A study in frosting graham cracker eating

1. What are these things, Mom?

2. Hmm. Rather tasty.

3. Ahh. Good stuff.

Soccer

Early on, we kind of assumed that T would follow his brother into t-ball and baseball. But we realized several months ago that while T would probably enjoy baseball, what he loves to do most is run. And since there's a lot more running in soccer than in baseball, we signed him up for soccer instead!

Soccer played by small children who have no clue about the actual game is so very amusing. What is not amusing is playing against a team that pretty clearly has a six or seven-year-old kid. Umm, yeah, that kid was a giant in the midst of the pre-kindergarten boys. And he clearly had a lot more knowledge about the game than the other kids.

T's having a great time. He still kind of just runs near the ball, but he's starting to figure things out. And he's had some awesome saves as goalie. Go T!

Twin love

A wise woman once said (or wrote in a comment on my blog) that the day would come when I would feel sad for people who don't have twins. I definitely think there are elements to having twins that I wouldn't wish on other people (twice the tantrums, messes, screaming, dirty diapers, trouble, etc). But most of it... oh, most of it is truly great.

I absolutely adore the stage the twins are at right now—the sometime verbal, mostly babble, discovering everything stage. It's hilarious and crazy. And it's awesome with two. Sure, they rip apart the books in our bookshelf on a daily basis and get into more trouble than three single children ever would. But I love watching two completely different little people develop their personalities.

I love driving in the car and having both of them say, "Ma, Ma, Ma" over and over again like they want to tell me something.

I love when both of them fight over who gets to sit on my lap.

I love walking into the house and hearing both of them shriek with delight.

I love letting them loose in our backyard and watching to see which way they'll go. (N usually heads immediately for the in-ground trampoline in our neighbor's yard or a bicycle she's too small to ride. A2 usually begins exploring the yard and bike trail on his own, content to be his own man.)

I love picking them up from nursery and watching their little faces light up when they see me.

I love watching them wrestle with their dad and give their siblings hugs.

I love listening to them "talk" with each other, tickle each other, and get excited to see each other.

I love it when N sits back in her highchair and puts her feet in the air, just so her brother can tickle her toes.


I really can't imagine our lives without these two little people in it. They bring us so much fun and challenges and joy. And sometimes I think that everyone should have this kind of joy. But then it wouldn't be quite so special, would it?

So thanks, Laurie J. You were right.

I couldn't resist adding this picture. N's ensemble is courtesy of Grandma Bee. Isn't it precious?!

Now she's dancing

Early Sunday morning, my grandma passed away.

It feels so weird to write that sentence, to say it out loud to people. It still doesn't feel real.

My grandma's body frequently worked against her. She had polio as an infant, which seriously affected the left side of her body for her entire life. And for the past 20+ years, she's dealt with often crippling arthritis, or "Arthur" as she liked to refer to it. But no matter what kind of state her body was in, Grandma's wit never failed her. She called everyone "Joe." She made up words and phrases all the time, usually makeshift swear words like "heck a Friday," "hell to catfish," and "bull canorsey." The funniest times would be when she would forget to use her pretend swear words and actually swear. I would usually start giggling and she'd make me promise not to tell my mom. (And yes, I recognize that hell is an actual swear word already, but she could get a lot worse than that.)

For the last several years, I've been the member of my immediate family living closest to my grandparents. This was great because I could get there relatively quickly when my mom called, worried about their health or general well-being. Since my mom lives 2000 miles away, I was her eyes and ears. And that annoyed my grandma to no end. :)

The checking up on them began in earnest when my grandpa's health began to decline several years ago. One night, my mom called me in a panic because my grandpa had just been taken to the hospital. I got there in a matter of minutes and when I walked into the room, my grandma said, "How did you get here so fast?" (She was not pleased.)

After my grandpa died, the checking up changed. Before he died, my grandparents took care of each other. But after Grandpa died, my grandma was all alone. Thankfully, my uncle and aunt live close by as well, and they have so lovingly taken care of my grandma. But my uncle is sometimes not the most forthright with details (and neither is Grandma, for that matter), so sometimes I was tasked to visit Grandma and report back to my mom on the state of things.

I admit that I didn't always do the very best I could at taking care of Grandma. Sure, I knew that my uncle and aunt were right there, but I always had that nagging feeling of guilt that I could have done more. And yes, I have a husband and five kids, and a job and a million things to do every day. A few years ago, I gave myself a New Year's resolution to do better at taking care of her. And I think I have. I felt like we've grown closer in the last little while. But I know I could have done better.

On the way home from my grandma's house on Sunday, I kind of lost it. All of the sadness and guilt just overwhelmed me and I cried and cried. I cried first because of sadness, then joy because she's no longer in pain. Then I cried because of my guilt and not doing enough for her, and then I cried because I felt relief that I wouldn't have to be guilty anymore. And then I cried because I felt guilty for not feeling guilty anymore.

It was quite the 20 minute drive home.

The most important thing is that Grandma Willis is at peace now. She's with her beloved husband and daughter, who passed away before her. She's free of her body that caused her so much pain. And really, my guilt at what I should have done or could have done doesn't matter anymore. I just hope that I've learned a lesson about what's important in life, and what's not. And to me, today, the most important thing is that somewhere, my grandma is walking, running, and dancing. And I bet if she knew how worried I've been about all the "what ifs," she would say, "Aww, hell to catfish, Tennille."

Love you, Grandma.

My two grandmas at Thanksgiving. Grandma Willis is on the right.

Parenting breakthrough

I may have recently come up with a breakthrough in parenting. Since I'm pretty much a broken record with my children (or, since records don't so much exist anymore, perhaps a CD on repeat play?), I'm thinking I should take advantage of this to save myself time and frustration. I can make a CD recording of my voice and just play it on repeat throughout the house. A few sample tracks:

"Why would you think it was a good idea to do that?!!"

"Leave your baby brother alone. If he cries, it means he doesn't want you to do that."

"Did you flush the toilet and wash your hands?"

"Brush your teeth, make your bed, and put away your pajamas." (That one could be a whole CD itself.)

"Stop talking and jumping around and go to bed!!"

"What part of NOOO did you not understand? Am I speaking English here?"


And my personal favorite, and the one that gets used far, far too often:

"Because I said so. Because I'm the mom and I'm the boss, and I said so. That's why."

Lucky Seven

Oh, my darling boy. It still doesn't seem possible that you're already seven years old. It seems like just yesterday that you were born. You came two weeks early, in the middle of an April snowstorm. At nine pounds even, I've always wondered just how chubby you would have been if you had stayed inside until your due date.

I'm so proud of your creative mind. I never would have dreamed that you would become so artistic. When you started throwing a baseball as a toddler, I thought you'd be all sports, all the time. But it's great to see how you can do so many things so well. Your reading and math skills are well ahead of your grade level. And I'm completely in awe of the drawings you create every day. You're such a talented boy, and I'm so blessed to be your mom. Happy birthday!

Opening some much-needed art supplies from Grandma and Grandpa.

Dear Mom,

As you know, we recently turned 20 months. As such, we are obviously no longer babies, and wish to be treated the same as the other big people in the house—especially at mealtime. The following is a list of important rules that must be adhered to. If you forget any, we will remind you... loudly and possibly by throwing items.

1. The blue bib is for A2. The green one is for N. Under no circumstances should they be switched.

2. We want to eat with bowls and utensils, just like everyone else. We will permit a few finger food items to be placed on the table, such as Cheerios. But don't test our patience.

3. One of us (N) will permit help from you or Dad. One of us (A2) will not. It is better to not even attempt to try to feed A2, because very likely, sobbing will ensue.

4. Keep in mind that statements such as, "No more cookies for babies" or "All done! Time to take a nap" will not go over well with us. We find such statements offensive and will react accordingly.

5. Finally, when in doubt, give new foods a try. If we don't like something, we'll just chuck it on the floor. And who doesn't enjoy cleaning up piles of squishy food?

Love,

The twins