Ever since I become a mother 11 years ago, I always tried to be the best I could be. I read all of the great parenting books and did everything I could to ensure that the children had the most nurturing and loving structured environment. Which I don’t regret but sometimes I went a little overboard. I became a little obsessive about my parenting skills. I have always strived for perfection when it came to parenting. I realized that that was an unrealistic goal. It took me years to accept that sometimes it’s OK to be untraditional and not feel guilty afterwards. Last week was a crazy week around here. One night, I didn’t have any ideas for dinner. It was too late to defrost anything, I didn’t have any commercially prepared dinners, and eating out was out of the question. So I ended up serving cereal for dinner. The kids were pleasantly surprised. And I felt great afterwards. I didn’t feel guilty or think that I was a bad mother. And it turned out to be the easiest dinner clean up ever.

Our evening time chaos would not be complete without having to shower all 4 kids every night. Of course showering has to be done in a structured routine. It reminds me of working in a factory. One child goes in, gets washed, gets rinsed, dries off, and sent to get dressed. And then the next child goes in and starts the routine again. My record timing is getting all 4 showers done is 15 minutes. But because I am an OT, I like to give opportunities to promote their independence. Although it might be easier for me to do everything for them, I want to teach them how to do for themselves. They are all at different functioning levels. Anthony ( ASD, 11) is getting better but still needs help washing his hair and verbal reminders to get everything else washed. Destiny (ASD, 9) needs full assistance for showering. If we didn’t prompt her, she would just stand there under the water. However she is starting to attempt to wash her hair and body with a washcloth. Jasmine (7) is also getting better but loves to dance in the water rather than get done. Derek (3) needs, of course, needs full assistance for everything. He also likes to play in water and hates to get washed. He’s a typical toddler. I did discover some helpful tips that make this task easier. I buy shampoo that comes in a pump bottle. A hand held shower head is the best way to rinse out soapy hair. Towels and pajamas are always laid out and ready for them. And that’s basically how we get the showers done every night. As with everything else, it goes a lot more smoothly when we work as a team and when we are on a routine.