Sibling Series: a sweet snap shot of life with two.

A few weeks ago Desmond was having a hard time going down for his nap (i.e. he was wailing in his crib).  I was trying to focus on Aubrey since I knew Des needed the sleep and he also needed to learn to sort it out on his own. So Aubrey and I were working at the table on some home school stuff and she started saying:


"I know. I know. I know." In a sweet sounding voice. I wasn't sure but I thought she might be talking to Desmond since I tend to say this to little ones who are upset, especially babies.

I asked her, "What do you know?


"I know that feeling."

"What feeling?"


"When you are tired and don't want to rest."




Now that is one of the sweetest examples of empathy I've ever heard. And she does totally know that feeling. 

Baby Desmond napping on the couch with Leila.

Mindful Mondays

This week I need to be mindful of my bedtime.

Lately my youngest thinks that 5 or 5:30 is a great time to greet the day.
I emphatically could not agree less!!


I have no problem leaving him in his crib until 6, my predetermined acceptable hour for motherhood to began. :) There are complications though, the biggest of which being he shares a room with his sister. Poor thing. Though I am finding she is getting used to this early am wake up call. And if she isn't with me she is against me I say!

I figure out how to trick, teach, bully, and encourage my kids to sleep in just a bit longer I am going to be mindful of one huge helpful thing that is actual in my control, my bedtime.

So this week I will retire early. I will close the laptop. I will stop trying to find new recipes to pin (oh my). I will not get sucked into something new at 9:00. And hopefully I will be in a good mood coming 5 am (hopefully!).

A reminder of why going to bed as early as a grandma isn't so bad after all.

Anything you want to be mindful of this week?

And if you have any advice I can pass along, to my early birds who are eating all the

 worms before the rest of the world ever rolls out of bed, it would be greatly appreciated. :)

Sibling Series: a sweet snap shot of life with two.

I'm dedicating this post to my friend Sarah, who I have known and loved since I was 11. 

Congratulations on your sweet baby girl!

We were playing at a friends house this morning and all four kids were peacefully coexisting in the same room  while I sat on the couch and watched. It was a good play-date! Desmond and a three year old boy were playing together. They were kicking each other, and they were truly having fun, boys. :) Bree was checking out the action and, being a somewhat rational and sane three year old, thought Desmond was getting beat up on. So she goes, "Hey, please don't kick my little brother."

And my brain went WAIT, hold the phones! Did she just protect her brother. Her "little" bother. I've never heard her call him that before. I've never heard her be protective of him before. To say the very least, I loved it. A small voice inside me was quieted. A fearful voice that says, from time to time, when they are not feeling the love, "will they like each other? will they love each other?" Today I think I got my answer.

It was definitely a very good sibling week. :)

                                             
                                              Morning snack on the couch. Aubrey is debuting her newest funny face.

Potty Time!

Breaking News: This morning 17 month old Desmond went pee while sitting on the toilet.

He ran in to the bathroom and was telling me with his baby language/nonverbal communication that he wanted to get up on that potty! Last week he wanted up there and he sat on the little seat just smiling and enjoying his thrown for a few minutes, then he hopped off. That is what I was expecting today so I started doing things in the laundry room but then some movement caught my eye and I squealed. He was peeing!
While sitting on the toilet!
He was peeing all over the floor while sitting on the toilet!

I don't have a little pee catcher on my potty seat. See, I had a girl last time and those things are not necessary for the fairer sex. :) So he peed this big arc all over the floor and his legs. But the intent was there and I was overjoyed. And the cutest thing was how proud he was.

checking out the pee on the floor

feeling pretty jazzed about his new trick

So if anyone out there has tips for helping an early potty training interested kiddo, I'm all ears! 

I'd love to keep thing going. 

Thoughts on Marriage

Last week Aubrey was picking out her clothes for a Valentines Day party we were going to and she had decided to include a veil from the dress up basket. She was telling me what she wanted to wear to the party and she couldn't remember the word veil so she was describing to me what a veil is.

And I quote: "You know the things you wore when you married daddy. When you got married because you didn't have anyone to care for."

 . . . .When I didn't have anyone to care for. So, in her sweet little mind I got married to Shaun because I wanted some to care for and I suppose because in return I wanted to be cared for. This might be because she equates love with caring for someone because that is one of the main ways she is loved (since she is a small child that requires lots of care). :)

Regardless of how she got the idea I think it is a pretty sweet way of describing marriage.

And just for fun here are some pictures from my wedding five and a half years ago now!