God have mercy

I very sincerely hope it's true that toddlers are the hardest part of homeschooling.


And maybe the rest of life too.


Case in point:  this evening, in the space of about 10 minutes, Caleb climbed onto the stepstool at the bathroom sink to "brush his teeth," wiggling dangerously close to the edge while I brushed Lizzy's teeth; inserted the trachea-shaped toothpaste cap into his mouth; used someone else's toothbrush; stuck his finger in the fluoride (read: poisonous) toothpaste; then cried when I removed him from that set of dangers; from the bedroom, while I read a relaxing bedtime story to the girls, he opened Lizzy's dresser drawer and flung the entire contents around the room; then piled all the clothes and underwear back in; dumped the trash can in the drawer for good measure; and then went over to stick his hand in the potty that hadn't been cleaned out yet (And yes, his mouth was that hand's next destination.  Don't ask me how I know.).


And we wonder why we can't get math done.


True, not every ten-minute period is like that.  Sometimes he plays nicely, even quietly and safely.


But the potential is always there.


And that's what keeps me frazzled.