Holiday hangover

I'm sure I'm not the only one who's feeling like they got hit by a mack truck filled with toys that require the jaws of life to open nor do I feel like I'm the only one who's glad it's over. For this year anyway. Next year I'm going to be more prepared. I'm going to start Christmas shopping in July. Or do it all on line, months in advance.

My little miss is getting so big and so smart. I don't think I'll use Santa as a bargaining chip anymore (you know the whole Santa is watching and only brings presents for good little girls) because I think it kind of back fired. After opening her Christmas stocking I told her that Santa must have thought she was a good little girl. She agreed and said "see mom, I was right, you were wrong." Ouch.

Here are some pics from Xmas 2008...

Happy Holidays

My little miss is so excited for the holidays. It could have a lot to do with the fact that we're traveling down to Long Island to spend it with Grandma and Grandpa. It could also have something to do with the fact that she's wanted EVERY toy she's seen on tv in the last 4 months and to acknowledge her "need" I've told her to add it to her Christmas list. I hope she's not disappointed when she doesn't find the life size stuffed golden retriever under the tree.

Anyway, here's a couple of Christmas pics of my little ones. Like always, I was the only excited about taking their picture. They did great despite this...

Here, xianferns youngest (?) daughter wanted to be a part of our Christmas card. It was tough breaking it to her. She didn't take it very well.

She did eventually get over it... And we got these great pictures of the girl cousins to remember this holiday. Have I ever mentioned how excited I am that these girls are growing up together. I hope they always love eachother the way they do right now (with less hitting and yelling, though :)

My little tough guy

I love this picture- can't you just hear him doing his best Robert Dinero impression...

Happy Halloween

In true NH fashion, trick or treating was tonight and depending on which town you live in, it's also tomorrow night and probably one night this weekend. My little miss had a blast with her cousins. Tomorrow night we go with the people on our street. No one but the neighborhood kids go trick or treating on our road because it's dirt and pretty deserted. Very halloween like if you ask me, but not at all inviting to those who don't live here. Here are some pics of my Cinderella!

My little miss and blogless' youngest daughter- beautiful Cinderella prinesses!
Here are all the trick or treaters. Xian fern is quite the seamstress- she made a bat suit, a ghost costume and she hemmed little miss' Cinderella dress!
The 3 princesses!!

For those of you wondering...

Home renovations suck. I wouldn't recommend it and I won't do it. ever. again. My husband has been doing most of the work but that leaves me to do the other stuff which is sometimes just as labor intensive. Here are a couple pictures of what my husband has been up to...

Those cabinets on the counter will eventually be hung on the walls. And the countertops will get a coat of tung oil and some sort of wax. And that wire hanging down will either be disconnected or used to hang laundry- we haven't decided which..

Mother's little helper

No, I don't mean what the Rolling Stones sang about a hundred years ago, which I think was a pill, not to say that that wouldn't be helpful but that's not what I'm referring to. I'm referring to my neighbor's kid who is at this very moment entertaining my 3 year old. outside. out of my hair. My little miss is enjoying bossing around this sweet 10 year old who takes it totally in stride. What's better is the babies are sleeping and my dear husband is building our kitchen. Fanf*ckingtastic!

Not so high chairs

Well, today was a great day. The weather cooperated so we got outside for a bit and everyone was in really good moods- even me! We took a long walk down our dirt road and collected leaves. We're going to make a leaf chicken later (thank-you noggin). I cleaned up the house a bit. One project was to get these feeding chairs ready to bring to xianferns tomorrow. The boys have transitioned from their infant carriers to regular car seats. We gave my mil our infant carrier for the upcoming arrival of grandbaby #4, so xianfern gets these since she used the infant carriers to give them lunch, keep them contained, whatever. I didn't know I had 2 matching feeding chairs. My husband has been collecting them from the dump, I mean swap shop, for the last couple of years. It was quite a project and apparently mold stains don't come out, hence the word stain in the description (you'll see what I mean tomorrow xian). Anyway, nothing but the best hand me down, dump finds for my kids.

Here they are fresh from their afternoon nap enjoying some milk- which by the way is formula, but not for much longer- cow's milk here we come!! :)

Can you see their big sister in the background, on the couch? She's become rather fond of standing on her head.

I love my kids...

More than anything. But what a looonnngggg weekend. I have tomorrow off (from work- the work I get paid for) and while I'm looking forward to it, I'm also wondering why I thought a 4 day weekend combined with a 5 hour road trip would be a good idea- or more like why I thought having Monday off would help me recuperate. Haven't I learned by now that if I want to rest and relax that I should go to work? Whatever. It will be a good day. I haven't seen the weather but I'm hoping to be able to take everyone outside so cabin fever won't get the best of us. Anyway, here are a couple pictures of my sweet, well rested children prior to taking them on a road trip to visit their grandparents. Followed by what happens when they don't sleep in their own beds for 2 nights and when the oldest goes to bed at 9:30 only to wake up before the dawn wanting to play with grandma...

I was in a baby store this weekend picking up some baby supplies, when a store employee who happened to be african american was stocking the shelves next to little miss and I. Little Miss asked quite loudly why some people had dark skin. Uhh. I told her it was because they were born that way. I don't know if that's the "PC" thing to say but I wasn't going to ignore her question (I tried, she wouldn't let me), plus what else do I say? I don't really know why some people are black and some are white or some have skin tones in between. I don't know how it happens in the scientific sense- pigment or some shit. I have no clue. So, then the moment is over and we're in another aisle. There's another store employee stocking shelves but he's an old, balding white guy, so that question is over for the time being. Until I get- "mom, why do some people not have hair?" Ok, time to go, the babies can pee on the potty and eat pot roast like the rest of us!

11 months old!! ACK!

Could someone slow down the clock like they do at work, right at the end of the day when you only have about an hour before you get to go home- please? My babies aren't going to be babies much longer!

Someone should tell him he might be happier if he didn't have a mouth full of dog hair.

Or a mouth full of dog dish!

Tough guy!

Counting down the minutes

Anyone else counting down the minutes til bedtime (theirs, not yours, though my bedtime countdown is in a very close second and totally contingent upon theirs.) This question is rhetorical because most moms of more than one count the minutes on occasion until it's time to say good night and then sit and breath until that tense feeling is gone from your shoulders. I'm about to have that moment. 2 out of 3 are down for the night. It's only 6:00. We worked pretty hard to have this moment. The babies only had one nap today because their morning nap was kind of late and by the time they got up from it they were only 10 minutes away from when they would have had their afternoon nap, so we sucked it up and dealt with especially crabby babies until about 5 minutes ago. Unfortunately, the oldest is the toughest and though we worked hard to keep her awake all day, she'll undoubtedly catch a second wind from her pop tart dessert and be awake long after I'll have wanted to go to bed. Wish me luck!

We went down to the in-laws this weekend to say to goodbye to my sister in law. My little miss has no idea how much she's going to miss her aunt. She's one of those aunts that you can't wait to tell a story about your day to or show them the report card with all C's because she'll always tell you how proud she is of you. My in-laws (all of them) are the best!

My mother and father in laws threw her a wonderful going away party, so great in fact, we're all secretly hoping that she'll reconsider moving west and let us throw her a welcome home party (though I doubt it- she's got her trip tix, so I think she's pretty sure about going.) Plus, her boyfriend of many years proposed the eve of her party! We got to be a part of the special event, which was so great- I've never been present at any marriage proposal but my own and man, those things are so sweet! Any-hoo, I got a couple pictures of the happy couple holding my little miss while they cut their going away cake! Good luck you guys and come back soon so we can throw you an engagement party, (that welcome home party), a wedding shower, a WEDDING, etc....

And here are 2 of my kiddos in the new wagon that their aunt and uncle got the boys as an early 1st birthday gift.

Here's my little miss painting (but like any girly girl princess, her nails ended up with the most paint on them!)

And my sweet little boys who made everyone at the party think that having twins is a breeze (which having these twins really is!!!)

I haven't been to Storyland in a long time. I think the last I went was with a family I was babysitting for and I don't remember liking it very much. Well, since becoming a parent, I've done a lot of things I never thought I'd enjoy and to my surprise taking a 3 year old and 10 month old twins to Mother Goose kingdon was one of those things. Everyone did great and despite the fact that the boys both had head colds, we had a really good time and I'm kind of hoping that we've started an annual family vacation of sorts. At least until this theme park runs its course and the kids refuse to go to a place where Mother Goose is God. Anyway, here are some pics...

My not so little Miss and her dad on the Bambo Chute moments before getting soaked!

Little Miss listening to Humpty Dumpty (who's wearing too much eye make up for a family park if you ask me!)

In front of Cinderella's pumpkin carriage

This stroller was the only "ride" 10 month old babies were allowed on

The boys enjoying breakfast in our hotel room

Thank god for cable tv (but seriously could they get a tivo with a few episopdes of spongebob?)

Poor little guy. He fought sleep til the bitter end. Looks like sleep won..

And could she be any cuter??

Yup...

This post needs no title, though I seriously considering calling it "Crap!" because life with twins has been easy up til now.. :)

8 months old...

This has been my second favorite milestone (first being the whole bottle holding thing)... They're still perfecting the art of sitting up and have many times flopped over to one side and bumped their heads, but they're exceptional young men and appear to be learning from their mistakes!

Edited to add: I forget to include my new #1 milestone- sleeping through the f*%$ing night! They have been going from 6:45pm to 4:30am, sip of milk and back to sleep til 6:00am! I basically refused to get up with them during the night. I'm sleeping in their sister's extra bed and their father is on the couch. I don't know when we'll return to our bedroom, but who cares, they are sleeping through the night (more importantly- I am sleeping through the night!!)

7 months old

I can't believe my boys are 7 months old! I say this every month, but it's true. It is going by so fast. In a way I wanted their infancy to go by quickly so we'd get a decent nights sleep or something, but now that we're on the other (easier) side of raising twins, I would like time to slow down a little. It has become a lot of fun caring for these 2 babies. They are so good natured and easy to care for. I only wish I could be with them all the time. This having to work thing is for the birds. Oh well.

Here are my 7 month old boys!

Good reading

I've read books that put me to sleep, too. He should have known by the cover that this one was a snoozer!

Mother's Day fashion show

My little miss got a TON of new clothes from blogless yesterday at the party for xianferns boys! She LOVED the swimsuits. This morning she insisted on trying on each of them. Here's my little miss doing the catwalk!

(by the end, she wasn't really into the fashion show anymore. I think she pooped on the potty after striking this pose!)