Wait Until I Tell Your Mother!

This morning started out no differently than any other recent morning . . . crazy.

I have to say, these days, I'm finding it harder and harder to stay in with my two busy girls. Getting out of the house is worth the morning struggle, most of the time. Wrestling with them to get clothes on, eat breakfast and get out the door at a reasonable time is a challenge. However, it’s far better than the alternative of watching them scale the bookshelves, climb the end tables and pull the plug protectors out of the walls! And, did I mention, they are quickly mastering the art of taking down the child proof gates?

A trip out of the house gives the cat a bit of a break too, a break from the constant "hugs" and tail pulling doled out by the girls. We have been working on learning the meaning of the word "gentle". In their eyes “gentle” means hugs and kisses. “Gentle” from a cat’s stand point probably seems quite smothering but, from an adult’s stand point these hugs really are the best. I am counting down the days till winter is over. The novelty and thrill of activities such as using markers, making Play-Doh and Lego creations and playing with indoor toys has worn off. 

Today’s plan was to venture off to Target in search of some new sippy cups. Charlotte has taken a liking to biting the tops off most of the ones we have. I'm chalking that up as a side effect of teething (only 4 more to go, then her molars!). The cups definitely needed replacing. When I got their coats Charlotte was eager and anxious to get out of the house while Lanie sat there and insisted on finishing up an episode of the show Caillou. (A show I promised myself that I would never let them watch . . . but I cracked).

For those unfamiliar with Caillou, he is a whiny little cartoon boy who does nothing but throws fits until he gets his way. A toddler watching Caillou is probably the equivalent of an adult watching Jerry Springer. Pure trash . . . why did I crack? . . . Why? Because this is the ONLY show they will sit down and watch. I'm not a huge TV person and neither are my kids but if I can find something that will keep them quiet and entertained without moving for a 1/2 hour straight so that I can take a shower then so be it. Even so, I'm still not sure this is a wise decision since I often hear Lanie refer to Charlotte as "Rosie" (Caillou's little sister). . . I swear if she starts whining like him, I will pull the plug. I'm not going to beat myself up over this though, it's a half hour show, it makes them laugh and, unlike Caillou's mother, I rarely give in. So, needless to say, today's episode of Caillou was cut short for Lanie so that we could head off to Target.

Our Target adventure was something else. Yesterday a Facebook friend posted this saying: "When my kids act up in public I like to yell, "WAIT UNTIL I TELL YOUR MOTHER!" and pretend they're not mine." I got a good chuckle over it but never imagined myself using that phrase the very next day. Then, there we were, in the middle of the check out line at Target and out it came. I'm not sure what brought me to that exact point. Maybe it was because Lanie was on the verge of throwing a tantrum over the fact that I would not buy her a Spanish speaking Dora the Explorer guitar. Or, maybe it was because Charlotte had managed to finagle herself out of the child safety strap in the shopping cart and was pulling this insane balancing act while standing up. Of course that happened while I was trying to distract Lanie from pulling the chocolate and gum off of the shelf beside us. Next thing you know, out of my mouth comes, "WAIT UNTIL I TELL YOUR MOTHER!", Charlotte quickly sat down. Lanie, on the other hand, rolled her eyes at me and yelled out "MOMMMMY!", I was busted. Oh well . . . I shook it off, paid for my sippy cups and walked over to Starbucks where I treated myself to an iced mocha frappuccino, which I did not share.

At the end of the day I remind myself that they are two spunky little girls who simply act their age. Even though I swore under my breath far more than I should have today, I laughed just as much.

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Confession: Sometimes I Wonder if I'm a Crappy Mom

I'll fess up, being a stay at home mom sometimes just drags the life out of me. Don't get me wrong, I love it! But I often sit here and wonder: Am I doing enough for my kids? I worked in daycare for so long and saw the many benefits of sending your kids there. Socialization, arts and crafts, independence, and more toys than I'd ever fit in my house. I saw the look of excitement in both the parents and kids eyes at 6 pm pick up. They were so excited to see each other at the end of the day. Truth be told, at 6 pm I'm counting down the minutes till bedtime. Pretty crappy, huh?

Do I feel like my kids are missing out? Sometimes. On the other hand, I am so thankful that I get to be at home with them all day and see all the funny things that happen first hand. Today Lanie told a grandmother at the play place how much she loved her white hair. Thankfully, the woman found it very cute. The other day I received a similar compliment from Lanie, “Your hair is so beautiful and pretty. I love it!” Followed up with, “It’s fluffy and puffy and I like the white parts.” Needless to say I immediately booked a hair appointment!

I was looking through recent pictures the other day and I was amazed to see how many I have of Lanie and Charlotte sharing blocks, legos and baby dolls. I taught them to share. That's got to count for something. I've also taught them manners. Please and thank you are frequent words in our house. Charlotte can count to 6! Lanie can count well into her twenties, stumbling up somewhere between 24 and "Twenty-teen". She knows all of her colors, letters, all the sounds the letters make as well as every single toddler friendly song you can imagine. (And some not so toddler friendly songs.)

Today a woman asked me how old Charlotte was. When I told her that she was 15 months old she said that she was amazed how mobile Charlotte was. Though I didn't say it out loud my first thought was, yes, that’s because I let her be. The woman had her three year old on a tight leash. She was no more than a foot away from him at all times, he was clearly her first/only child. I’m not judging, who am I to judge her when, in order to get my kids out of the play place, I bribed them with candy at 10:45 am. Point being, I give my kids the freedom to explore but I always keep a close eye. Loosen the leash.

I've been working hard to teach Charlotte the meaning of the word "no". She doesn't really get it yet, but she will. I realized today that I definitely need to step up my game a bit though because Charlotte’s idea of a fun activity today was to attempt pulling the fire alarm several times at the play place. I enjoy watching my kids play. Many of the other moms at the play place were talking on their phones or engaging in conversations about how crappy their husbands were. This was a reality check for me . . . I'm not a crappy mom.

I do the best I can for my family. Heck, I'm the world’s worst Betty Crocker but we still make cookies from scratch for the experience alone. I provide a safe and loving environment for my kids and I rarely find myself yelling at them unless they start pulling their crazy flash dance moves in the bath. (Okay, so I may raise my voice every time they are in the tub.) My house is filled with laughter and lots of singing. I'm going to take a time out and pat myself on the back and say "good job". In my eyes happiness means everything and we've got a lot of that here.

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Snowed In and Stir Crazy

After this past weekend’s storm dropped a little over two feet of snow in our area I have been trying my best to keep my kids entertained. Getting outside has been a challenge. You know, typical half hour to get them geared up for the cold weather. Boots, hats, mittens, coats and scarves on, then . . . "I have to go potty". Take everything off, re-dress, you get the picture. My oldest would spend all day outside, while my youngest refuses to even touch the snow. They are polar opposites. I'll tell you this though, despite their differences they sure know how to team up and cause some serious chaos around the house.

Their latest playtime game is called "Hey Little Buddy". I have no idea where this came from but, out of nowhere, my oldest will refer to my youngest as "Hey Little Buddy". It seems as though this little phrase is a cue to immediately do the things that they should not be doing.

For example: “Hey Little Buddy, let’s climb the bookshelf. Hey Little Buddy, let's go into the cabinets and take out all of the food. Hey Little Buddy, let’s pin the cat down and try to dress him in doll clothes.” 

The mother of all examples happened yesterday. I found Charlotte standing on the small three inch ledge of the TV stand using the TV as support for her crazy balancing act. And no folks, I do not leave my kids unattended for long periods of time. I know better. This happened in the two minutes I left the room to go to the bathroom. 

Today, I had a mini meltdown over my washer or my dryer eating one of my kid’s socks. This happens often, and I hate to lose socks. Before I had the chance to really loose my cool Charlotte handed me the sock. It was on the floor under one of the lower cabinets. Then, Lanie rolled her eyes and told me to "relax". Hmm, I wonder where she got that from. Well hey, after all, it is good advice. I'm sure we're going to be losing a lot more than socks along the way. 

For now I'm going to sign off but, by the end of the week I have two goals to accomplish. One is to convince my youngest that she is not 18 so dancing on tables is a no go . . . and even then it wouldn't be okay. (I've caught her at least a dozen times shaking her groove thing on the coffee table.) Second, I need to work with Lanie on singing the correct lyrics to the song Baa Baa Black Sheep. For some reason she thinks the little boy at the end of the song is "so lame" when really, he lives "down the lane".

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Screeching Sisters . . . Just Another Day at the Play Place

This week I brought my kids to the play place at a local mall. I often find doing this on my own can be stressful given their ages, 2 1/2 and 1. I don't know what I fear more the temper tantrums when it's time to leave, or the fact that these places can get crowded and I'll lose track of them.

We got there early and spent about an hour. When it was time to leave, there were well over 30 kids and all of their parents/caretakers. It was total chaos. I will say this, and I don't say it often . . . I am glad to have a climber. Charlotte, my 1 year old, climbed a set of stairs, and managed her way up a ramp to what they call "The Tree house". It’s basically a large area looking down at everything going on below. At first, I was nervous about her going up there, she’s just learning to climb stairs, but it quickly dawned on me that if she's up there I don't have to worry about chasing after her down below. So, that's where she stayed the entire time.

Lanie, my older daughter, quickly made friends and was running around jumping from structure to structure like a total mad woman. She was having fun. Then, out of nowhere, Lanie let out this high pitched squeal. An ear piercing, horror movie, off the Richter scale screech that you couldn't even imagine could come out of someone so small, or anyone for that matter. People covered their ears as I quickly went over and told her to stop. The woman next to me was stunned and said "I really think that was the loudest scream I have ever heard." My response, "I know, it's awful."

Just as the embarrassment wore off there was another squeal, except louder. This time it was Charlotte, from the tree house. It was as if she was in some sort of competition with her sister about who's got louder pipes. I was mortified, and quickly ran up to the tree house to attempt to make her stop. As I'm rushing away I hear that same woman say "No, I take it back. That was the loudest scream I have ever heard."

Within seconds I'd say 75% of the kids there were screaming at the top of their lungs, and my kids were clearly to blame. I think Lanie and Charlotte may have gotten their first label that day, "The Screeching Sisters". We left after that.

I am planning on going back next week and I'm hoping that I don't see any familiar faces. And, if I do, maybe they'll forget me. But, I doubt it.

                                      Signed,

                                      A Mom with a Headache

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The Quirky Confessions is Underway!

We're off to a great start. Today the team met, put our heads together and got our website, facebook page, twitter account and blog up and running! I'm excited to be working with Laurel to get her hilarious observations on motherhood documented and put into book form.

We are lucky to have Sara Capello, a talented young artist, and Addy Fulmer a creative and enthusiastic graphic designer working on this project with us. As for me, I am acting as the project manager, making sure that we have all aspects from marketing through design and production covered.

Laurel and I are looking forward to sharing our progress with you. We hope you will follow, cheer us on and let us know what you think.

Best,

Carrie