The Blessing of a Busy Child (or is it a curse?)

I’m exhausted. Completely, overwhelmingly, unbearably exhausted. All the time.

Everything I’m responsible for in life (4 kids under 8, homeschooling, running here and there and everywhere) definitely makes for a tiresome life and while hubby and I have talked extensively about how we can lighten my load, we haven’t come up with a good solution:

Send Doodle to part-time preschool? But then I have to take him and pick him up which is just more wasted time running around.

Put the girls back in school? Are you crazy, who will help me with the boys?!

Hire someone to clean? But then I have to tidy up on a schedule which may or may not match the kids’ as well as keep my lovely brood entertained somewhere out of the way while cleaning happens and cross my fingers and hope to die cleaning doesn’t happen to fall at the same time someone needs a nap.

None of the solutions seem to help not only because each causes extra work for me instead of lightening my load but also because none of the solutions address the actual problem: my busy child.

Pipsqueak is now in full-blown toddler mode and while I thought Sugarplum and Doodle were busy, they have nothing on Pipsqueak.

My sweet little 16 month old is the epitome of a busy child. He is into everything. His climbing skills are way beyond his years and his curiosity is unquenchable. He is non-stop. All the time.

If you’re a long time reader, you’ll notice my frequency of posting new content has dropped tremendously over the past few months.

It’s all Pipsqueak’s fault. I can’t sit to answer a simple e-mail or post to Facebook without having to stop and redirect him at least once. I can’t even fathom trying to type out a blog post when he’s up and by our afternoon family resting time, my mind is like mush and I’m too plain exhausted to do more than busy work.

If you do see me posting new content it’s either because I’m being paid for it and planned ahead or Pipsqueak took a morning nap.

Pipsqueak’s days have looked something like this lately:

Wake up at some insane hour screaming (usually in the 4:45-5:30 range).

Nurse for a stupidly long time but not go back to sleep.

Get down to play and then be screaming mad that I’m down until I’ve woken up my brother.

Ask for breakfast then get grumpy because I don’t like it (any of it, no matter what it is) and throw it at mommy’s head.

Play with brother and sisters until I’m so tired I can’t handle life.

Go down for morning nap shortly after daddy leaves for work (usually around 8:00 or 8:30)

Nap until mommy starts making lunch then wake up and demand to nurse.

Sit down for lunch and refuse to eat anything other than snacks (pea crisps, rice crackers and raisins are my favorite).

“Play” outside with brother AKA dig in the dirt and eat it because I didn’t eat lunch.

Pull all of mommy’s jewelry out of her drawers while mommy reads to brother and sisters before their nap.

Refuse to nap when brother and sisters need to because I just woke up and instead stand around screaming and clawing at the computer while mommy tries to get some work done.

Get tired right when it’s time for mommy to get brother and sisters ready to go to gymnastics and tug at mommy screaming the entire time she’s trying to get things ready.

Sleep during the 1/2 hour car ride to gymnastics which is not even close to a good afternoon nap.

Spend the next two hours running around, refusing to sit and play by mommy and hitting her, pulling her hair or head-butting her any time she tries to hold or engage me in activities that don’t involve chasing me around the gym.

Fall asleep the last 10 minutes of the drive home and then show my exhaustion by screaming and clawing at mommy while she tried to get dinner made.

Eat a few bites of dinner and throw the rest down to the cat then demand cookies because I’m still hungry.

Have a baby wrestling match with mommy when it’s time to put on my pajamas then refuse to go to sleep unless mommy nurses me until I’m out cold.

Mommy=Exhausted.