Off to School We Go...

After much laboring over a decision about what kind of transformation our life would take this fall, we finally have a conclusion! It's the compromise that we were hoping for, but not one that we felt was possible in the area that we live in. We found an inexpensive (due to the fact that it is subsidized by the city where we live) half day, three-day-a-week preschool program for EC. It is walking distance from our house and they have a spot for EC in their four-year-old program. We visited last week and spoke with her teacher. The teachers have been there for 5+ years and worked within the city programs for close to twenty years. The classroom was divided up into a music area, art area, and a spot for story time and circle time. They also had several play areas - one set up like a kitchen, one was a wooden playhouse filled with dolls and the last one had every kind of block you could imagine. The kids were a pretty diverse crowd and the teachers were laid back, but in charge. They have the short time scheduled for the kids and they learn from a new theme each week.

EC dove right in, introducing herself to the kids, playing with them on the computer, and making stuff with scissors and paper. She is so ready for a little time to be independent of Mommy and Daddy. And I cannot wait to hear the stories that she has to tell about making new friends and all the exciting new things she learns in school. She's going to have a hard time waiting until September for the start of the new school year. I, on the other hand, am glad that I have a few months to prepare. It will be hard to admit that she's big enough to go to school all on her own, even if its just for a few hours a day.

The best part of this scenario is that I can stay home for one more year. I'll get to spend three mornings a week with little LR and all three of us will have our afternoons and Tuesdays and Thursdays for our normal routine. I am a little disappointed that I won't be going back to work, but I think this is the best option for our little family. And I feel extremely fortunate that we are able to do this for one more year. Now that we have preschool figured out, we have only a few short months before the search for a kindergarten begins!

A Confession

I'm about to confess something that will probably be met with a collective gasp. I will clarify this admission by saying that I love, love, love my kids. However, I would be lying if I said that I don't sometimes find the prattling of my darling children maddening. I even tell them to stop sometimes. I am aware that this makes me highly imperfect. I am also aware that my incessant chatter has been found annoying on more than one occasion. Pot, meet kettle.

I am a talker. And for those of you who have met me, you might say that this is an understatement. Staying at home and not going out into the adult world every day has made the situation worse. I feel like I can't get the words out fast enough sometimes when I find myself in a conversation with someone whose age ranges in the double digits. Its like a flood gate opens and all those bottled up words just come rushing out. Much to the dismay of my friends, I'm sure. Definitely something that my dear husband is more than tolerant about. Thank you, G.

So, it shouldn't really be a surprise to me that my kids are chatterboxes. And because I am such a chatterbox myself, I should be more tolerant of all the chattering going on around me. Alas, I was given the gift of gab, not the gift of tolerance.

In my defense, its not the actual talking that I find annoying. Its the repetition. EC is at a phase when she will repeat the same phrase over and over and over and.... well, you get my point. Sometimes its a repeated request. Often, she just wants me to acknowledge her and respond. The one that gets me the most is when she sings the same line over and over and over. Its like having a song stuck in your head. I'm aware of how terrible this all sounds. What kind of mother doesn't embrace the creative songwriting of her three-year-old? A terrible one.

I feel as if I can confess this to you, though. And that maybe, just maybe, one or two of you will understand and not read this post with disdain. As you may have figured out by now, patience is not my strong suit. So, there you have it. I'm a mommy who finds her kids annoying at times. I'm sure I'm not the only one, but I might be the only one who tells her song-writing toddler to can the music for a minute.

Shout Out!

Today's post is a shout out to G for passing all his exams and finishing all the requirements for his architectural license. He is officially done and will now have the very important significance of having letters after his name!! The requirements for the license involve lots of paperwork, payments to various organizations who have managed to find a way to make a profit off of the process, fulfilling a certain number of work hours in a bunch of different areas of expertise, and, of course, taking and passing nine (or more!) exams that encompass, not only architecture, but engineering fields associated with the profession. Its tough going. To add to the craziness, the licensing board decided two years ago to re-write the whole exam process and change everything up. G was caught in the middle of this and had to re-take exams.

While, I'm very proud of him for getting his license, I'm even more proud of him for deciding to finish. I know that there was a moment when he found out that he had to re-take exams that he'd already passed, when he really just wanted to quit. Okay, months of moments. And I know that it was hard to commit to go back to studying every night after work and on the weekends, too. But he made the commitment and stuck with it. He plowed through one exam after another until yesterday, we received the final notice that he passed them all! I'm not sure it has completely sunk in yet that he's done! No more nights of studying and weekends spent at the office instead of with the family. He has earned this license and I'm so very happy to share in his celebration. The only other thing I can say is: It's time for a really big party!

Tiring Out Toddlers

I can sum up this article for you in a single sentence. You cannot tire out toddlers. I could go on to say that trying will only tire yourself out. I tried to write this post yesterday, but I was too worn out from the weekend to pick up my laptop.

The girls have been waking up early and napping terribly for the past week or two. I thought it might be because we'd been spending too much time indoors - the weather has not been very cooperative for outdoor play. I figured they weren't getting enough exercise to tire them out properly and make them sleep well. And so, I decided to team up with G over the weekend on a campaign to wear out our kids and get a nice long nap out of both of them. A nice long nap is usually needed to reset their little inner clocks and get them back into their normal sleep pattern.

On Saturday, we woke up a little hopeful about the weather. The forecast was still not a great one - cloudy with possible showers, but it hinted that it might be warmer than it had been all week. We were hoping it might even hit 60 degrees. And so we packed up the stroller with our two girls and a diaper bag full of essentials and headed for the train. We got off at a stop downtown and let the girls walk, run and wander through one of the many parks. There was grass to play in, rocks to climb on and a merry-go-round. And, to top off a great adventure, the clouds went away and left us with only sunshine and warm temperatures. The girls were thrilled to be running around without their jackets and we were just happy to see them running. Surely, all this running and walking would tire them out and ensure a good, long nap.

After the merry-go-round, we wandered over to find something to eat. The girls were in great spirits and ate quite a lot of food - a sure sign that our plan was working. We finished lunch and decided to take the scenic route back to the train. We walked along the water, breathing in the ocean air. All that fresh air had to be doing something, right?

We made it back to the train where the girls were practically vibrating with the excitement of our day. And they seemed happy to be heading home. When we got home and tucked them into bed for their naps, they fell asleep quickly and, I have to admit, so did I. I was exhausted. Hours of walking around in the fresh air had indeed had the desired effect - on me!

Unfortunately, our plan didn't work. The girls were up and bouncing around long before we were ready for them to be awake. I, on the other hand, was too tired to move. Maybe, the exhaustion will hit them tonight, I thought. Instead, they had trouble falling asleep that night and actually woke up early the next morning. Seriously?

On the other hand, G and I fell into bed at 8:30 pm completely worn out from our day of wearing out the kids. Which would have been worth it had we actually worn them out. I think we're going to have to move on to Plan B - pay someone much younger than ourselves to wear out our children!

Daddy Talk

Tonight at dinner, I had a realization. I have to share my husband with my daughters. I'm not completely naive. I have known this for years. Ever since EC entered this world head first into his waiting arms. But tonight, I understood it a little more.

During dinner, I was talking around the incessant chatter of little girls, trying in vain to have a conversation with G. Today was an indoor day. Meaning we didn't leave the house. These are the days I dread as a stay at home mom and they are usually the days that push me over the edge. When G gets home on a day like today, I am ready to burst with unspoken words. And usually, I feel a little entitled to some conversation with my husband over dinner. Is that too much to ask?

It occurred to me as I was about to tell EC that it was Mommy's turn to talk, that she would have to wait to ask Daddy her question. She had been waiting all day to talk to him, too. And just like that, I stopped talking and let her take a nice long turn chatting about cowgirls and hats and birthday presents and teeth. Because as much as I miss adult interaction during the day, she misses her Daddy. She might get to spend all day long with Mommy, but Daddy is only around for an hour in the morning and an hour in the evening and those two hours are taken up by breakfast and dinner and bath time. Not nearly enough conversation time for a little girl and her Daddy.

So, tomorrow morning, when we're pouring the cereal and making the coffee, I will try to remember that while I am entitled to have a conversation with my husband, it can wait until a little girl has a conversation with her Daddy.

Best Buddies

Yesterday, while I was getting things ready for us to leave the house, the girls started a game of silliness. I never figured out what the point of the game was, but they were running through the house, shrieking and then falling down on the floor and convulsing into giggles. Whatever it was that they were doing was so ridiculously funny to them that they were laughing until they were breathless. It was quite a site to watch and I was glad that they were entertaining themselves for long enough for me to pack the diaper bag and get myself ready.

What I liked even more was that they were enjoying playing with each other so much. EC can make LR laugh like no one else can. Watching them together, clearly having so much fun was just heartwarming and it really does make up for all the fights over the same toy and pushing matches that I have to intervene in on a regular basis. Just like all those middle of the night feedings and diaper changes are forgotten in that instant when your baby smiles for the first time, watching your kids play together makes you momentarily forget all those sister fights.

Its true when they say that two kids is more than double the work of one. At least it is in the beginning. You not only have to take care of and entertain each kid appropriate for their age level, you have to control their interactions as well. But just as they get older and can do more things for themselves, their interactions as siblings change, too. I know that they will fight over toys until they leave the house and possibly even beyond. But I also know that because there are two of them, they have one more person in this world who's looking out for them and that can only be a good thing!

Appreciating the Small Stuff

The weather around here (and it sounds like in the rest of the country as well) has been cold and dreary. Usually by the time spring hits, I'm the envy of all my friends. Walking to the park and playing in the sunshine and warm weather with the kids while they are all stuck in their offices wishing they weren't missing their daily dose of vitamin D. This is my reward for making it through the winter months stuck inside with two rambunctious kids.

Not this year. This year, my reward is a few more months stuck inside wishing the rain and cold weather would stop. And I'm having a little trouble coping without the reward part. I'm ready to walk outside and feel the warmth. We've had one or two warm days, but really, its been cold, cold, cold. And the ten day weather forecast has a little raincloud on every day.

All this foul weather has made us a little claustrophobic. The girls are ready to be outside running around and I'm in need of some fresh air too. The apartment is closing in on us! My solution has been to get them out whenever possible - even if it's just to play in the back yard for twenty minutes before the rain or the cold forces us back inside.

Yesterday, the forecast was for steady rain all day. The girls watched television, made paper dolls, had a snack and played with their toys. That got us to 9:30 am. What should we do now?

We played for a while longer, had lunch early and finally, got a break in the weather. And by that, I mean that it stopped raining. It was still cold and wet outside. But it was the best we could expect and the girls were bouncing off the walls. So, we bundled up, put on rain boots and headed outside. I was depressed to note that as I opened the back door, it was so cold that I could see my breath. EC, however, stepped out the back door and said, "My, what a beautiful day it is!"

I had to smile at her reaction. Everyone has been grumbling for weeks or even months about our weather. It is colder and rainier than we're used to, but sometimes kids are able to appreciate things better than us. She must have been happy just to be outside. Of course, twenty minutes later, LR was complaining and heading for the back door. She must take after her mommy.