Lists

I seriously do not get all the hype over 100 rules for moms of boys or 101 things every dad should do for their girls. I mean don’t get me wrong I read them and for the most part I shake my head and agree with the ideas but I don’t understand why they have to be for moms & sons and daughters & dads. I find myself reading the lists and tilting my head to the side and wondering why is this list for just me and my son why wouldn’t I do these same things with my daughter? The lists are hypocritical to me. They are defining gender roles but at the same time saying we should combat them. A woman should teach her son to do laundry. Why can’t my husband teach my son to do laundry? Isn’t me being the one to teach him just cementing the fact that it is a woman’s job? Why is it a dad’s job to teach his daughter about money? Do only men know how to handle finances? Why can’t I teach her that? While reading the list I just feel like there are all fine and dandy lists but I think instead of separate lists why not just make one list. What parents should do for their children. So here is my list for our family. I am sure I will continue to modify it over the years.



1. Tell your kids you love them every day a million times. You can never be told you are loved too much.

2. Be affectionate.

3. Be an example.

4. Make them a priority.

5. Be positive and laugh often.

6. Let your kids see you as a human and a super hero.

7. Be the parent when you need to but don’t be afraid to let the kid inside come out to play once in a while.

8. Sometimes you need to let go but be on the sidelines ready to pick them up.

9. Cheer them on and let them know how proud you are of them on a regular basis.

10. Be present.

Polar Express & St. Nick

We have a swimmer!

Way to go Eve! I am soooooooo proud of you!!!!!!!Milo's first time in the pool.

A day in our life.

Most days having 2 kids is pretty much the same as having 1. There are times that having 2 kids can be difficult though.

Today I thought I still had some time before Milo woke up from his nap and decided to quick take a shower. I asked Eve to come tell me if Milo started crying so I would hurry and end my shower. She is usually really good at this. Today I get out of the shower and I hear him screaming. I asked Eve why she didn't tell me and she said she was being lazy and that he had been fussing since right after I got in the shower. Nice. So I quickly dry off and throw on my bathrobe and go make a bottle for Milo and then go to change him. So I have just taken Milo's diaper off when Eve comes running through the living room and trips over my yoga mat. She is bawling on the ground. She has become such a klutz these days it is ridiculous. I ask if she is ok. She cries but I am in the middle of changing Milo's diaper so there is not much I can do for her at that second. By the time I finish changing Milo and am about to go tend to Eve I realize she is standing at Milo's doorway in tears and holding her elbow. I set Milo down and try and substitute his pacifier for the bottle he really wants. Take a look at Eve and realize that her elbow is bleeding. I am now freaked out that she has a broken elbow or has massively screwed it up on the inside since it is bleeding and she fell on a yoga mat so it isn't like there was anything to make her bleed. I clean off the blood and realize it is from a small hole in her arm. By this time Milo realizes that he is sucking on his pacifier instead of his bottle and lets both of us know he is not happy about it. Eve is still bawling hysterically. I have her practice bending and unbending her arm. She seems to do it without wincing in pain although she still is crying nonstop. I now need to decided who to take care of...do I...1. comfort Eve or 2. Feed Milo? This is a hard one to decided. So I start by cuddling Eve figuring if I get a minute of really good snuggle time in she should be ok and then I will be able to reassess the arm situation on whether it deserves a call into the Dr. So as I am holding her (Milo is still crying) and ask her to explain what happened. It wasn't the fall on the yoga mat that cut her arm it was the tacks that hold the carpeting at a doorway that had stabbed her. After initial fall she was army crawling towards us and hit her elbow just perfectly on the tack. After she told me the story she stopped crying but still wanted to be held. So I picked up Milo with Eve still in my lap and somehow managed to feed him. Everyone was happy in the end but dealing with this made me wonder...How do people do this with more than 2 kids or people who have kids really close in age where both kids are needy all the time. I am in awe of those people because that is a lot to handle.

*Between the first fall and when Milo got his bottle was only about 5 minutes so it wasn't like I was neglecting him.

2 months and 4 year visits.

So we took both kids to the Dr. yesterday. Eve had her 4 year appointment and got 4 shots. She did amazing at them and only cried at the end which made me get a little teary. Milo got 4 shots and one oral vaccine. So we had 2 kids and 8 shots. They both were pretty good last night and we promised to take Eve to build-a-bear today as a special present for being so good during her shots. I happen to have $20 in free coupons for there so it was the perfect way to bribe her. Milo is bigger than Eve was at a year. At a year Eve was 13lbs 3oz and 23.5 inches.

Milo
Weight: 13lbs 3oz
Height 25 inches

Eve
Weight: 31.6 lbs
Height: 39 inches

I loved you first.

I have been trying desperately to get a video of Milo cooing and smiling. This is the best I have gotten so far. I love Eve in this video. She has become a total ham for the camera lately and wants to be in every picture with Milo. She is so sweet to him though and he loves to stare at her.

The "I loved you first" is a game we play in our house and it usually involves a lot of ..."No I loved__(pick a family member)__first." I am actually surprised that she didn't say it back after I said I loved Milo first because we usually go back and forth a lot. If you listen really carefully you will here Adam say he loved Milo first after I say it. In our house we tell a lot of secrets and 90% of the time the secret is I loved you first and the other 10% is I love you.

No Sleep...Till Brooklyn

(Disclaimer...As I was typing the title No Sleep I said it just like in the Beastie Boys song. So that is where the Till Brooklyn came from. Click here to see a video of this song. I luvre me some Beastie Boys.)

Last night sleep was pretty much nonexistent.

8:30pm-both kids in bed
10:30pm-Adam and I go to bed.
11pm-fall asleep
12:30am-Eve starts crying in the other room. She is scared and wants to come in our room.
12:30-1:30am-Eve will not lay still in bed and every time I ask her to chill out or I move she starts talking to me. She is WIDE awake.
2am-I am sweating profusely since Eve won't stop laying on top of me so I get up to turn the air lower.
3:30am-Milo starts to fuss.
3:45am-Milo wants a bottle/diaper change.
4am-put him back down
4am-4:45am-He fusses every 15 minutes for his nooky.
4:45am-I give him some more bottle in hopes of making him go into a milk coma....Success
5am-Success...put him back down to sleep
5:30am-Adam's alarm starts going off.
6am-7am-peace and quiet
7am-Milo starts fussing. I get up to make him a bottle and he fell back asleep before I can give it to him.

7am-and both kids are passed out and I am giving up on sleep because I need to be at the Chiropractor at 11:30am which means leaving the house by 10:45am so I can drop the kids off with my dad so I need to be in the shower by 9:30am and was scared if I went back to sleep I would never wake up again.

Happy Mother's Day!

My loves!