Meltdowns and Nightmares

This is one of those weeks when I admit defeat and announce I am clueless about this parenting thing.

And yes, it's only Tuesday.

Perhaps I'm being a bit dramatic. I can handle Jacey in her infancy. To me, babies are easy. (I know some of you may be growling at me for that statement.) Their needs are pretty basic. Eat, sleep, poop, repeat. Got it.

In all honesty, I didn't think preschoolers were that difficult either, because Averey was such an agreeable easygoing child. Not that Kelsey isn't; she's sweet and affectionate and can make you laugh. Unfortunately, she's at the age where she does or doesn't need a nap, depending upon the day. If she takes a nap (note: falls asleep on the couch, never in her bed), unless she wakes up before 3 p.m., she's all right. However, her falling asleep on the couch usually occurs after 3 p.m., and then one of us has the pleasure of rousing the beast from her slumber.

Sunday was a little different though. She woke up on her own and seemed to be in a pleasant mood. She asked for help to go potty, and somewhere in between pulling down her tights and lifting her up on the seat, she vehemently decided I wasn't cut out for the job and requested daddy. (Story of my life!) Surprisingly, daddy was no good for the task either, so she proceeded to pitch a fit. A loud, screaming, pathetic fit. Time out followed, and at the very moment Jacey spit up on herself, my arm and the rug, Kelsey peed all over the time out chair and it spilled onto the dining room floor. It was an ugly mess, and she didn't calm down until nearly 10 minutes later, with much coaxing from Averey (the only one left who she didn't refuse!).

Last night we suffered another meltdown because she was overtired at bedtime. It's a lose-lose situation. Thankfully, Jake was able to talk to her calmly as she was hitting him, and she soon was ready for bed.

When she's not fighting sleep or waking up grouchy from a nap, she seems to call everything and everyone "poopy" or "poopyhead." It's a bit embarrassing when you ask her to repeat something she said that was actually funny or cute, and she responds with an enthusiastic "POOPYHEAD!" Sigh.

Averey, on the other hand, seems to have nightmares at least three times a week. (Twice so far this week! I attribute it to either snacking after 7:30--which I've been trying to watch--or an overactive imagination, or Disney Channel.) She doesn't wake up screaming, but she walks into our room and says, "I had a bad dream." I grumpily tell her to go back to bed, Jake thinks that, but for the sake of not arguing allows her to climb in our bed and he goes out on the couch. (Sometimes I think he also does it because he claims I'm such a bed hog.) It's getting ridiculous to me at this point, and as I tried to share a verse from Proverbs about lying down and sleeping in peace, I goofed the whole thing up and proved to be an ineffective lesson. (I'll just have to write it down for her instead.)

At this point, I'm continually praying for wisdom. I'm trying to exercise greater patience in those difficult moments. And I might be drinking a glass of wine at dinner every night this week.