Laugh Out Loud (LOL)

For the past week I have been moody and irritable.  At times I thought that I just needed to get out of the house and have some alone time at a store (i.e. Kohl's) totally convinced that I would not buy anything.  But putting me in a store to merely look without making a purchase is like putting a kid in a candy store with free samples and expecting them not to try a single one.  So I would go to Kohl's and stroll the aisles and almost always come out with something that I needed and let's not forget to mention that the article of clothing was on the 80% off clearance rack.  Then later on I would check the status of my checking account, notice the dwindling account total, and end up more moody than I was before I had "alone time."  Cross that moodiness solution off the list.  

Adisson is excellent at approaching me when I need to be shown love the most.  Often a simple sigh is a sign to her that Mommy needs some cuddling.  Unfortunately, because of my moodiness the attention she received back was an artificial hug and more of Mommy's frustration.  Most of this frustration was triggered by episodes where I have to ask Adisson to do something five times before she finally responds, "What did you say?  I can't hear you."  She would say it in the sincerest way as if she really did not hear me, but I was not convinced.  The fact that I had to repeat myself so many times that day upset me to the point that I ended up yelling, "put away your toys!"  Stunned, Adisson put away her toys, came back to me, and stroked my back with her little hand.  Who could turn away such innocent and genuine attention?  Me.  What a shame... but I did.  When I laid in bed that evening I felt so awful for the way that I treated not only Adisson, but the rest of the family too. 

So I came up with another solution to this moodiness: laugh out loud.  Yesterday anytime I needed Adisson to do something I put myself into a position where I could make eye contact with her and calmly gave her instructions.  This counteracted the former "I can't hear you" response and got things done quicker.  Not necessarily in a timely manner, but quicker than the day before.  I laughed out loud every opportunity I got.  I began this in the morning and could not escape the laughter for the rest of the day.  Quiet frankly, the girls were surprised to see this side of Mommy and were happy to oblige me with more reasons to laugh: a big smile, the sweetest coo, a funny face, or a silly dance.  By the time my husband got home from work, his girls were all smiles and giddy from laughing.  He could not help but to chime in with the laughter.  The atmosphere at home completely changed.  There was not a cloud of moodiness and irritation over our household anymore because I chose to excuse it and exchange  it for joy and laughter.  Note to self: Add LOL to list of "TO DO."

LOL: One good pic out of 5 takes.