Hope for Tomorrow

I was home alone with the boys for the evening. It was going okay. I had taken them to the park to run some energy out so I think that helped. It didn’t help that they kept trying to knock each other’s glasses off each other’s faces, but the release of energy was good.

During dinner, they both started to get kind of sassy. Instead of finishing his plate like I asked, Full Speed tossed his unfinished food on the floor. The kicker is, he tried to claim he was ‘all done!’ I was praising him left and right until my eye caught the discarded food. I was not too pleased. Then, Little T.Puzzle decided not to sit still and eat his turkey. He had to be ‘coached’ considerably to finish his food while sitting nicely.

As I was preparing the boys for the end-of-the-day bath, they started to get very rambunctious (shocker, isn’t it?). I gave them my spiel that they had to follow the rules of the tub (sort of like the rules of the road but soapier). The first brother who broke a rule would have to immediately go to bed.

You know the rules were broken even before I wrote this, didn’t you? All little T.Puzzle did was toss a ball at his brother’s head. It didn’t even really hit Full Speed and I don’t even think Full Speed realized what happened. As much as I didn’t want to, I had to follow through on my threat for this slight infraction.

I grab him from the tub and tell him it’s bedtime. He sobs uncontrollably and says he’s ‘sorry!’ over and over. Big tears splash down his face and do nothing to quell his wails of torment. I put his pjs on him, brush his teeth and place him in bed. He proceeds to lament for the next twenty minutes. A very long twenty minutes I might add.

Eventually, I go upstairs and convince him to calm down. I explain that he needs to make good choices, listen to his Mommy and that tomorrow will be a better day. He quiets himself but seems incredulous that tomorrow will be better (especially with a Mom who is so ‘mean’).

I sure hope tomorrow is better, or that at least it produces fewer tears for all of us.