Weekends

Seems that I have become a weekend blogger - the weekend being the only time I can get to writing this one or reading some of my many favorites written by others. Although there are patches of free time throughout the weekday - they are only short bursts of mostly unexpected time and never enough for a nice visit to the bathroom let alone enough time to sit down and create a short blog entry. And, if there are longer periods of time - they are usually taken up with administrative stuff like bills or phone calls or - something I have been trying hard to get better at - dinner prep.

Weekends are also the time for the four of us to be together. Most of the time, this is one of my favorite things as a parent. Other times - not so much. Luca - although he's gotten much better at handling his frustrations - still has many moments throughout the day when he is, um, a bit difficult. His new thing is "backtalk". If I am re-directing or correcting him in some way - his automatic response these days is to repeat back to me what I've just said to him. As in - "No, you need to listen." or "No, you're going to get a time out". Nice. And especially difficult to keep my cool considering we are already dealing with the offense that got us there in the first place. "Obstinate" is the word I would use to describe him these days. It's one thing when we are home, in a controlled environment, where I can deal with whatever it is he's being relentless about at the moment. It's another when we are out in the world, out to have a good time goddamnit, and he's being as difficult as it gets. Publicly. Then you have to decide whether or not you want to deal with the situation as you would at home, or modify in some way, still (hopefully) help him to understand and - at the same time - get back to the having fun part as quickly as possible.

Still, there are usually more of the favored moments on a weekend than not. Long mornings, snippets of the paper, special projects, staying in our pjs, walks downtown, the farmer's market, local festivals, special treats, meals with friends - and - being together. Cranky or not.