Perfection Pending

By Meredith Ethington

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Humor Manic Mondays Motherhood Parenting

The 5 Stages of CrazyTown When You Keep Your Kids Out Past Bedtime.

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Last night, my husband and I made the mistake of leaving the house after dinner. For anyone else out there with small children, especially those (like mine) who are somewhat scheduled, you know for sure that leaving the house after dinner is almost always a mistake. I would say, 99.9% of the time.

Let’s just say that, as usual, things didn’t go according to plan and we found ourselves headed home after their bedtime. In other words, we had just created our own mini version of crazy-town. Here are the stages we suffered through…

Stage 1: Maniacal behavior. This usually happens in the car on the way home. The kids are high energy. Singing, screaming, laughing. Tonight? The game was fake crying. That’s what they decided to play in the car on the way home. They would fake cry until we would say, “What’s wrong!?” in true alarm, and then they would die laughing. Everything is peachy and fun while you’re still out. You’re usually smiling sweetly to yourself in the front seat while doing deep breaths to try to block out the shrill cries of delight in the back. After all, they’re having fun, so what’s wrong with that? But, then you walk through that front door, and with undeniable force, you are faced with…

Stage 2: Denial. They know they are going to be forced to bathe, or get pajamas on or brush teeth against their will, so they just ignore you and pretend like it isn’t happening. The constant reminders to get undressed, or go potty, or take their shoes off go unnoticed. You feel like freaking out, but you manage to remain calm. You finally try physical force. To combat this, they flop, or go limp so that you have to do all the work to get their tiny bodies undressed. Then they’re completely naked and vulnerable. They realize they’ve lost, so they enter….

Stage 3: Meltdown mode.  They cry at the tiniest thing. You might say something innocent like, “Will you move over here so I can wash your hair?” and they exclaim something that makes no sense like, “But, I’m too itchy!!!” and they sob through the rest of the bath, or teeth brushing, or story time until you finally reach….

Stage 4: Exhaustion. Both you and them. They want it over, and so do you. Unfortunately, they still need fourth meal, or water, or they forgot to do their homework all weekend, or you leave the room and they need a kleenex, or blanket or or or or or or or……!!! You work hard to cater to their every need to avoid more of stage 3 until they finally enter….

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Stage 5: Sleep. They are finally in bed, and you want to cheer, and shout for joy, and possibly watch your favorite TV show, but you realize that the tiny little people sucked every ounce of energy out of you. All you want to do is close your eyes and go to sleep yourself. You resolve to have a social life in 10 years, and vow to never leave the house past 4 pm again. You turn to your husband and remark, “Why do we even bother?” And, he replies sadly, “I have no idea.”

But, the real crazy? That’s when you do it over again next weekend and expect that the next time it might be different.


36 Comments

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Comments

  1. Faith says

    December 9, 2013 at 5:51 am

    You nailed it! This is so true

    Reply
    • Meredith says

      December 9, 2013 at 8:14 am

      Thanks! 🙂

      Reply
  2. Ben Gardner says

    December 9, 2013 at 7:52 am

    Sometimes,we can even leave the house without them. Not without fighting, but we can leave.

    Reply
  3. Bianca @ Track Pants and a Tot says

    December 9, 2013 at 8:33 am

    I was saying “yes” after every point, especially the last one. You totally nailed it!

    Reply
    • Meredith says

      December 9, 2013 at 8:59 am

      Thanks for stopping by! 🙂

      Reply
  4. Jelli says

    December 9, 2013 at 6:44 pm

    What a fun post, Meredith. I concur that leaving home past 4pm is asking for trouble. My two tiny ones hit the sack early- we’re talking both in bed by 6:30 pm. A few times we’ve been unable to get babysitters for our evening Bible study group and paid a big price the next day with a fussy toddler. Love your blog design- quirky and fun. Glad I found you tonight!

    Reply
    • Meredith says

      December 9, 2013 at 7:17 pm

      Me too!! Thanks for stopping by! Hope you’ll come again. 🙂 Fun and quirky is exactly what I was going for!

      Reply
  5. Kerry says

    December 9, 2013 at 8:21 pm

    We go through these stages on a normal night! Or at least up to stage 3 until they relent. I avoid staying out past bedtimes too to the chagrin of family and friends who think I am just too rigid, I’m just all about self-preservation 😉

    Reply
    • Meredith says

      December 10, 2013 at 7:29 am

      Exactly!!! That’s how I feel too. That people think I’m too rigid, but we have to do it to not go crazy!

      Reply
  6. Katie @ Bumblebee Days says

    December 10, 2013 at 1:17 pm

    This is exactly what happened to us last weekend. And yet, I never learn!

    Reply
    • Meredith says

      December 10, 2013 at 4:43 pm

      Well, it’s hard to commit to being a recluse and never leaving the house. I never learn either! 🙂

      Reply
  7. breathe16 says

    December 10, 2013 at 3:30 pm

    over-tired, maniacal behavior is a given when out past bedtime!

    Reply
    • Meredith says

      December 10, 2013 at 4:42 pm

      Absolutely! 🙂

      Reply
  8. Rivki Silver says

    December 10, 2013 at 5:09 pm

    Haha, I love that you categorized these stages. Next time we’re experiencing this maybe I’ll call out to my husband “WAtch out! We’re entering Stage Three!!”

    Reply
    • Meredith says

      December 10, 2013 at 5:32 pm

      Yes! Maybe I will too! 🙂

      Reply
  9. Amber says

    December 10, 2013 at 5:20 pm

    Yes! True! However, my kids are night owls. It’ll be 11 at night and they’ll still be playing in their rooms. It drives me insane. I’m all, “How can you not be tired? I’m tired!”

    Reply
    • Meredith says

      December 10, 2013 at 5:33 pm

      Ugh. My kids don’t do that…yet. But, I can only imagine the frustration! 🙂

      Reply
  10. Helen Neale (@KiddyCharts) says

    December 11, 2013 at 4:42 am

    Oh I so agree – the number of times I have done this and then so regretted it…but then, guess what you do it again, you think it will be different, but it never, never is! 😉 Thanks for linking up to the Parenting Pin it Party over at KiddyCharts. Cheers. xx

    Reply
    • Meredith says

      December 11, 2013 at 8:21 am

      Thanks for stopping by!! 🙂

      Reply
  11. SuperSAHD says

    December 11, 2013 at 12:00 pm

    We did this last night. 2yo up until 11. My wife and I needed to catch up on homeland, so we put her in front of elmo for an hour. At least we didn’t give her benadryl.

    Reply
    • Meredith says

      December 11, 2013 at 1:44 pm

      Yes! At least you didn’t do that. I would die if my kids stayed up until 11. If they are up past 8pm, I start to twitch uncontrollably. 😉

      Reply
  12. MUM OF ONE says

    December 14, 2013 at 12:59 pm

    LOL this is my family…exactly! (You’re not spying on us are you?) We never learn and keep trying occasionally. This made me giggle so much though, to know we are not alone, sorry. I am featuring this as my favourite in next Mondays Pin It Party so do pop by an drab your shiny badge if you wish 🙂

    Reply
    • Meredith says

      December 14, 2013 at 3:59 pm

      Thanks for featuring it!! I’ve been enjoying the Monday Pin it Party!! Such a fun idea! 🙂

      Reply
  13. Chrystal M. says

    December 16, 2013 at 11:45 am

    Almost 9 years in and my husband still doesn’t listen to the ‘routine.’ Stopping by from the Creative Kids Pinterest Party!

    Reply
    • Meredith says

      December 16, 2013 at 12:11 pm

      Thanks for stopping by! My husband has learned that the routine is important..but he is the king of breaking it too!! 🙂

      Reply
  14. Beth Teliho says

    February 11, 2014 at 9:03 am

    It’s like you were describing my sons. NO. REALLY.
    WTF is it with boys? I don’t even go upstairs anymore cuz it makes me so mad! I SO get you on this. Why WHY dump toy bins on the floor? I would love to know this.
    great post, Meredith. 🙂

    Reply
    • Meredith says

      February 11, 2014 at 1:06 pm

      Thanks Beth!! Sorry you understand so well. 🙂

      Reply

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Welcome! I’m Meredith.

Mom. Writer. Diet Coke connoisseur. Born and raised Texan. Lover of real talk and laughter with a hint of sarcasm mixed in.

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Meredith Ethington

perfectpending

Mom • Author • Mental Health Therapist In Training
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Night night! 😤 Night night! 😤
If you missed my last post about how raising teens If you missed my last post about how raising teens can wreck you mentally….wellll this is part of the reason why. So lonely! But we are in this together somehow. 😂 Make sure to check out my latest substack and grab a copy of my book —- The Mother Load!
NEW ---> "When there are problems in these big kid NEW ---> "When there are problems in these big kid years, it’s no longer really acceptable to call a friend and air the annoyances of the situation. At least not the specifics.

Sure, you can commiserate with a fellow parent about teenagers being the worst.

But, to be honest - they’re not the worst. They’re kind of amazing. But their problems make me tired to my core." 

Read the latest on my substack. I promise you'll relate. ❤️
So sweet. ❤️ Follow me @perfectpending and bet So sweet. ❤️
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I don’t want to try to give off this illusion that I’m control of my life any better than the next person. It’s a shitshow for all of us, and we continue to hide it for fear of what? Being human?"

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WHAT IF THIS IS THE HAPPIEST I’LL EVER BE AND I WHAT IF THIS IS THE HAPPIEST I’LL EVER BE AND I MISS IT? What if I miss the best time of my life. What if it’s right this second?
What if it’s right now while I’m in finals week of grad school, and have a kid that’s sick? 
I already miss so much. The gummy smiles of babes without any teeth. The squeaky voices of 2 year olds. The babbling of a baby that’s just trying so hard to say mama. The grammar mistakes my kids make when they’re talking that I don’t have the heart to correct because I love it too much. 

I miss a lot about those younger years that have already slipped away. My youngest is sick, much like in this picture, but he is too big to snuggle in my arms now when he’s running a fever. 

Today I had the thought, what if this is it? What if this IS the happiest I’ll ever be?
For a moment, I lingered in that thought as I stood over my sink and did the dishes. I started to cry.
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Look, I’ve never been a half glass full kind of gal. I can ALWAYS find the negative in every situation. 

But, right now it’s easy to say that I’m over it. It being.....

The state of our economy. Social media. People being unemployed. People being racist and homophobic. The debate over politics. People judging people. ALLLLLL of it. 

Everything is crap right now. We joke about it a lot. We have to in order to survive. 

It’s the one millionth day of January but Spring feels so far away. 

I’m over these four damn walls that we call home. 

Yeah, I know. Even as I’m typing this it all sounds like a bunch of ungrateful whiney BS. I hear it. I don’t need you to point it out, Karen. 

But, my guess is you’re reading this right now and realizing you’re over it too. Whatever “it” is in your life.

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Some of you wanted sources on my last reel where I Some of you wanted sources on my last reel where I said we only need to be getting it right 30% of the time for our kids to have secure attachments. Well I wrote a bit more about the concept of being the “good enough mother” a term coined in the 50’s by a researcher and pediatrician. Check it all out in my newest post. Link in profile.
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