Twin Sale

So, twice a year the Massachusetts Mother's of Twins Association puts on a sale of all the members' crap. It's pretty amazing and luckily they hold the sale in our town's high school cafeteria. Two Saturdays ago I sent Daddy with Abra to the sale to see what they could find for Missy for winter clothes. We have enough hand-me-downs for J Frog from LR, so he's okay, but we are obviously limited in girl clothing. They came home with 2 garbage bags full with clothes. I don't think there's any way Missy will even wear it all before she grows out of it. Abra said she'd be playing a lot of dress-up with Missy. I have to admit that after almost a lifetime of jeans and t-shirts, pink, ruffle-y girls clothes are really cute.

About a week and a half ago, Missy started pulling herself up to a standing position. Now she's starting to cruise. She also tried to climb the stairs. I came around the corner a few days ago and she had her hands on the second stair and her knees on the first stair. She's killing me. Daddy pulled the gate out of the basement that night and put it up. It's been down for a year and those were good times. It's a pain to have to go through a gate and both the top and bottom of the stairs, but I'll get used to it. Safety first! So no more dresses for Missy for the time being. Between the crawling and the climbing, there's no place for them.

For a few days J Frog was content to crawl over to Missy and pull her legs out from under her while she was trying to stand. This seems to be a problem that is unique to twins. I don't think I'd have this problem if it were just LR and Missy, but J Frog was intent on grabbing whatever leg was closer and chewing on her pant leg. Plus, he has sharp little teeth! Just in the past few days, he's started to show signs of pulling up. I lowered his mattress since he was hanging over the bar every time Abra or I went in to get him. Missy, however, cries herself to sleep while standing since she can't figure out how to get down. She learned how to get up so fast that I'm not too worried about her learning how to bend those knees. It's the imminent walking that I'm worried about!

Holy Crow!

Disclaimer: Pictures are random for this post - leftovers from various occasions.

So when Daddy and I decided to have kids, we tried to clean up our language. Years of involvement with the rugby community had us swearing slightly more than a middle schooler. So, when LR was born, we tried to use variations to keep it clean. I know I shouldn't use anything, but trust me, with 3 kids under 3, swearing is one of the smaller battles. As a result, LR's favorite new expression is "Holy crow!" That particular expression is courtesy of my step-father who used that as his clean version of swearing when we were kids. And the circle of life continues...

At first I was a little concerned about LR using phrases like the above in his new preschool, but I've come to find out that his classroom has bigger battles too. I've already blogged about his first day where he had a discipline issue, but I've found out that every day since school started, he's been sent to the office at least once for anything from throwing sand to not sitting still in the reading circle - He's 3! Not sitting still is an infraction worthy of a visit to the office? I get the throwing sand one, but sitting still?

So, I started to get concerned. I mentioned it to another mom the second week of school, unaware that she is also a VP on the board of the school. The next week she asked me how it was going and I said, "not so well... maybe it's not the right place for him." She said, "no, I was the parent helper yesterday and LR is clearly being singled out by the teacher. When all the kids are mauling each other in the reading circle, LR is the one who gets called out. It's her first year teaching and she doesn't have the skills to deal with anything other than all the kids sitting quietly at the same time. I'm thinking of taking my son out since even though it's LR this week, it could be my son next week." Well, shit. Sorry,... shiz-nit. She's on the board and she's serious about taking her son out of the school because of the quality of the teacher. She's been calling around to other schools since the first week. My guess is that LR was unaware of the expectations the first week, broke the "rules," and was identified as a hot spot by the teacher.

Now, I've been a first year teacher and I know how hard it is, but as a parent, I'm pretty furious about my 3 year-old being singled out as a trouble maker. When I ask him about his day, he tells me he was "bad." He's not a bad kid! He's high-energy, but incredibly loving for his age. All he wants to do is play with the other kids. He lights up when I tell him it's a school day. The last thing I want to have happen is to have him stop liking school because he gets in trouble every day for being 3. So, the VP on the board went and spoke with the principal and set up a plan for the principal to observe LR's teacher every week. Then I called the principal to set up a meeting and tomorrow I have to go in during my work hours to meet with LR's teacher and the principal. The principal asked me to come in with suggestions for the teacher for instructing LR. Really?

On one hand, I understand that she thinks I have insight for dealing with LR, but on the other, I have no idea how to handle his behavior when he's with 12 other children that he'd obviously rather pay attention to than any adult. Isn't that what preschool teachers specialize in? How do I go to this meeting without being angry that she's punishing my child unfairly and letting that come through in the conversation? I want to make sure he has a good year, but I also need to remove him from the school if this is going to continue. I fiercely want to protect LR without going all "crazy-change-my-kid's-F-to-an-A-momma" on her. Know what I mean?

The only good news is the confirmation from a third party that LR is being completely normal in the classroom and not doing anything unusual for his age. That confirmation helped make last week much more fun at home since I didn't feel like I had to sit on him to make him behave.

LR's Recent Observations

While reading a book where a boat is being loaded by trucks, "Daddy, that's not cargo. It's truck-go."

Trying to repeat mommy's stellar pronunciation of the word "burritos" with the whole rolled r thing, "Boobies!" (Honestly, it's not a word that he'd ever heard before, but when I'd finished laughing, you better believe he added it to his repertoire.)

After spinning in circles, "Mommy, my house is moving."

Visit from Grandma Nese

Grandma Nese was kind enough to join us for the second week of Abra's trip. That way Daddy could go back to work and I wouldn't go crazy. Nobody likes a crazy Mommy... least of all Mommy. We tried to pack a couple of adventures into the trip, but the favorite was the trip to the Children's Museum downtown. LR went straight to the boat room and he and Grandma Nese played for a while with the boats and the water spigots that control the water flow. It took some convincing to go anywhere else in the museum, but we finally got him to go to the construction room. The museum was pretty empty, so we just let LR have the run of the place while we gave bottles to the babies.

Missy and J Frog have gotten good at eating for the most part. It's yogurt for breakfast and cereal with applesauce for lunch. For dinner we try to sneak in a vegetable and often give them some teething toast. They love the toast, but oh, the mess! Little soggy crumbles end up on their clothes, the chairs, their hair, the floor, my shirt, their trays, and the table. Good thing bath time is always right after dinner. Trying to clean them up any other way would just be a mistake.







LR drives a grocery delivery truck at the museum.







Grandma Nese gets used to the big stroller.












J Frog's preferred method of drinking water. He really doesn't dig sippy cups. Instead he takes big mouthfuls of water and chokes on every fifth sip or so. Doesn't keep him from going back for more though!




Grandma Nese tries to keep the babies on the blanket and grass out of their mouths during a birthday party for LR's friend. They were ALL about the grass.









Yum yum!







It's all mine!

LR's Third Birthday!

He's 3! And this year Mommy has learned an important lesson. When presents arrive in the mail, she shouldn't give them to him right away. I should save them up and give them to him all on his birthday or party day. Otherwise, LR will think that his birthday is about 3 weeks long. I'm sure tomorrow (and the next day and the next) he'll be expecting more gifts!

I started baking cakes for his construction themed party around 7am since the party was at 11am, but I underestimated how long it would take me to pick up, decorate, feed the kids, dress the kids, shower, and dress myself. I was just stepping out of the shower when guests started to arrive. Because of the rain, any plans to paint outside were scrapped. Instead we played a wrecking ball game using cities built of boxes and balls hung from the ceiling with twine. We also had the kids "construct" their cake servings by taking hunks of cake and putting them together with cement icing. They seemed to have fun, but more importantly, LR had a blast. He had a great day playing with friends, eating pizza and cake, and hanging out with the family. It was the first day in a long time that I haven't had to discipline him. It was just a very easy day and for all the supporting cast that it took to make that happen, I'm incredibly grateful.

I bought a cheap, but large dump truck this week which served as the platter for the cake. I took plain chocolate cake and cut it into cubes and then tossed them in the truck. It looked like rubble and the kids thought it was awesome. The only drawback was that the parents spent time helping the kids construct their cakes and then didn't eat any themselves. Since there were only 4 kids at the party, I have a TON left over.

LR also spent some quality time giving friends and siblings of friends rides on his cool new tractor. It's his present from Yianni and Cookie and he loves it. I haven't had time to put the front loader on it because he spends so much time playing with it.

Oh, and J Frog and Missy contributed to the festivities as well. J Frog clung onto Daddy's head while Daddy cut up fruit and veggies during the pre-party. It's currently one of our favorite "stop-J Frog-from-crying" moves. He likes the view from up there and apparently Daddy uses tasty hair product. Missy's contribution included pulling herself up to a standing position. She just started crawling on her knees last week and on party day she decided to enter the third dimension. She's now going vertical and it's a little scary. She's not sturdy enough, so if you turn your back, she'll fall over.

Third Baby Reunion and Bath Time

Thanks to a tropical storm our rugby game was canceled this weekend. Free time - wee! We managed to take the zoo to LR's third annual baby reunion. One of the moms from LR's "Great Beginnings" class is a super organizer and puts on this reunion every year. This time it was at a baby gym downtown. The young man and woman running the show were amazing. They had all 10 of the 3 year-olds completely captivated with stories and activities. They were loud, energetic, and entertaining. It's too bad preschool isn't like that every day! LR was in heaven and bounced from activity to activity while interacting with the other children when he careened off walls and into them. It was awesome. He even found a kindred spirit in another boy there. Definitely some monkey-see-monkey-do action going on. And the "car wash" was my favorite part. They brought out cars and motorcycles for them to ride, then started the bubble machine. Very creative!

In the evening, LR decided to climb into the bath with the babies, so we had our very first all-sibling washdown. Everything went reasonably well and then LR and Missy started a splashing war which had everyone giggling. Well, LR laughed and Missy screamed which may sound bad, but she screams when she's happy. She screams when she's neglected, mad, fussy, happy, and watching LR. She is a screamy girl.

Counting Mommy's Bruises

It's that time of year again - rugby season! We're already in full swing and I think this is the largest roster I've had in the past 9 years. There are around 50 players which is keeping both practices and games pretty intense. This is also the first time for a few years that I've been able to participate. Last year I was pregnant with the twins so couldn't do much. Now I'm getting caught up in the action and as a result, LR and I have come up with a new game called, "Count Mommy's Bruises." Between carrying 2 heavy car seats in and out of the car and banging them into walls and my legs on the way and rugby practices, I have a lot. I think our last game ended with a count of 11 and that was only the big ones.

After our first rugby game last weekend, one of my players emailed the team and said she was having fun playing "dirt or bruise" in the shower. Good game!

So one of the reasons I haven't done much posting is that Abra has been home in South Africa having her wisdom teeth removed. We missed her terribly! Now she's back and the kids are getting some much needed Abra-love. It's amazing how much they've changed in just the short time she's been gone: Missy started crawling, LR started school, J Frog now has 2 teeth and is vocalizing much more often.

Well, I've finally caught the cold that both LR and J Frog had this week, so I'm off to bed. Will write about our visit with Grandma Nese next! (She filled in for Abra the second week Abra was gone and we couldn't be more grateful!) And I didn't even blog on LR's third birthday. LR, I owe you a post! Luckily, his party isn't until this Sunday, so I'll have birthday pictures eventually.

First Tooth

They are no longer the toothless twosome! J Frog got his first tooth. It took about 3 days to go from a red lump to a sharp little line in his bottom gum line, but it's there. Now when I spoon feed him his breakfast, lunch and dinner he spends an extra beat biting on the spoon before I can get it out of his mouth. It didn't seem to bother him too much coming in, so I hope the tooth next to it goes as smoothly.

Speaking of eating habits, J Frog and Missy couldn't be more different. He will suck down an entire bottle of formula for lunch and somewhat ignore the solid food we try to give him. She loves the solid food and shuns the bottle. She even yells when I take a moment to try to give J Frog a spoonful in between her bites. Jealous much? It starts early with twins.

One of J Frog's favorite new places is behind the couch which is where the first two pictures were taken. He's getting so fast with his commando crawling that it's difficult to keep my laptop on the floor while we have video conferences with family. He makes a B-line for the screen and hollers if I drag him away after he's worked so hard. He even ended up under an exersaucer. I had a terrible time getting him out. He kept bumping his head.

J Frog has also turned into an adventurer. If he sees you come near, he'll go back to his superman form and lift his arms in anticipation of being picked up. Otherwise, he's off exploring the living room or heading into the ball room. A very kind neighbor gave us her daughter's old Wiggles tent and J Frog has claimed it. We've kept it in the ball room and he often crawls from the living room to the ball room just to play with the door flap of the tent. I'm sure I have pictures of it. I'll get them up soon.

From the pictures you might think that J Frog is always smiling now. That's actually pretty accurate. All I have to do is say his name to make him laugh. And it's a pretty infectious giggle. Love having smiley kids.

First Day of School

The shame about being behind on my blogging is that I'm missing so many great milestones. For example, LR started school! His first day of preschool and he and I were both psyched! He wore his paper bear which had arrived in the mail the week before. His teacher, Ms. Marie, had sent it for the kids to decorate and wear the first day. He honestly wasn't that interested in it, but he humored me and wore it for the picture. The first day was only an hour, but he got a chance to meet his teacher, hang out with half of his classmates, and test run all the toy cars in the classroom. I stayed with him and all seemed to go smoothly. The next day was 2 hours and I left him on his own. He didn't notice when I left and didn't care when he realized I was gone. I thought all had gone well until a few hours after I picked him up. Then the call came from his teacher. She left a message on my voicemail... "LR had a few 'issues' today and I wanted to talk to you about it so that he has a good year... and all the other kids do too." *sigh* Guess it didn't go as well as I thought.

So, I obsessed about it and then made Daddy call her back. Apparently, he had trouble following directions and he left the room a couple of times to explore the other classrooms and what they had. (On the way in he saw a room with a water table and sailboats in it. I think he was trying to find it again.) And the kicker... he slapped a kid. Daddy asked if anything provoked him, but the teacher assured him that it was completely spontaneous. *double sigh* Okay, so our week of vacation with him turned into a week of discipline. Every time he ignored our instructions or requests, he went to his room. Fun fun.

On his third day of school, I went in for 1 of the 2 hours to help/observe/celebrate his third birthday and found that LR was being a typical almost-3-year-old. He does have a hard time listening, but most of the kids in the class do at some time or other. He tends to be more interested in the other children than what the teacher is doing. (When does that change?) He's a bit of an alpha-dog, class clown. I know it doesn't bode well, but I'm not really concerned either. He's happy and healthy and has a hard time sitting still during story time. Whaaaat-ever. Oh, and I found out that it's the teacher's first year teaching and that she doesn't really have the skill set that experience will give her. (said the woman with a masters in education who quit teaching within a year.) She has a few tricks up her sleeve, but doesn't have a handle on how to work with LR yet. He'll get used to the routine and she'll find out what privileges he doesn't like losing.

One of the bright spots in the week came when we got a chance to go peach picking. We ran into 2 other families with twins while there. Go Massachusetts! We palled around with a 4 year-old boy and his identical twin 2 year-old sisters. Then we hit the playground and played with fraternal 2 and a half year-old sisters dressed in matching OshKosh. The babies seemed to enjoy our time outside and we all liked the peaches.

Other milestones to come: Missy crawls, J Frog gets his first tooth, and LR gets observant.

Wrestle Mania

Every time I put Missy and J Frog down on the play mat it turns into a wrestling match. Missy will grab a toy, usually a side piece of the play mat. Then J Frog will pull himself over and try to take whatever she has by whatever means necessary. So far she hasn't proven to be terrific at defending herself, but as long as she has a good grip on the toy, she's okay. The worst is when she takes a toy and rolls over onto her back. She plays with it otter-style until J Frog arrives at her head and grabs a chunk of hair. I've run into the room more than once to find her screaming with him still latched onto her hair. Yes, that means I do leave the alone when I run to pee which leads me to my next point...

I bought a pen for them to keep them safe when I leave the room, but now I'm thinking that I can't leave them in there together. *sigh* I think I need a baby jail for each child. Uncles Keeper and Corbin should be especially proud of Missy's fishhook. J Frog got a little too close for comfort and she let him know.



In the last picture, J Frog just kept on chasing her no matter where she went.

Duck Tours

Grandma W's visit was a huge success although much, much, much too short. She arrived Friday afternoon and saw the craziness that is our house from 5 to 8pm. It goes: baby dinner, our dinner, double baby bath, LR bath while nursing babies to sleep, LR snack with milk, LR bedtime routine. *phew*

Then on Saturday we decided to go out adventuring right away. Since I was the only one in the family that had been on the Boston Duck Tours, we decided to take everyone on the amphibious vehicles including Abra and her friend Chrissy. The skies were overcast, unfortunately, but it went pretty smoothly. As soon as we got on the boats and started rumbling LR passed out. I was disappointed that he wasn't watching as we drove around Boston, but he woke up for the part of the tour when the boat dives into the Charles River. I guess that's really the best part of the tour anyway. The twins napped off and on and J Frog spent much of the time in my arms. He and I were sitting in the first seat on the boat and got blasted by the heat of the engine every time the driver stepped on the gas. It was a little intense, bouncy, and noisy. The experience was definitely different with my family than it was with my company a few years ago.

On Sunday we decided to leave the kids with the au pairs who were gracious enough to take all 3 of them! What a treat. Grandma, Daddy and I went shopping without our standard collection of strollers, bags, snacks, and a bottle of Excedrin. It was awesome. We hit Toys R Us and then the mall to get a new professional fall wardrobe for me. I used almost all my Banana Republic gift cards I'd been saving for the past 3 years of on-again-off-again pregnancy.

We we got home it was back to Babyland. Grandma W fit in some quality time with LR. She read him books and played games with him. He wanted all her attention, but we put her to work doing things like double bottle feeding J Frog and Missy while they sat in their car seats. It'll be nice when they can hold their bottles. Missy is close. J Frog doesn't have the manual dexterity yet. He's got the gross motor skills though. He just keeps getting faster.

Grandma had to hop on a plane midday on Monday, so the first thing we did in the morning was to go outside and take a ton of pictures. We even took one of just the girls. Between Grandma and her brother, there were 4 sons and 1 daughter (me!). Between SwindDaddy and I we have the same configuration. We both have 2 sons and then there's Missy. She could end up in a sorority and wear nothing but pink for the rest of her life and we'll still have that in common. Cool!

Labor Day Weekend Visit From Grandma

Last weekend we had a wonderful visit from Grandma W. She came out just to see how much these kids have changed in 6 months. While I would love to post all about it, I'm going to start with just a handful of the 200 photos we took. (It was my turn to put LR to bed and it's now 10pm. Boy, I just can't let that kid take a nap. It kills me!)

Missy showing Grandma just how tasty those hands are. We were trying to get her to smile for the camera, but she insisted on covering her mouth. You can tell she's smiling behind there though.




J Frog was more accommodating for the most part. He's just content to be held.






Then there were the zillion shots we took trying to get all of us. Daddy was pretty handy with the camera, but we still ended up with dark photos because of how bright the sun was that day. It was either 5 squinty faces or dark shadows.