Well, that’s not entirely true.  I do have patience with my son.  He has cerebral palsy and I am very patient with him.   I have to be patient with him.  He needs a little extra time to make decisions about what he wants to eat, or which book he wants to read.  He needs a little extra time getting in and out of the van.  He needs me to repeat myself at least three or four times to make sure he’s heard me, or that he understands the statement/question.  Everyone else, not so much.

I have very little patience when it comes to my husband having selective hearing when the Mythbusters/Counting Cars/Pawn Stars are on TV and I’m trying to get him to listen.  When I have to repeat myself three times to get an answer about what he wants to drink with his supper because he’s reading an email, I almost lose it.  I can feel myself going a little bit insane each time.  Now, to be fair, my husband has a little hearing loss in one ear from years as a blade sharpener in his 20s, and he also has a very demanding job and has to answer emails and telephone calls at all hours.  I’m not saying he shouldn’t do his job, I’m just saying I wish he had multi-tasking down.

My daughter acts the same way as her dad.  I can’t tell you how many times I asked her to let the dog out of the kennel and put her outside today when we got home from school.  I was taking her brother to the bathroom so we didn’t have an accident (we’re STILL potty training).  Actually, I can tell you how many times.  It was this sentence that made me decide to write about it, “Riley, I’ve asked you three times to let Abby out of her kennel and put her outside.  Why are you just sitting there?  Please put Abby out.”  Said very calmly in my scary-mama voice, of course.  She got up and put Abby out, but also took her socks and shoes off and left them on the floor, along with her backpack, lunch bag, and sweater.  “Riley, please pick up your stuff and put it on the counter so I can go through it all.  You know you shouldn’t leave your stuff on the floor.  Jamie will trip over it.  Thank you!”  She responded with her usual, “Yes, Mom” that also includes an eye-roll.  When, oh when, did my 5 year old become 15?

When we’re trying to go somewhere, I have no trouble getting Jamie, Riley and myself dressed and ready to go.  We are usually early to where we need to be because I am a planner.  I add on an extra 30-45 minutes time for us to get ready to go.  Someone inevitably wets their pants, spills tooth paste on their shirt, or loses a shoe.  Throw my husband into the mix and we are 20 minutes late.  Always.  Even if it’s just he and I going somewhere, we’re late.  The man does not wear a watch.  He loses track of time.  I get that.  That’s just his personality, and I’ve learned to deal with it over the years.  I will tell him I need him home 30 minutes before I actually need him home.  It works out.

I am the worst at waiting for things.  I hate waiting in line.  I hate waiting on someone to get to my house, especially if they are late.  I will check my watch to make sure I have the right time.  I will walk back and forth from the phone to the front door.  I hate waiting for things to come in the mail.  If I know something is supposed to be delivered on a certain day, I check the tracking.  Forget going to the doctor’s office.  I hate waiting in that room with everyone else who is sick.  What if I get something from them in addition to my cold/sinus infection?!  Yikes!  And then they take you to that cold/sterile exam room…and you wait some more.  Ugh, and then waiting for a phone call.  I’ve done a lot of waiting for phone calls in my time, more than I care to admit, actually.  We’ve all had to wait for phone calls to tell us if the testing done on our child is positive or negative.  Not really wanting that phone call but knowing you need it to carry on with raising your child is just awful.

I have very little patience for injustice.  I like to think that I can make the world a better place by raising socially responsible children.  If one of my kids sees injustice happening in their lives, I hope they will stand up for what’s right.  Not many people do that these days.  In the same vein, I am very impatient with people who are self-centered.  I don’t have time for that kind of relationship, and I don’t want to be friends with anyone who is negative or hot-tempered.  I have enough to deal with in my life without adding more drama to it.

Now, to reduce the impatience I feel, I take a big breath and try to breathe out the negative feelings I have when I’m stuck waiting.  I try to focus on the little miracles that have happened that day.  I have made changes in relationships to make my life easier.  As I’m a Taurus, I can be quick-tempered, myself.  I have taken steps to reduce stress (not that I actually reduced the stress, I just have tried to come up with ways to DEAL with it.)  I work out more, I drink less coffee, and I try to eat right.  I spend time with my kids and read to them. I write more, and talk less.  I try to keep the clutter in my house to a dull roar (easier said than done!).  And most importantly, when I’m feeling overwhelmed, I take a break.  A short, 5 minute break is wonderful to help get me over the hump of irritation.  It can be as easy as excusing myself from working with Jamie and making a grocery list on my phone.  Sometimes, I text my sister and we chat about silly things.  Sometimes, I plug in my iPod and I dance.

But, I do have patience.  Jamie has taught me a little bit of patience, and I use it.  Some days I practice it more than others.  It’s a hard lesson for someone like me to learn.  I do like things to be a certain way, and I hate it when things happen that I cannot control.  But that’s life.  I have to learn to let go and let things happen like they will.  I can’t control everything and everyone.  I’m learning…I hope.  I’m still being modified.

Are you impatient?  What puts you over the edge, and what do you do to help you not stress about it?

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