Ten Months...Ten Little Toes

Hello to all of you!

Long time, no talk!

Something came up in March that caused my little circus to become crazier!

We were suddenly, miraculously, expecting again.

Then, the hyperemesis (non-stop praying to the porcelain gods, if you catch what I'm talking about) kicked in and....

WHOOSH...

Look what's here!

Ten more precious little toes that will soon be dancing through this house.

It's a boy.

He is precious.

We will refer to him as....the Wee One (until he's old enough to realize how completely UN-cool that sounds!)

I'm coming back!

:)

A New Baby...of the Plastic Kind

Since we are trying to pare down in our lives, the Mister and I are also trying to pare down on the kids' toys, too. This calls for Mommy (me) - mostly - to creatively and stealth-ily get rid of some of the toys the kids no longer use.

My newest strategy may seem counter-productive at first, but it has helped us to donate 12 stuffed animals already...and we all know how stuffed animals have a magical ability to reproduce and multiply, right?

Little Miss is able to pick out a new dolly if she has had a good week of listening, following directions and being kind to others. This is the third week she has hit her goal. We went to the store yesterday to get her "new baby".

There are some ground rules for this new baby:

1. It cannot be more than $10

2. It cannot be a stuffy, fluffy, poofy animal

And...most importanly...

3. Little Miss must get rid of at least 2 stuffed animals in order to bring the new baby home.

Yesterday, she was able to find 4 stuffies that she could give up easily!

In exchange...I now have to look into these eyes every day.

...Her name is Belle...

And she frightens me a little.

;)

Mama, Dada...Doctor?

The Littlests are men of few words...a whole lotta sounds, but few words.

Each and every day, I "work" with them, trying to teach them a new word here and there. I try short words like Ball, Dog, Up, etc. I try words they love like Baby, Milk, Fish, More. I get blank stares or a whole lot of "Ga Goo By Yah Yah!" (With HUGE grins).

Little Miss was at school on Friday. The Littlests were (hold your breath) actually PLAYING in the playroom. I was cleaning up the kitchen. I was also singing "Doctor, Doctor, give me the news..."

BOTH Littlests came absolutely flying into the kitchen yelling, on the top of their lungs..."Doctor, Doctor!" Perfectly. Loudly. Proudly.

I will now sing all of their lessons.

Despite all Odds...

This winter has been a reality check from Old Mother Nature to a lot of the country.

Our Southern city was affected by it and shut down for almost 5 whole days.

Two weeks ago today, the groundhog did NOT see his shadow, which means that Spring is just around the corner.

Look what I found in our backyard today:

Well, hello there, Little Daffodils! Welcome Back!

It was 61 degrees here today. And sunny. Tomorrow is supposed to be even better.

The BEST thing about today was...

All four of us got to go and play in our backyard. And, yes, I did feel a little bit like SuperMom swinging all of them at the same time! :)

Here's to an early welcome, Spring. I am so happy you are putting your best foot forward. We have missed you so.

Her Own Style

Little Miss is the most amazing little girl in the entire world. It's true! You can ask her! :)

Tuesday morning was our grocery shopping day last week. It was cold, rainy and just a yuck day. Nobody really felt like going out, but...we were out of bananas and, anyone that has children knows you CAN'T run out of bananas!

So, the process of dressing the children began. The Littlests were playing a nice game of chase with me...I am forever "it" - and they are getting faster every day. So, as I was racing around the den and playroom, Little Miss told me she was "going to do {me} a favor and get dressed all by myself!"

Okay, that's great! I said, halfway looking at her while the Littlests were playing a game of "King of the Mountain" on my back.

Ready to go out the door, I summoned for the troops and that's when I saw her.

 How cute is she??

Let me give you the run-down on that gorgeous outfit: pajamas underneath her skirted polka-dotted bathing suit. Rain hat with pink and white flowers. Sparkly red shoes.

She looked perfect.

And put a smile on every.single.person's face at the store.

And put a smile on my heart, too!

What is it like to live with twins?

...That's the question I hear at least 2 times a week. Usually when I'm out and about, trying to shop...

I was really paying attention the past couple of days so that I could give you a play-by-play.

Here's what you do if you would like to experience life with twin 16 month olds:

Laundry: When Mommy loads the washing machine, make sure you pull 2/3 of what she put in there back out. Try your hardest to jump into the washing machine. Try to close the door on Mommy every 2.4 seconds. Close the detergent drawer at least twice while Mommy is trying to put detergent in. Start, stop, start, stop and start the cycle again. Run away yelling when Mommy pushes the Child Lock button.

Going to the fridge: When Mommy goes into the refrigerator, she will make sure to get everything out as quickly as she can. The timer starts when she opens the door, that's when you and your brother bum-rush Mommy to knock her out of the way so that you may partake of the goodness that is the fridge. Get what you can. Mommy will try and close the doors, while your assignment is to climb up both the door shelves and fridge shelves. Flick the light on and off 17 times...minimum. Squeal with delight every time the light comes on.

Going Potty:Mommy will try to situate herself so that you can't reach into the potty. Race her to get there first! Points given to the first to splash in the toilet water. After she has a seat, hit her repeatedly on the back with the toilet lid. Laugh maniacally. Climb up and down, up and down on the step stool in front of the sink. Open and shut the bathroom door repeatedly. Bonus points are rewarded if you are able to catch a part of your brother in the door as it shuts.

Loading the car: This part is AWESOME if it's raining, snowing, etc. If mom's arms are particularly overloaded, or she is crazy enough to let you wander into the garage without holding you both, take off...in different directions...running...When she catches one of you, start wiggling. Most importantly, listen carefully, when Mommy is trying to put you in your carseat, arch your back, squeal and kick those legs! When she gets you buckled in, don't give up....you now have to help your brother! Grab his legs while she is trying to wrestle him in his carseat, laugh, make LOTS of noise. Mommy's not having fun unless she's sweating. Really.

Bathtime:  When your over-worked, tired parents tell you it's bathtime, get super excited. I mean, pee on the floor as soon as your diaper is off excited. When they get you undressed, run. Run like the wind! Scream and squeal. This is the best time of the day. By far. If they get you wrangled into the tub, stand up. Then sit down until they have soap in their hands. Then stand up. Fast. Sit down. Put your fingers in your brother's nose. Put your fingers in your own nose. Stand up. Pretend you are marching. Splash. A lot. It's not a successful bath until Mommy or Daddy are wet. Completely. When they say bath is over and try to get you out, squirm. You are now a slipperly eel. Use it to your advantage. Wiggle, squirm, contort. When you are dried it's time to run again. Run. Run as fast as your chubby legs can go. Bonus points given if you run into something or someone. Extra special points awarded if you can run and pee on the carpet at the same time.

There can be SO many installments of this post, can't there? Do you think it sounds like fun? :)

I think that being a twin (or one of three children that constantly outnumber your parents) sounds like a lot of fun...

Play Make-Up (Without the Goo)

Here's a fun little idea I found on Meet the Dubiens blog. Play make-up!

Almost every play make up set that I have looked at for Little Miss has some sort of goop, slime, clear or sparkly smearing madness that gets all over everything. No.thank.you.

This idea is simply genius! NO mess! Cheap! Fun! And...let's her imagination go crazy...always an added bonus.

What you need:

Either old make-up containers (eye shadow, blush, powder) or new, cheap ones

Nail polish in bright colors

I went to Dollar Tree and got some make-up (all this for $10)

1. Wash out your makeup containers and dry well.

2. Pour you nail polish s.l.o.w.l.y into each trough. Be sure to pour slowly so that little mixing balls don't fall out of the bottle. Fill each trough about 3/4 the way full. When the nail polish dries, it shrinks to about half it's size.

3. Let the nail polish dry at least 24 hours with the lids open. The nail polish smell will last between 48-72 hours (mine lasted about 48 hours).

4. Play with your little girl and remember how much fun it is to be child.

Little Miss sat next to me this morning, putting on her make-up. She had so much fun! She also put make up on while I made her lunch and dinner! :)

So, what do you think about this idea? So fun!

It's Complicated

Miss Priss has been asserting her independence lately. She is, after all, 3 and a HALF, in case you forget!

Some of this independence has manifestesd itself in the potty room and in washing her hands "all by myself." And, yes, her hands usually smell just like soap when she is all done. (Pointer: get peppermint scented soap...so easy to smell!)

The other morning, after a particularly long hand-washing session, Miss Priss emerged from the powder room, towel in hand...drying her hair. Her hair.

"What happened to your hair? How did it get wet?" I asked, as non-alarmingly as I could.

"Mom, it got a little complicated in there." Was her reply as she sauntered off to play dress up.

And with that one sentence, I realize how complicated (and comically fascinating) our life is going to be...

 



Toilet paper rolls and Excessive flushing

This morning, as I participated in our daily ritual of putting on my make-up, a thought occurred to me. First, let me explain why putting on make-up is our daily ritual. It generally consists of my standing in front of the powder room mirror, one leg raised so that my foot is resting squarely on the top of the commode and the other leg stretched behind me just so that I can catch any door from being slammed on unsuspecting fingers.

Yes, his shoes are on over his pajamas...he LOVES his shoes!


One of the littlests is usually practicing some sort of intense step aerobics on the stool which is, conveniently between my awkwardly stanced leg. Up and down, up and down, jammering away at his refelection in the mirror. Occassional reprimands, or as they have come to be know to the children, suggestions, flow from my mouth in the form of "leave the toilet paper roll alone", "stop flushing the potty", and "keep your fingers out of your brother's eyes". Good times.

Today, I decided, was the day to talk with the boys. I was halfway through my make-up when it was all too much. I closed the door, sallied up to the halfway unrolled toilet paper roll (obviously a slow day for the boys) and began to re-roll it. I started my speech as I was working. "Now boys, Mommy doesn't like having to re-roll this paper every day. The roll never quite looks right. There are 10,000 toys that you could be playing with while Mommy puts on her make-up. After all, I have timed myself, it only takes 6 minutes if you leave me alone. Get it?"

The stared blankly at me. Then, the littlest littlest opened his mouth. "Dada?"

Yep...I think I'll have to have this conversation again.