Eye Rolling in Fun

Our son, Z, is entering a new phase of life.  We noticed the signs with H a couple years back and here we are again with Z.

In our experience, we've seen these changes taking place, result in surges of really aggressive behavior.  They come from seemingly nowhere and it can be really challenging to help them through such outbursts without affecting others too negatively.  They don't mean to do it and they always feel bad afterwards, but they haven't yet learned how to control these surges of aggressive feelings.

I find myself sending Z outside a lot when he gets like that.

First of all, he's a very active kid.  Secondly, he best enjoys outdoor activities to indoor ones.  So it makes sense to me to put him in a comfortable environment till the aggression blows over.  But when I send him outside, he takes it as a form of punishment and not as a way to help him through it (no matter how many times I try to explain why I'm doing it).

As a result, he doesn't always react with the most positive responses.

Some of his responses, though, are quite unintentionally comical.  So even though I'm usually feeling a tad frustrated with him, I usually burst into eye-rolling laughter at his natural comic abilities.  They come out best in him when he's frustrated himself.  But I'm thankful God made him this way, because it endears me to him even on the tough days.

Here are a couple I've recorded...

"But Mom, what will I do outside?!  And being bored is already taken."

and

"Well, to me, being outside right now is like ketchup on lasagna -- gross!"


This morning, he seemed to wake up in one of these moods.  I found myself sending a message to C at work, "Well, Z is already acting like a punk* this morning.  No surprise there."

He texted back, "Maybe he's supposed to be a reminder of how God is unchanging."  Ha.

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*Thank you, Mom, for giving my vocabulary this word that sometimes seems to be the only and best word to describe our kids when they are in a "mood."  I know you felt bad for using that word about us when we were kids, but now that I'm a mama myself, I do understand.  And yes, children are always a blessing from the Lord, but sometimes, that blessing comes through challenges and "punk" behavior.  (If you take that link to find out punk's meaning, please note that I am not using it in the form of the noun definitions 1, 3b, 3c or 4.  Definitions 2 and 3a are best fits.)

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Happy Birthday to C's grandpa today!!