Regrettably Kind

Am I the only mom who sometimes regrets being nice to their kids? Like....I arrange something really nice (aka messy...and quite a lot of work for ME) for Miriam to do and then she ruins it by disobeying me or whining.

Sometimes I think to myself, "Why do I even try?"

I mean, come on. I NEVER whine and am ALWAYS satisfied. Isn't everyone? Sense the sarcasm.

But, nevertheless, I get pretty frustrated when I set up Miriam's art easel on the back porch and 30 minutes later I am yelling....er....explaining to her why she can't play with her paints anymore as I scrub paint off of her entire body and then subsequently, the bathtub, sink, cabinets and anywhere else she was standing.

But...I am mom. And I still like to see her do things she enjoys.

Or maybe it's the fact that she will sit still for more than 3 1/2 minutes in concentration.

Or that for a moment in time, I am able to hear myself think.







Or it could be because while she is so intently painting, I am able to sneak away and go to the bathroom with the door closed! *GASP*




But, inevitably, I am brought back to the reality of my life when I notice my child has toxic paint on her lips because she was kissing her horse as she was painting it.




And then it's time to put the paints away and the whining commences.







And I regret being nice.

Just a little bit.