Pete took the girls to see Santa yesterday. They all saw him - Emily & Hannah sat on his lap and I think Hailey stood next to him. That's progress from last year when it took us about 8 trips to the mall before they would actually go near him. On their way home Hailey said she needed to go back to see him because she forgot to ask for an iPhone.
Today after school we came home, made lunch, hit the park for a picnic and some play time and then headed to the mall to see Santa again. Hailey was standing in front of him (there was no one in line and no one around...we just stood around Santa and had a pow wow...lol) and said "I forgot to ask for an iPhone!" as if he was deaf. Then that was followed up by Emily saying "And I want a Cat. A REAL CAT!!!" Ohhhh my goooooodnesssssss!!!!!!!!!! I interjected and said how Santa doesn't bring REAL animals and this mall Santa caught on quick and agreed.
I must say - their excitement about Santa this year is very contagious. While walking through the mall they couldn't contain themselves. The laughter and giggling and skipping and screaming...all totally worth every minute.
Monday, November 14, 2011
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Storm of 2011
So as if being down and out for 3 weeks with all of us being sick wasn't enough...we had a snow storm on Oct 29th that wiped out power to most of the state. Yes - about the entire state of CT was WITHOUT power. Night 1 the girls were at my cousin Jens house while Pete and I were home (and freezing). Night 2 Pete took the girls to his parents house and I stayed with a friend. Nights 3 & 4 were spent in a hotel room. We booked night 5 in the hotel but by that point we decided to take off to VA and visit my niece. We had preplanned this trip but just decided to go earlier since we were a waste of space here anyway. Pete stayed in the hotel on night 5...the girls slept in the car on the 10 hour drive to VA on night 5. Nights 6, 7, 8 & 9 were spent in VA at cousin Christina's house. And finally night 10 was spent sleeping in the car on the 10 hour ride home. Let's break that down in list form:
NIGHT 1: JENN'S HOUSE
NIGHT 2: PETE'S PARENTS
NIGHT 3: HOTEL
NIGHT 4: HOTEL
NIGHT 5: CAR
NIGHT 6: COUSIN CHRISTINA'S
NIGHT 7: COUSIN CHRISTINA'S
NIGHT 8: COUSIN CHRISTINA'S
NIGHT 9: COUSIN CHRISTINA'S
NIGHT 10: CAR
I was SPENT from the driving, sleeping everywhere but home, dealing with 3 kids on the road, eating out and just being misplaced. BUT we did it and we did it with ease. There were no major problems or complications. And I learned that the girls travel just fine. They did wonderful in the car! Pete turned their car seats rear facing for the duration of the VA trip so that when they slept in the car they were more comfortable. They didn't complain about being rear facing either! I also learned that hotels should have a kid friendly FLOOR. And it should be a 1st floor. And it should be sound proof.
The schools were closed the entire week PLUS Mon and Tue the next week due to power lines and trees making unsafe conditions for the kids to be at bus stops or walking to school. And Halloween was cancelled! Well that's what Mother Nature does - she just creeps up and disrupts the likes of what we call routine and schedule.
We're back to the grind and slowly getting back on track. Just in time for the holidays.....
NIGHT 1: JENN'S HOUSE
NIGHT 2: PETE'S PARENTS
NIGHT 3: HOTEL
NIGHT 4: HOTEL
NIGHT 5: CAR
NIGHT 6: COUSIN CHRISTINA'S
NIGHT 7: COUSIN CHRISTINA'S
NIGHT 8: COUSIN CHRISTINA'S
NIGHT 9: COUSIN CHRISTINA'S
NIGHT 10: CAR
I was SPENT from the driving, sleeping everywhere but home, dealing with 3 kids on the road, eating out and just being misplaced. BUT we did it and we did it with ease. There were no major problems or complications. And I learned that the girls travel just fine. They did wonderful in the car! Pete turned their car seats rear facing for the duration of the VA trip so that when they slept in the car they were more comfortable. They didn't complain about being rear facing either! I also learned that hotels should have a kid friendly FLOOR. And it should be a 1st floor. And it should be sound proof.
The schools were closed the entire week PLUS Mon and Tue the next week due to power lines and trees making unsafe conditions for the kids to be at bus stops or walking to school. And Halloween was cancelled! Well that's what Mother Nature does - she just creeps up and disrupts the likes of what we call routine and schedule.
We're back to the grind and slowly getting back on track. Just in time for the holidays.....
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Kryptonite
I do believe that the little kid germs from school just may be my kryptonite! I. GOT. SICK. I never get sick with what the girls have but this time I got hit and hit hard. The good news is that we are ALL back on the road to recovery after 3 weeks of crud.
Monday, October 17, 2011
IT'S NOT EVEN WINTER
Last week I had to bring the girls to the doctor. They were all sick. This week - THEY ARE ALL STILL SICK. Today they all had appts at the dentist. We kept those appts (since Hailey busted her face and chipped a tooth - we needed to be seen). And I made appts for them to see the pediatrician this afternoon because they are all still coughing so bad.
We left the house at 9:30 this morning. They were all seen at the dentist and had their teeth clean. NO CAVITIES YAY! Hailey's tooth may/may not change color but it's not going to affect her since it's her baby tooth. We left the dentist around 11:30 and went to have lunch at McD's (with a playscape). After lunch we headed to the doctor. They ALL have bronchitis. (Yup...all those moms at the playscape can certainly thank me now...ooops). Off to the pharmacy we went to fill prescriptions. Then finally home at 4:00. IT WAS A LONG DAY. I'm tired. The kids are tired. But they were very good all day long. I couldn't have asked for better behaved children under the circumstances.
With that said - they will be home from school again tomorrow. They haven't been to school since last Wednesday (Emily hasn't been since last Tuesday). So this is going to be a loooong winter...I can tell already.
We left the house at 9:30 this morning. They were all seen at the dentist and had their teeth clean. NO CAVITIES YAY! Hailey's tooth may/may not change color but it's not going to affect her since it's her baby tooth. We left the dentist around 11:30 and went to have lunch at McD's (with a playscape). After lunch we headed to the doctor. They ALL have bronchitis. (Yup...all those moms at the playscape can certainly thank me now...ooops). Off to the pharmacy we went to fill prescriptions. Then finally home at 4:00. IT WAS A LONG DAY. I'm tired. The kids are tired. But they were very good all day long. I couldn't have asked for better behaved children under the circumstances.
With that said - they will be home from school again tomorrow. They haven't been to school since last Wednesday (Emily hasn't been since last Tuesday). So this is going to be a loooong winter...I can tell already.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Stranger Danger
WTH is with society today? What part of "talk to my 3 year old" sounds "acceptable"? I get it. There are 3 of them. I know this because EVERY DAY I WAKE UP AND THEY'RE CALLING ME MOMMY! But that doesn't mean it's ok for YOU to talk to them as if you're friends. It's been a fine line to walk between 'stranger danger' and 'being rude'. I tell them not to talk to strangers yet I'm telling them to say 'hi' when people talk to us. No more. Our new phrase is "I'm sorry but Mommy told me I can't talk to strangers." That's it. I'm not longer willing to be nice because I can't afford to be. I can't risk them getting comfortable enough to make me worry when we're out in public.
Every single day we practice (I drill) the following:
"What happens if someone asks you to pet their puppy?"
"We say No Thank you - we can pet Marla at home. And then we run away fast and scream!"
"What happens if someone asks you to see their kitten?"
"We say No Thank you - and run away fast and scream!"
"What happens if someone tries to take you?"
"We throw ourselves all around the place and scream and yell and bite until we get away!"
I also tell them:
"Who's allowed to touch your boobies or vagina?"
"Only me and no one else."
"What happens if someone does touch you there?"
"I'm gonna tell Mommy or Daddy RIGHT AWAY!"
"What can you tell Mommy?"
"Everything!"
"Who loves you more than Mommy?" (hehehehe I love being mom)
"NO ONE!" Unless they're feeling giddy and then they'll say any name under the sun except mine! LOL but they get the point.
I don't want to teach them these things. I want to teach them that the world is a safe place and full of love. But that wouldn't be fair. I have to teach them that home is safe and home is love...but when we're out we need to be cautious.
At home - if the doorbell rings - my girls come running to ME...not the door. If someone walks in - they're very cautious to approach until they know who it is. And I'm totally fine with this. I want them to know that the world ISN'T all good. I need them to be prepared for when they're independent and on their own. I can't protect them forever so I need to prepare them. I know how over the top this all sounds but when broken down into bits and pieces - it's really not. It's simply making sure they have the knowledge to carry with them when I'm not around.
Every single day we practice (I drill) the following:
"What happens if someone asks you to pet their puppy?"
"We say No Thank you - we can pet Marla at home. And then we run away fast and scream!"
"What happens if someone asks you to see their kitten?"
"We say No Thank you - and run away fast and scream!"
"What happens if someone tries to take you?"
"We throw ourselves all around the place and scream and yell and bite until we get away!"
I also tell them:
"Who's allowed to touch your boobies or vagina?"
"Only me and no one else."
"What happens if someone does touch you there?"
"I'm gonna tell Mommy or Daddy RIGHT AWAY!"
"What can you tell Mommy?"
"Everything!"
"Who loves you more than Mommy?" (hehehehe I love being mom)
"NO ONE!" Unless they're feeling giddy and then they'll say any name under the sun except mine! LOL but they get the point.
I don't want to teach them these things. I want to teach them that the world is a safe place and full of love. But that wouldn't be fair. I have to teach them that home is safe and home is love...but when we're out we need to be cautious.
At home - if the doorbell rings - my girls come running to ME...not the door. If someone walks in - they're very cautious to approach until they know who it is. And I'm totally fine with this. I want them to know that the world ISN'T all good. I need them to be prepared for when they're independent and on their own. I can't protect them forever so I need to prepare them. I know how over the top this all sounds but when broken down into bits and pieces - it's really not. It's simply making sure they have the knowledge to carry with them when I'm not around.
New Day
Yesterday SUCKED. I'm thankful for a new day. All of the girls are sick - 2 with croup, one with asthma and Hailey fell and busted her face yesterday. She chipped her front tooth also. What a mess of a day..................
But today is new. So we're just going to move forward. Nothing we can do to fix yesterday so we can only hope today is better.
But today is new. So we're just going to move forward. Nothing we can do to fix yesterday so we can only hope today is better.
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Blog?
Who has a blog? Me? I do? OH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My bad......
The girls have been doing wonderful in school. They don't really give me too much trouble in the morning anymore. When we get to the classroom Emily still holds on to my leg as if I can't see or feel her and I may just leave with her attached to me. But the tears are far and few between and they are enjoying the new activities, new friends and new environment. All in all it's going well.
We've been spending our afternoons going places and having fun. When I pick the girls up from school I ask them to 'give me their naps' and I 'put them in my pocket'. If they start to act cranky - I can take their nap out and give it back to them which means stopping what we're doing and going home to take naps. But I'm also smart enough to know that everyone has to have their moment so I don't jump on them the second they act up. I give them time to 'calm themselves down' and usually this is enough to get through the day. They've been doing well without naps so we'll see how it goes.
I'll work on another post about stranger danger. It's so hard to walk that line!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The girls have been doing wonderful in school. They don't really give me too much trouble in the morning anymore. When we get to the classroom Emily still holds on to my leg as if I can't see or feel her and I may just leave with her attached to me. But the tears are far and few between and they are enjoying the new activities, new friends and new environment. All in all it's going well.
We've been spending our afternoons going places and having fun. When I pick the girls up from school I ask them to 'give me their naps' and I 'put them in my pocket'. If they start to act cranky - I can take their nap out and give it back to them which means stopping what we're doing and going home to take naps. But I'm also smart enough to know that everyone has to have their moment so I don't jump on them the second they act up. I give them time to 'calm themselves down' and usually this is enough to get through the day. They've been doing well without naps so we'll see how it goes.
I'll work on another post about stranger danger. It's so hard to walk that line!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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