Sunday, March 31, 2013

A New Challenge

First and foremost, let me wish you all a very Happy Easter! I haven't blogged in quite some time. I know, I know. Bad Blogger. Life has been kind of crazy. And when I say "kind of" I mean like "totally-completely- lock-us-up-in-a-white-padded-room-and-slap-on-the-straight-jacket-crazy".

We all know the challenges, frustrations and difficulties we parents face raising our little ones. Having a 5 year old with Autism and a 3 year old at home has proven to be not as picturesque and movie-bliss-like as we'd thought. Who's know that 75% of our time would be spent reversing inappropriate behaviors, reinforcing time-outs and losing arguments to the little people that have taken, by force, control of our house. (When did little people develop such strength and determination??)

So, we have found ourselves in an age old dilemma. "When did I become that parent that yells all the time?" I don't like it. Swore I would never become it. Have no idea when it started, or how it got so out of control. The one thing I DO know.. is that it's not working.

So, in my latest attempt to escape the chaos that is my house, I found myself on pinterest. Scrolling through the memes, the "I must have's" for the closet, the house and the garden, dream wedding ideas, and various projects to keep the little ones occupied during spring break, I happened upon a rather non-descript, simple little pin, of a child (or small adult) in a bathroom sink, reading a book with an orange rhino on the front. The caption was "[Tired of Yelling?] .... " I clicked it, and lo and behold, there was a link. Hmm.. I clicked it, and a bright orange website popped up. WOW. Can't miss that one! But at the top, there was a button. "417 days without yelling!" Hmmm...This might be worth clicking around for a few moments. Let's see....

Nothing spectacular. No "4 easy payments of just $19.99". No annual membership fee. Simple, easy ideas, to curb the yelling. Like Sticking your head in the freezer for a couple of minutes, until you 'cool down'. Pounding your chest like a gorilla to vent frustration. Silly, yup. But apparently, it's working. And it makes the kids laugh, which is a bonus, whether we realize it or not. Remember what they were doing that caused you to explode? Yeah... They're not doing that anymore, because they're too busy giggling at their frozen gorilla momma. Hey.. at this point, I'm willing to give up some self-respect, for peaceful quiet and harmony in my house.

So....

What wild and insane project has prompted me to pick up the pen and journal once more? (Okay, yeah, click my link to my blogger page, and pound on the keyboard for 10 minutes.) I've decided that this Orange Rhino Challenge was worth checking out... and definitely worth putting some effort into. So, here, and on my facebook page, I'll be documenting my progress... Wish me luck!

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