Pretend Mom

Gary called me at work today.

Brooke wanted to play pretend.

Her idea was that Gary would play "Brooke" and she would play "the Mom."

A dialogue ensued.

The Mom: "Brooke, I am going to be on the phone all day. Play with your Ariel doll. Oh, and don't hit or I will throw all your toys in the trash k?" 

Is this really how she 'hears' me??!! I think some of my messages / lessons my be getting skewed.

and PS-I am not on the phone all day.

New Things

So, I decided to join today. I contacted our parish this week and inquired about joining our church's mom's group. I had my first meeting today.

And....it went fabulously.

I had such a great time. The best part, though, was dropping the girls off.

Brooke was SO pumped to go to the church play group. When we got to our destination though?? Different story.

Caroline could have cared less. Once we got to the nursery she saw toys and forgot I exist. Brooke refused to take her jacket off and I feared being able to leave the room.

Two hours later and I was back to pick up the girls.

Different Brooke.

When I entered the nursery, Caroline was knee deep in the animal crackers (while wearing a cheerleading skirt) and Brooke was wearing a full wedding dress.

I asked the moms if the girls were on their best behavior. They informed me that my daughter was only to be referred to as, “Mary Poppins.”

I was aware of this alter ego…but unaware that she ‘performed’ in public.

They then let me know that not only was Mary Poppins in nursery school that day, but she actually performed a full “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” routine.

Full out.

They let me know that they were quite impressed that she knew the word “precocious.”

Someone had a good time today…and so did mom :)

Sleep.

It only took almost 15 months, but we are finally getting some shut eye.

For Brooke, she needed a pacifier (or maybe 8 pacifiers) and some water in her bed. This did the trick for her and we didn't look back. I now regret letting her have those two items. We have had to get her off the water...and...if we are being honest...we are still trying to steal the pacifiers away.

Caroline is not into the pacifier. It is even king of humorous because she will take them away from Brooke, run off laughing and then when Brooke cries she will walk back over to Brooke and stick it in her mouth. Who is the big sister?? When she was a baby-I would have LOVED it if she took that paci. Now, I am glad it turned out the way it did...expect when it came to sleep.

Caroline's vice is her bottle. I would not give her a 'real' bottle in bed, but she would take water. This wouldn't be a big deal, but she would wake up one, two, three, sometimes even five times a night for water. It drove me nuts.

Gary tends to be a bit of a push over with the girls...especially at night and especially if there are tears involved. So, he would give in to Caroline's cries and she would be happy. Gary was not happy, though, when we was getting 6 hours of majorly interrupted sleep.

After the listening to the encouraging words of friends, I decided that it was time to end the chaos. I let Gary know that no matter what...we were NOT going to go into Caroline's room. It was hard (more for him then for me) but we stuck to the plan.

I am happy to say that after two days, Caroline is now sleeping in her crib from 7:00 p.m. - 7:00 a.m. If she wakes up during the night it is for minutes. It is awesome. I am happier, Gary is well rested...and (truth be told) so is Caroline.

Why did we wait this long....

Finally!!!

Good Weather.

For someone (like me) who never minds the cold weather season...I am SO ready this year for SPRING! With the FABULOUS weather today, I had the girls outside...for as long as possible in the muddy grass :)

Ok, even I see it here...does the girly look like her mom or what???

I'm sorry...I have a call. As usual.

I love slides!!!

A P & T Valentines

For some people, Valentines Day equals flowers and candy.

Me? I am more practical.

I have been nagging asking Gary if we could get a new stroller for quite some time now. He surprised me with this Phil & Ted Classic yesterday afternoon. Yes, it was the day after Valentines...but that made it even more of a surprise!!

What makes this stroller even more awesome is that it can 'grow' with you.

Don't get any ideas...we don't need the extra space anytime soon, but if we did...it's possible.

I took the girls on a walk this morning and she was a dream. The front wheel locks or rotates and when Brooke got a little tired, I even let her sit in front of Caroline's feet (a little trick learned from my friend B).

Can't wait to get more use as the sun hangs out long and parks/zoos/walks become daily/weekly fun!!

Disney....LIVE

Last Friday, Grandma Etta and I took Brooke & Lily to Disney's Mickey's Live Magic Show.

It did not disappoint.

Yes, I even broke my rule, and let Brooke wear her Cinderella dress to the show.

And then....my camera died.

Luckily, I had my cell-although the pictures are not nearly as good.

Grandma & her girls!
Only the BEST Grandma brings bagels as snacks.

Did I mention that she also had trash bags in her purse/diaper bag?
In case it rained, we were fully prepared (with arm holes already cut out)

Lunch at Bread Co!

Winding down with their BFF

Cousin LOVE!

Thanks to Grandma Etta for a very special day! The girls will always remember it-can't wait for Disney on Ice!!

To wear..or not to wear

So, my sister Amy and I were having a conversation today.

Both of our girls are princess crazy. They want to wear the costumes, the crowns, the shoes.

Every time we are at the store, Brooke tries to convince me that she NEEDS a t-shirt adorned with all of her favorite girls.

 

As soon as we hit up the swim department, the drool starts when she views the princess selection.

I pick up the pace with my cart. You see, I will not buy her anything that has licensed characters. Amy, on the other hand, is WAY nicer. Although it is not her favorite apparel for Lily, she knows how much Lily loves it...and how happy she is when she gets to wear it. So, her thought is....why not??!! I, on the other hand, just can't bring myself to pay the $15.00 for something that I really don't like the look of...although it is Brooke's DREAM to swim in a Disney inspired number. Why can't she see the value of the monogram??!!!

Minus P.J.'s and undies (no picture needed). We are ALL about these.*

*all rules go out the window when bribery assistance is needed with potty training and bed time.