Haircuts

The boys got hair cuts today!  Their hair was so long that Sean's hair stuck straight out at the opposing dual crowns (think Alfalfa) and Christopher had a bouffant.  While a classic, boys shouldn't have them I think.

How did it go?  This was the first time there weren't tears involved so I'd say it was a success, BUT...

Why do they look happier in the before pictures?

A Hard Day

 

Sunday was rough.  We've got one sick kid with a stomach virus and one kid with a black eye.  All on the same day, of course.

 

Yesterday morning Chris woke us up very early crying.  Paul went to get him and put him in our bed so we might all get a little more sleep.  He laid down for just a minute or two before he started whimpering.  I rolled over to cuddle him and heard a little gurgle.  I sat up to get a better look at him and he threw up all over the spot where my head had been seconds before.  Paul and I had been thinking about buying a new mattress.

 

 

After we got him cleaned up and our bed stripped and sanitized, we went out to Mom's so she could stay home with Chris while Pop, Sean and I all went to "church skool".  

 

A little before it was time to eat lunch Sean took a tumble.  No one actually saw it, but he'd been dragging one of mom's brass teapots around and it has a sharp spout.  He started howling so I ran into the living room to see what happened.  When Sean looked up at me his right eye was covered in blood.  I think I went into a little bit of shock.  I picked him up and ran into the kitchen chanting "I'm not going to freak out.  I'm not going to freak out" over and over again.  Mom was there so she helped me clean off his face to see the damage.  He had a nasty scratch along the top part of his eyelid but his eye was fine.  Thank GOD.    

 

 

Chris was still sick today so Pop came to stay with him during the day.  Sean's eye is still swollen and red, and we're watching it carefully. 

I don't mean to brag, but...

Can I just brag for a second?  This is a proud "mommy" moment. :-)

I get weekly updates from babycenter.com on "my preschooler this week".  It's basically a small entry on what I should expect at whatever age the boys are currently.  Here is their latest update:

"By 30 months, your child can name a few body parts, some colors, and even a friend or two. Her memory and speaking ability work in tandem. Help out by expanding on what she says. If she says, "Dog sleep," you might say, "Yes, Spot is curled up and fast asleep in his doggie bed." She can't imitate your complex language patterns yet, but her brain is absorbing them. Every time you repeat her words or expand on them, you're giving her memory practice."

I'm all puffed up with pride.  Both boys can name nearly every body part, Sean has all of his colors down and Chris has most of them, they can name all the kids in their class and, although it wasn't mentioned in the small paragraph, they can say their ABCs (Chris can sing the entire alphabet song) and easily count to 10 (Sean can count higher).  They are talking so much better than "Dog sleep".  If they were going to tell me that the dog is asleep they would say "Doggy sleepin on the flur, nite nite.  Don't wake it"!

They're so smart :-)   Clearly, they take after their Daddy!!

The Garden Gnome

While writing about the boys personalities yesterday I took a walk down memory lane.  I looked at their baby pictures and spent hours at the computer just watching them grow up digitally before my eyes.  While I do not miss the sleepless nights and the constant fear of having two newborns to care for, I do miss them at that age.  I miss them falling asleep on me most of all.  They rarely let me cuddle with them as they go to sleep anymore.

 

I went back in time a little further to when I was pregnant.  We don't have many pictures of me, I realized.  And as I looked at the them, I remembered why. 

 

Recently, I have had several family members and friends who've been through a pregnancy.  They say that when a woman is pregnant, she glows with an other-worldly essence.  That she's beautiful.  It must be true since everyone I knew seemed to radiate it.  I loved being pregnant.  I felt wonderful and I had very little morning sickness.  My biggest fear of having complications with my diabetes was non-existent.  I loved feeling the boys flop around, kicking my ribs and head-butting my bladder. I loved watching my belly grow and the visits to the doctor that verified I had healthy, thriving babies. If I were younger, and not diabetic, and younger, I'd have had a dozen more.   Maybe.

 

But looking at my pictures, I realized why I shied away from the camera.  Instead of a glowing, beautiful, radiant me, all I saw was a Garden Gnome.  And one that could only were Crocs.  Yep. 

 

 

 

My boys - Sean and Christopher

Photo of the "Meadows" family taken at the Dallas Zoo

 (Paul is missing since he's taking the picture)

I've been meaning to write a bit about the boys.  They are officially 2 1/2 years old and I don't want to forget the little things that are happening. 

They are still sleeping in their cribs, but they could climb out if they thought about it.  I'm dreading the toddler beds and the freedom (for them) that comes with it.  They are both talking really well.  They can count, say most of the ABCs, and they know their colors.  Sean can count to 21 with very little help.  They still use their pacis and I know I need to start weening them off of it, but I just haven't had the energy yet.  We have them in swimming class, but they don't really like it.  They would prefer just to play in the pool without someone telling them what to do.  When they are tired, they twirl their hair at the top of their foreheads.  They are both extremely independent.

Me and the boys before betime. They are twirling their hair but they are NOT *yawn* sleepy!!

 

Paul and the boys after their haircut.

Sean:
Sean's favorite color is blue.  He's sensitive and a bit obsessive/compulsive.  He considers things before attempting them, mostly.  When he doesn't get his way he breaks down into crying, repeating over and over what it is that he wants.  He's usually laying on the floor at this point and throwing anything he can get his hands on.  He likes apples, strawberries, grapes, bananas, popcorn, juice, coffeemilk (chocolate milk), Eggos, Chipotle, meatballs, corndogs, chips and yogurt.  He loves to dance and give me hugs.  He likes to be chased by Daddy and he likes for ME to sing Old McDonald.  He's very affectionate most of the time.  He has the most beautiful smile, even with the chipped tooth.

Christopher:
Chris's favorite color is orange.  He has a strong sense of justice... and he knows when he's been wronged.  He's athletic and loves to run and jump. When he doesn't get his way he throws a HUGE tantrum complete with screaming and hitting.  This one has a bit of a temper.  He likes CANDY - thanks mom.  He also likes bananas, strawberries, grapes, pop tarts, popcorn, juice, coffeemilk, meatballs, corn dogs, chips, yogurt and anything he can find on the floor.  He sometimes eats rocks at school.  We know because it makes it's way through his digestive system and into his diaper.  He loves music and being chased by Daddy.  He loves to sing his ABCs, Twinkle Twinkle and Itsy Bitsy Spider.  He's affectionate mostly when he wants something or when he thinks I'm upset.  He's quite contrary - but he'll tell you he's not.  He smiles with his eyes which lights his face up.

Neither like bath time much because they don't like Daddy washing their hair.  He has a tendency to dump water on top of them...  They don't like naps either.  They NEVER HAVE.  They love The Wizard of Oz, Monster's Inc, A Bug's Life, all things Toy Story, Despicable Me, and Ice Age.

They LOVE going to see Pop and Didi, and lately they even like Church!  Yay for small miracles :-)

My First Painting

A couple of weeks ago I went to my first painting class at a place called Painting With A Twist.  You get to paint AND drink wine :-) 

I went with my girlfriends Megan Haessig and Claudia Benitez.  What I found amazing about this event was that there were at least 30 people there and everyone had such a good time.  The instructor showed us step by step what to do and, although we all had the same teacher, listened to the same instructions, and watched the very same demonstrations, every single piece came out so differently.  It was a lot of fun!

This was the instructor's painting - and remember she IS a professional. It has the watermark on it since I borrowed it from the website - which is www.paintingwithatwist.com

 

 

And here is mine.  Yes, hers is much better but this was my very first attempt!!  It looks a little washed out since I took the picture with my Ipad, but I think it looks awesome anyways :-)  I can't wait to go back again!

Halloween 2012

 

This Halloween did not go as planned.   If you know me, then you know I was probably a witch about it.  I don't like it when things go wrong and I don't like "Plan B"s.

The PLAN was for me to get home around 4:30pm or 5:00pm, get the kids fed and in the car, head out to Rockwall to pick up Pop and Didi, and get to our Church for the Fall Festival.  There was going to be a Hay Ride, Bouncy House, Carnival Games and Trick or Treating.   The boys would have loved it.   I said WOULD HAVE because we didn't get to go. And I was frighteningly mad.

 

I was late getting off work and traffic, for SOME reason, turned psychotic.   It took me two hours to get home.  My commute might be 45 minutes on a bad day.   This was insane.   I got home right around 7:00pm and we were supposed to be in Rockwall at 6:00pm.   All my plans were squashed, slashed, choked, murdered, and then dismembered.   I was so angry and tired when I got home I'm sure I looked like a corpse.   I know I felt like a zombie.   Mom had offered to come out to our house to take the boys trick or treating around the neighborhood and I was grateful since I was dead tired. 

 

 

The boys didn't care that we stayed home, however.  They had their Didi, pumpkin baskets and dinosaur outfits.  They were happy as cats and in good spirits.  Mom actually decided to man the door and give out candy, so Paul and I took the boys around the neighborhood.  Our next door neighbors, who go all out every year for Halloween, were dressed as Teletubbies.  They drank martinis while handing out candy to all the kids.  We like them :-) 

 

The boys got lots of candy and wanted to devour it all at once, of course.  We gave them a couple of pieces and got them into bed.  I finally calmed down and went to face the mountain of candy to put away... THE HORROR!!!  We'll be eating candy forever.