty's room, a few tv's had dvd players hooked up and we had a lot of boxes sitting around.

Since then we have less boxes and more furniture but it will still take a while to get completely settled in. Dotty is happy though. She has her toys, her movies, and her Memaw visits a lot (I think I may have to enroll Dotty is some sort of "Memaw detox" or something...this girl is getting addicted).

Now that I have more time (and less to move) I hope to post again more regular. Hope you all have had a great start to your summer.