Back to school Mom

A few weeks ago, I finally admitted defeat and asked for help.

I never expected kids to be the issue that would bring me to my knees, but apparently not everyone can be a parent. Just being able to have kids doesn’t make you an expert. So, why they just give them to us in the first place is really beyond me. All you have to do is bring a car seat in the hospital, and they let you go.

When I learned I was expecting, I took a few deep breaths and did what I know best: pulled out all the books on the topic. I am good at research, and this part was easy. I kept in the loop with how big my baby was getting, how I’ll feed it, what clothes it needs, etc. But I didn’t have the time, and to be honest, I really couldn’t imagine not being able to do it on my own and figure out what to do after the first few months of its life.

So, after my girl was born I just kept going, without asking for help or searching for answers till I almost completely failed. 

I am aware that my child is not an alien, nor does she speak some foreign language. She just has a Jekyll and Hyde disorder. One minute she is my sweet four year old, and the next second she is ready to tear down the roof. I am not equipped to deal with tantrums (as when she does it, I almost burst into laughter). Talk about inappropriate behavior! Sometimes I start mimicking her, which only makes it worse.

So, I decided to go hear a lecture on tantrums.

Our daycare center organizes school for parents, and this time I realized it was time to go back to the basics. While I believed that my kid wasn’t the only one going through this phase, I was surprised at how many parents were there along me. Some of them were in suits. Ha, I thought, you are good at managing a company yet here comes a three year old, and you are running away screaming. Sorry, it felt good for my ego, to see many of us have trouble dealing with the species we call “kids.”

At times, it did really feel as if listening to the Animal Channel documentary on the discovery of a new wild life. But seriously, I’ve learned a lot. First of all, no, my kid is not a Martian. I just have trouble perceiving her as a human being and a kid who has no clue. I need to deal with it. Second, I don’t need to spend every second of my free time with her, but the time I do spent should be precious and I have to make it count. I must learn to be a Mom, not a friend; she needs boundaries and clear messages which means I have to know what I want and stick to it. Apparently, being a Mom just takes practice. And I was always good at that.

So, yes it’s back to school for me. I need to continue learning–because I for sure don’t know it all–and then practice till I am perfect, which will probably be right around the time I start getting grand kids.