Parenting Tweens from Misery to Mermaids

There are many things about parenting that make me want to bang my head against a wall or just scream and walk away.  But, obviously the good outweighs the bad or humanity would cease to exist.  At the Dickerson house, we have many struggles and definitely don't have it all together like many of those other people with blogs and Facebook accounts.  Our daily struggles are real and real hard to appreciate and love.

One of our biggest daily struggles right now is the constant bickering and fighting among the girls.  Typically, Taylor is involved.  Yes, I posted about her mellow personality but that's only for "the real world".  At home, she can be quite the antagonizer.  And, in her defense, she is the middle child.  Kennedy is old enough to know that at her age (almost 12), it would be pretty ridiculous to argue with a 4 year old BADkid.  So, the 1147 times each day daily struggle is Kennedy vs. Taylor or Taylor vs. BADkid.

It's really amazing to m that at 6:00 A.M. each morning, when my oldest two girls have been awake for less than 45 seconds, they can find something to fight about.  Typically, it's one of them "in the way" of the other one.  They have an hour to get ready for school.  Neither of them requires more than 30 minutes total.  However, Taylor MUST be in the middle of the bathroom when Kennedy MUST be trying to put in her contacts.  Or if Taylor decides to eat breakfast first thing, she will definitely realize that Kennedy is in her seat at the table.  It doesn't matter, they are going to make sure that we leave home each morning with at least one "figure out how to get along" statement from an irritated mother.  I've grown as a parent--okay, maybe it's not growth, but growth sounds better than given up.  I just ignore them and pray that although they drive each other crazy, one day they will appreciate each other and defend each other when necessary.

And, guess what happened on Wednesday evening...

I asked Kennedy to do her chores before Chad got home from work.  In typical preteen fashion, she pretended to go through the motions.  As she was unloading the dishwasher, Taylor was reading through a Scholastic book order form.  Suddenly, they decided they could get along and share everything.  After several reminders to Kennedy that she had to do the dishes, I sent Taylor to her room to quit distracting Kennedy.  After redirecting Kennedy once again, I went out to the shop to check in with BADkid and Chad.

Upon my return to the house, I was greeted with a "Mom, look what we made up!"  Based on the excessive amount of giggles and smiles from both of them, I figured their project was probably video worthy.  And honestly, I wanted tangible proof to remind them that they DO love each other.

Amazing!  They can get along and work together when the goal is to avoid chores!  I've never truly appreciated the artistry of The Little Mermaid like I do now.

Kids in the spotlight--Tater

It's been quite a while since I updated the blog. Have no fear, we have been living our usual life of excitement and funny kid moments. Funny kid of the month is Taylor!

First of all, this kiddo is bright. She is not the typical 'overachiever' child of a teacher. She's more along the lines of the 'this kid drives me crazy because she knows the material, knows she does, and really couldn't care less about proving she knows it' child of a teacher.  For example, one year in school, Taylor's teacher contacted me to make sure I was aware that she had earned a grand total of ZERO reading points for the six weeks.  Typically that wouldn't be such a concern. However, Taylor had been reading all six of the weeks.  I picked her up from school and casually inquired about her lack of  points. It went something like this...

Me: Tater-nater, how was school today?

T: Good. Moma-nater, how was work today? 

Me:  Pretty good, but I got an email from Mrs. ABC. Do you have any idea what it said?

T:  No m'am, she didn't show it to me first. 

Me:  Well, how many AR points do you have?

T:  Right now?

Me:  Yes, right now. 

T: Right now, um, I don't have any AR points right now. 

Me: So, in six weeks you haven't ready any books?

T: Yes, I HAVE read about 4 chapter books. 

Me:  Well, why don't you have any points?

T: Because I haven't taken any tests. 

Me:  You do know why there are tests, right?

T:  Um, not really?

Me:  The tests are to make sure you read and understood the book. 

T: Mom, you know I read XYZ because I told you about ...  And, Mrs. ABC knows I read too because I told her about...  

Me: Taylor, I don't doubt that you are reading the books. But you MUST follow the rules and take the tests too. 

T:  Ok, but everyone knows that I can read!

That night, Taylor had to skip gymnastics. By the end of the next day, she had twice as many points as her goal for the six weeks.  If you've been around Taylor for even five minutes, you know that gymnastics is her passion.  If I had a dollar for every time I've told her to "stop flipping and flopping in the house" she would have a fully funded college fund.


Taylor is quick witted and a lot of fun.  She is also our most affectionate child.  She kisses everyone (when her sisters tolerate it) good night each night on her way to bed.  She also kisses my head and says, "I love you, Momma" each day as she gets out of the car at school.  Although much of her personality reminds me of myself...you know...patient, kind, calm....  Okay, the truth is that Taylor is Chad Dickerson through and through.  She is patient,kind, affectionate, and genuine.  This picture with Chip is the real Taylor Dickerson--big smile, open arms!

Taylor is very literal.  She received a ping pong paddle as a reward at school.  When I asked her about the rewards and prizes she said, "Mom, they gave us a ping pong paddle.  That's just another paddle at our house!"  Honestly, yes, we do have a ping pong paddle in the car.  However, I can't even remember the last time Taylor felt the love on her bottom.  You can read about her other literal interpretations while in Washington D.C. here.

Taylor doesn't get stressed out about school.  She does well in her classes, but perfection is not her goal.  Sometimes I get irritated because it seems that she doesn't care.  However, I'm learning to accept that for Taylor, life is about enjoying the moment and living loud.  English teachers around the world may cringe with her definition of "fragments" but ultimately, the fragments of her short life are the things that make the Dickerson story better each day.