The other day I suddenly realized how I constantly nag at my children (and maybe not only at my children…).

• Don’t hit your brother, don’t sit on your sister, stop teasing each other! – My toddlers have a love-hate, well obviously not really hate but a love-little less love relationship where one minute they’re playing so well together and the other minute they’re out to hurt each other, physically and/or verbally.

• Sit up straight, sit your ass down! – This is probably where my kids learn to bark around orders…

• Try not to spill your soup – The cleaning lady left like five minutes ago. Can I enjoy having a clean and tidy house for a few more minutes? Please? What’s the use of even having a cleaning lady? Before she leaves our house there are toys everywhere, cookie crumbs on the floor and chocolate stains on the wall…sigh…

• Find your shoes/your sweater/your backpack – ‘Mommy, I can’t find my shoes’ they’ll say while literally tripping over them, I kid you not. At times like these I fear my children have poor vision (inherited from their dad 😊) but then they’re eating nearly invisible cookie crumbs from the floor and I’m pretty sure their vision is just fine.

• Put on your pants/shoes/coat – My son can dress himself (Hooray! That calls for a drink, right?!) and he sometimes helps his sister or at least attempts to help her get dressed (if that doesn’t call for a drink, I don’t know what does!).

• What did you do with your hair pin/hair ribbon/whatever hair accessory that was holding your hair together and out of your face? – My daughter seems to enjoy walking around with a curtain in front of her eyes and often ends up eating her hair by accident. For some reason it drives me mental. I’ve threatened to cut it, with no effect at all. She called my bluff and gave me the see-if-I-care attitude. Wait until I actually cut it, little lady!

• How do you ask politely? – This phrase I probably use the most, practically every time my kids need or want something which is about every waking minute. You’d think they learn after a zillion times…

Seriously, I heard myself telling them what to do and how, what not to do and why. I was driving myself crazy but the control freak in me just can’t help herself. I do mean well though. I always have someone’s best interest at heart: theirs (as I want my kids to be safe, healthy, and happy) or mine (as I too want to be safe, healthy, and happy). My kids and I also have a love-little less love relationship where one minute I want to run away screaming, pulling out my graying hair (also their doing I’m sure) and the other minute I want to hold them a little bit tighter, hug them a little bit longer, and whisper something sweet into their ears. 💙 When they’re too much to handle and I’m about to lose my cool, I tell myself that it’s okay, I’m only human too, reminding me that they’re the apple of my eye and the cherry on the cake. And I’m afraid that’s enough clichés for one night…