It's a 'tude thing

I know, I know.
They are 5. They are testing my limits and that's natural. And part of that test is The Attitude.
By The Attitude I mean:
1) an increasing use of the word NO
2) a decrease in the use of the word Please
3) the ability to become blind, deaf and mute when asked to do anything that even resembles a chore

But with twins, they encourage each other to continue the bad behavior....they work together to distract me from what I want them to do...and before I know it, it's a rebellion!

OK, deep breath.
It's really not all that bad. I mean, they are girls, not boys. But I feel the urgency to nip it in the bud before they are 16 and stealing the car keys and...well, you know what we all did.

And so I realized I need to turn to the parenting guidebook that gave me the validation, the direction, and let's face it, the backbone to stand up to these half-decade hooligans running wild in my head and in my home.

Twofer Thumbs Up for the book The Blessings of a Skinned Knee by Wendy Mogel.

I discovered this book at my sister-in-law's house. She had picked it up at a friend's house and never returned it. I picked it up at her house and got on Amazon to order a copy faster than you can say "time out". I have since dished advice, the Amazon link, and actual copies of this book to more parents than I can count. My current copy lives at my neighbors house...and I'm heading over there tomorrow to claim my sanity.

Basically, this book reminds me that the best thing I can do for my kids is to set boundaries for them (to push but ultimately respect), let them learn by making their own mistakes, and that sometimes it's ok to say, "Because I say so!"

After a few pages a real sense of peace comes to me and I'm not so scary.

Just Like an Old Married Couple

Since vacation (which was great!) the girls have been getting used to just having each other. We've been to the pool which helps and I'm trying to schedule some separate play dates. But until camp starts (next week - hurrah!) they are mostly stuck with each other.
And like an old married couple, they fight and forget why.
Let's listen in, shall we?

L: "Mommy, M keeps calling me a liar. This day and all day yesterday and the other day."

Me: "Look L, ignor her, or find another way to deal with it."

M: "I'm going to ignore L Mommy."

Me: "All I can say is you guys better find a way to work it out. All you have is each other so my suggestion is to be nice to each other."

M: "Wait, why were we angry again?"

L: "Because I said you broke the pink thing and you said you didn't."

M: "Oh yea. You want some of my watermelon?"

3 F's for the Beach: Fluff, Family and Food

For me, packing for a week at the beach requires 3 things to boost the excitement.

1) Twofer Thumbs Up for My very favorite food in the whole wide world: peanut butter & fluff sandwich. That sticky sweet, yet surprisingly filling treat made it's great comeback into my life when I was pregnant with the girls. And since I'll never be pregnant again, I had to find other times to treat myself to it.

2) A shopping trip to Costco: today's trip was a mere $300 (nothing in comparison to my usual $500) and consisted mostly of crackers, chips, and diet coke with a few chickens and veggies thrown in for color.

3) Email banter with my family:
After an entire day spent emailing back and forth and sideways with 8 of the 11 adults going on this beach vacation, my dear mother comes home to a full inbox and replies:
.
Grammy L: “Once again after WORKING a long day caring for the sick & disabled I come home to find the entire family has been e-mailing for hours. Just because I actually WORK at my job I am penalized from having my thoughts & opinions included. Let me just say NO ONE IS SELLING MY SISSY, D. She is a true gem & is the only one who really understands me."

That last part I'll have to explain another day :).

I have been neglectful...

...of this blog, that is. Lots has happened and I will briefly recap:

1) Birthday Party Unwrap: "We" wrote 40 thank you notes in 3 days! Here's how "we" did it:
"You can open up more gifts after you write 10 more thank yous".
Worked like a charm.

M & L are officially 5!

2) Official 5-year Birthday: Celebrated at Fuddruckers! Games, chocolate shake, and my favorite sliders (mini burgers). Plus, my dollar store gifts (butterfly net and bug "house" were a huge hit). Soon I'll reflect more on what it means to me to have 2 five-year olds....but right now there's just too much to do!

3) Spirit week at school: L & M refused to participate in Miss-Match day. I called them names like "boring" and said "learn to laugh at yourselves" and they called me "mean".

However, Crazy Hair day was a big hit!

Can you tell who's who from the back?

I spent the morning straightening L's hair and curling M's. VERY strange to see them that way. They both looked older and it was a little Jon-Benet creepy. Surprise!

M (normally straight hair with curls) and L (normally curly now straight)

Pajama day caused a few arguments, as expected. No, the silky, spaghetti strap nightie (while really very cute) is NOT appropriate to wear to school...EVER.


4) Last Day of Preschool: I could feel myself on the verge of getting sentimental thinking about a new chapter in their lives, and saying goodbye to teachers and friends whom they most likely will never see again. But there's something about the start of summer, and the $20k we'll be saving next year (yea for public school!) that kept the tears at bay :).

Goodbye Rainbow Diamond, Hello Marie?

It is with great sadness we say goodbye to old friends who have carried us through 2 years of dress-up, dollhouse, librarian, teacher, and a host of other imaginary games. I am, of course, referring to the familiar names L & M used for any number of characters that were involved in these games.

I could always play along knowing one of the characters would be named Rainbow Diamond, Alina, Belle, Princess or Trasha (that last one was always a mystery for me).

But now on the eve of their 5th birthday, the girls have received their very first Webkinz and chosen the names Azora, Lina, Angela and Marie. OK, so 2 of the 4 remind me of the old days but the thing is, they are BRAND NEW names. Where’s Rainbow Diamond?
Apparently, we have outgrown her and the others. We’ve been introduced to newer, cooler sounding names, and a new, virtual world in which to play with them (but only for 15 minutes each after we’ve emptied the dishwasher).

Funny, it’s like the feeling I had when they were a year old. I just couldn’t picture life without a single Fisher Price toy. And yet, they have all seemed to disappear. Who knew there would one day be a world without Trasha or Rainbow Diamond?

Hmmm, Trasha – maybe growing up isn't so bad.

SM

L & M's Fabulous 5th Birthday Bash (A survival guide)

How to throw a party for 40+ kids
without losing your mind... or one of the kids!

Thank You to my helpers!
My family, friends, and other parents who helped collect presents, pour drinks, cut cake, watch over the chaos on the swing set, roundup the escapees, and in general be everywhere I couldn't be while Daddy took over 800 photos (the miracle of digital cameras).


We had perfect weather.
After days of rain I was thankful that we could be outside where everyone actually fit. And mysteriously the mosquitoes took the day off.



Two cakes for 2 little Girls.
I let L & M each pick out their own cake AND made the crowd sing twice. I think they were thrilled to have their own moment of glory and their own candles to blow out. And a bonus...I actually had enough cake!












Another TWOFER....2 DJs came instead of one!
Twofer Thumbs Up to Charlie and Patrick at Unique Dreams DJs who were not only really sweet, but got the kids dancing and jumping for 2 hours straight. They handled the prizes, they helped manage the timing for the cake, they even turned the traditionally chaotic pinata into organized fun!


There was only one real ScaryMom moment...
When I tossed the last of the candy and realized I'd survived. I did a celebratory dance and anyone who saw me would agree it was a wee bit scary how happy I actually was ;)!

Birthday Update: 45 Kids and We Have Strep?

This Birthday Bash is turning into an exercise in gratitude...

• 45 Kids are coming? Great! I was thinking I'd get a few more no's, but really, what a compliment that just about everyone is making the effort to come.
• They say it might rain Saturday???? Great! It will force me to clean out the garage completely and use my skills at decorating to make it festive.
• L & M might have strep?!??!? Great! At least I'll get them on an antibiotic within the 48 hours they need to NOT be contagious.

Plus, I really wanted some quality time at home with the 2 of them before this weekend. God knows I didn't need to get anything done today and tomorrow!! :) :) :)

You should see what I look like right now...truly scary!