Thoughts from Book Club

I have a monthly book club that consists of ladies from around the neighborhood and in my ward. It's one of the only things I do to be social (I am, after all, a basic homebody) and it is always fun to attend. No matter what, we always end up talking about the struggles and joys of motherhood. Sometimes I get really involved in the conversations but other times I find myself floating away . . . I don't know much, but I do know that everyone is different. Last night most everyone was lamenting about the upcoming summer with the kids being home, but this one honest woman looked up and said that she cries all day when her kids go back to school. I am a mixed bag. I love having my kids home and around me. I like to be with them. But I hate when I lose my temper and when I yell and when they fight. I'm trying to come up with some vague, loose strategies for spending our time this summer. We'll see how they go. But back to book club. We're always trying to expiate our guilt--like if we tell everyone that we yell at our kids, it somehow becomes less of a problem. And then there's the comments we make as we try to make other people feel better about their own children, "Well, I like assertive kids like Suzy better because they tell you what you want and besides, kids need to be strong in today's world." It's a great comment if you're Suzy's mom. But if it's your kid who is lost in Suzy's shadow, it doesn't make you feel so good. And then we all get back to the mantra--"Just take your emotion out of discipline." Yeah, yeah, we all know that's true but this emotional beast has yet to learn to be tamed, despite years of trying. Ugh. It's much more fun when our book club talks about sex.