Parenting is hard.
Wayyyyy harder than I imagined it would be.
Sometimes the physical demand of parenting has left me worn out. There are just so many mouths and hands and behinds to wipe. So many shoes and socks to put on. So many baths to give and nails to clip. So many carseat buckles to fasten. So many meals to make and clean up after. So many little bodies to lift up and down. SO MUCH LAUNDRY.
It has left me plum tuckered out on many an occasion.
But lately?
Lately it’s been emotionally demanding.
Staying engaged. Speaking kindly even when the same question is asked for the sixth time (literally!). Deciding what healthy balanced meals to give them day after day. Wondering which battles are worth fighting and which are driven by my fear or pride. Not losing my temper when they just.cannot.get.along. Figuring out how much to play with them and how much to empower them to play. Wondering whether he’s really hungry again or just needs to take a nap. Balancing discipline with prayer as I try to raise 3 humans to understand God’s love and pass it on to the world.
It has been KICKING MY BUTT.
Things ebb and flow and I know this is just an ebb, but I’m feeling overwhelmed lately and I’m ready for another flow!
At the end of the day I’m running on fumes and don’t have the energy or creativity to blog or work on projects or even hold a decent conversation.
That only leaves me with a few options…
1. Go to bed.
As much as I crave good sleep and should go to bed earlier, I just cannot spend my only child-free hours asleep or I’ll burst. I need child-free awake time to refuel!
2. Zone out on my phone.
This sometimes wins out but generally ends in me getting frustrated with all the crap posted on Facebook or depressed that I wasted my alone time scrolling through a bunch of useless information online.
3. Get sucked into a tv show!
Although this is probably just as much of a time waster as the internet, it somehow feels better. The power of story is a driving force for so much learning. As cheesy as it sounds, I usually learn a lot about myself and the world when I watch a show in its entirety.
Thanks to the awesomeness that is Netflix, I can choose option #3 and watch shows on my phone, my ipad, my computer or the tv! I’ve watched many of my favorite shows on all 4 devices depending on the circumstances.
Netflix is so great that it saves my place in a show if I start watching it on my phone and end up switching to my ipad so I can prop it up to watch while I do dishes or make dinner.
#truestory
Lately Andy and I have been watching and LOVING Freaks and Geeks.
It’s set in 1980 and shares the day-to-day drama and humor of a group of high school students…some freaks (rebels) and some geeks (straight-laced nerds). Andy and I both crack up at least once every episode! The characters are hilarious and lovable and we’ve liked it so much more than we thought we would!
It was canceled after one season (BOO!) so it won’t take long for us to watch them all, but I can totally see us watching the series again sometime…I bet it gets funnier each time like Friends did when we watched it about a million times.
I always like to have a show to watch on my own since Andy is so busy and we don’t get much time to watch tv together. I gave Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt a try and while I did like it and thought it was funny (especially the first few episodes) I just haven’t gotten totally hooked yet. It’s a light and silly comedy and I can seriously appreciate that at the end of a long day, so I know I’ll give it another shot :)
Quite a few people have recommended Friday Night Lights, so I finally gave it a try. It’s really football-heavy and I’m not a football girl, so that’s not my thing, but it’s based in a small town and there is a large cast of characters so I think the interpersonal dynamics will be enough to rope me in. I’ve only watched a few episodes so far, but I’m already getting attached to the cast!
On the kid front, Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood is still a big hit and I’m totally ok with that! It’s such a positive show that teaches great lessons about sharing and generosity and dealing with emotions. I’ve used Daniel Tiger advice jingles on more than one occasion to get my girls to share or speak kindly or work through their anger. Thank you Jesus and Daniel Tiger for getting me through sibling rivalry! LOL
That’s what our Netflix has been tuned into over the past month. Are you currently watching anything on Netflix? If so, let me know in the comments…I’m always up for a new show, movie, or documentary!
Disclosure: I am a member of the Netflix Stream Team and will be sharing monthly tips and stories about how my family uses Netflix on a regular basis. As a member of the Stream Team I was provided with welcome kit including a voucher to apply towards my Netflix account. I was not otherwise compensated for this post. All opinions are my own.
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