I have officially become the Mother I used to judge...

Let me paint you a picture...

Your friends decide its about time for a girls day out lunch. How fun! Of course, I am in! What a great idea! I will bring Samantha with a peanut butter sandwich and it will be awesome. Isn't being a stay at home Mom the best?!
 I get to the restaurant starving and ready to relax with my girlfriends...And then reality sits in. Samantha realizes she doesn't fancy the high chair that has been provided for us. And you know what, she doesn't want her sandwich, either. You know what Samantha wants? To run away from her Mother and spill water all over the table. Her plan for my girls lunch was very different than mine. In fact, I spent little time interacting with the girls and more time controlling tantrums and threatening (with love)! for her to behave at the exit. Finally my amazing friend grabbed Sam from me and took her outside for a bit so I could eat a dumping and sulk in pity. We eventually left early. I now have a toddler and my life is over.

No, just kidding (Kind of). But, seriously, toddlers are not for the weak, dude. I remember sitting there with my newborn and looking at toddlers thinking, that looks so fun! I can't wait for Samantha to play with me and talk to me and giggle. Now, don't get me wrong. We giggle a whole lot in the Buhler household. But, no one tells you this whole Mom thing may be the hardest thing you have ever done in your whole life.
In between Goodnight Moon (124th time) and food spills (almost daily) I have to remind myself that I am doing an awesome job and some days all you have to excel at is keeping them alive.

I also remember a time when I was newly married, getting a full & refreshing 8 hours of sleep and the only bum I had to wipe was my own. I would sit there and gander at Moms. "Oh, my kid will never have a paci longer than 6 months." "My child will never talk back to me." "I plan on making different Pinterest FHE packets for every week of the year." "My toddler will never behave like that in public." Yes, sadly Catherine does remember those days.

...and I am here to admit it, apologize and eat some humble pie. Because as I sat there trying to talk sense into a 19 month old while prying her off the dirty Shanghai sidewalk from her meltdown, I closed my eyes, and said to myself, "You are THAT mother, and it is OKAY."

I think we (Cat included) have placed too much pressure on ourselves and eachother to be the BEST mother out there. "Look at my child, potty trained at 6 months. It only took 3 hours!" "What do you mean, you didn't breastfeed for 12 months?" "I never let my children eat anything unless its organic, glutten-free, pesticide free, and is deliciously inedible." Why do we do this to ourselves? Its exhausting. Okay, Catherine is exhausted. But thats besides the point. It is okay to give your child peanut butter and jelly for lunch every once in awhile. It is okay to let Elmo offer them a dose of education so you can take a quick shower. You don't need to feel guilty. Because in the end, your child isn't going to remember how many times you gave him broccoli or goldfish. He will remember the way you showed him love, the way you excelled at kisses and the encouragement you always provided.

I love being a Mom, I know I will look back on these days with fond memories. But, I also know I shouldn't waste time with my Children worrying if I am doing everything the "right way." What is the right way, anyways? I am almost positive (about 95.67%)  that there is not one right way to raise them. Thank goodness!

A small update to that girls day lunch- Catherine rewarded herself with a Diet Coke when she got home. Samantha doesn't even remember throwing herself on the ground screaming and hopefully all of Shanghai has forgotten it, as well.

A weekend getaway to Guilin

Everyone has always raved how beautiful Guilin is. Peyton went back when he lived in Hong Kong and it was always his top favorite place in China. I needed to check it out! You have probably heard of it, or seen it in pictures. It has the rolling hills nestled around a river. It's so picturesque it looks fake. But, I assure you, it is real. And amazing.


We decided this would be a good opportunity to take a long weekend vacation right after the October holiday. It would be less packed with Chinese tourists than it was the week before. Our plane was still packed with Chinese people (go figure) so we decided to take them up on some free babysitting. Sometimes everyone loving Samantha can have its advantages. I hate flying with a toddler, Let's just pass this kid around! This is when having an overly trusting and friendly child is a good thing.

We ended up staying at a resort in Yangshuo called The Yangshuo Mountain Retreat. You can find more info on it here. It was placed right next to the river so you could hear the relaxing water your whole stay. The view from our room was amazingly beautiful. We got in late at night and headed straight to bed. You couldn't really tell where we were cause it was dark when we arrived but in the morning I got a big surprise! Hello, gorgeous!

I am pretty obsessed with this place. We decided to rent bicycles to go everywhere. Our hotel had a baby seat attached to these awesome beach cruisers. We were in heaven. We have rented bikes on a few of our vacations and it is always the best way to see the location. You see so much more than sitting in a car.

That night after our long but beautiful bike ride we tag teamed watching Samantha and got foot massages in front of the river during sunset. Our hotel offers them, cheap cheap cheap. It could not have been more perfect. That night we put Sam to bed and sat outside our patio reading and listening to the river.

The next morning we woke up early and decided to ride our bikes to a mountain called Moon Hill that we would hike. It was pretty much 98% stairs.  87 flights of them, in fact. Thanks to my Fitbit. It was a strenuous hike but the view was beautiful. Peyton is a trooper for carrying Samantha in the carrier during our hike. This girl loves that thing. We realize she's now big enough for a backpack one. We definitely wanna get one for our next trip. There was a sherpa climbing it that we stopped to talk to. She was 89 years old and she climbs it everyday with cold drinks in her pouch. She will fan you and offer you a drink, for a tip! She is brilliant.

We then rode our bikes back to our resort, took a nap and then decided to go ride into this small village in the outskirts of the city. We stuck out like sore thumbs. It was definitely eye opening to see how some people live. It was very sad to see the kids running around in the dirt without shoes on and houses without roofs.

The next day we woke up and wanted to do a sunrise float down the river on a bamboo raft. This is THE activity to do when you visit. I was so excited for it. Of course I bought a flower crown to celebrate our boat ride. Because, why not!? The river ride on our raft was very relaxing. I could have taken the 6 hour ride (yes that exists) but Samantha kept trying to dive in for a swim, so... maybe next time. Our little gondola man loved splashing water on her. Of course she loved it just as much.

That afternoon we rode our bikes to this small village to eat a pizza lunch. It was actually quite delicious. We toured a natural cave that is in the city. The Chinese people had it all pimped out like a club with so many multicolored lights. It was like a rave in there! We joked that it reminded us a little of Pirates of the Caribbean.

We had a very late flight at about midnight and then arrived back in Shanghai. It was a very short and fun trip. I am glad we saw one of the most beautiful places in China. I would definitely go back.