—Walking into a room to see A2 and N give each other a kiss. I've also caught them holding hands in the car on occasion. It's nice to see that they actually sometimes like being around each other every minute of every day.
—Hearing T say the other day, "We do lots of fun activities at my school. It's going to be a good day." I almost cried when he said it. I love, love, love that he loves school. It's been such a wonderful surprise to watch him blossom at kindergarten.
—Listening to my husband read The Hobbit to my two older boys. I thought they'd be too young for it, but he was right. They love it.
—Watching A2 discover a love for Star Wars (the characters, not even any of the movies), just like his older brothers and his dad. He woke up the other day and said first thing, "Saber, Mom. Saber." Must be in their blood.
Friday, February 11, 2011
Monday, February 7, 2011
A good bribe goes a long way
With another year of 1–4 church in front of us, I entered January with no small amount of trepidation. But instead of just crying every Sunday after church like I've done for the past three years or so, I decided to be a little proactive.
Bribes and snacks, I thought. That's what I'll do. Bribes for the older kids. Snacks for the twins.
I don't like to use bribes with my kids. At least not bribes that come in the form of candy. Sure, I'll use an upcoming fun activity to get good behavior out of them in the meantime. But I don't like to bribe them with treats on a regular basis. But I also didn't want to continue current cycle of frustration and crying... so, bribery it is.
Every Sunday before church, I present the kids with the treat they can earn. They have to be good—quiet, reverent, and nice to their siblings. There are no second chances. "You either earn it or you don't." The first few weeks, S was the only one to earn the treat, which of course solicited sobs from her brothers, but they learned. Now, they're doing much better. They draw quietly for a while, read the Friend magazine, and earn their treat to eat after church. (They're usually pretty small treats like a miniature Snickers bar or a fun size bag of M&Ms.)
The twins are a different story. They don't understand bribery yet so I've had to use a different tactic. Since sacrament meeting is smack dab in the middle of naptime, it's hard to expect them to sit quietly because they're just so tired. A2 especially gets kind of crazy and unreasonable when he's tired. So, I've resorted to goldfish crackers and fruit snacks. The only problem is that for the past week or so, the second we sit down in a pew, A2 begins hunting for the "nasks" he knows are in my bag. But for the most part, the snacks placate the twins enough so that they play quietly with small toys, look at books, and eat their snacks. N sat still for ten whole minutes yesterday while my husband stroked her little hand. It may have been the longest stretch of time she's sat still (without being strapped into her highchair or carseat) since birth.
The blessings of using bribery and snacks are a relatively quiet sacrament meeting experience and two parents who can actually listen to the talks. Definitely worth it, I say.
Bribes and snacks, I thought. That's what I'll do. Bribes for the older kids. Snacks for the twins.
I don't like to use bribes with my kids. At least not bribes that come in the form of candy. Sure, I'll use an upcoming fun activity to get good behavior out of them in the meantime. But I don't like to bribe them with treats on a regular basis. But I also didn't want to continue current cycle of frustration and crying... so, bribery it is.
Every Sunday before church, I present the kids with the treat they can earn. They have to be good—quiet, reverent, and nice to their siblings. There are no second chances. "You either earn it or you don't." The first few weeks, S was the only one to earn the treat, which of course solicited sobs from her brothers, but they learned. Now, they're doing much better. They draw quietly for a while, read the Friend magazine, and earn their treat to eat after church. (They're usually pretty small treats like a miniature Snickers bar or a fun size bag of M&Ms.)
The twins are a different story. They don't understand bribery yet so I've had to use a different tactic. Since sacrament meeting is smack dab in the middle of naptime, it's hard to expect them to sit quietly because they're just so tired. A2 especially gets kind of crazy and unreasonable when he's tired. So, I've resorted to goldfish crackers and fruit snacks. The only problem is that for the past week or so, the second we sit down in a pew, A2 begins hunting for the "nasks" he knows are in my bag. But for the most part, the snacks placate the twins enough so that they play quietly with small toys, look at books, and eat their snacks. N sat still for ten whole minutes yesterday while my husband stroked her little hand. It may have been the longest stretch of time she's sat still (without being strapped into her highchair or carseat) since birth.
The blessings of using bribery and snacks are a relatively quiet sacrament meeting experience and two parents who can actually listen to the talks. Definitely worth it, I say.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Fashion trends for toddlers
You never know when the van might be submerged. Goggles are a necessity.
N's "toddlers who lunch" ensembleFriday, January 21, 2011
Patience (the lack thereof)
I used to consider myself a patient person. But that was before I had children. The more children I had, the lower my patience threshold got.
On weekdays, T has to read 20 minutes a day. Because I know my son well, we do this before he goes to kindergarten. He's way too cranky and tired after school to even attempt it. So, every day while we eat lunch, we read. It's something that we both really enjoy... except for when one or both of the twins yell. Which, unfortunately, is often.
I try to get them everything they could possibly need before I sit down to read. But it never seems to matter. Within a few minutes, A2 is yelling about more this or more that. And N is yelling about how she dropped her carrot on the floor and why haven't I picked it up. And no matter how many times I say, "Just a minute, Mom's reading with T," the yelling just never stops.
I know that they're small people, who don't necessarily understand the meaning of the word patience. But I feel so badly for T, who just wants to eat his lunch and read with Mom in some semblance of peace and quiet. The twins yell, and then I get upset, and then poor T just gets sad cause he can't hear himself think.
I think the twins and I need to all take a seminar in patience.
On weekdays, T has to read 20 minutes a day. Because I know my son well, we do this before he goes to kindergarten. He's way too cranky and tired after school to even attempt it. So, every day while we eat lunch, we read. It's something that we both really enjoy... except for when one or both of the twins yell. Which, unfortunately, is often.
I try to get them everything they could possibly need before I sit down to read. But it never seems to matter. Within a few minutes, A2 is yelling about more this or more that. And N is yelling about how she dropped her carrot on the floor and why haven't I picked it up. And no matter how many times I say, "Just a minute, Mom's reading with T," the yelling just never stops.
I know that they're small people, who don't necessarily understand the meaning of the word patience. But I feel so badly for T, who just wants to eat his lunch and read with Mom in some semblance of peace and quiet. The twins yell, and then I get upset, and then poor T just gets sad cause he can't hear himself think.
I think the twins and I need to all take a seminar in patience.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
One screamer is better than two
When T was little, he yelled a lot. (Come to think of it, he still yells now that he's bigger.) At the time, I started noticing that my ears, particularly one of my ears, popped all the time. And I mean, all the time. When someone's yelling right near your ear, it pops. And when your ears pop all the time, they hurt. A lot. I finally went to the doctor and he told me I had eustachian tube dysfunction. I asked him if it could be caused by yelling. He said no, but I still have my doubts. He prescribed pseudo-ephedrine to reduce the swelling. It worked to some extent and I just kind of got used to the pain and popping that was left over.
Fast forward to now. I now have two tiny yellers. N's is actually more of a high-pitched shriek than a yell. A just bellows until he gets what he wants. And by the end of the day (or maybe before lunchtime), my ears and my head throb. I thought it would get better as they learned more words and became more verbal, but sadly, that hasn't been the case.
The other day, I quietly asked N to stop screaming. She replied by doing a little whisper scream. Yep. That. Stop doing that.
Fast forward to now. I now have two tiny yellers. N's is actually more of a high-pitched shriek than a yell. A just bellows until he gets what he wants. And by the end of the day (or maybe before lunchtime), my ears and my head throb. I thought it would get better as they learned more words and became more verbal, but sadly, that hasn't been the case.
The other day, I quietly asked N to stop screaming. She replied by doing a little whisper scream. Yep. That. Stop doing that.
Monday, January 3, 2011
All good things
must come to an end.
Christmas break is over. My kids went back to school today. And so, we're back to cranky kids getting ready for school in the morning, Mom and Dad both working full-time, and the general schedule of things. I was off work for over a week and I really, really enjoyed it. Really, really. Sure, I still had to take care of five kids, but it was oh so nice to be a bit lazy.
Another nice thing that came to an end was our brief respite from 1-4 pm church. Our ward split in the beginning of November, and just like we called it, we were bumped to 11 am-2 pm church for a little while. We've been on 1-4 for most of the past three years, and 2011 will be our fourth year. We (and by that I mean my husband and I and probably most parents of young children) hate it with a passion. For the past few months, it was really nice to get home from church, put the twins down for a late nap, and relax for a while before dinner. The kids were even a little better behaved in sacrament meeting and I may have gleaned a few nuggets of spiritual information.
Well, this past Sunday changed all that. The older kids were actually somewhat decent, but the twins were not. At the end of sacrament meeting, as I brushed away a few tears in hopes that no one else saw them, I realized that it was the first time in a few months that I had cried at church. And I felt sad to enter another year of trying to find anything... anything... that will work.
In more uplifting news, I'm actually kind of excited to make goals for the new year. Usually, I scoff at such things because they're often discarded so soon into January, but I realized recently that my life and my home need some work here and there. Wish me luck!
Christmas break is over. My kids went back to school today. And so, we're back to cranky kids getting ready for school in the morning, Mom and Dad both working full-time, and the general schedule of things. I was off work for over a week and I really, really enjoyed it. Really, really. Sure, I still had to take care of five kids, but it was oh so nice to be a bit lazy.
Another nice thing that came to an end was our brief respite from 1-4 pm church. Our ward split in the beginning of November, and just like we called it, we were bumped to 11 am-2 pm church for a little while. We've been on 1-4 for most of the past three years, and 2011 will be our fourth year. We (and by that I mean my husband and I and probably most parents of young children) hate it with a passion. For the past few months, it was really nice to get home from church, put the twins down for a late nap, and relax for a while before dinner. The kids were even a little better behaved in sacrament meeting and I may have gleaned a few nuggets of spiritual information.
Well, this past Sunday changed all that. The older kids were actually somewhat decent, but the twins were not. At the end of sacrament meeting, as I brushed away a few tears in hopes that no one else saw them, I realized that it was the first time in a few months that I had cried at church. And I felt sad to enter another year of trying to find anything... anything... that will work.
In more uplifting news, I'm actually kind of excited to make goals for the new year. Usually, I scoff at such things because they're often discarded so soon into January, but I realized recently that my life and my home need some work here and there. Wish me luck!
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