We kicked off spring break with movies, lots of junk food, nature walks, swimming at the indoor pool, family basketball games, bike rides and Easter festivities.
We were nonstop action. There is no way we can keep up this pace for 25 more days or however long spring break actually is.
The whole family watched Rise of the Guardians. It was a good movie (it was a little scary for little kids age 5 and under, except for Wade (age 3) who is pretty badass and doesn't get scared of much). The Guardians- Santa, the Tooth Fairy, the Sandman, the Easter Bunny and Jack Frost- protect the children of the world. They remind them of the good times when they need to be reminded, they keep the bad dreams away, they show them wonder and hope and the fun of life.
It made me think about how Tim and I, and all of us parents, are the true Guardians with a capital G. All those things the characters did in the movie, we do everyday. Santa and the Tooth Fairy and a Bunny just get all the credit. I kid, I kid, sort of.
Not only are we reminding them of good times, keeping bad dreams at bay, showing them wonder and hope, etc., there are a million other responsibilities. I believe that just like in the movie, this guardian role should be treated as an honor. Sometimes in the complete nuttiness of the day-to-day life as a parent, I don't feel like anyone's hero, I don't feel like it's such an honor to serve. But it is, it is.
After the kids went to bed one night, Tim and I watched This is 40. The movie was good, aside from being a little too Judd Apatow (he wrote and directed the film and is famous for other movies like Knocked Up and SuperBad) for me, meaning it was too long and there were too many blow job references. Being almost 40 myself, it hit home. In the movie, the characters struggle with their marriage and raising their kids and dealing with their own issues with their parents.
Tim and I laughed a lot and both related a lot. It was actually a little therapeutic to see some of our fights on screen. Being the ever-important Guardians with a capital G can sometimes interfere with being a Spouse with a capital S. Marriage is hard work, just like Ben Affleck said at the Academy Awards this year. Work takes energy. Raising kids leaves a parent-person with zero, actually negative energy.
Yes, some nights the energy level can hover around negative 50 or so. This is what that looks like: I snap at him, he snaps at me. I cry, which is stupid. He says things like, "why are you crying about nothing, why can't you be happy?" which I think is stupid. I cry more. He seethes more. After we say more stupid things, one of us usually apologizes or says something funny and the life-sucks-why-are-we-even-married-wtf-fight-spell is broken. And yay, life is good again and we go to bed happy. And yeah, it's cuter when Leslie Mann and Paul Rudd do it, but so what. We related.
At the end of the very exhausted day, Tim and I know we are lucky. Sometimes we have to dig down deep and remember we are heroes and remember why we love being married to each other. But we do, we do. And it's all good.
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| It wouldn't be Easter without a creepy, cute Easter Bunny Cake, duh. |
We were nonstop action. There is no way we can keep up this pace for 25 more days or however long spring break actually is.
The whole family watched Rise of the Guardians. It was a good movie (it was a little scary for little kids age 5 and under, except for Wade (age 3) who is pretty badass and doesn't get scared of much). The Guardians- Santa, the Tooth Fairy, the Sandman, the Easter Bunny and Jack Frost- protect the children of the world. They remind them of the good times when they need to be reminded, they keep the bad dreams away, they show them wonder and hope and the fun of life.
It made me think about how Tim and I, and all of us parents, are the true Guardians with a capital G. All those things the characters did in the movie, we do everyday. Santa and the Tooth Fairy and a Bunny just get all the credit. I kid, I kid, sort of.
Not only are we reminding them of good times, keeping bad dreams at bay, showing them wonder and hope, etc., there are a million other responsibilities. I believe that just like in the movie, this guardian role should be treated as an honor. Sometimes in the complete nuttiness of the day-to-day life as a parent, I don't feel like anyone's hero, I don't feel like it's such an honor to serve. But it is, it is.
After the kids went to bed one night, Tim and I watched This is 40. The movie was good, aside from being a little too Judd Apatow (he wrote and directed the film and is famous for other movies like Knocked Up and SuperBad) for me, meaning it was too long and there were too many blow job references. Being almost 40 myself, it hit home. In the movie, the characters struggle with their marriage and raising their kids and dealing with their own issues with their parents.
Tim and I laughed a lot and both related a lot. It was actually a little therapeutic to see some of our fights on screen. Being the ever-important Guardians with a capital G can sometimes interfere with being a Spouse with a capital S. Marriage is hard work, just like Ben Affleck said at the Academy Awards this year. Work takes energy. Raising kids leaves a parent-person with zero, actually negative energy.
Yes, some nights the energy level can hover around negative 50 or so. This is what that looks like: I snap at him, he snaps at me. I cry, which is stupid. He says things like, "why are you crying about nothing, why can't you be happy?" which I think is stupid. I cry more. He seethes more. After we say more stupid things, one of us usually apologizes or says something funny and the life-sucks-why-are-we-even-married-wtf-fight-spell is broken. And yay, life is good again and we go to bed happy. And yeah, it's cuter when Leslie Mann and Paul Rudd do it, but so what. We related.
At the end of the very exhausted day, Tim and I know we are lucky. Sometimes we have to dig down deep and remember we are heroes and remember why we love being married to each other. But we do, we do. And it's all good.
I've put that movie on hold because I'm afraid its gonna be a little too real-life. Sigh. And yah, the BJ jokes go far. Your family is adorbs. This is a healthy, sweet, and refreshing take on life!
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