Of Cats and Kids and Playing

We added our precious furry boys to our family a year ago in December.  They are such a treasure, but they’ve caused us to change our ways around the house in some respects, too.

The boys are a bit on the rambunctious side, AND they will run off with anything small.  (I’ve never seen a cat do that before!!!)  That prompts us to keep the kitties in the basement when we’re not home.  (That always sounds terrible to me, but it’s a fully finished space as big as our first house!)  When we are home, we close all the bedroom doors to limit the kitties’ roaming.  (They’re angels when they’re with us in the common areas.)

So…when the kitties are out and about, we’re generally hanging out in the kitchen, living room, or den.  And…this has very nicely coincided with the girls’ obsession with reading.  So…we spend a lot of time as a family reading or playing cards and hanging out with the kitties.

Sounds wonderful, right?  It is!

Except…

The girls don’t spend nearly as much time just playing as they used to.  The vast majority of their toys are upstairs in the playroom / bonus room, and those are rooms we close from the kitties.  The girls have their “quiet time” on Saturdays and Sundays, and they usually play then.  But – by design – that’s their time to themselves.

So…

It’s been such a beautiful treat to happen upon my girls playing so nicely a couple of times recently.  

One day, I came home from grocery shopping and Hubby was in the basement with the kitties.  I sneaked upstairs to the most wonderful sight.  I stood in the hallway and watched the girls, unbeknownst to them.  They were playing with their snap circuits, working together to figure something out.  

How I loved listening to their conversation.  “I’m trying to make the flying saucer, but I can just get the fan to work.”  “Here, let me show you what I think will get it.”  They communicated so nicely, helped each other respectfully, and delighted with each other when they got what they were looking for.

Even after I interrupted them, they continued to play so well.

And then earlier this week, I came home to Hubby cutting the grass, and the kitties were in the basement by themselves.  I could hear the girls in their playroom.  “Do you have any baby food?”  “No, we can just make our own.  Here, I’ll mush up some bananas.”

They had a very elaborate setup with their baby dolls and a full meal.  This time, they were waiting on me to join them.  “Mommy, will you play with us?!”  When I went into their playroom, there was a seat for me at their little table, and they had even saved the best piece of cake for me.

These exchanges used to be a daily thing…in our old house, where their toys were in the den…before kitties…before school and work.  I enjoyed them then…but I absolutely treasure these precious moments now.

Super Stuff on a Saturday!

My sweet Baby A was sick last Friday, and she was nothing short of devastated that she couldn’t go to school.  Her spirits perked up, though, when we went downstairs to spend some time with the furry babies.  She covered up on the couch, and Miki and Alex immediately jumped to her rescue.  I snapped some pictures of them “taking care of her”.  That made her smile for the first time all day…and she was so excited to share the picture with her sissy when she got home from school.

The girls won ribbons in the display board contest!!!  Baby B got 2^nd place (for kindergarten and 1^st grade), and Baby A got 3^rd place.  They were so excited!!!  And I thought it was so sweet that, from Day 1, they talked about how they would share their gift certificates ($10 and $5, respectively) at the book fair.

By Sunday, Baby A was feeling better, and Mother Nature was giving us a beautiful taste of spring.  We had discussed going to the park, but we decided to play at home instead.  The girls rode their bikes and scooters, and Mommy and Daddy broke out the Frisbee.  It was such great fun to all be doing our thing!!!

Spring soccer season kicked off this week!  I surprised the girls with that on Monday morning, and they were stoked.  How great it was to see them running around on the field!

Baby A cracked us up with an extraordinary display of manners one night.  At the table: “I’m sorry to ask this, but could I please have some more guacamole?”  And when she played a wild card in UNO, she said, “I would like some green, if possible.”  HA!!!

The girls went out to supper with Daddy on Thursday night.  It’s sometimes hard to pull details from them, but Baby B came home and proclaimed, “We had the black and blue pizza.  It was so delicious!”  Her enthusiasm cracked me up!

And some previously-shared-on-FB-quotes that I couldn’t resist including here:

One of the kitties was eyeing the table tonight at supper. B said, "He thinks he wants to be human." And then she added, "He must not understand the things an average human has to go through." Ack! I didn't realize her seven years here as a human had been so tough so as to shape her views as such. Hahaha!

Baby B came up to me as I was getting this morning. She was holding two pictures, and she said, "Mommy, can you compare and contrast these?" I did not even know what to make of that, but it sure cracked me up out of the blue. HA!

Sharing a little bit of "awwwww" that my baby girl (A) randomly gave me as I tucked her in. "I'm always proud of you, because you're the best mommy in the world." I needed that today!

So thankful for this Super Stuff!

The Realities of Twin Parenthood: A 7-year Old's Perspective

When the girls get up in the mornings, we usually have the kitties in the basement.  Our routine is that we eat breakfast, the girls brush their teeth, and then they can go downstairs and play with the cats until about 7.

Baby A is usually the first to finish, so she usually has extra time with the fur babies.  A couple of mornings ago, she lamented:

"Mommy, I need you or Sissy to come downstairs with me to play with the boys.  It's hard when I'm down there by myself, because I can only play with one of them at a time."

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!

My seven-year old just stumbled upon one of the big realities of twin parenthood.  I couldn't help but smile.

(At least the cats can feed themselves!)

Alex and Miki!

Super Stuff on a Saturday!

So thankful to have recorded some of the Super Stuff from around our house the past couple of weeks!

The girls aren’t always in lock-step with each other, but it’s so sweet when they are.  A few nights ago, after supper, Baby A planted a big, spontaneous hug on Baby B as we were heading into the den to play a game.  Made this mama’s heart smile!

On the way to school, Baby A was talking about how old she would be when she can drive.  “I’ll be able to drive when I’m in college…but you’ll still pick me up, right, Mommy?”  Absolutely.

Our kitty Miki is famous for wanting to sit in my lap, specifically during mealtimes.  (He’s really good and doesn’t reach for food…he just likes being there!)  He was all comfy after supper one night, and A asked if I would put him in her lap.  I did, and he sat there for the longest time.  She was in furry baby heaven!

I took the girls for ice cream cones at the Dairy Queen last weekend to celebrate A losing a tooth.  Once upon a time, this would have been major anxiety for me.  I realized most of the way through, though, that the girls were eating their cones WITHOUT MAKING ANY MESS.  Wowza.

On the way to school one morning:
B: "Mommy, what if the earth is just a tiny little spec, like in Horton Hears a Who?"
Me: "Well, it really kind of is, in the scheme of the universe."
A: "Yeah, and it would take a thousand years to reach another galaxy."
...Little minds. Big thoughts. 

Last Saturday the girls wanted to play outside for a few minutes after we got home from some errands.  We messed around with a few different toys, and then B got out a small football she got as a prize at school.  I did my best to show her how to throw it…and she did a really good job!!!  There were even a couple of nice, tight spirals!!!

Serious about football!

We watched a few minutes of the Kentucky Derby last Saturday.  Right before the race, I was caught really off guard that the girls were singing along, word for word, to "My Old Kentucky Home".  At least they can also sing Sweet Home Alabama!

Different-height Twin Problem #17. I laid out the girls' clothes for the day, which happened to include matching sweaters.  Although their jeans were different, the girls happened to put on the wrong pair.  We were running out the door when I noticed A's jeans were high waters, and B's were dragging the floor. Hee hee!  Thank goodness they were conciliatory and agreed to switch.

Outta the mouths of babes, at bedtime last Sunday night: "Mommy, why is the weekend so short? It seems like it just started! I wish it could be 10 days long."  Credit to Baby A for this unadulterated insight.

Playing on Saturday...JOY!!!

The girls were playing with magnets last weekend. They came barreling downstairs to breathlessly tell me what they'd just learned. Then, "C'mon, Sissy!  Let's go see what else we can discover!!!"

Little Girls and Kittens

“Every little girl should have a cat,” my great aunt has told me several times.  I couldn’t agree more.

Since we lost our sweet Sasha in January last year (proceeded by her brother Misha, in April 2010), we’ve been talking about getting kittens.

We agreed we needed to get some things squared away in the house (part of the kitchen floor had to be refinished) before we wanted to invite new babies into the mix.  The floor was {FINALLY} finished in mid-November, and we made quick plans to adopt two kittens over the holidays.

[The kitties were not to be Christmas presents, but we’d all be mostly home for two weeks, so we thought that would be a great time to acclimate new kittens.]

The middle of December, I called the Humane Society and got our paperwork taken care of.  As much as we wanted the girls to pick out their kittens, the lady I spoke with advised I might come in the week prior to Christmas to get an idea.  She said they actually “run low” of kittens and puppies at Christmastime!

A week before Christmas, I went to the shelter on my lunch hour.  They had four tiny kittens – exactly what I’d envisioned – but they were pretty skittish.  I asked if they had any other babies, and they directed me to the “cat room” in the next building.  I walked in and introduced myself to the lady there.  I told her I was looking for two kittens, ideally a sibling set.  “Oh, you have to meet these twin boys we have!” she told me.

I’ll take them! I felt like saying.  Sight unseen.

I got to spend some time in a room with “Bubbles” and “Julian”.  They were bigger and older than what I had in mind.  (The shelter estimated them at 3 months, but I figured they had to be at least 4 months old.)  But…they were SO SWEET!!!

They were incredibly affectionate and agile.  I bent down to speak to one, and the other literally jumped up on my back!  One made himself at home on my coat!

I fell in love.  How I hated to leave those babies when it was time to go back to work!!!  I put my name on their cage and told them Mommy would be back soon.

I’ll say that Hubby wasn’t 100% sold when I told him about the twin boys I’d met…they’re bigger and older than what we were thinking…and they’re solid black…but they are AMAZING.  He agreed to go to the shelter with an open mind, but he asked if we were obligated to those particular cats.  No…but just wait, I told him.

We named the kitties Miki and Alex, and the girls were beside themselves when we went to pick them up.  Hubby fell in love right away, too (as I knew he would).

There have been a million precious moments in the month we’ve had these babies.  The highlight is seeing the girls “mother” them. 

“Good job, Miki!  You’re such a smart boy!”

“Come on, Alex!  You can do it!”

“Do you want me to get your toy?  Come on, Sweet Boy.”

Yes, every little girl should have a cat...or two.

Alex and A, the first day home.

Miki and B, the first day home.

Christmas morning, giving the boys their stockings.

So Much Super Stuff!!!

I have been absolutely terrible about carving out time to write over the past few months.  I won’t lament that [here]…but I am very thankful to have jotted down a few gems over the past few weeks.  Super stuff, for sure!

1)    When GG was here for Thanksgiving, we surprised her by having uploaded her picture to JibJab, the video making site.  We were all in hysterics, seeing her dance online to Feliz Navidad, the girls along beside her.  She had never seen anything like it, and just couldn’t quit laughing.

2)    In the fall, a children’s author came to visit the girls’ school.  They were so impressed, and they told me all about what he said.  When we brought out our Christmas books for the season, my A noticed he illustrated one of their books.  “HENRY COLE!!!!!  Mommy, HENRY COLE!!!!!  He came to our school!!!!!  HENRY COLE!!!!!”  I LOVE her enthusiasm…AND that she would read the name of the illustrator by herself!!!!!

3)    One of our first Christmas activities was to make snowflakes.  I got out some coffee filters and showed the girls how to fold and cut them.  The girls were intrigued.  And when B finished hers, she must have said five times, in awe, “Mommy!  It’s just so beautiful!!!”

4)    I took the girls to see Rudolph the Musical at our local performing arts center.  It was our first time to go to a show there, and the girls were in awe.  What a pleasure it was for me to take them...to introduce them to one of my childhood favorites, at that!  And My A, in particular, was sitting on the edge of her seat!  I’d prepped the girls that the Abominable Snow Monster would be a part of the show.  They were nervous, but they both did great, keeping it in perspective.  My A later said that was her favorite part of the program.  HA!

5)    The girls learned (maybe from school? as we didn’t focus much on it during our reading at home?) to name the 8 reindeer.  They are fiercely passionate about doing so, any time they see a drawing of Santa and his reindeer…and then they interrupt whatever story or situation to break into song about “the most famous reindeer of all”.  Hee hee!

An elf and a reindeer...my loves!!!

6)    We had a really crazy day on Friday before Christmas.  It’s a post (or two) in itself, involving numerous X-rays and a potentially broken arm.  When the day finally closed on a high note (with the option for us to just watch B for any signs of distress), I told her we should celebrate at the Dairy Queen.  That baby girl looked like she had a new lease on life…that was definite cause for a celebration!

7)    During our Crazy Day on Friday, I told B at one point (before it was all over), “It’s been a crazy day.”  She tearfully replied, “And I don’t like it!”  Me, either, Baby Girl!!!

8)    On the first weekend of Christmas break, we were having a pretty ordinary day.  We were doing laundry, coloring, cleaning up a bit.  Out of the blue, my precious B said, “Mommy, I just love days like this!”  Me, too!!!  Oh, how I miss our unstructured time!!!

9)    One morning during Christmas, my A asked, “Are we going out today?”  I originally told her no, to which she exclaimed, “YES!!!  I can wear my pajamas ALL DAY LONG!!!”  I later remembered we had an errand to run.  She reluctantly got dressed…but she came home and put her PJs back on!

10) WE GOT KITTENS!!!  The girls have been looking forward to this for months and months…and so have we.  They are the sweet big sisters to those furry babies!

11) We got our kittens on December 21, and of course we had to make stockings for them.  We decided to use the stockings the girls brought home from kindergarten…we cut out the kittens’ initials from felt and glued them on.  The girls were so excited to hang them over the fireplace!

12) A couple of days after we got the kittens, A asked to spend Quiet Time in the basement with them and her daddy.  She “napped” on the couch with them (I CANNOT believe she slept…but she was quiet for a good while!).  Afterwards she said, “This was the best quiet time EVER!”

13) We went to a sandwich shop over the holiday break, one we hadn’t been too in a long time.  I could not believe that B walked in and immediately remembered that her daddy spilled a cup of water the last time we were there – a year ago!  These girlies don’t forget anything!!!

14) Before Christmas, B was taking guesses at what Daddy bought for Mommy.  When she realized she was right, she said, “That’s what you got her for her birthday, and for Mother’s Day!”  (Yes, I love dark chocolate…but Hubby is not very original.)  B’s horror and her accusation just made me laugh!

15) On the topic of presents, A worked hard to wrap up a piece of her artwork for each of us.  I overheard her ask B, “Do you have your gifts made for Mommy and Daddy yet?”  B said, “I don’t need to make anything…they already have the best gifts ever,” referring to herself and her sister.  Hahaha!!!

16) On Christmas Eve, we were buzzing around…doing the last few preparations for the big day.  During Quiet Time, I told the girls that Mommy needed a nap.  My A asked if she could snuggle with me and nap, too.  I’m so thankful I took her up on that…we piled on the love seat, stretched out, and that precious baby slept in my arms.  Merry Christmas to me!!!

17) Baby A has been so affectionate lately (not that that’s a new thing).  One of her favorite things to say is, “I wish I could snuggle with you every single minute of every single day.”  Me, too, Baby Girl!!!

18) I usually go up to check on the girls in their beds before I go to sleep.  As I pulled up the covers around A, she stirred ever so slightly…and then she whispered, “Thank you, Mommy.”  Heart. Melts.

Super Stuff, for sure!!!

Pictures from Our Christmas Morn

After a marathon trip to Sweet Home Alabama, we were thankful to have such a wonderful, low-key, family-centered Christmas Day at home.

The girls love the toys they got...they've played and played and played.  It's been simply blissful for us all!

Here is the story of our Christmas Day, as told [mostly] in pictures.

The girls got up to find a very complex marble run!

Moments later, it was in a pile...but that just prompted the girls to come up with their own design.

One of the huge highlights was giving Sasha her gifts...

She LOVES her catnip banana!!!

Sweet sissies, watching their furry sister Sasha playing.

The girls were ecstatic to open their stockings!  New art supplies were a big hit!

And then it was time for a big, yummy breakfast.

My Christmas tree tart and bacon-wrapped smokies...yum!

Opening gifts!

Mommy and her little penguins...LOVE.

My favorite picture of the day!

Sasha loves her new bed, put in her favorite dining room chair, in the sun.

And the rest of our day, and the couple of days since, have looked a lot like this...bliss!

So thankful for a wonderful {continued!} holiday with my loves.

Super Stuff!!!

One of the biggest super things about the past week is that our girls made it through the Independence Day holiday largely unscathed by the raucous fireworks displays every evening in our neighborhood.  Baby A woke up in a panic a couple of times, early on, but the girls slept through 99% of the madness.

I attribute this largely to the fact that they haven’t napped (the ONLY silver lining I can find to note in that development!)…the poor babes are EX-HAUS-TED at the end of the day.

So what else made this past week super???

1)      We had a small get-together of preschool friends at the park on Wednesday morning.  It was so sweet to see the girls and their friends (and for me to catch up with their mamas!).

Running to the playground!

 2)      On Thursday we celebrated the 4^th of July by having our dear friends over for dinner.  Among many other highlights, my very favorite was seeing the girls absolutely enamored with precious Baby Girl A, then 2 ½ weeks old.  The girls had never seen a baby that small before, and they could not take their eyes off her.

3)      We celebrated the girls’ half birthday on Friday.  We had such a fun family day, and one of the unanticipated highlights (for me!) was how neatly the girls ate their cupcakes.  I was prepared to wipe them down afterwards, but I hardly needed to!  It was nice…but maybe a bit bittersweet, too.  After all, there’s something pretty adorable about icing-covered babes.

4)      I wish I could have recorded the girls as we sang “Happy Half Birthday” – twice, of course.  Baby A sang right along with us as we serenaded her.  When it was B’s turn, though, she sat so still, with a huge smile on her face, as she listened to the three of us.  It was so sweet to see how differently they soaked it all in.

5)      On Saturday we went to a birthday party for a very sweet two-year old.  The girls were tickled to decorate the wrapping paper for her gifts, and they had such a good time at the bounce house party.  While none of the other parents jumped, the girls absolutely insisted I get in with them.  Eventually I could not deny their repeated requests…and this mama had a blast, too!

6)      At the bounce house, they had a DJ set up, playing kiddie songs and doing karaoke.  B was watching very intently as another couple of kids sang songs.  I asked her if she wanted to sing, and to my surprise, she said YES!  She started with Itsy-Bitsy Spider, and then did a medley of kiddie songs.  The DJ asked if she wanted to continue, and she then did a medley of kiddie church songs, too.  I could not believe how much fun she was having, standing on stage in front of everyone!!!  (Baby A was very content to stand with Mommy and cheer her sister on.)

7)      On Sunday morning, after what seems like day after day after day of rain, we made an impromptu decision to go to the zoo.  We’ve been so busy this summer, I cannot believe this was our first trip since May!  It was so nice to see all our beloved animal friends.

8)      After we made our rounds at the zoo and had lunch at a favorite restaurant, we made another impromptu decision, to travel to the next town over to try to find a former professor / colleague we knew in Alabama.  It took a little detective work, but it was so cool to see him after 13 years, and to see our girlies sitting there chatting it up with his family.

9)      We celebrated Daddy’s and Sasha’s birthdays on Monday.  The girls had a very large time decorating wrapping paper, and they were mesmerized to watch Sasha enjoy her new catnip pillow.

Sasha hugging her pillow, amid the pieces of laundry she's collected this week.

10)   All day, they kept calling Daddy, “Birthday boy.”  As in, “Come here, Birthday Boy, let me give you a kiss.”  Hahaha!

Taking Daddy to lunch for his birthday!

11)   B loves to make up songs, and it always cracks me up to listen to the lyrics.  I was slightly disturbed by one of her most recent medleys, though: "Run, little bunny, run, run...the fox is out in the woods."  I believe that was a take from “Bunny’s Noisy Book”, one of our favorite nighttime stories, but it still seemed so ominous for a four-year old!

12)   And in another installment of Baby B explains the world: "I can think about two things at once, because my brain has two halves."

So thankful for this super stuff!!!

Super Stuff on a Monday

So thankful for a full list of super stuff to share!

1)      After more than four years as “sisters”, our kitty Sasha has finally warmed up to the girls enough to let them brush her…at least a tiny bit.  It has been the highlight of their week, to have her come up to their extended hands and rub against the brush.  On occasion, she’s even sniffed their fingers.  Hooray for progress!!!

2)      For a couple of months now, the girls have been toying with the idea of using the jets in my bathtub.  Baby B has been really interested, but A has remained apprehensive, I think because I told her they would be loud.  They finally agreed to give it a test run this week, and they were in heaven!  B got in right away, and A worked up the courage after a minute or so.  They enjoyed the depth of the water (up to their chests!) as much as anything.  And I couldn’t quit giggling to see them be scooted along by the strength of the moving water.  Hee hee!!!

3)      There are few things that compare to hearing a four-year old’s correct usage of “may” and “can”.  It makes me a little bit giddy!

4)      I took the girls to the park on Monday afternoon.  I can’t help but marvel (although I still KNOCK ON WOOD as I type this) at how much fun it is to take the two of them these days.  It wasn’t long ago that a trip to the park with them by myself took quite a bit of courage on my part…and was rarely ever “relaxing”. 

5)      Over the monitor one morning, I heard the girls exchanging the sweetest nothings.  “I love you, Sissy…” and “…I love you, too.”  My heart melts!

6)      Baby A was successful in blowing bubbles, consistently, for the first time this week.  It’s such a fun milestone!

7)      It made me so happy to see Baby A RUN to get the soccer ball when she saw Daddy’s car rounding the bend towards home one afternoon.  I know it made his heart smile so big, too.  And then B got in on the soccer action, as she wanted to divide the four of us into “teams”…one would be Chelsea, and one would be either Manchester United or Manchester City.  Daddy never fails to beam at the girls’ English Premier League soccer references.

8)      On Friday we met our friends M&C for the season’s first trip to Jackson’s Orchard.  It began as a cloudy day, but turned out to be just beautiful!  We had SO MUCH FUN running and playing, and the girls went down the “bumpy slide” by themselves – and then together – for the first time.  They actually went down more times than I could count…at least 20!  By the end, they were definitely tired, though.  Baby A asked if I could carry her up the 25 or so steps to the top of the slide.  HA!

9)      We typically eat at our favorite Mexican restaurant about once a week, and we happened to time our weekly trip with Cinco de Mayo this weekend.  The restaurant was very crowded, so we sat someplace other than our usual table.  The girls enjoyed sitting under their beloved “donkey” picture, and I loved hearing B wish one of the waiters, “Feliz Cinco de Mayo!”  That kid will attempt to say anything, and she usually does a pretty fair job!

10)   Puzzle mania has continued at our house this week.  After lunch on Sunday, we stopped by the dollar store to get a couple new puzzles, each 63 pieces.  The girls have done them twice already.  I love seeing them so deep in concentration!

11)   Baby B was sitting in my lap, facing me.  She looked intently at me, and then almost gasped, “Mommy!  There’s something broken in your eye!  How did you break your eye?”  Poor kiddo was a bit traumatized at Mommy’s lack of sleep, apparently.

12)   As I was working in the kitchen one day, I heard B explaining some kind of made-up game to A: “OK, here's what we're going to do. It's going to be pretty challenging, OK?"  Way to set expectations!

13)   One morning at breakfast, Baby A was explaining the ways of the world to me.  I can’t remember the exact conversation, but she was really serious.  All the while, she had the cutest milk mustache that I couldn’t make myself wipe off…there was something absolutely irresistible about her little baby voice, her very serious eyes, and that smear of milk on her lip.

Here's to another SUPER week!