Nov 22, 2010

A Vaccination for Crazy

So, today was really tough.

My kids were crazy all day long, as usual. But for some reason it got several notches louder, crazier, and more unbearable as dinnertime approached. I literally felt sick, like I had a flu bug or something, from the sheer stress of the free radicals of crazy floating around in my living room.

Skywalker got home from work early, and left shortly thereafter to go on an "errand", which took him 2 hours and 15 minutes to complete, bringing him home just about the time dinner is supposed to end.

Poor skywalker. The free radicals of crazy included ones coming from ME at this point. My tetchy lecture only lasted a minute or two, and I didn't raise my voice at all or say anything verging on more than just slightly testy, but it was enough to give him the crazy bug.

We unfortunately went over to my sister's house for FHE and passed the bug on to them. But for some reason, they seem to have a kind of immunity to it. My kids played and screamed and teased, and my little brother wrestled and threw them around and gave them a shrieking good time. My sister and her husband smiled mildly and watched them run erratic, high-strung circles around their living room.

Skywalker and I looked on in dumb incredulosity, but didn't question anything because at least the crazy was no longer being directed at US.

So... question.

You moms of young kids. What is your most effective "crazy" inoculation?

A good night's sleep is out of the question. As is (at this point) chocolate, due to budgetary restrictions.

8 comments:

Sarah said...

Get them outside? Go for a hike (even if you don't feel like it)? Get the crazies out in nature. Works for us. Most of the time.

Good luck!

:)

Dave L said...

You already know what I'm going to say.... Have you tried beating them? :-)

Honestly, one of our favorite things to do is to put OURSELVES in time out. We find that a good chunk of the time, the crazy/stress that builds up from rambunctious kids can be helped by taking time away from it to just be quiet. It may not work as well for you, but our kids actually calm down a lot when we go into time out. Almost as if they are in awe that mom and dad did something so wrong that we needed time out. :-)

My other options are a movie, throwing them outside, and, of course, a good round of beatings for all....

Mom Sangster said...

I hope I'm not too old for my answer to count....I used to run a big ol' tub full of bubbles for two reasons -- I couldn't hear anything while the water was running, and once the kids are past a certain age they would rather die than walk in on their mom when she's nekkid. Of course, this pre-supposes that you can stand to be in there and NOT in the middle of the mayhem, which is always risky.......a good book helps to keep your mind off of all of the scarey possibilities that could be happening on the other side of the door. (PS -- ignore the body parts that get shoved under the door...their owners will give up sooner or later)

Unknown said...

Hmmm. Tub of bubbles is sounding good.

And getting ourselves out of the house is a great idea too, though not this week :( Blizzards--nothing like them to get some "crazy" going!

Dave: You know I support your beating habits. I do. But all that beating might get somewhat tiring after a while. I do a lot of push-ups in the morning, now, but I'm still not sure I'm up to it.

Dave L said...

But that's why you get married so you and your hubby can _take turns_ beating the kids! :-)

Sigh... I know you know I'm joking, but I sometimes wonder how soon until one of your readers calls the police on me.

Unknown said...

That's the nice thing about the internet! No addresses... no phone numbers... and there are a whole lot of Lovelesses in Provo, so.

And I'd vouch for you.

I'd tell CPS that you beat your kids only to within TWO inches of their life.

Unknown said...

That's the nice thing about the internet! No addresses... no phone numbers... and there are a whole lot of Lovelesses in Provo, so.

And I'd vouch for you.

I'd tell CPS that you beat your kids only to within TWO inches of their life.

Putz said...

i could track you down dave l, yes i could><>i know you live in probo, i mean provo<><><><>i have worked for the cpc for 25 years now, and have dealt with 700,000 beating fathers and father's who give that advice to others who are gulibile and innocent like no surf here