Don't quit your day job.

Julia doesn't like it when I sing, which is bad because I like to sing a lot. She's always telling me to stop singing. This morning while eating waffles Mark and I started singing and Julia told us to stop. She said, "Don't sing. Make waffles." I guess that shows where my talents lie.

Things I love about my children:

People say that motherhood is a thankless job, and I'll admit that a lot of the time I agree with that statemement. However, its not really true. Mothering is very rewarding. I'm so thankful that I've been blessed to stay home with my children and take care of them. I've been blessed with a greater love than I had before and so much happiness. How can you not watch your child laugh and laugh and laugh while you play peek-a-boo for 10 minutes straight and not think that that is a "thank you?" My children laugh a lot. I don't know if its more than other children, or more than adults even, but its so beautiful and fun. I love to see them laugh.
The best thank you is when Liam pats me on the back, or gives me a nice tight hug. I really feel like he means "I love you, thank you" when he does that.
Julia is really good at saying, "thank you," and I think she really means it more than just as a habit or good manners. There's not much sweeter than handing her a cup of milk and having her walk away, then turn around, come back, and tell me "thanks, Mommy." Sometimes she gets caught up in her excitement, but she is always appreciative.
Early this morning, poor Julia threw up (quite a bit) all over herself in her bed. She called for me, telling me she was yucky and that she needed a bath. I gave her a bath and cleaned her bed, then rocked her for a while. We talked a little bit and as she started to get quiet I asked her what her favorite thing was. She didn't answer and I asked, "what do you love the most?" She answered, "Daddy." I said, "you love Daddy the most?" and she said, "yes." How is that for a daughter's love? I rocked her a little more until she fell asleep. As I put her in bed she said something that I didn't hear so I asked her what she said, and her sweet little eyes peeked open to look at me, and she said, "thanks, mommy." Then she fell asleep. My heart melted. I didn't mind a bit that I had been up with her for an hour when I would have been asleep, or the stinky, sticky throw up I hand-washed out of clothes, animals, and bedding, or the extra load of laundry I did today.
Today was a good day. Julia felt better mostly today and we had a lot of fun. We even got some cleaning done and Julia helped rip the lettuce for the salad at dinner time. Liam and I played peek-a-boo in the laundry (his favorite) for quite a while.
Sometimes the days are hectic and crazy and the kids whine and cry and throw tantrums and I just want to cry because of the chaos. But not all days are like that. Its not a thankless job.

Fate a la Panda Express

Before reading to you our amazing chinese fortune cookies, I must give a little backstory. Julia has been frustrating us with a finicky attitude lately. She'll ask for one thing, then I'll give it to her, she'll cry, tell me she doesn't want it, so I take it away, she cries again cuz she wants it... that sort of thing. Its so annoying. She does it all the time with pretty much anything she asks for, we offer or give her choices on.
We went to Panda express on Saturday. While there, we were discussing Julia's behavior and Mark wondered if it wasn't so much a matter of being indecisive as much as Julia just wanting to be in charge, it's a power thing for her. (I don't know why, she pretty much runs our lives anyway) So, as we finished eating, Mark asked Julia what we should do next. She was too busy eating to give us an answer so Mark said we'll have the fortune cookies tell us. Mark and I shared a cookie. Our fortune said,

YOU WILL SOON BE CONFRONTED WITH UNLIMITED OPPORTUNITIES

We then broke open Julia's cookie . . .

YOU WILL BE RECOGNIZED AS A LEADER

I can't help laughing at the truth in it.

Oatmeal anyone?

Somehow we've lost a bowl of oatmeal in our house. Yes, there is a bowl of oatmeal missing in my home. I don't have a clue where it is, I've been looking all over for it since yesterday morning after Julia got down from the breakfast table with it and told me she was taking it to the kitchen. Whenever I ask her where it is she just tells me that "its cooking." I've looked in the microwave, oven, all our kitchen cupboards, fridge and her bedroom but it is yet to be found! I only hope Liam doesn't find it before me!

We need Barney on repeat mode

I love Barney. Other people really dislike the show, but Julia has loved it from the time she was little and it teaches great principles and is pretty fun. It also teaches me a lot of fun games and songs to play with Julia, we usually enjoy watching Barney together. Yesterday, Julia was watching Barney while Liam napped. The show was about families and had a little boy who was talking about his baby brother and they all talked about how to be a good big brother. When the show was over, Julia so endearingly called for her little brother. (she doesn't usually call Liam little brother, or brother at all, but this time she did.) She wanted to know where he was so she could take care of him. It was super sweet.
We need more Barney -
Towards the afternoon Barney wore off. I was in the office while the kids played in their bedroom. I heard Liam crying, crawling towards the office and looked out and the bedroom door was shut. Liam had been kicked out and had two scratches on his head. That was sad.

So, this week we have enjoyed watching Julia developing her imaginative play. While I was driving to pick up mark, I heard her talking in the back. Most of it was understandable, I could tell she was having a conversation so I turned around and saw that she was making her hands talk to each other. She even used different voices. It was very cute, and very sweet. One of her hands said "I'm sad" the other said "Don't be sad, be happy!"
-Em

Tonight I peeled an orange and placed all the sections out for Julia. We noticed her playing with some orange slices. One was Grandpa, one was Julia, and one was mommy. "Please please orange granpa?" "Ooohkay Julia." She later asked if Grandpa wanted to watch a "Moobie," The grandpa slice agreed, so she turned him towards the stack of DVDs on the desk. Later she brought the whole citrus family to sit on (real) daddy's lap. And eventually we ate them all.
-M

bedtime

Bedtime isn't a routine or a ritual, it'a a battle. And we fight it every night. Its kind of like taking a hill, just to retreat and take it again tomorrow.

We loose almost every night. Technically I guess we eventually win, but its more of a seige...we surround her, cut off the escapes, block the communications, and cut off her supply lines. She makes a few sorties against us, eventually her resources and ammunition run low. She makes a valiant last stand, until eventually she surrenders.

I just can't figure out why we let her out.

Just when you think you've got it...

***sighhhhhhhhhh*****
I was starting to finally get the swing of things, again. The problem with children, is that they grow very rapidly - physically, emotionally, mentally, destructively. Yes, their powers for destruction grow with them. I've finally trained Julia not to randomly throw things out of cupboards and off of shelves (most specifically the dvds) and now Liam is doing it. He is always busy pulling things apart or taking things down from or out of where they should be. Luckily, the frustration is cut a little by the fact that I find it kind of cute that he is following in Julia's footsteps. =)

Sometimes she is sweet

Every once in a while when I ask Julia something she'll say, "yes, Mommy." Its so sweet and sincere, and I love it.