deep thoughts with Audrey

Here is a conversation that Audrey and I had this morning:

A: "how do deer get into their houses?"

Me: "well, I suppose they just walk into them"

A: "but how do they open their doors?"

Me: "umm... Deer don't have doors on their houses"

A: "yes they do! I saw a deer house with a door at papa's friends house the other day!"

So Audrey thought that the deer stand was actually a house for deer to live in. 

Justin will have some explaining to do if he has a successful hunting season...

preschool hairstyles

I've been busy practicing new hair styles on the girls. With them starting preschool soon, I want to make sure they can have fun and play without their hair getting in the way.

Audrey tends to prefer "just a clip", but at times lets me do braids. Claire is pretty willing to let me practice on her.

When I do side braids or double braids, I tend to do a Dutch braid.

Sometimes I will extend the life of the braid by putting it in a pony on day 2.

If I want Claire to wear a headband, I will do a French braid. This style tends to have a few more flyaways, but only takes 30 seconds.

Post-nap braid.

One day when I was feeling adventurous, I did a fishtail. This style isn't as secure as a Dutch or French braid.

Audrey's usual look- "just a clip, please"

On days when Claire isn't in the mood for getting styled, I'll do the 10 second low side pony.

Side pony with a twist.

I watched YouTube videos for hints, but a few tips:

Damp hair is easier to handle. When I first started braiding, I would wet Claire's hair. Now that I have gotten more practice, I only wet her hair it I'm trying to get a very secure braid.

Speaking of which, start the braids fairly tight. After I'm finished, I pull the sides apart for a more relaxed look.

she wants to wander

Audrey saw an airplane this morning and then asked how old she was:

Me: You are three

Audrey: Now am I old enough to ride on an airplane?

Me: Not yet- you'll have to wait until you are at least six.

Audrey: But I am six!!!

So apparently we will be planning a vacation soon.

summer treats

If Claire would have her way, she would have Popsicles (or as she calls them, papasicles) for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. And probably for snack too.

Last year I noticed "monkey tails" on Dairy Queen's menu. If you ask me, that sounds like a waste of a trip to DQ, but seemed like a good solution to our papasicle problem.

I sliced a banana in half, added some peanut butter, drizzled a little chocolate on top, stuck it in the freezer, and voila!

The girls were very impressed with their treats.

reasons claire won't get dressed today

1. "No, I don't want to look like a queen."

2. "That doesn't look comfortable."

3. "That dress is only for church."

4. "No, that's too big for me."

the struggle when your three year old has an excellent vocabulary

"Mommy you have a humongous tummy. An a humongous butt!"

Thanks, Claire. You know just how to brighten my day.

our favorite park

The girls and I have a new favorite park. It is about 1.5 miles from our house, so jogging there is a nice way for me to sneak in some exercise.

The best part of it is that even the "big" equipment isn't too challenging for the girls. And there are no busy roads nearby, so I can even relax a little bit.

Doing a bit of climbing.

It wasn't too crowded either- we were the only ones there for the first 20 minutes or so- which is a bonus when you are trying to keep track of two toddlers (preschoolers?!?) with a propensity to run in opposite directions.

deep thoughts with claire

As I was leaving after tucking her in...

"Wait mommy! You have to listen to me! Otherwise you will fall in the water and get eaten by dangerous sharks. Daddy didn't listen to me..."

For those concerned, Justin is at work- I don't believe he will be encountering sharks anytime in the foreseeable future.

On drinking milk...

"Babies drink milk from bottles or from those (pointing to my chest). We do not drink milk from those because we are not babies, we are big girls."

Duly noted, Claire.

safety patrol

I gave the girls grapes with their lunch. I cut the grapes in half for safety reasons. Audrey found one I missed and told me "mama, you need to cut this grape. If it is like that (whole) we choke".

on good hair days

Before we went out, I asked Claire if she wanted a braid or a clip. Her response was, "no mom. My long curly hair is perfect. See? It's perfect!".

Who am I to argue with perfection?

macy's

After our outing at the playloft, the girls and I had to make a quick trip to Macy's. I was sure not to refer to it as the mall because we didn't have time to hit up all of their favorite spots.

As I was parking, Claire asked "is this heaven mommy?" Before I had a chance to respond Audrey piped up, "no Claire, this is Macy's".

However if this picture is any indication, Macy's could very well be a future sanctuary for Claire.

that time claire threw up in my bed

1. Bring Claire back to her bedroom 2 times. On the 3rd attempt decide to let her snuggle. 

2. Fall asleep before bringing her back to bed. Wake up at 1am to the sound of vomit.

3. Carry her to the kitchen (what was I thinking?!?) where she proceeds to vomit again.

4. Inform Justin that there is a little bit of puke on the bed.

5. Justin questions my math skills. I start to inform him that in 8th grade my class was the number one class in the state of Minnesota, but remember that was for reading, not math. Start to tell him how the grad standards projects weren't focused on volume, but I could make a scale model of our bedroom with nothing but cardstock and tape. Feel a tinge of annoyance that points were deducted because my nightstand wasn't next to the bed. Regret not calling calling it a credenza or accent table.

6. Set up shop on the couch with Claire.

7. Alarm goes off way too early. Consider skipping washing my hair for an extra 30 minutes of sleep, but remember that it is already 3rd day hair and may or may not have vomit in it. And I'm participating in an interview today.

8. Consider telling Justin we should by a gas water heater, but decide against it. Try not to grumble during my lukewarm shower.

9. Sneak Easter candy from the girls' stash into my lunch bag. Feel grateful that Grandma Helen told me many years ago that Lutherans don't give things up for lent (I briefly considered giving up Oreos, which at the time accounted for about 50% of my caloric intake. The rest was split between ham sandwiches and pizza).

10. If couches are in most offices at your workplace does that mean that napping during the workday is acceptable? Ponder this thought for a few moments but conclude that it is frowned upon. Count down the hours until it is socially acceptable to have my first Cadbury egg (which, for reference, is 10).

pajama party

We celebrated the girls' birthday on Saturday and had a ton of fun! I did a pajama party this year and served breakfast (and cupcakes. After much deliberation I concluded that muffins don't count as cake).

I offered fewer sweets than I had in years past, which ended up being a good decision because they consumed more sugar in one day than they typically do all quarter.

Claire was a big fan of the "bacon and eggs"

Don't worry, I also served real eggs as well. The party wasn't just a carb fest.

Audrey was a huge fan of her birthday hat. She wore it before the party even started.

Claire attempted to do makeup for the party. Uncle washed it off when he arrived.

They loved all of their presents! They are very excited about their snowman kit. And Claire is looking forward to our next trip to target to use her "coupons" (gift cards).

Although one of the biggest highlights was Aunt Nancy's tiger pajamas. We are fortunate to have so many people to celebrate with us. The festivities continued today when Ryan and Allie came over with presents (Justin ended up enlisting Ryan with installing (well, and returning and purchasing, but that's a story for another day) our new tv so that was his favorite gift of the weekend).

birthday fun

We had a low key celebration in the girls' birthday, with their party to come this weekend.

We started the day with pancakes. Candles and sprinkles were added for extra fun.

Next we facetimed with Amanda, Cameron, and Gabe. The kids weren't in a very chatty mood. Although Audrey kept on wanting to look at "baby Morgan" (she will probably be disappointed to learn that Morgan is more of a toddler these days).

Next we went to the play loft. I spent a lot of time talking to the girls about sharing and we discussed what to do if they didn't want to play with another kid.

The only issue we ran into was when other moms busted out snacks for their kids (ahem, even when the sign clearly said NO food or drinks). I encouraged the girls to keep playing an reassured them that we could have a snack at home, but after cookiegate there was no turning back so we left before playtime was over. We will have to try again.

Later we went on a "special birthday adventure" (the grocery store) and they got to pick out cupcakes and balloons.

Then they opened their present. We bought them magna-tiles and they were a huge hit.

claire & audrey are 3

Here is to hoping that we are leaving the "terrible twos" behind us. Each year with the girls has been more fun, but as they have gotten older it has also come with challenges. I remember a conversation I had with one of my best friends when the girls were just a few weeks old and I life felt like a constant 3 hour loop (pump, feed babies, wash bottles, and try sneak in some time for sleeping and eating). Justin and I felt like we had this parenting thing under control, but people would always pipe up "just wait, it gets so much harder". In talking with my friend about it, she said that it doesn't necessarily get harder, just different. And that you become better equipped to deal with the challenges. 

And challenge me the do. On Sunday, I took the girls to the zoo by myself. We talked about riding in their stroller, but they convinced me that they would walk nice. Lets just say we ended up being the most interesting exhibit at the zoo that day. It started out fine, but there was a group of kids playing on the playground equipment. My girls were wearing tennis shoes, not boots, so I told them that we would play once we got home. Audrey did not find my answer acceptable, and threw herself on the ground. I used a bit of trickery and told her that we would get her boots on next (meaning once we were in the confines of our own home). She found this to be ok and we ventured on. We checked out the rest of the sights without much incident, and all was well until we got to the entrance. Audrey was on the ground, once again "I want my boots! My boots!". I reassured her that her boots were in the car, and we made it outside. Then boom! On the ground again. I so wanted to football carry them both to the car, but instead crouched down told Audrey "Hmm, I notice that you are laying on the ground. Remember, your feet are for walking". She acquiesced and I managed to get them both buckled. Then Audrey started up again "the zoo! I want to go to the zoo!". I reminded her that she chose to lay on the ground and that we would try again another day. 

Audrey, modeling my hat and sunglasses. I wear both in public to avoid being noticed by acquaintances during epic tantrums.

Anyway, there is an "it gets better!" hidden behind that story. Yesterday as we were getting ready for bed, Audrey told me "I'm sorry for laying on the ground. I will try again". I was shocked- I hadn't mentioned anything about the zoo since Sunday. 

Claire, on her first day of "school" (ecfe class)

I asked the girls what they wanted for their birthday and they both enthusiastically responded "cake!". Today I plan on taking them to an event at the Y (we'll see how it goes, it is a lot of work getting them dressed and out the door by a certain time). We will need to make a grocery run, so they will definitely be getting cake of some sort- if they meet their behavioral expectations for the day I'm going to let them each pick out a balloon too. 

Audrey, on her first day of ecfe class

I've noticed that things tend to go more smoothly if I lay out the expectations ahead of time (e.g. stroller versus cart). Claire especially needs reminders about how to act around other kids. Audrey is the ultimate peacemaker, but Claire is a bit more spirited. At the Children's Museum there was another little boy and the two of them definitely knew how to push one another's buttons. Last night I reminded Claire about taking turns and let her know if that she didn't want to play with another kid she could say "no thank you" and come and find me. We'll see how that goes. 

I definitely miss the days of 6 pm bedtime and being able to just put them in their cribs and leave, but the bedtime chats we have now are definitely special. Claire talks pretty much non stop all day, while Audrey needs a bit more coaching. Except when I am tucking her in at night. She likes to ask about the next day (can we play toys tomorrow? can we do projects? can I help wash dishes? (!)). 

Audrey loves her "excamator"

The girls play together so nicely most of the day, but definitely have their scuffles. Last night when we were waiting for dinner, Audrey came flying up to me saying "sissy called me nugget!" (don't judge, we were having chicken nuggets for dinner. Gone are the days when our meals had multiple adjectives (i.e. roasted cauliflower mac and cheese with prosciutto and creme fraiche). Claire gets her fair share of pestering when she is trying to fall asleep. Claire typically goes to bed first. As I am tucking her in and getting her settled, Audrey likes to get in her face and make funny noises. Claire will tell her that she "needs privacy" and usually asks that I shut the door so Audrey will "stop bugging her" The girls still get ready for bed around 6, but they usually aren't asleep until about 7:30. I wish I could say that they slept through the night, but lately they have been up multiple times, sneaking into our room. Claire is very stealthy and there has been many times when I wake up at night to find her in my bed. Audrey typically calls out for me, and if I make it on time, she will stay in her bed.

There is never a dull moment with these two! I'll have to get back in the swing of more regular blogging, but here are a few fun recent quotes:

"Mommy worms are not for girlies. Only birdies and frogs eat worms". -Claire

Patting my stomach) "Is there a baby sister in your tummy?" -Claire (We were watching the Daniel Tiger episode when he learns about becoming a big brother).

"There was only room for me and sis in your tummy" -Audrey, reiterating the fact that there is in fact no baby sister in my tummy.

"May I have another please?" -Audrey, using her "polite" voice.

praise

I strive to use specific and process based praise with the girls. Recently while coloring, I commented on Audrey's drawing. A few minutes later, I heard Claire say "wow sis, I really like how you are drawing green lines".

While Claire is great at doling out praise, Audrey has become quite the little artist. My mom texted me this picture and I was certain that Audrey had help.

My mom assured me that Audrey drew the picture without help. I think this one will be a keeper.