***sigh***
Yes, I know it's just a phase... but another one? Already?
You see... Josh goes thru phases. I'm not sure what else to call them. They are usually long lived, usually impossible to stop and usually (okay, always) extremely annoying.
Let's see... we've had the (in no particular order of importance or annoyance) spitting phase, the biting nail phase, the shirt twisting phase, the licking everything phase, the saying "so" (or "so what" or spelling so) phase, the no shoe phase, the sticking his tongue out phase, the leaving the room (empty) and locking the door behind him phase, the grinding teeth phase, the calling everyone a "punk-head" phase, the pulling threads out of his socks phase, the pulling the threads out of the couch phase, the whining my name phase (mmooommm), the saying "no" to everything phase, the saying "yes" to everything phase....
And we've doubled up on phases... like the biting his nails just to make them jagged and THEN pulling the strings out of ALL of his socks phase... (his communication notebook would often read "he had quite a pile of strings under his desk today"... I mean really? why?) (not to mention the money we spent on NEW socks).
What's the new phase, you ask? Well... it's the hiding anything and everything that means anything to anyone phase.
Ipads, Ipods, laptop cases, cell phones, wrestling shoes, phones and computer chargers, homework, writing utensils, cooking utensils, eating utensils, socks, glasses (reading and drinking), notebooks, TV remotes, milk covers, x-box controllers...
We've been late for school, late for church and late for dinner. We've missed calls and texts and TV shows.
If you open any drawer in my bedroom, at any time, on any given day, you can usually find a variety of items. But sometimes it isn't as easy as my drawers... sometimes it's in closets (behind, under, inside the things that are supposed to live there), under the cushions or under the couch... under the mattress or under the bed... in the sugar canister or in the mulch pail (ewwwwww!!!). We haven't found anything in the trash yet (there is a silver lining to every story). They also say he doesn't do it at school (another piece of the silver lining).
Has he been disciplined? Yes. Has he lost important things to him? Yes. Has he learned a lesson? No. Nothing works. N.O.T.H.I.N.G.
He's a wee bit stubborn.
To be perfectly honest, all these phases wear me down. I'm sure there is a lesson for ME in these phases (patience?), but they DO seriously wear me down. Perhaps this current lesson is for the kids? Don't leave your laptop case lying on the living room floor? But, in their defense, they (and I) always try to put things out of reach... but this kid is good. He's slick. He's always one step ahead of us and we don't even know it.
To make matters worse, right now he's going thru an ornery phase too. These come upon us regularly and happen in addition to the 'phase of the day/week/month/year'. They make us sad and I think they make him sad. He's downright grumpy. He's not interested in playing with Abby (that's our clue that something is majorly wrong). These ornery phases typically mean 1 of 2 things... an illness is brewing or a growth spurt is coming (hoping for the later of the 2).
We'll get thru it. We always do. And then there will be another phase. And we'll get thru that one too. Because we always do. What choice do we have?
***sigh***
"won't keep his shoes on phase"
"ornery phase"
anyone who knows Josh, knows something is wrong here...
it's written all over his face
But, just like Jesus doesn't leave us or forsake us when WE go thru phases (and boy, do I ever go thru phases)... I keep reminding Josh that I love him to pieces, even on the bad/hard/sad/ornery/hiding my car keys days.
Love,
Susan
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