Christmas Traditions - The Santa picture!

Part of Christmas traditions is the token picture with Santa.  My mom has years of pictures of us sitting on Santa's lap.  Sometimes we are laughing and sometimes we are upset, but looking back at those photos are priceless....the bad hair and of course the bad fashion.  In our later years we were not so cooperative...I felt like a tool sittin' on Santa's lap at 18 years old with my 2 sisters...( I drew the line at that!) So why would I deny my girls the same memories?  The trip to the local mall to get the picture was uneventful and to our surprise there was no line up.  Santa suggested we do a family photo first...get the girls warmed up and sitting close to Santa while were we holding them...so we did. (I was not prepared for a photo of me....as you can see!)  but oh well is it for the girls right?  They both seemed okay so then.......

we did something Sophia thought was not so funny....we dropped them on Santa's lap and ran, well not literally ran, but backed up pretty quick.  Emmy was fine with it...as my niece Shelby said Emmy looks like she is saying "give me a lick of that candy cane" Sophia..well the photo says it all.

In the days/week to follow we asked Sophia if she would like to sit on Santa's lap.  She said " no, no, no want it" waving her arm in front of her like she is clearing a table.  I guess she remembers....I hope this is not one of those incidents she hangs on to.  I guess when Christmas 2011 rolls around and it is time for "the Santa picture" we will know for sure

Cheers!

R-xo

Daddy's Birthday

We recently celebrated my husband birthday.  He generally likes to keep it low key and always requests no gifts.  The day was a busy one starting with brunch at Gramma and Grandpa's, then a Christmas party for the Metzger cousins and then we went to Kevin and JoAnn's for a celebratory drink.  This certainly was an action packed day.

Here is a photo of the group 1 year ago...I realized that I made the same type of cake this year..opps

The previous day I spent part of the day singing happy birthday to the girls, in hope they would catch on and sing with the rest of us at cake time.  No go..in fact I think Sophia cried during the singing and was not cooperative during pictures.  Looks like Emily and MG had something going on...on the side that we were not aware of...hummm

Sophia took the cake when it came to the presents.  On our way the the final event, she started to sing...We were in shocked.  Not so much that she was singing, cause she does this alot (mostly Twinkle Twinkle Little Star) but shocked that she only heard this song a few times and was now singing it...so I had to catch this on camera-video in the car...so take a listen.

I cannot believe how fast they pick up on stuff so I've started to sing jingle bells....

The day was a good one..except for the end of the day when I got sick with fever and chills and sweats for the next 48hours...I thought I had this bug licked the other week, but it came back stronger than ever.  That is a whole other post..Sick with kids and how we cope as moms..thank goodness for my husband..is all I have to say!

Ciao
R-xo

18 Months and counting

18 months...I feel like this is such an accomplishment and I want to break out in the Grammy speech..."I would like to thank my parents, my sister, my mother-in-law for all their help (babysitting and canning), support (and countless dinners), for which I would not be the person I am today.  I would like to thank my family and friends for visiting, chatting and drinking with me...cause I needed it! God for well...being god and of course my sensational husband, for which my life is not complete and I would have gone insane by now if not for his love of doing the laundry, dishes and floors...."  Phew....

For some reason this was the age I had in mind that I could not wait to get to.  I was excited for their 1 year birthday, but 18 months is my golden age.  The girls are not any less work, it is just different.  We can chat and play and their little personalities are shinning through, some times a bit too much but that is all part of being a family!  I finally feel like I may have some influence on who they are becoming.  This may sound like a tall order, but this is the order I am ready to fill, the parenting order.

So lets take a trip down memory lane.  Here are a few pics of the girls...1 year ago. (6 months..not rolling nor sitting on there own and just starting to each that gross rice cereal)

We are having a great time.  The girls are taking off in the learning department that's for sure.  Little Pookie is singin up a storm and Munchie is talking 3 word sentences.  her fav is "I wov u daddy" or "I'm funny" and Pookie is "I have it"  which is about everything she see and is not suppose to have.  Next up is barnyard sounds and every time there is a cat or dog commercial on TV there is the constant "mow or ruf" that fills the room.  In the Night Garden, Dora, Backyardigans and hockey are head turners as far as TV shows go and "berries" are a hit at meal times.



 

Wow...what a difference 1 year makes.

Cheers!
R-xo

Confessions of the Crunched!

I was buzzing through some of the blogs that I like to read, when a title hit me..."How do I Manage" I was curious to see how someone else does it...conclusion..she was still looking for the answer.... This seems to be common, trying to juggle all that life throws out there..trying to achieve that life/work balance.  My bal­anc­ing act is not work­ing.  Well, it is.…but I have fallen off that darn bal­ance beam over and over again and with every new attempt to get it together, the bruises from the falls get big­ger and bigger...…and who thought that there could be a balance with work, kids and life!?  (Must have been some single or newly married girl who pitched it to some other single girl or something like that) 

Going back to work after having the girls was something I looked forward to...a change for us all.  I looked forward to getting up and going off to the world of adult talk, drinking a coffee while it was still hot, not having to heat it up 4 times…but now it is one of the hardest things I have done.  Working, raising toddlers and keeping a house (well my dear hubby does a lot of that..guilt!) is challenging...but the daily, daunting struggle is making a good meal and having it on the table before 6pm.  I love to cook, but I dread coming home to make dinner these days….the girls will not let me do anything and I mean anything in the kitchen.  From the minute I walk in they want to be held and if I don't, they scream, cry, pull at my pants yelling "uppy, uppy, uppy mommy" Emily even has pulled my pants down, which is something I am shocked at after having twins…

This past weekend I found myself cooking the entire weekend.  Choppin stuff, mixing stuff, baking stuff, using up food before it goes bad…(and some of it has been on the edge for weeks!)  The quick and easy answer is..nanny! but we cannot afford that, so now I have to think outside the box, or kitchen.  

The hard truth is that all this juggle doesn’t always work. I am a multitasker and even this is rocking that. But I’m glad I work outside the home, even if during the outrageously busy times I question that choice.

How do I manage?  I will let you know when I find out.

R-xo

MG - Adventures of a red head

This post is from my sister, Adrianna.  I had to post this cause - well you need to read it to believe it.  MG is a red head through and through

Swimming started at the beginning of Oct..for us and for MG.  MG missed the first night cause mommy and daddy got the night wrong..boy was MG steamed that she could not go swimming the first night..so this is the synopsis of week 2, first night!  enjoy!!

Adventures of a red head......

Well here it is…Mary and I had our first mommy and Mary swim night last night. Once we first arrived Mary was sooooooo excited. All that she wanted to do is "go swimin".  Little did I know that our little red headed angel had some idea's of her own.

First off they changed the pool location on us from the warm pool to the cooler one…with all the slides and toys around it!!  Well we all know how much MG loves water and the toys! We get into the pool no problem…we actually take a big jump…splashing other kids who think that the water hitting them is like poison or something. It was not long (one minute) before Mary started to get mad at me for holding her. She wanted nothing to do with being held nor told what to do in the water. 

The instructor then began to sing songs…Mary LOVED these 2-3 minute songs, she splashed and screamed the entire time while the other children around her were scared shitless and crying their eyes out!  About 5 minutes into class Mary decided that she needed to pee so in true potty training form announced to the entire pool that she would now be peeing in the water.  Then looked at me with that cute little face and said…."OK MOMMY?" what is a mom to say :)

Next she saw that 50 foot twirly slide we were swimming under.  It was not long before she decided she wanted to be on that and was not happy I said she could not go on it! (she asked to go on it all class long) The instructor took her for a bit and MG did EVERYTHING the instructor asked... no problem at all.  The instructor was impressed that she knew so much. 

Then came time to jump in and out of the water…..Mary did not want me, she wanted to go off the diving boards!! Man I think that I have created a water bug!!!   Needless to say we made it through the class.  MG was one of the only kids in the class who had her hair wet!!  Most of the other kids were still crying! So it is time to go, MG decided that getting out of the pool was NOT what she wanted…she up and slapped me in a fit of rage and I must admit…I did not know what to do with this child and what happened to my MARY:) The change room is a another story as she then did not want to ever get out of the shower!!

Regardless Mary and I talked and next week she wants to go back and will not hit or scream. She apologized for her bad behaviour and is excited to try again next week. The instructor also said that next week maybe Mary can get a life jacket to swim on her own as last night she wanted NO help in the water at all…what a girl. Sure was different having just one…..I must say that two were easier:) We love our Mary and she is one of a kind……What a girl!

Love The Bells!

I am sure that there will be more...adventures of a red head to come.  

Fishes they are not

For most kids swimming is fun, something to look forward to and something you should not do right after eating..(I hear that is a wives tale!)  but not for Emily and Sophia.  All summer long they have not embraced the water, in fact, if Sophia sees a pool or gets too close, she will cry and Emily will only sit on the edge...this is evident as depicted in an earlier post What the beach did I do?  

I guess I have not learned my lesson...and I signed the girls up for swimming.  I am optimistic that there will be smiles and not tears....well here is how it went down...

Swimming week 1

Went okay….the girls did not enjoy it at the start but kinda warmed up to the idea abit.  They did not like getting their face wet and refused to blow bubbles in the water..but no tears so that was good…  When we first walk in Sophia started to climb over Darcy's back, she did not want to touch the water.  Emily started to whimper when her feet touched, but did not make too much of a fuss.  Of course Darcy knew someone in the class so he was busy talkin most of the time.  They did not like when the instructor would come around and splash their feet and Sophia mainly clung to one of us...I had little nail marks in my shoulder.  To my surprise, they both sat on the edge and flopped themselves into the pool on their own power and Sophia was standing and kinda jumping in and did not seem to mind that..but no smiles….change rooms are chaotic, chaotic, chaotic....maybe next week they will smile and enjoy it a bit more..

Swimming Week 2

We were really, really early and had to wait around a bit.  Emily took a bit of a stroll with daddy and stomped around in the water on the pool deck. Sophia was having none of that and would not stop clinging to me. (nail marks in my shoulder..maybe I should have cut them!) When we were about to go in I put sophia down, took her hand and she actually walked in the water.  Wow..this is a good sign…the classs starts out with group singing and actions which the girls just watch and hang to us like dead fish on a hook...I know they know what is going on, so why not participate?  Still no smiles…maybe next week..it will be an extra special week cause Gramma is coming…


Swimming Week 3
Again really early...someone take note..I am actually early for something 2 weeks in a row!  This week is special, cause Gramma is helping out.  The start was not good.  Both girls decided to cry while getting changed and of course we picked the smallest change room ever....there was no cooperation happening so far.  Swimming actually went better..the girls had smiles, participated and there were squeals coming from Sophia when she jumped off the side and into the water.  Emily actually let me dunk her during the dunk, dunk song.  Who hoo...they both got their hair wet!  


Next week daddy is back...Yeah!

Ciao
R-xo

Party..It was about time

We have been on our new house for 3.5 months and we have finally gotten around to hosting a party…and I must say it was great.  The night was a revolving door of friends, family and neighbours some of which I had not met yet.  The girls were a bit "shell shocked" at all the people and commotion, but soon adapted and were running around chasing and laughing with the other kids…..a dozen or so in total and dumping a bowl of chips on Emily's head.  (I found chips in her diaper later…)  
There was the typical changing of the guard at suppertime for high chairs seats, ding dong of the doorbell, humm of the phrase "no don’t touch that" or "don't do that" and shoes galore (Emily was in heaven as she walked around with all sorts of different feet)  My niece MG was kissing and hugging all the boys while the big girls showed off their dance moves in the basement.  We are so blessed to have family and friends that understand the chaos and still come on by.  
If you would have asked me 3 years ago, when we were trying to have a baby, if this is what I pictured my life as…. I would have thought you were crazy….me living in a house where chaotic, jumbled events happened as I have always strived to be organized and perpared.…well times are a changing…I was still curling my hair when the first guests arrived and never did get back to finish it, but no one noticed I think?  

Life with kids, it is the best.  It is crazy and busy and exhausting, but it is rewarding, fun and loving..it is the best.


Ciao
R-xo

Mischievous little Monkeys!

 Not sure this one needs any words to describe what is going on here...Emily is obsessed with climbing and any hand held device with buttons.  I guess she just had to have it!  " I got your back Emmy..just grab it and run!"

You (me) cannot turn your back for a second.....FYI for those who are watching the girls for us in the upcoming months....

Toddler Talk and then some.....

Like all parents, we want to encourage our princesses to use their words to communicate.  The past few weeks the girls have ramped up their vocab as well as there recognition skills…when I ask them to get the ball, piggy or their bear, they go and do it.  When we ask them what a horsey says they "clicky smack, clicky smack" with their mouths....so much that I now know when there is a horse n buggy near or far as the hummmm of the clicky smack, fills the back seat.  Emily needs no help in finding a blankie to bury her face into and scream...for some reason this is her thing....screaming into blankets.

My parents were watching the girls this past weekend and my mom claims that when Emily and Sophia were wrestling, (yes they roll around on top of each other laughing..) Emily stood up and said "I beat her up"  I told her no way it must be her old age and she should get a hearing aid 'cause they are not talking that well….but since my dad heard this too it must be.

Sophia has taken to singing.  She sings ABCD or Twinkle Twinkle little star or sometimes a bit of both mixed together. It is more like "wee, wee wee, wee, wee e,f,g,h m n p, ow i onder wee wee are" Every time we grab the video camera to tape it, she shuts down and starts to run and scream....camera shy?

It amazes us at how they are talking and using their words.  We make them say please and thank-you and now when they want something they say "peeze and tank u" over and over and over..until they get it.  So in their minds mission accomplished.  Every day there are new words to say or blocks to build or stairs to climb or pianos to play....no wonder they are tired at the end of the day....all this learning is making me tired and their dad too...as we are in bed most nights by 10pm.....I never would have thought that would of happened!

Ciao
R-xo

Picasso?? Not quite!

Girls first art work...I was so  impressed with there skills that I had to share it.  Of course they did not write their names...but soon I hope!

"Is this chair taken?" A New Hamburg treat!

My friend has taken on an adventure, following a passion.  She is a co-owner of a home decor store in New Hamburg called "Is this chair taken?" (90 Peel Street)  The store has great things you would not normally find at like Home Sense or something.  I know cause every time I ask her "where did you get that....?"  she say it was from the store.  In fact the last time we were together she was raving about all the neat Christmas stuff they were unpacking.  This is the kinda place I would like to drink a glass of wine while I shop!  So drop by the store...tell them that I sent ya (no I do not get any perks for this) and enjoy shopping!

Hello-
 "Is this chair taken?" opened under our new ownership today!!  We're excited to share our new venture with our friends and family, so to celebrate we're hosting a Grand Re-opening Event on September 16-18 from 10am - 7pm....we'd love for you to join us and see our new store....enjoy some treats, drinks and fun shopping experience!!
Hope to see you there!
Joanne and Mary


Ciao
R-xo

Where did August go?

Have you ever had a weekend that seemed to go on and on..?  Well, we just did and I loved every minute.  It felt like the old days, before kids where there was always something to attend.  First off was pizza in the park.  The girls had a blast running around the park and seeing all the animals..."horsey" and "baby"  were the words of choice and swingin in the "wee, wees" was a crowd pleaser. Aaron takes the cake with the most under-doggies any kid I know has gotten.  He suckered all of us in, regardless of foot wear! Thanks for the great time Mike and Shelley.

petting zoo

The Proposal

The next day we were off to a birthday where there were pony rides and lots of space to run around.  The girls loved the "horsey" rides, even though there are no smiles in the pics and the mini petting zoo.  I think they would have stood at the fence forever. humm...maybe we need one...  Pookie was proposed to in traditional style, while her sister got all the smoochin time with the new bo...hopefully this is not a sign of what is to come.  Austyn what are you doin?  keepin your options open?  It was too cute.  Thanks Jess for the pics and the laughs at the kids expense!  Happy Birthday Denton!

Pookie & Mommy

Munchie & Daddy

The fun did not stop there the next day...we headed to a local family fun fair where we played in bouncy castles in between the downpours.  The girls loved it, especially the part where they ate cheezies, lemon pie and a side of melon for supper.  It has been a great summer, full of adventures and fun with the girls.  But it has also been an emotional time as my father has had to go through a pretty major surgery to remove a cancerous tumor.  The road to recovery has been long and fraught with unexpected health challenges that doctors have not been able to fix.  I'm going to have to stop now as I am getting too choked up just thinking about it.  But seriously where did August go?!

Ciao
R-xo

Tired Princesses

Pookie

Munchie

MG at the beach

What the Beach..did I do?

Little Pookie

The title of this post says it all.  We went on a family outing yesterday to the beach.  I am kinda obsessed with getting the girls exposed to different stuff and doing stuff as a family.  Darcy does not have this same obsession so going to the beach for the day was already on his" this may not go so well" radar.

We were meeting up with my sister, her family and a few others who are renting a cottage and vacationing for the week.  We left in the morning so the girls could have their morning nap, so far so good.  We arrived in time for lunch and a quick visit with friends who live in the area.  Then we sun screened up and headed to the beach..this is where the troubles began.

Munchie & Daddy

Emily was tired and started to rub her eyes with her hands, big mistake as she had sun screen on them and rubbed it into her eye.  We did not know it at the time..so continuing on...we got to the beach and proceeded to carry the stuff down....way too much stuff...but of course I had to have it all at the beach just in case we needed it..so a couple trips later we were set-up and started to change the girls into their suit.  Emily had been fussing for a bit and we were not sure why.  I thought she was tired and just needed a nap, but she was having no part of that.  Then the wailing started, she was so upset that she broke out in a red rash all over her face.  We finally figured it out that she had something in her eye and started to flush it out.  This was not working, so Darcy walked with her to settle her down...nope.  We flushed it again and she started to settle down.  At this point I was starting to pack up and head back to the car, who wants to be at the beach with crying children?

About the only smile we had from daddy!

Oh, Sophia was crying too, because she might of gotten a grain of sand on one toe and she was within sight of the water.  She sooo does not like the water, grass or sand on her feet.  I hope this changes by next summer.  Emily started to come around and was playing in the sand with her cousins..So I decided to stick it out for a bit.

I am glad I did cause we ended up having a good afternoon, a good supper and a nice bonfire before we headed home.  I knew we would be going home in the dark, and the girls will sleep in the truck, so that part was good.  One thing I did not think of was the amount gas needed to get us all the way home.  This is a big problem because we were driving in the country, where all the small towns lock down by 9pm, except for the local Tim Horton's.  When Darcy asked "how far can we drive with the light on" I began to panic....I pictured us at the side of the road, trying to stick it out until 7am when the gas station opened...not a good picture.  So for about half the ride home, I was nervous and I was wishing that cars run on coffee..cause they were open.
By the time we got to Listowel the truck was runnin pretty low and to our luck the gas station was open.  I almost kissed the pump!

Emily & Lilly playin nice

The day was not a total bust..but there are a few lessons learned....

• Never put sunscreen on the hands of toddlers......trust me I am not doing that again!
• Do not over pack for the beach...talking two trips to get all the stuff to and from the car is tiring!
• Do not take dips to the beach...they are sand magnets
• Pack booze..and drink it before it goes warm
• When things get rough..do not sit in your beach chair, laugh and open a drink..my husband did not appreciate this, nor did he find any of this funny
• Be sure to fill your truck up with gas before the gas stations close

I must say that I am not rushing back to the beach anytime soon....so girls it is you, me and the turtle pool!

Ciao

R-xo

Cryin' over spilled milk

I feel like I’m running non-stop these days, not a new feeling, but a reoccurring one..... and have far too many snippets of thoughts and ideas bouncing around in my head to even make any sense of them most of the time. I don’t know about you, but when I get mentally blocked up the best cure of all is to dump it out in order to remove the blockage..which is not happenin' these days.....Between the toddler talk, the daily maintenance of running a house and maintaining a career...leaves no time for pillow talk and that makes me kinda sad.  I loved our funny yet deep conversations, my husband and I had laying in bed pitch black....something made it seem uninhibited by talking in the dark.  We connect differently and talk differently and it is kinda nice to do that without a coffee in hand or the TV playing in the background.  So why does this have to stop?  Oh ya...raising the twins has taken over and I mean consumed anything we have left in us by the end of the night even our conversations start with "so how were the girls today?" or "What did the girls do today?" or just general conversations about them...eating, pooping and playing.  Now...I knew that this would happen, but I am still mystified that is does...and that only the dishes get done at night and nothing else.  So now we go to bed...at different times, put in our sleeping guards and do not stir until the girls wake for their bottles...7am!  Things of the past, do they ever come back?

R-xo

We Have Another Walker!

I am happy to report that We have another walker.  Sophia is on the move and walking like a pro..like she has been doing it for weeks (closet walker) and just now has decided to show off...and at Gramma Alice's house no less.  This makes things interesting.  I have to be in two places at once...it is like they talk about this before I bring them down from their naps to play.  "okay..when she lets us down, you go for the fridge magnets and I will stand on the toddler chair to distract her and then you can chuck the fridge magnets in the garbage..okay drop and run!" 

So I have been busy completing the girls 1st year memory book and for the first time I am doing this on-line through an on-line scrap booking company called Heritage Makers...my sister-in-law is a consultant and has gotten me into this.  If anyone is interested in this, as you can make alot of other stuff too..cards, scrapbook pages etc..and it is easy with all the digital photos (no deciding what pics and then having them printed..) you can get in contact with her at misformemories@yahoo.ca and she will lead you through it.  I am amazed that I have completed their birth book and now I have to work on their milestone books...

R-xo

Tuesday Funny

Pookie!

Munchie

do I need to say more?....

I just need more time

I have been back to work for about a month and I feel like I have added chaos to my already crazy schedule. Routine, Routine, Routine, if I hear another person tell me I am not in a routine yet, or I need to get into a routine I will jump off a bridge (not literally, although some days I wonder….) like I don't want the madness to stop!

I am a planner, it is in my nature...or as my husband would think neurotic, crazy calendar lady..oh look her comes the calendar again, lets run and hide! It is just that I like to be organized, know what I am up against…and I like to be a step ahead of my sister when it comes to securing babysitters, cause we use the same ones..our parents!

With my sister having twins before me I sometimes look at her life or ask for her experiences when her girls were my girls age….so far there is no comparison…my girls are just the opposite of what hers were. Her girls would sit in a high chair and enjoyed dinner with the rest of us…my girls will sit for 5 minutes, not eat anything and then cry to get out, no sitting with the family through dinner so we eat one at a time. Her girls would go with the flow, be content with whatever was going on...mine..well I am guessing you are picking up a theme here…so discussing child rearing is not easy and mostly frustrating for me. This is probably one of the things I did not expect, this much craziness. Don’t get me wrong I am not expecting smooth sailing, but the constant craziness all day, every day was not what I was expecting… so far lesson learned is not to plan so much and enjoy the time we have with the girls as they are only going to be 13 months once! easier said then done right?

R-xo

My Little Parrot & First Bumps

Emily has her own language but Sophia has turned into quite the little parrot. She tries to repeat a lot of what you say, even though she does not know what it is she is saying. We were reading a bed time story and I was pointing out the butterfly. She would start to say "but, but fel, butfel" and then out pops…"poopy" (with smiles behind it)! What a girl. My little parrot!


We officially have had our first bloody lip and nose…all in the same weekend and all done by Emily. Poor munchie, I am surprised she still wants to walk with all the falls and "tragedy" she endures. For her bloody lip she tripped and fell against the leg of the chair and for her bloody nose she walked onto the swing while her sister was swinging in it.


Everything is totally devastating to her..from when you say "no, don't touch that" to a minor fall, to a bloody nose…she puts both hand in front of her mouth and wails, and tears start to come and then some more machine gun wailing. Let's not forget the verbal scolding that follows…..abadabpa, beddda, apieapie and she is so upset about, it like I was the one who injured her and she is not going to stand for it! But like most kids..give her a few minutes and she is laughing and playing like it never happened…and of course she tried to walk in front of the swing again..this time daddy had her number!

Happy Canada day all.
Ciao
R-xo

Munchie is on the Move

Well last night after I got home from a very looooong drive (work thing)…we were sitting in the family room and Emily started to walk without making a dive to the couch..we clapped and cheered like she just won a gold medal...(in my mind she did) She is walking a few steps..standing in the middle of the room..doing a few jumps, which she is famous for, and then continuing on to the couch….she then turns around, claps and laughs for herself….soo cute! If she is unsure she drops and crawls to her destination..so it will be neat to see what progress she has made when I get home tonight.

Sophia...still a wobbly little colt but she did make it up the step in the family room and back down again… so Darcy told me..she did this while he was out of the room..hummmm. He said he came into the kitchen and she was standing at the sewing machine table..then when he came back she was at the phone by the couch in the family room…hummmm I somehow think a fairy swooped down and gave her a little nudge, cause I did not see it

So when I came home tonight my husband said..."we have a surprise for you mommy" Houston we have a climber! When I walked in the door she climbed right up the one step in the family room and zoomed on over to me….and her climbing has not stopped there…to our amazement she has already climbed the entire set of stairs….with mommy in tow of course. What a little monkey…..yesterday she was whining to get someone to help her up the step in the family room and today conquering the stairs…her moto is if I cannot do it right the first time then I will wait until I can.  No more racing back and forth like a caged monkey, crying until someone comes over and gently guides her up and over the step.

I am glad that my husband is home some of the time to witness these events, cause hearing about them from someone else would make me feel guilty for going back to work and not being there for them. I do not want to miss anything that goes on in their lives, I want to be there to share the triumphs and pitfall, cause face it, we all know how live goes and anything we can do to make it better for the ones we love, we do!

Ciao
R-xo

The move and beyond!

So the days leading up to the move had been hectic. We, the girls and I, had been living with my parents in order to completely disasemble all the baby stuff, kitchen stuff and pack in the storage bin. The storage bin has been a god sent to us….it made the move that much smoother. I have to admitt I was a bit neuratic when it came to the packing. The thought of a box of misc stuff packed together would of sent me over the edge. All the candles or picture frames had to be in a box together even of that meant running to a few different rooms and gather stuff up. I had a good system until the last few days where stuff just got crambed into the storage bin or a box (not by me..). Urgh..

I have to say thanks to all who helped...we had help the weekend before, packing the storage bin and moving the heavy stuff out of the house, help with the packing of stuff and breakables..And of course the help the day of...You guys were such good sports about it all..cause face it we all hate to move and even worse help someone to move.  Thanks to Julie who did most of the cleaning as I raced around looking in every nook and cranny to be sure we did not forget anything....

To my surprise my loving husband, who did not want to see his wife have a melt down on moving day, sneakedly secured a key and garage door opener from the couple who we bought the house from.  So by 2pm we were in and unpacked!  We officially got possion of the house at 5pm, but by then the moving was over with.    Now it is just the daunting task of unpacking and trying to find a place for eveything.  I cannot believe this stuff fit in a 1500 sq ft home and now we have 3200 sq of living space and I still have a hard time with where to put stuff...esp tupperware right Cindy!

Adjusting to our new surroundings has not been a challenge, infact it has been a very long awaited and welcome change.  The girls fit right in…they are kinda go-with-the-flow types most of the time, so the changing of the houses did not seem to bother them. In fact, the new house might buy us a few months as they explore and figure out a new space…then we will have to move again! NOT

R-xo

Back to Work Blues....

I miss the girls... I miss our days together and now I just sit at my desk and wonder what they are doing, cause before I knew what they were doing....throwing toys, talkin up a storm, crawling all over the place, laughin at you when you smiled at them, the list can go on....I jut plain old miss them!

I've had a lot of coworkers stop by and chat since I have been back to work…most of the questions/conversations revolve around the girls, none about me. I can handle that since being second fiddle to the girls.. has been this way for quite some time now. The most popular comments have been.."they are not identical are they?" (like shock…when twins do not look the same) or wow you must be busy, (nope only the moms with singletons are busy)


The most popular question is…."are they walking yet?" and when I say "no, not yet, just crawlin", I get the ohh, looks, like I have horns coming out of the top of my head. Now…something I have learned by being a mom is…do not ask about the "developmental milestones" achieved, not achieved….whatever…I hate the "every baby will develop in their own time" speech that follows…so when one of my co workers jumped in and said that crawling babies = genesis..I just had to Google it and there were lots of sites on it. The jest of it was..mobility is linked to brain development and crawling can stimulate brain growth. Do not over encourage infants to stand or walk..they will do it when they are ready. WOW… my girls are like little crawling athletes!

BUT I STILL MISS THEM! Sniff, Sniff

R-xo

moving is no picnic

Moving has been no picnic….…a lot to organize between helpers and mail and child care and cleaning and timing of stuff…I am slowly realizing that I cannot get it all done in the amount of time I have left….and I am getting some flax from family on how I want to do the move - so family if you are reading this…smile and just agree.  I need a magical "moving" fairy to swoop in pick up the pieces…


So far lessons learned - and we have not even moved yet!

• do not share your moving plans with family unless you like the, oh I would have done it this way..or why do that? converstaions,
• do not constantly talk about the move with your husband as I quickly learned we both have different ideas of how to move and could of just saved the anxiety between us to one day instead of 3 weeks..
• do not start back to work 2 weeks before you move - definaltly would not do this again!
• do accept help from anyone and everyone who offers..in fact nail down a day and time when they ask…this way they cannot make "other plans".
• do not stop grocery shopping - you end up eating everything in your freezer you did not want to eat any other time….like cereal and frozen bread/bagels (toasted) for lunch with 4 kinds of frozen veggies…and expired chocolate…5 days in a row!
• do stock up at the liquor store (you are not going to move it anyways..)…packing is much better when you carry your glass of wine around with you as you pack
• do not pack the booze first!!!big no, no not sure what I was thinkin when I did that?!?
• do not mention to your husband that for fun..maybe we should "get jiggy with it" in each room before we leave…they are like elephants..they never forget!

that is my rant for the day…somehow I feel better….


R - xo

What has become my NEW normal

I have come to quickly realize that my normal is a constant changing of the guard….these days only one of us can get any real stuff done like packing, cooking or cleaning, cause the other one has to pay close attention to the "monkeys on the move" or feed them or change them or bathe them….I could go on…and with my return to work, my days are really shorten.

So, I broke the baby gate on fri…now it is a real challenge watching them. The other night we were all in the kitchen, or so I thought…when I looked over to where Sophia was to be sitting and realized she was not…..Yikes! Sophia had made her way to the stairs and was sitting on the top danglin her feet over……(I was with Emily as she was climbin in the dishwasher and daddy was doing the dishes)… …did not think she could move that fast….life is a whole new playground for them and they are going to take advantage…I just have to make it this week without this darn gate as the new place does not need one except for the stairs.

On Sunday, the girls were with my parents, they had them overnight cause we went to a wedding, Congratulations Jeff & Lindsay.  Sophia has this thing...this screaming/crying thing where she can out scream anyone, so my dad and her had a screaming match..my dad kept saying that he could scream louder than her, but I don’t know..it was close!  She did stop crying, which might have been his goal.

Ahh my new normal.  Some how being away from it all day...makes me miss them even more.

R-xo

Last day before back to Work

So this is my last day before I start back to work after being off for 14+ months.  I feel nervous and anxious all at the same time.  The girls have been going to daycare for the past few days and are lovin it.  MW gives them glowing reports everyday, she also gets them to sleep for a few hours in the morning and afternoon....I guess the old adage is true...kids are different when their parents are not around!

The girls will be going 3 days a week to daycare and 2 days a week with daddy daycare.  I know my husband is excited to be with the girls and I want it to be as easy as possible for him...well for the first few days....

This morning, we dropped them off ar daycare and on our way to the coffee shop I asked...."So I am going to do some grocery shopping, is there anything you want for you and the girls?"  he replied "nothing"  I rasied an eybrow to the quick answer..but continued.."are you sure, what would you like me to make?"  he said "whatever they will eat"  okay....so fend for yourself leftovers it is...!!   he then proceeded to add.."do you think I am not capable?..we will be fine, you just get yourself ready for working again"  I guess it is the mommy jitters....after I get a few days of work under my belt I should be okay...?!?

R-xo

Little Pookie is on the Move - crab style?

Well now...little pookie is making her way around a room.  She has this kinda one-legged crab-butt shuffle that looks like it is way more complicated than just plain old crawling, but she gets around and she does it all by herself.  The pics say it all...

The other evening, after they had gone to bed and of course not sleeping but playing.... I was watching them through the crack in the door, which I do often to see who's legs are stuck betweek the crib rails...and there little pookie was standing up, proud as can be.  She was bahh, bahhing to her sister (look at me..look at me..) and her sister was giving the praise back (so I want to believe) then the wobbly little legs gave way and down on her butt she went....


R - xo

We are 1!!

We are 1...and we survived...I feel like I have achieved a great hurdle,surviving their first year, yet I know that there will be many more hurdles to come.

What a day..the sun was shining, the drinks were flowin, the jumpy castle was a hit, thanks to Aunt Anne and Uncle Dave, and we were surrounded by family and friends. What a great way to celebrate this amazing milestone. Of course, there was lots of cake and the girls did their best to cover themselves in sugary icing while dodging the oodles of cameras trying to capture this moment...and well I am no exception...here are a few pics of their day...

I would like to say thank you to everyone for making this day very special, we truly are blessed!

R-xo

Munchie is on the Move

In just the last week Emily has put it all together and is crawling intricate paths throughout the main floor. Quickly. More quickly than we can childproof everything. She can move like I have not seen a baby do before...across the room in no time at all. She is pulling herself up on tables and has started to walk up and down them. Yesterday she pulled herself up on a walking toy and started to cross the room to me. She is one determined little girl and I cannot believe the progress in a week! Kinda makes me think what else will she learn/do so quickly and do I really want her to grow up that fast?

This morning as I lay in bed listening to the 2 princess play and talk to their toys, I could hear faint womps on the floor. Then I hear munchie laughing and jumping in her crib. When I finally get up to investigate...I discover that everything she owned (in her crib)was on the floor and she was looking over the rail at all the stuff and laughing. Blankets, plush toys, groovy girl, sucky, everything that was not attached went overboard.

After morning nap she was playing in the toy room and I heard a clang, clang, clang...obviously investigating this...she had moved most of the mega blocks to the gate and was chucking them over...it was such a cute sight as she cannot see over the gate, but she was so proud to have accomplished this...she was having such a good time that I let her continue until her pile was gone.

Friends have said that times go by so fast and until now I thought they were crazy, but seeing my angel go from a sit-and-stay baby to a crawling, monkey jumpin princess has gone fast.

There is no stopping her now as I redirect her from my coffee for the 10th time! Life with twin 1 year olds is not the same anymore.

Little Pookie....when are you going to start this journey?

WM or SAHM

As I make mental preparations for going back to work, it strikes me that I will be a "working mom" So why the labels "working mom" and "stay at home mom." Is one title making the other title jealous or any less of a mom or career women? We make a choice to become a parent and that helps define us but that is not all we are. I feel a bit torn with making the decision to go back to work, financially it is great and I like my job, so maybe that makes the decision a bit easier. I hope that I am setting a good example for my girls and I hope that daycare will do them good. What I do know is that the change will do us all good....

Meanwhile, back at my regularly scheduled life.....
Princess pookie shoves a whole arrowroot cookie in her mouth and tries to smile at me...wanting me to jump up and take it out, but not this time..I watched as the mushy runny cookie drool oozed out of her mouth. She was using both hands to keep it all in there while she chewed and she did it...what a mess to clean up..oh well.. good thing daddy does the laundry!

I hope that I will not be missing out on stuff,(knowing that I will be as I write this) I guess that is the scary part and that is the part that makes me wonder. The other side of the daycare coin is that daddy will be on "duty" 2 days a week...what a comfort to know that he will be making memories and telling me, working mom, all about his day with excitement in his voice. Photos, lots and lots of photos.....

R- xo

Our first tupperware experience

Ahh the tupperware cupboard...was that not always a favourite? No matter where you went there were always cupboards to get into and the tupperware one was always a crowd pleaser....well my girls have now discovered their new favourite place. While I was not out of the room when the following events took place, I did watch from afar with camera in hand....It started out so innocently with Emily's curiosity. Once Sophia saw what she was doing, she wanted in on the action and with a few quick rolls she was sittin pretty! Then things turned into a frenzy with containers and lids flying out of the cupboard, at one point Emily had a container on her head and Sophia was hitting it with a lid...both were laughing...both were discovering and both were not crying! What a moment...

Sites I like

Hey...we all cruz around and find sites that are of interest to us and of course we add them to the ever growing list of favourites..well here are a few more to check out and add to your list....

http://www.ptpamedia.com/
http://www.yellowood.org/
http://www.babycenter.ca/
http://www.lcbo.com/
http://www.infomommy.com/
http://www.3greeksisters.com/ (hopefully I will get their recipe book for mother's day or my birthday....hint daddy!)

Keepin in Touch - 11 Months

Many remarkable events happen in my daily life , although as an "on maternity leave" mom, some of the routine of being at home can get stale...so staying in touch with family and friends is my welcome relief to the "mummumumum" and "ahhhh" that tend to fill my day. oh..lets not forget the crying!

Below is a recent e-mail update I sent to family and friends.

wow...we are almost at 1 year. It is hard to believe that I have been off work for 13+ months and all that has happened......so now the count down for me to go back to work is on....June 1. Mixed emotions for me and I'm sure a lot of tears..but we have a whole month+ to party before that happens....

Our house is SOLD...a bit of drama at the end but the deal is done. Now comes the packing....I guess I can handle that knowing the prize at the end! If anyone has boxes they can give us we would greatly appreciate it......please let us know or drop them by...

The girls are stellar...and doing more each day. Emily is getting herself up to a sitting position and pulling herself up on stuff...and Sophia is trying to pull herself up but only gets to her knees and then moves on to something else....short attention span I think..... Both girls are chatters..if I have not mentioned that before, a true Rellinger (or Van Merlo) trait according to Darcy and Uncle Dave. Sophia has 2 more top teeth (which makes 6)..while Emily only has her bottom 2 teeth with 2 top ones just peeking through but that does not stop them from eating just about anything you give them....including sweaters and hood strings! you think that Sophia is leaning in to give you a kiss, but she swoops down and bites your shirt..then looks at you (with shirt in mouth) and laughs...

Both girls like to touch, pull hair, steal toys, socks and laugh at each other...every time I go and get the video camera to capture these precious moments...it has passed. But I did capture one just recently....Sophia is becoming famous for pushing herself backwards and getting under furniture....and well this time she backed herself around the couch and wedged in beside the wall and coffee table...it was the cutest thing to watch. Emily kept looking around the corner in disbelief, wondering how she got there but more importantly..why??

The girls have also been going to daycare once a week for the past few weeks......a welcome relief for me and I am making the most of my free time!...thanks Michelle for fitting us in...

take care everyone, drop us a line or just drop by.

R-xo

Are they twins?

The Twins are now at an age where they will touch, laugh and swipe toys from each other. Sophia will steel Emily's socks and they both will belly laugh about it. Emily will hold out a toy for Sophia to steel, which she does and they both will laugh about it. Seeing them do this back and forth is fascinating and comforting to know that they love each other...

As my husband and I sit and have our morning coffee, (after the feeding frenzy most call breakfast) he starts to talk about how our little princesses might be...grow up....will little pookie who is very hands on and very verbal, using 1 finger to spin things around, all the while singing the brummm, brummm song; be a creative or into music, a girls who knows what she wants girl (cause she certainly know what she doesn't want now)? AND will munchie, who will sit and stare at something, turn it over or around and in our minds is wondering how it works, be the quite, visual observer who gets it right the first time? Time will tell...

We have had several friends point out the fact that they are very different, besides their looks, and they themselves have predicted similar behaviours... It is funny how different they are, cause they are twins and it will be amazing to watch their little personalities grow. I hope I’ll always remember the way they interacted before they could speak words.

R- xo

It is SOLD

IT IS SOLD - those are 3 words, where about 3 weeks ago, I thought would never appear. Selling our place with 2 little ones is a chore. The de-cluttering and constant cleaning was enough to drive me crazy...but it is "all worth it in the end"...some how that cliche could hold true for just about anything.....like when little pookie decided to scream every night this week before naps and bed, and munchie munch's continued crabbiness all day long as her teeth pop through the top..but tonight as they go to bed they both reached up to touch my face and try and give me a big wet kiss - more like a lick on the cheek...with a great big smile as they cuddle into their blankets and plush toys to drift off to sleep....it is all worth it in the end.

sweet dreams
Rebecca xo

The Decision to Blog

Well.....I am so excited to start blogging. I have contributed to others blogs and have thought of taking on this adventure, but I was unable to find the time nor the inspiration, until spending time at home being a mom..being away from my working life.

My inspiration comes in 3 forms, my "little pookie", "munchie munch" and my husband.

Looking back on the past 3 years of marriage, and the long awaited pregnancy/motherhood.....has driven me to share my journey and hope that these life experience will make a difference to someone else in a similar situations. This is my version of pay-it-forward, sharing in this incredible journey and as most of my friends know...I like to share whatever thoughts, ideas or trying moments happen in my life.

Give me some time as I am just getting this up and running, but do remember to check back often.


Rebecca xo - below is the latest e-mail update to family and friends.....

The house deal on our new place has finalized and we are moving in June! I feel like I have been on an episode of ``Sell this House`` ( I keep lookin for the hidden cameras) cause it has been a whirlwind around here trying to get the house ready, having viewings (constant cleaning), negotiating an offer and having it fall through...and back on the market again...urgh I think I need to invest in a crystal ball or rub something lucky! When this is all said and done..mama is going to need some retail therapy!

Girls are growing and we finally have a roller! Sophia is rollin around just the same as Emily which is good cause now she can get to the toys after she throws them (instead of just screaming and kickin like a turtle on its back.) Sophia has her 2 top teeth peeking through and Emily had nothing more but the bottom ones..yet.

Emily likes to stand and is almost pulling her self up on stuff. This morning I went to get them from their morning nap and Emily was sitting up..I put her back down and watched how she pulled herself up on the side of the crib...time to lower the crib I guess....

There is not a waking moment when the two are not talking (or crying) that's for sure...and they are starting to play, or steal toys, from one another and laugh about it..for now. I`m sure there will be lots of battles to come!

We also went on our first wagon ride. It was a bit squishy as our cousin Mary Grace was with us, but we all loved it. Mary kept on pointing to the girls and blabbing..she just loves the girls and she cannot wait until they are all in daycare together.

For months I have been trying to get the girls to hold a bottle or sippy cup to drink from...then daddy had them for one feeding and voila! two little girls holding their own bottles..I guess they think that daddy means business or something...hopefully this hold true to potty training!


Thanks to everyone who helped with the girls and to my parents who helped us get the house ready..what a chore