What is Brianna saying?

While she still doesn't talk around other people a whole lot, she is exploding in words around us at home. Some of her favorites:
Mommy, help!
More, please
Again! Mommy, AGAIN!!!!
Dora (or Elmo or Barney), Please
Press play!!
Puzzle
Nice Kitty

But of course at this point there is way more than what I can possibly remember. She talked later than Kaitlyn but it is SO nice that she is finally conversing with us, we can understand more and more what she wants with less guessing, and I just LOVE it!!

She has also taken to singing (her own version of) Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. It goes something like this:
Winkle, winkle staaah
How I wun er ow oo aaaaah
Up 'bove wo hiiiii
Like dine da sky
Winkle, winkle staaaah
How I wun er ow oo aaaaah

Kaitlyn's first report card and QA with Brianna

Part 1: The report card!
Today we received a "report card" from Kaitlyn's preschool class. I am so proud of her, and of course as with any 3 (almost 4) year old, there are things to work on.

Things she can do:
Write her own name (sometimes she does it backwards though lol)
Follows the dots (they do dots to trace letters)
Counts to 30
Recognizes many numbers by sight
Sings and says her ABC's
Recognizes ALL letters on sight
Knows all the basic shapes
Uses (kiddie) scissors correctly (and is apparently the best in her class)
Knows all her colors

and they did not mention it, I don't know if they know, but she can write words too, like cat and hat, or really any simple word you can help her sound out. As I type this I am also finding that she can write numbers on her own as well.

Things she needs to work on:
Staying still and being patient in lines (she gets "ants in her pants")
Picking up when asked
And general listening skills at times...which let's face it...she is almost 4 years old. Show me a 4 year old who always listens all the time. Pfsshhhhhh, yah right!

At the end they say that Kaitlyn is a smart, inquisitive kid who makes them laugh. I'm so proud of her :-)

Part 2: Brianna's QA!

Favorite animal? Moooo. Duck.
Favorite color? Aaaaaaaah...purple
Favorite movie? Dora!
Favorite food? Aaaaahh....poooof. Calliou! (Calliou was on tv at the time)
What is your sister's name? "Awklin"
Favorite book? Aaaaah Dah!
What do you want to eat? EAT EAT! Ahside? (pointed outside)
What does Santa say? MOOOO!
No, what does Santa say? Ho, Ho, Hoooooo"
What do you want for Christmas? Aaaah Baaaabaaaa
A what? A ball.

QA from Kaitlyn coming soon :-)

Sidewalk sitter/QA

Today I carried a screaming Kaitlyn out of daycare. Upon making it outside, Brianna took that opportunity to sit down on the sidewalk, look at me, and smile. Kaitlyn of course, is still screaming and crying. "Brianna...let's go home honey!" The response I get? "NO". "Oh B, we have to get home so I can make you girls supper"...."NO"....."Do you want an apple when we get home?"...."NO"....Uuuugh. Luckily I was parked very close, about as close as I could have been. So I quick put Kaitlyn in the van and then went back and picked Brianna up. She was still sitting there, all smug like "Hah, whatchya gonna do now, mommy?!" Ah man. The fun they bring to my life :-)

And now a short QA with Kaitlyn:

What is your favorite color: Pink
What is your favorite animal: I don't know...mmmm...a seagull (this isn't true, usually she says something like tiger or kitty or elephant).
What is your favorite thing to eat: Mmmmm... I like...mmm, ummm, french fries! French fries. I like to eat french fries at McDonald's. That's my favorite food.
What's your favorite drink: Juice. Blueberry juice.
What is your favorite toy? Umm, milk. (me - milk's not a toy) ahahahahaa! I like to spill. (me - yah but what toy do you like to play with) aaaah, I like to drink. I like to driiiink...Brianna's milk.

And obviously, I started losing her on that last question....so on that note, I ended our QA session.

I love you

Kaitlyn just said to me "I love you, Kandi".

I said "Honey, you call me mommy".

"But, your name is Kandi".

"Yes, but you and Brianna are the only two people in the whole wide world who get to call me mommy, so you should take advantage of that".

"Only big people call you Kandi?"

"Honey, everybody has to call me Kandi except you and Brianna. That is something special just for you".

"Oh. Okay, well I like to call you Kandi, mommy!"

....I give up......lol

She did start calling me mom again right after this conversation, so it's all good :-)

Happy Birthday to Andy!

Ok, so I'm a day late, but yesterday we had stuff going on and I was unable to come on and blog. For Andy's birthday, we spent the morning cleaning our house. Sounds fun right? But in all reality, it feels so much better when our house is clean and (more) organized. My parent's came over (hence the motivation to do the cleaning in the first place). They took us out for a birthday lunch at Red Lobster and it was delicious! The girls split a chicken strips meal that came with broccoli and they each had a pink lemonade. My mom and Andy split a feast of some kind that had lobster, crab and shrimp. My dad had walleye (he is severely...deathly...allergic to seafood) and I went all out with the "all you can eat shrimp" promotion. I had breaded shrimp, and two rounds of garlic parmesan shrimp which was a-maz-ing. We were all stuffed and I didn't eat anything the rest of the day. Grandma took Kaitlyn to the bathroom who promptly announced upon return that she POOPED!!!! The waitress, and all the diners around us got a good chuckle out of that. After lunch, we drove around and looked at houses/discussed our future and dreams and plans. It was fun just to look. Even at 700k houses that we will never own, it is fun to look :-)

Now Andy's birthday is over but we are still planning on having a nice family day together. Andy is off walking right now (random kudos Andy for almost being at the "40 lbs lost" mark. I am SO proud of you, Andy!) Later we have a trip to Target to make, and then who knows. I am hoping it warms up some so that we can take the girls out to play, or maybe go on a little drive up the north shore, or who knows. I am just enjoying the time home with the girls, especially being that I worked a lot of extra hours the last couple of weeks and, with any luck, will have the opportunity again in coming weeks. The hours sure aren't fun, but it is SO worth it when I get my check.

That's all for now folks. Take care and enjoy the beautiful FALL weather!

Conversation of the day

Mommy: What do you want to be when you grow up, Kaitlyn?
Kaitlyn: I want to be a SCUBA DIVER! A green one!

I don't know how much of a paycheck you can get as a green scuba diver....?

Houseboat Heaven

This past weekend, we took our 2nd annual trip on a Voyagaire houseboat with good friends Chelsea and Paul. Being that our kids are all so small and not at a good age to bring along, it is typically a "kid-free" vacation. However this year came a little snag in our plans...my grandma got really sick and my parents couldn't watch the kids anymore (just in case something happened, and at the time the nurses were making it sound not so promising). So...the girls came with us.

It was a fun trip. Any time you venture out into Voyageurs national park, it is a good time. It is absolutely gorgeous and so peaceful! However, this fun trip was more of an "active, busy" fun, rather than the relaxing sort of fun we had been planning on. I am definitely glad that we had the experience with the girls but at the same time, I wouldn't bring them again if I had a choice. Not for another few years anyways. Once they are old enough that they can do more for themselves and not require *quite* as high of a level of supervision, it will be nice. And I can't wait for next year, when we hope to make it a 3 nighter instead of a 2 nighter, and hopefully nothing that changes our plans like it did this year.

Anyways, we did get a tiny bit of fishing in, were able to visit kettle falls, had some good food and laughs, and had awesome weather on both Saturday and Sunday. Here are some pics of Houseboat: 2010!

The girls enjoying orange push-ups from Kettle Falls


Family pic at Kettle falls and Brianna sleeping on the way there (or back, I can't remember).


Kaitlyn sleeping on Chelsea on the way home from Kettle Falls and a cool waterfall


Andy navigating and Andy and Paul doing fish fry (yum!)


Our houseboat this year was Proud Mary, and there is the sunset on our 2nd night.


Sunrise on the day we left.

New daycare adventure

Today was the first day of their new daycare. Right off the bat, I am sad and I miss our old daycare. However, the drive to our new daycare is awesome....almost a straight shot from our house, no highway and best of all no 35 (ie: no construction!!!).

The day went well. Kaitlyn did good in her preschool and got a "great job" rating in all of the things they mark down on their daily reports to send home with parents. Except for "follows directions"...she got a "needs reminders" in that one. However it was her very first day and she is a 3 year old so that is nothing worrisome or shocking lol. They noted that she is a nice, very talkative girl. When I came to pick her up, she was not in much of a hurry to leave with me, which is a good sign, I suppose! It means she had a good day and that makes me happy.

Brianna had a bit of a rough time letting go of daddy at drop off in the morning, but after that she did well. Her class played in the sprinkler and she was the first one to run into it...she had a ball! When I arrived she was playing and had a yellow hard hat on her head, so she looked to be doing just fine. She had a good nap as well which is awesome. I was worried about how she would adjust but looks like she will be ok. I mean, I knew she would. I am just a worry wart. You know. Typical mommy.

Summer goes too fast!

Pics will come soon, but I just wanted to quickly blog an update on what we've been up to.
We have been up in Cook more than usual this summer, but it has been great. Doing lots of fun stuff with the grandparents! The girls love it. This weekend we changed it up a bit, and headed down to Maple Grove where Andy's sister Danika lives with her hubby and two daughters (same ages as Kaitlyn and Brianna). We always have lots of fun going there. We spent time at a play area at the community center, at a fun play area at the mall, and in the play area in their back yard. Fed a duck family and some fish (cheerios and crackers). Had some Kabobs for supper and more people over with more kids for a little pool party. Andy's other sister even happened to be in the area, and stopped by with her 3 kids for awhile. It was fun having all 7 cousins together, even if just for a shor time. (Aaron, Brandon, Sydnee, Kaitlyn, Taylor, Brianna and Kaitlyn sure are a fun bunch!) Plus, I was able to get some shopping in (YAY CARTER'S and YAY SALES!). We were good and stayed away from the Coach store. Then when we got home to Duluth, we relaxed and cleaned up and put stuff away. Tonight I was even able to get out and have some "me time" at Target. More shopping, I'm not complaining! I got lots of fun stuff, like new socks. New socks are the best thing ever!

This coming week is a short one, and on Friday morning we are heading out with good friends Paul and Chelsea for our 2nd annual houseboat adventure! I can't wait, it really is such a great time! We will arrive back on Sunday, so its just a couple of days. Just enough to recharge and get some relaxation in. And some adult time - no Barney, Dora or any cartoons of any kind. Hopefully the weather holds out for us, and if not then we will still make the best out of it. I am so excited!

Then, next Monday, the girls will be starting a new daycare. This daycare is closer to home than our old one. The drive is going to be much easier, especially from my work and especially in the summer with this major project going on for I-35. We are very sad about leaving our old daycare because it has been wonderful, however we are excited about something new as well. Kaitlyn will be starting Preschool so that will be fun for her, and Brianna will be in the toddler room with lots of other kids her age. I know the girls will miss their old friends, and we will miss our old provider, but I know we will all be alright. It's a sad yet exciting time. I can't wait to not deal with construction anymore, and that was one of the major factors in moving. It was a hard decision.

Other than that, life is just a lot of working, cleaning, sleeping, and getting the most out of all our free time with the girls. I am currently super optimistic about where life is about to lead us. I can't wait to see where we end up 1, 5, 10 years from now. I can't wait to see the girls grow up as beautiful, smart, successful, talented, selfless and amazing people. I just feel very nice right now :-)

Have an awesome night!

Rockin Robin

Robin friends:


Mama built the nest, laid eggs, the eggs hatched, and we ended up with 3 cute fuzzy baby robins. Mama and dada were both around, taking turns feeding them. We've taken pictures over time and pointed them out to the girls a lot. The picture above, btw, was taken a minute before the following story unfolded.

So on Sunday when we got home from a weekend away, Andy went to point them out to Kaitlyn again. They were getting big. Impossible for them to hide down in their nest, their heads were always sort of resting on the side. And this time, instead of just sitting there like they had previously when we've walked by and even pointed, they flipped out. One, two three, they all jumped out and started twittering and fluttering around. I was just inside the house, watching out the door with Brianna behind me. Kaitlyn and Andy were outside on the porch. And what happened next? A very angry mama bird came. She was PISSED and she had her eyes on Andy. She was fluttering her wings and making all sorts of noise and she looked about ready to dive bomb poor Andy. It was complete and utter chaos. He managed to sneak into the house (after pushing Kaitlyn in first of course) and I was a bit worried she was going to follow him in (just what I need in my house, a pissed off mama bird). She didn't follow him though. However the birds did leave their mark on both him and Kaitlyn - with poop. He had it on his arm and Kaityn had it in the hair. (Straight to the tub for her!)

For quite awhile, mama and dada were outside making a ruckus and I think communicating to each other and probably their babies. I had to unload the van, but I used the side door because I was so afraid to go in front. Plus, Andy and I were worried, thinking what if the babies weren't ready to go yet? What if they can't feed themselves? They went running off on the ground, what if they are hurt or get lost and mama doesn't find them? We thought they seemed pretty big and strong, but what do we know? Luckily, awhile later as we were spying at the tree in our yard, we were able to spot: Mama, dada, one, two, three fluffy spotted babies. Eventually mama led the babies away, but later that evening she was back by herself, making lots of noise in front of our house. I think she was still pissed and wanted to make sure we knew it. I don't blame her, I'd be pissed too. I'm just glad it all turned out okay. I am glad that we were able to see the babies with our own eyes, and know they were with mama and also that they can fly already. If we had never seen that, we would be wondering for the rest of our lives, and feeling guilty for the rest of their lives! I don't want that on my conscience - being a seagull killer AND a Robin home wrecker? NO THANK YOU.

I'm thinking that they were probably about ready to fly the coop any day anyhow, since they were so strong and able to fly already and what not.

They were so cute, I wish I had gotten a pic of them in the tree after all this went down! So fluffy!

Kaitlyn Rose, our huge personality in a small package!

Over the last few years, we've had lots of nicknames for Kaitlyn. The first was probably "Peanut", as she was born 6 lbs 4 oz (the day after her due date, so its not like she was early) and was just 5 lbs 11 oz when we left the hospital. Since then, she has grown quickly and has been healthy as can be, but she is still a little on the shorter side of the "charts". She has beautiful green eyes and gorgeous, super light, very wavy (curls at the bottom) blond hair. She has been talking up a storm for longer than she has been able to walk without stumbling around - she definitely developed her verbal skills earlier and more so than her physical ones. And since she started talking, she hasn't really stopped - she talks our ears off. She is sometimes a little shy with new people, but as she has gotten older she has lost some of that initial shyness and will just talk a stranger's ear off too. She loves telling stories, playing make-believe, and having us read to her. She would let us read 100 books in a row, if we had the time. She has always been huge into books, even as a young baby she would quietly listen through entire books (whereas, if you read the blog about her sister - she is almost 2 and still won't sit still for longer than a page). Part of the bedtime routine with Kaitlyn HAS to include reading to her in bed. Our little Kaitlyn is friendly, funny, smart...and dramatic!

She has always been a bit of a drama queen. Now that she is 3 1/2, her favorite phrases include "It's NOT FAIR!", "I don't WANT TO!", "I won't I won't I won't I WON'T!" and "I will never ever ever get to...(insert activity here) again!!!!!" (For example, it is bed time and we tell her it is time to put away her puzzle and get up to bed. She might yell something like "It's not fair! I will never ever ever get to do my puzzle AGAIN!" or if we tell her no, she can't have juice right now, she will say "I will never ever ever get to have juice AGAIN!"). When she is in the middle of throwing a fit (like all 3 years olds do) she likes to scream in short bursts in response to anything we try to say to her. Drama, I tell you! Another issue we have as of late, is that we have to tell her 2, 3, 4 or 5 times to do something (or stop doing something) before she actually listens. It's like she pretends we aren't even there, let alone that she hears us telling her to "Let the cat's tail go NOW". It is so frustrating but I have faith it is a phase that will pass. Speaking of phases I hope will pass - she is afraid of the dark lately. I mean, it's not like that is uncommon, and it's fine. I'm not concerned, we will just keep working on it until she is ready to be un-afraid on her own. She loves the moon, I should start telling her about how the moon is out only at night because night time is a peaceful time, and the dark is ok. After all, the moon likes the dark?! lol

Just like Brianna, Kaitlyn has all kinds of awesome, amazing traits (I love her random and frequent declarations of love- "I love you mommy!"), and others that are frustrating and challenging at times. But she is our little Kaitlyn - she scared the crap out of us when she was born (emergency c-section under general anesthesia and a vertical incision, due to fetal distress) and we hope she doesn't decide to be a rebellious teenager and scare the crap out of us some more later in life! lol

It is good to say "I love you" to show others that you care.
And the nice thing about "I love you" is, you can say it anywhere.
Say "I love you" to your friends for being so much fun
It makes them feel loved for the nice things they have done.
Say "I love you" to your brother. Say it to your sister, too.
It shows them you are happy that they are there for you.
Say "I love you" to your parents for the happy life you live.
Your love is the greatest gift you will ever have to give.
Say "I love you" when you pray to God.
Give thanks for his care and love.
It tells him you are thankful for your blessings from above.

-"Saying I Love You" - Life Lessons series.
Thanks Target $1 section.

Who is this and what have you done with Kaitlyn?!

Tomorrow I will do a Kaitlyn personality summary like I did with Brianna today. But I had to share this amazing suppertime experience we just had.

So I tell the girls, supper is done. Pizza and apples (fancy, I know). Kaitlyn says "YAY!"! She turns the Dora movie off and comes to the table to eat. And she proceeds to eat her WHOLE plate! (Something that doesn't happen often). Brianna's sippy cup falls off of the table and I say "Uh oh!". Kaitlyn says "whats wrong?" and I tell her Brianna's sippy fell. "Oh, I'll get it!" she says, and runs over, picks it up, then gives it back to Brianna. I tell her thank you, and "Mom is very proud when you are such a good girl". She giggles and says "ooookay". She asks for more apple, and I give her one. She eats part of it, then says "I'm done with my apple for now. Brianna can have some" and she gives the apple to Brianna. I said "that was very nice of you" and she says "Thank you".

WHAT is THIS?!
She turned off the TV before coming to the table without me asking.
She ate her whole plate of food without me nagging her.
She picked up Brianna's fallen sippy on her own.
She offered Brianna her apple. Sharing?!

Wow. I am impressed and very happy with my little girl right now.

Our lil' B-bert

I have decided that I need a couple of posts devoted to helping readers get to know our children. One post per child. I'm going to start with Brianna.

Brianna will be 2 years old on September 2nd. We most often call her B. Other nicknames include Baby B, B-Bert, Bee-bopper, and of course Banana. She developed physical skills earlier than verbal skills (opposite of Kaitlyn). However she is recently really starting to talk to us more. Some of her more common utterings include hello, no, mine, love you, more, again, please, yay, and of course mama and dada. She is at a point now though, where she will try to repeat almost anything you throw at her (if she is in the right mood). She tends to stay quiet around people other than us. If she is unsure in a situation, she tends to hand on to mom or dad TIGHTLY, for a few minutes until she gets her bearings about her. She likes to observe and she is very sensitive to the moods of others. For example, if she thinks you are crying or sad, she comes right up, looks at you with concern in her beautiful green-ish eyes, and gives the sweetest hug and kiss. She isn't a huge fan of the TV, except has developed a bit of an interest in Dora the Explorer lately. She loves climbing up on our laps with a book, letting us read the first page, then getting down to find another book. It is rare to get through an entire book with her! She likes peek-a-boo, and she likes when I push on her nose and say "Beeeeep!" She also loves to rub noses and of course, to be tickled. She has a very girly voice and beautiful curly, dark blondish hair. She will surely steal the hearts of plenty of boys one day! (Maybe when she is, say, 25). One of her recent new found abilities is jumping (with both feet up at the same time). She concentrates real hard, bends down a little, and POP! She bounces up and forward, just a little. It is so freaking cute. SHE is so freaking cute!

She does have another side to her.... It is not uncommon for her to pitch 4, 5, 6 fits per evening. Fits 10x worse than Kaitlyn normally throws (not that she hasn't ever thrown her own doozies). She went through a head banging phase, and thankfully that is pretty much over. Now the problem is hitting and biting. Screeeeching and screaming. Throwing herself on the floor and kicking her legs as hard as possible. All of this goes on and on. Not sure how long it would go if we let it...we normally bring her to her room for a few minutes and when we go back for her, she is better. Whether being better lasts any length of time or not depends.... sometimes we are back downstairs for 2 minutes before she starts again, so back to her room she goes. If she is throwing a fit when we need to go somewhere (for example when I pick her up from daycare and we have to go home), I wish I had 5 arms. She is an expert fighter against getting into her carseat. People say "Oh just hold down the pelvis while you strap her in" HA! I'd like to see YOU try when she is at her peak fit throwing. I dare you! Just watch that you don't get your face too close to her flailing arms, and that nothing gets too close for her to lean forward and bite you, and watch for shoes flying off, and have earplugs, a hand to hold her pelvis down, another to keep her legs still, another to keep her arms still so you can situate the straps right....I usually end up sweating profusely after one of these ordeals. Bringing her to do something fun can be another interesting thing. For example, going out back to play. It is all good and fine, she is so cute and loves the slide and loves to run around. On hot days she loves the pool. But I absolutely dread when it comes time to go inside. Sure, Kaitlyn will throw a fit sometimes when she doesn't want to come in. But Brianna brings it to a new level and you pretty much have to haul her in, kicking and screaming and arching. Something else that sets off fits is not letting her do what she wants, for example go into the kitchen when someone is in there cooking, or rip up an important piece of paper.

The things that set her off are endless and sometimes I wonder what am I doing wrong? But then she hugs me and kisses me and giggles and says "Helloooo" and shows me her belly because she wants me to tickle it, and I realize I'm doing just fine. She is challenging, but so darn smart and cute and fun and loving. As stubborn and strong willed and insistent as she is, I have a feeling that she is going to grow up to be very successful, partially thanks to those exact traits. As long as we teach her how to use them in a positive way

That's our lil B-Bert....she has quite a personality and I love her to pieces!

I love you through and through.
I love your top side, I love your bottom side.
I love your inside, and outside.
I love your happy side, your sad side, your silly side, your mad side.
I love your fingers, and toes, your ears, and nose.
I love your hair and eyes, your giggles, and cries.
I love you running, and walking, silent, and talking.
I love you through and through
yesterday, today, and tomorrow too.

-"I love you through and through", by Bernadette Rossetti-Shustak

Start seeing seagulls

So, I'm on my way home the other day. I've got two young children in the car, plus a husband newly discharged from his outpatient surgery that day. I see a girl (maybe 11-ish) running on the side of the road, and I see a seagull. It happened fast so I'm not sure if the girl was chasing the seagull, or if the seagull happened to fly by her as she ran. And I don't know why the seagull was flying 2 feet above the ground. But it was. And it flew right on in front of me. I mean, right in front of me. I didn't even hit the brakes because it would have made no difference, and so I chose the "keep on going" route. Had I been alone, I probably would have attempted to hit the brakes but, eh, I know it wouldn't have mattered. So. Seagulls are no small bird. I mean, they aren't a turkey, but they sure ain't no chickadee either. And so. CLUNK.

Not sure what I feel worse for - the seagull itself, or the girl who witnessed the whole thing. Andy said maybe it was already in tough shape for some reason, since it was flying so low in the first place. I mean, Duluth is on a BIG lake, so seagulls are everywhere. But they don't routinely fly low to the ground in the middle of a busy street which is mostly lined by buildings on both sides. Who knows. I never will...but I can imagine up scenarios that make me feel a teeny bit better. Another plus is that surprisingly there was no damage to the van. We thought there may be since it was a pretty decent clunk we heard.

Anyways. I would like to apologize to the seagull, wherever he is. Luckily there are a bazillion more where he came from. I would feel worse if I hit, say, a dodo bird. Especially since they have been extinct since the 17th century (thanks Wikipedia).

Aliens

Kaitlyn told another great story last night.

"There once were some ALIENS! And they ate MOMMY!"

The end.

Does anybody want to borrow a couple of monsters?

It was one of those evenings when both children seemed to be out to get us. It started upon pick-up from daycare...Brianna was a beast to get strapped into her car seat. She doesn't just fight. Pushing down on her pelvis, while a common suggestion, is NOT enough. She is strong girl, and smart, and sneaky. I need one hand to push down on her pelvis, one hand to keep her arms from coming out from the straps, one hand to keep her from twisting to her side...and and some duct tape for her mouth to keep her from biting you. And ear plugs would be good, too.

So anyhow, we get home and after chasing the kids down to get them to the table, Kaitlyn promptly dumps her water on her grilled cheese and proclaims she wants a popsicle. I asked her to eat some of her supper. "I'm not hungry"...well then you don't need a popsicle. "I AM hungry" Well, then you should eat some of your supper. "NO, I dont WANT TO!!". Ok then, suit yourself.

While all this is going on, Brianna throws her sippy and slides her plate across the table. Too bad for you, girlie. I give her a few minutes and she starts "asking" for them back, so I give them to her thinking she could have one more chance. And she did eat some of her food, but only after being sure to tear it up into pieces and throw some of it on the floor. And getting mad when I was trying to pick stuff up.

Back to Kaitlyn. She has now asked for a popsicle about 10 times and is getting whiney. I am frustrated and finally we just say, ok, here is your popsicle! ("oh yaaaay! I want an ORANGE ONE!" Fast forward to 5 minutes later, Brianna was throwing a fit and had just gotten a time out upstairs. Kaitlyn pees her pants in the middle of enjoying her popsicle. So, no more popsicle. We need to go upstairs and get cleaned up. This of course sets off a massive fit. Screeching. Crying. More screeching. And this is not ordinary screeching, this is high pitched, blow your eardrums out screeching. Which she does in short bursts in response to every thing you say to her. Almost her own toddler way of saying "SCREW OFF A-HOLE". So I stopped trying to say anything and just brought her to the bathroom to sit on the potty and get cleaned up. She cries "I want my popsicle" Well, little honey, you haven't exactly earned one. If you can be good the rest of the night, and tomorrow, then we will have a popsicle tomorrow. And here is where I witnessed the saddest sad face ever. I held strong though, and we went back downstairs only to find Brianna again throwing a massive fit. Brought her back upstairs along with Kaitlyn and took an early bath. During which they fought over a stupid McDonald's Happy Meal Toy, and Brianna decided it was a good idea to try out her new jumping skills. Turns out, not a good idea in the tub. So she almost falls and *almost* hits her head on the wall but actually does a great job of catching herself. And then continues to jump! My cue that bath time needs to be OVER!

Trying to get her dressed is actually not as bad as it is sometimes and I am thankful for that. Kaitlyn was good as well, so we get back downstairs pretty quickly. Not long after, Brianna gets mad about *something*. I don't know what, but she was chasing me and trying to bite my back side and threw her full sippy at me which hit my little toe (OUCH!) and screamed and hit and cried and kicked her legs and chased me around while I was trying to fix a leaking sippy and gave me dirty looks and was just an all around pill. Finally I decided it was bedtime. (Didnt realize until later that it was like a good hour+ before regular bedtime, but oh well. She needed it). Brought her to her room where she continued to scream and yell and kick things and hit things. I went back in awhile later and said "Are you done". She looked at me and smiled. I hung out with her for a few minutes and we made up. She gave me hugs and kisses and I explained to her that it hurts people when she hits and kicks and bites, and we really need to work on cutting the attitude. Did she understand or listen, who knows. But she was calmer now, and I got blanky and nuk for her and she has been in her room since. She is still awake as I write this, but she isn't crying or banging anything around, so that's good with me. Currently Kaitlyn is yelling at me "It's not FAIR, mommy! It's NOT FAIR", because she had grabbed my purse and I asked her to put it down. Because it is full of stuff and I don't want to have to pick it all up. And because Coach purses aren't appropriate toys for 3 year olds.

So, if anyone wants to borrow a cranky 3 year old who's screeches make your ears ring and who rarely listens to anything you say the first time (or two or three) and a stubborn 2 year old who throws many fits a day and they all include screaming, crying, hitting and biting, and laying on the floor kicking as hard as she can....then give me a jingle.

Rest assured this post will be followed by another brag-a-thon about how amazing my children are and how much I love them :-)

Music makes the world go round

Some of our frequent household favorites include:

Mary had a little lamb
Twinkle Twinkle, little star
If you're happy and you know it
Alphabet
Santa Claus is coming to town
Rudolph the Red-nosed reindeer (yes - these Christmas songs are sung in July)
Old McDonald had a farm
One, two, buckle my shoe...
Hickory dickory dock
Do you know the muffin man
Various made up versions of all songs above (i.e - "Old Mcfarmer had a cow, e i e i o, and that cow he liked to moo, e i e i o..." or "Do you know the cookie man, the cookie man, the cookie man, the cookie man, the cookie man...."

Unfortunately, the stations I listen to (92.1 and 107.7) don't play any of those. I can't imagine why not?

A bath and bed time in the life of...

6:45 pm - Let's go girls! It's bath time. (Yes, it is Brianna. And no Kaitlyn we can't stay downstairs to watch Care bears.
6:46 - BriANNA Marieeee! Get back here! (Circle around the kitchen #1) Seriously STOP! (Circle around the kitchen #2). HEY! I said it's bath time!!! Let's go upstairs (Circle around the kitchen #3). Ok that's it, you aren't going to like this but too bad, I'm bringing you up kicking and screaming if I need to, because your sister is up there....
6:49 - Go in your room to calm down while I check on your sister! Don't "NO!" me!
6:50 - Find a lovely display of toilet paper all over the bathroom. Thanks, Kaitlyn. I was looking for redecorating ideas.
6:53 - (After TP is cleaned up). Start bath, set out 2 towels, 2 sets of jammies, 1 size 5 pull up and 1 size 4 diaper.
6:57 - Let's get nekkid! Pants off dance off! Kaitlyn WAIT! Take your socks off befo....*sigh* before you get in the tub. Too late. Do you need to go potty? No? Are you sure? OK then.
7:00 - Brianna your sister does not need help washing her bottom. Kaitlyn your sister does not need help washing her hair. and PLEASE leave the faucet alone. AH! Watch your head! Watch your sister's head! Watch your step! WATER IN THE TUB!!! "Mommy I gotta go pottttty". *sigh*
7:01 - Lather 1 head, lather 2 head. Rinse 1 head, rinse 2 head. Lather 1 body, lather 2 body. Rinse 1, rinse 2. Now if you are good you can have some time to play.
7:05 - WATER BELONGS IN THE TUB! Holy buckets I look like I've been outside in a rainstorm. please.Stop. SPLASHING MEEEEE! Girls! yes, you! If you cant behave then we need to get out of the tub!
7:10 - Water stays in the tub and now its time for girls to come OUT of the tub. Girl #1 comes out....lucky parent fights a kicking screeching 2 year old all the way to her room. Somehow manages to slap on a diaper, and leaves for a time out while 2 year old decompresses. Lucky parent can go in about 30 seconds later and 2 year old will be smiling and ready for jammies. First maybe a diaper readjustment. And then a hair and tooth brushing.
7:13 - Girl #2 comes out. Runs (don't run, it's slippery!!!! How many times must I tell you!) Proudly shows off her gorgeous dress (ie-towel). Now, before we get your pull up and jammies on, do you need to go potty? No? Ok I expect you to keep this pull up dry...
7:18 - We have by now all emerged back downstairs. Girls get a little something to drink and get some play time or story time or care bears time. Or a combination of all 3. Kaitlyn, do you have to go potty yet? No? ok....
7:25 - Kaitlyn wants a story... sounds good. "Once upon a time, there was a ....ACK! Brianna come back here with that, I was trying to read!" Ah whatever, Kaitlyn let's try a different book.
7:30 - Brianna let's read a book with you now. Pick one out. "My family" sounds perfect. It goes like this. "Momma...WAIT come back! I can't read to you if you won't stay still and if you run off with the book! Oh ok, pick out a new one. This looks good. "Going to the doctor is...OOPH. Ok. pick a different one. "Morton Moose...*Brianna smacks book down on the momma's hand* OUCH! OK forget it. Let's just go play....wanna roll the ball with me? Play with baby dolls? Oh OH! Why don't you come cuddle with me!!!! (Every mom's favorite past time of course. Fat chance that the 2 year old mover/shaker is going to do it unless she is sick or extremely super duper tired).
7:45 - Who wants to go to bed? (No volunteers? Imagine that.)
7:47 - For real, it's time to get to bed. Momma and daddy or both bring the girls upstairs. 2 year old gets laid in bed with nuks-a-plenty, her ducky blankie, and "Hoot" her howl from the build-a-bear workshop. Hugs and kisses, love you B! Good night!
3 year old gets into bed. After going potty. And receiving a new pull up because the other one was WET!? Mom or dad or both read 1 or 2 or 3 or 4 books to the lucky 3 year old. Make sure 3 year old has polka dot blanket, square blanket, bunny blanket, pinky the bear (from the build-a-bear workshop), her yellow bunny, and her froggy. Maybe a baby doll. Good night.
8:00 PM - Back into bed Brianna!
8:01 - What do you mean you have to go potty again Kaitlyn?!
8:04 - Ok, you can put on some chapstick, and then PROMISE it's bedtime?!
8:06 - Brianna, back into bed!
8:08- Kaitlyn, go to bed!
8:11 - Brianna! Bed!
8:20 - Heard through the door of 3 year old... "My momma said that my room is safe. There are noooo monsters in here! Yah thats right, it's okay baby. awwww poor baby, want me to sing to you baby? Mary had a little lamb, little lamb....oh twinkers. I have a big wish..." (and on and on and on. and on.
8:30 - Heard through the door of a 3 year old. Still. "1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14....abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz...hmmm hmmm hmmmm lalalalalala. if you're happy and you know it clap your hands...(and on and on)(And on)
9:00 - Ohmigosh? What is that sound? It that...could it be....is it finally...silence?!
9:01 - Peek at 2 yr old. Butt in the air, breathing deep, arm around Hoot (the owl, remember?"
9:02 - Peek at 3 yr old. Surrounded by books and toys, fast asleep. Clear stuff from bed.
9:03 - WOO! Made it through another evening with the 2 munchkins.

3 year old story teller

"There once was an old lady named Mommy. She had a beautiful head. One day she got sick, and went to the doctor. He made her all better, the end"

"There was a turtle in the ocean. Mommy found it and moved it to the sidewalk. Then there was a pumpkin in the ocean, but it was too heavy to move. The end"

Proud mama

Is this not the definition of Gorgeous?


Unfortunately Brianna is still too young for me to get super pics of her like that. She normally runs from when I try to take a pic... or just won't stop moving long enough to flash a gorgeous Brianna smile at the camera. Here is one that came pretty darn close....cute pigtails :-)



But my goodness the child has been holding back on us! Lately she has finally started vocalizing more. She had it in her all along, she just preferred to kind of keep to herself when it came to her words. But just the other night, she said "Love You" clearly for the first time. AAAAH be still, my heart! I was so excited I was tearing up. Nothing like hearing your child say "Love you" for the first time. She says so much now though, I have a feeling the next couple of months may find her arguing with her sister (and probably winning, knowing her).

I am so proud of my girls. They are so unique and smart and amazing and gorgeous! (How did I end up with two green eyed beauties)? They both have the cutest curls (Especially Brianna....her hair is actually very curly, so cute!) and the cutest noses and the most beautiful eyes....and they are funny! I could go on and on. I guess I feel like talking them up right now. Love them!

Air show - July 17th - Duluth, MN

We cheated and grabbed some seats in a parking lot nearby. It was perfect...especially for someone with small children who doesn't wanna pay for regular tickets because no way would the kids last all day like that. They were selling hot dogs and ribs and stuff at a stand, we had a good view... hung out in the back of our van with a blanket and snacks and toys....it was perfect. Here are a few pics from our free Duluth air show experience.

Pic of the day

Doesn't she look excited?

A day in the life of...

5:50 AM - Alarm clock goes off. Am I dreaming? No? Aw crap.
5:50 1/2 - Crawl out of bed, slink to the bathroom for a shower.
6:00 AM - back in room to get dressed, put on deodorant, all that good stuff. A stinky mom is a no fun mom, after all.
6:15 AM - Andy gets his turn at the shower, I dawdle around putting off the inevitable....
6:20 AM - Carefully open the door to tired toddler's room......
6:21 AM - Find out whether said toddler is waking up on the right or wrong side of the bed. We will say that this day, it was the wrong side. You know, for entertainment value.
6:23 AM - Pick out clothes for cranky toddler. What? You don't want these blue shorts? How about the purple ones? How about a skirt with stars on it? Oh, you're going to daycare naked, are you?
6:25 AM - Open the door to younger toddler's room, normally to find a little butt up in the air with one arm around her ducky blanky.
6:251/2 - pick out clothes, get younger toddler dressed. No big fights from her, not this early in the morning! Hallelujiah!
6:30 AM - Turn attention back to cranky toddler. "But I don't HAVE TO GO POTTY!!!" Well, too bad. Let's go try....wait for it...wait for it....tiiiiiiiiinkle tiinkle. Oh, I thought you didn't have to go potty. That's funny....
6:32 AM - Get cranky toddler dressed. Still complaining she doesn't like the shorts.
6:35 AM - Bring toddler downstairs, get sippy cups to hold them over until they get to daycare to have breakfast.
6:37 AM - Try to eat breakfast myself. With younger toddler climbing on me like monkey bars, and cranky toddler saying "please, can I have more? Please? I said please!" "You will eat at daycare" "No I wont" "Yes, you will" "They don't give us food there" Huh. Is that right.
6:50 AM - Make lunch and then escape upstairs for some me time. By me time, I mean "brush my teeth and contemplate "accidentally" falling asleep for 10 minutes. While I am upstairs contemplating sleep, hubby is downstairs wrestling children into shoes and putting "pretties" in their hair.
7:00 AM - We head out the door in various order. Girls get strapped into their seats, mommy says good bye, and internally breathes a sigh of relief. No more fighting with kids for 8 hours!
7:15 AM - I arrive at work and prepare for a luxurious day of working in the FSA department of UHC. One function I do is foreign claims, so sometimes visions of chinese characters dance in my head.
4:00 PM - Get off work and rush home for some "me" time. Oh.wow.this.is.awesome! 15 minutes.to.myself!
4:30 PM - Leave to pick up the girls from daycare, relishing in my last real down time for the rest of the day
4:47 PM - Arrive at daycare. Team up with daycare provider to make Kaitlyn pick up after herself. Put Brianna's shoes on, wait for Kaitlyn some more. Brianna takes her shoes off, I wait for Kaitlyn some more. Put Brianna's shoes back on, Kaitlyn goes potty. Put Kaitlyn's shoes on. No! don't take your shoes off again Brianna!!!! We say our goodbye's and head out the door
5:00 PM - Wrestle a screaming younger cranky toddler into her car seat while older cranky toddler picks old crackers off the floor. Stop.eating.old.crackers. (My fault perhaps, for keeping a filthy van. Any readers are welcome to come clean it for me, anytime). Brianna please stay still. OUCH it HURTS when you pinch people! HA! I got one buckle done! Give me your arm back! Whoa I didn't know a shoe could fly that far off a 2 year olds foot!
5:05 PM - older toddler's turn to get buckled in. But first NO.MORE.OLD.CRACKERS!! Yuck! "Ok, ok, ok, ok mommy". Ha. Famous last words.
5:20 PM - Arrive home to a waiting daddy. We all go in together. Daddy makes dinner. I struggle to get Brianna to stay out of the kitchen.
5:22 PM- Brianna (now aka the cranky one instead of Kaitlyn) screams and yells and rolls around and kicks her legs on the floor and runs after me trying to bite my legs. Yep. Time out time. Upstairs we go....
5:26 - Check on Brianna. Tears on the cheeks, smile on the lips. You sure did get over that fast didn't you....can you come say sorry to mommy? Awwww that is the sweeetest hug and kiss ever, thank you honey, now lets go back downstairs and have a good evening.
5:30 PM- Bring an arching, kicking screaming Brianna back upstairs for another time out. Ok, let me know when you are done throwing your fit.
5:35 PM- Are you done? Smile is a good sign, lets go back downstairs.
5:40 PM - Please don't start another fight...hey lets go look out the window for birds! Please please please let the distraction work. I really don't feel like hauling a human tornado up the stairs. Again.
5:50 PM - SUPPER IS DONE!
5:52 PM- Older toddler proclaims she is finished eating. No you can't go watch Carebears, please stay at the table with us until we finish.
5:54 PM- No, you can't go watch Dora.
5:56 PM- No, you can't go watch Curious George. Stop whining or you will have an early bed time.
5:58 PM- Older toddler gets cleaned up. Younger toddler still eating.
6:10 PM- Younger toddler finally also done.
6:11 PM - Daddy is in charge of you little stinkers! Mommy gets to do some more glorious, luxurious work. This time, washing dishes and cleaning the kitchen.
6:45 PM - Bath time!! Water stays IN the tub girls. HEY! I said, water stays IN the tub!!!
6:55 PM - Ok, so which parent wants to get which child dressed for bed tonight? Toss up - Kaitlyn might run around and not listen to anything you ask of her. Brianna might throw a massive tantrum when you try to take her out of the tub.
7:05 PM - Back downstairs for "wind down time". Fine, we can watch Care Bears now, if you promise to go to bed when we say its time to go to bed.
7:45 PM - Bedtime! YES, you promised. Too bad, its getting dark out (well, it will). It is time for bed. We have to get up in the morning.
8:05 PM - Back downstairs to pick up the living room and do some laundry
8:10 PM - Back upstairs to yell at one or both of the toddlers GO TO BED. No more messing around! Bed time! I love you, good NIGHT!
8:15 PM - HEY! Bedtime!
8:20 PM - Turn that light off, no more messing around! You have to wake up early, please go to bed!
8:23 PM - "Mooooom....I gotta goo pottttty"
8:30 PM - If you don't settle down soon, we might not be able to make it to *grandma's house/zoo/taylor's house/crane lake/park/insert various activity here*
8:31 PM - Time for Wii Fit!
8:45 PM - Pause Wii Fit to listen for suspect toddler activity upstairs. Nope. All clear. PHEW!
9:00 PM - Crawl into bed. Aaaaaah.
9:05 PM - Back downstairs to check if the door is locked.
9:06 PM - Crawl into bed. Aaaaah.
9:08 PM - Forgot to brush my teeth, GRRRRRR
9:12 PM - Crawl into bed. Aaaaaaaaah!
10:00 PM - News is on, better keep up on the latest so that I can be an informed citizen. That, and I'm nosy,
10:20 PM - Well now the weather is almost up, might as well stay up for that so I know how to dress the crankies tomorrow.
10:35 PM - starting to drift off...finally....
12:30 AM - HMPHHHHA?! Briannnn....aaaaa....dropped her nuk.....go give it baaaack. aaaaheeeeoooo....back to bed.
3:00 AM - HMPPPHHHHAAAA?! uuuuugggggh...back...to...Briannaaaa's room.....nuk.....
5:50 AM - BEEEP BEEEP BEEEP BEEEP. Am I dreaming? No? Aw, crap...


And SO....that is a typical day in the life of...me. It is busy and crazy. Yes, often frustrating. Having a 2 year old and a 3 year old presents many challenges. Never knew how stubborn and smart and emotionally unstable they could really be :-) lol. But, it's all worth it. For every look of wonder we witness when they see something new for the first time, for every hug and kiss and "I love you", for every new and fun milestone they hit. Their beautiful green eyes and their sweet little voices. Watching them sleep like little angels. Shopping for little girl clothes! Seeing how far they come in such little time, how fast they learn, how quickly they grow. It is truly amazing and wonderful and I wouldn't trade it for the world!

Wandom Wednesday

Yes. The title is like a shout out to Porky Pig. Deal with it.

Yesterday on my way home from picking up the girls from daycare, I saw a lady trying to cross the road. This is actually a very busy Avenue, especially that time of day. She was holding out her hand towards traffic, trying to get it to stop for her. Of course, nobody did - traffic just kept going on by with no end in sight. She looked absolutely frustrated...but the best part is, she was like 20 feet from a stop light/cross walk. For all I know she stood there trying to direct traffic for 20 minutes, when she could have walked 20 feet, pressed a button, and been across the street within a few minutes.

Then, further on down the road I started noticing some interesting interactions between the car in front of me, and a small motorcycle of some sort. Whatever it was, it was far from the manly ride the guy on it seemed to think it was. He was all thumbs up to the car behind him, messing around pretending to swerve, etc. I about peed my pants when he stood up (while in motion) put one hand on his butt and starting spanking himself. For a minute I thought he was going to pull down his pants and moon! All I can say is, holy pickles I hope he knew the occupants of that car behind him. It seemed that way, but if not...then did they ever get some very unexpected entertainment from a stranger.

Nothing that good happened today, unfortunately. I did see a short round guy with the sweetest mustache ever. Kaitlyn proclaimed to me that the monsters won't come out unless they come out to tickle her. She didn't seem concerned, so neither am I. As long as they don't come out to tickle me. I am super ticklish.

Ooops...I've fallen off the blogwagon.

I haven't blogged since March...holy crap! It's July 10th today....I can't believe it has really been that long. It sure doesn't feel that long. What can I say...I'm a slacker. I guess it's this little thing called "life" that keeps getting in my way. Anyhow, here are a few highlights from each month since the last time I blogged.

In April, Andy was amazing enough to send me off on a little vacation to Las Vegas. I went with my two sister in laws and my mother in law. It was awesome and a welcome break from responsibility. We went to an outdoor Gary Allen concert, Cirque Du Soleil - Zumanity, and best of all....on our last night we attended the live taping of Brooks and Dunn's "The Last Rodeo" which has since aired on CBS. It featured something like 15 singers including Faith Hill, Taylor Swift, George Strait, Tim McGraw, Jennifer Hudson, and a ton more. We had great seats and it was a once in a lifetime experience. We went to the Titanic Exhibit which was kind of neat. We did a bit of gambling, people watching, shopping, and just exploring. Ate at a few amazing places. It was a great trip, and I would love to visit Vegas again because there is so much to do and see.

In May, Andy (along with brother in law Anthony and my dad) put up a fence around our back yard. I am SO glad we did it, I love it! I wish I had a picture of the final product since Andy cleaned up the posts sticking up and now that the green color is gone and grass has grown in. It really looks great though!






In May we also did some traveling. We went to Crane Lake:


While we were in Crane, we of course visited Vermilion Falls, including taking the annual tree picture:






We also hit the cities so that the girls could play with their cousins Taylor and Piper. We went on a walk along a gorgeous, quiet trail (yes, this is in "the cities"...but you'd never know, would you?)






Found some turtle eggs...a squirrel had unburied them and eaten a lot of them :-(


Played a little...


Mommy and daddy even got to go to a Twins game, without kids! (Thanks Danika and Anthony)


In June, we took some time to explore Duluth.




We also went to the Land of the Loon in Virginia:


and visited Grandma and Grandpa's house.


July so far has brought two bucks to visit:


And found us on Lake Leander:




At my parents house again:




And Crane Lake for the 4th of July:









Phew! So that's the last 3 months in short. Kind of.