Reality Check

Behind every blog, pinterest, facebook, instagram worthy family moment...

 Is a Mom who looks like this...

The Best

When you're the best of friends

having so much fun together

 You're not even aware, you're such a funny pair

You're the best of friends.

 Life's a happy game

You could clown around forever

 Neither one of you sees, your natural boundaries

Life's one happy game

 If only the world would'nt get in the way

If only people would just let you play

They say you're both being fools

You're breaking all the rules

 They can't understand, The magic of your wonderland

 When you're the best of friends

Sharing all that you discover

When that moment has past, will that friendship last?

 Who can say? There's a way!

 Oh I hope...

  I hope it never ends

'Cause you're the best of friends

Everything is Awesome...

So we've always called our kids "team". We have the A team (Adam and Brooke are baby A's). The B team, the original team, the new team, the whole team, etc. And then when I finally saw the Lego movie like a month ago (I know, I'm slow)...I knew we had found our theme song. 

Everything is awesome,

Everything is cool when you're part of a team

Everything is awesome when you're building a dream.

Okay so that might be wrong but that's how we sing it :)

Today we needed to be out of the house for a long time (carpet cleaning) and so we did a LOT. And I'm exhausted. And the kids are exhausted. But I realized tonight that everyone did great! We survived it because we were a team. And everything was awesome. Except for about 15 minutes at the end of checking out at Wal Mart when we had fighting and screaming and had to have help out to the car because I literally bought every big item I could and then realized that my car was full of junk and it was hot and the stupid checkout lady asked to see my ID...with a debit card! Really? I'm in my sweats trying to discipline 4 kids while buying luggage that you made me put on the belt and personally check to see if it was all there and you want to make sure I'm not an identity thief? JUST LET ME GET OUT OF THERE! :) Oh yeah and the last 10 minutes of the waiting room at the doctor's office when I had 2 escapees deciding that they had had enough of "Mickey says" and ran screeching down the hallway. Or when we ate lunch at Sams and the lights were out in the bathrooms for some reason so we all went potty in the dark. And then of course I remembered I could have used my phone flashlight :) Actually that part was awesome because it was two dark to have my "helpers" unroll the tp all over :)

So what do you do when you still have a couple of hours to be out of the house and you've already:

• gotten gas
• returned the redbox movies
• picked up a perscription
• eaten lunch
• bought everything at walmart?

You grab your leftover tokens and head to Chuck E Cheese of course! It was awesome...the tokens lasted about a half an hour and then there was still a few free things to do and buttons to push and tickets to turn in. And then since we had pizza for lunch, we hit Taco Bell and the park next door on the way home. Drop the kiddos off with dad and head out for an appointment.

• 

I don't plan  to have days like this very often. I certainly don't expect them to go so smoothly either. But I think what made the biggest difference in my day was that it was relaxed! I had NO agenda or expectations. We just simply had to be somewhere else. The doctor is taking a little bit too long? No problem let's just count the flowers on the wallpaper. We forgot the bananas? No worries let's go back and get them. We have one more diaper change? No big deal, it's time for a break anyway. Fell asleep in the car? Great, you need a nap anyway we can wait. Drive throuh messed up the order? Take your time, we can wait. Don't get me wrong. Brooke yelling "drink!" every 2 seconds from the backseat was not very fun. But it was funny to hear Erica answer back, "taco bell!" because I said we would get water at Taco Bell. So for about 10 minutes our conversation was "Drink!" "No Taco Bell!" "Drink!" "Taco Bell!" And that my friends is what having twins is really like :) I even laughed hysterically when one twin hit the other in the face. Because I was just soaking up the moments. Maybe I'm on a Mother's Day euphoria or something (we watched home movies last night so of course I'm extra emotional about kids today :) but really I think we are just a really great team right now...

and everything is awesome.

And I am so happy to be building THIS dream.

What I Want My Children to Know about Being a SAHM

I saw an article about a stay at home mom who spoke at her child's career day at school.Good for her! But she received a lot of credit for making her choice to stay home into a "legitimate career". I've always thought that was a little silly. Why do we automatically make the assumption that stay at home moms have a valuable "career".  There are comparisons to how much salary they would make if they got paid for their "job."

We as stay at home moms are supposed to be "experts" on activities such as nursing, cooking, driving, laundry, etc. Well guess what? Just because I choose to be home with my children has not made me an expert in anything. I actually outsource most of these jobs. I PAY PROFESSIONALS to cook (Taco Bell), clean (housekeeper), drive (school buses), doctors, dentists, TEACHERS, hairdressers, etc! I stayed home before I even had children. Was I a SAHM? No-but I didn't have a "career" either. And I still had worth and value!  I can tell elementary school kids how I spend my days, but I think most of them will be bored and definitely disgusted and maybe even scarred for life...

I'm asked every day "How do you do it?". I don't really have an answer to that question. Is it because I have to? Yes. Is it because I choose to?Yes. Is it because even if it's hard I know it is the most important hard on earth?Yes. But even all of that doesn't cover it...when I come up with a good answer I'll let you know!

I had a moment a few weeks ago while on our road trip that was surreal. I finally realized that I was THE mother of this family. That I wasn't pretending. That I was actually molding and shaping these children and not just "babysitting." I know it seems pretty silly that after 7 years that I am just realizing this. 

I was thinking about all of the road trips I took as a kid and how I have shifted from being the one to ride in the middle seat of the station wagon The Babysitter's Club to the one who had packed the sack lunches and entertainment bags and passed out the Twizzlers.  It was a quiet moment of big kids reading and little kids sleeping. (Not to be confused with the MAJOR in front of the whole school meltdown we had today).  

I wasn't just along for the ride. I created the ride. I co-created the children. And the flow of the ride. Many times I have heard from friends and family that, "you guys do so much! and go on so many trips!"  Well, we do that deliberately. That's what WE choose to do. Every class and dinner out and church activity and trip is how we have decided to raise our children. It is NOT a career. Or a job. It is a LIFE.

Decisions about finances, jobs, careers and parenthood are IMPORTANT. And upon my children making these important decisions, I want them to listen to the only real EXPERT there is.

Think 1

We do a lot of thinking in twos around here. And four and six. If I see someone with one baby, I automatically look around for the other one. If I'm changing one baby then I automatically grab a diaper for the other cause I know that's coming around the bend. They sleep at the same time, eat at the same time, play in the same areas, etc. BUT occasionally, JUST occasionally, we deal with ONE! This week I dealt with one while I made the carpool run.  I dealt with one when I got to take Rachel to see Cinderella (It was heavenly I tell you).

So today I want to tell you about the one:

Adam is #1. He is my first born, my only son and likes to be first in EVERYTHING. He is my easiest kid right now because he is so independent. He is my go to helper and he can make food, open all baby proofing, etc. He is also my hardest kid because he is stubborn and anxious and competative (just like ME!) So ask him to go to bed on time and we're golden. But get him to let you pull out a splinter and we have a full blown nightmare on our hands. Plus he's telling little white lies. But he's also teaching himself multiplication. We LOVE this guy!

Rachel is my favorite. No, just kidding. But she is my easiest now because she is so easy going! She is compliant. And she is my number 1 babysitter. I hear, "Bachel" around here more than Mommy! She is the first to give me a hug or to ask if I need anything. She is the best friend you could ever have. But she is my hardest because she is so darn forgetful. And disorganied. And slow. All things that are ( NOT me). So we deal with that. And I blame her father.

Brooke is my hardest toddler right now because she is LOUD! And pushy. And obsessive (especially of Mickey Mouse and MY tablet). But she is easy because she is so easy to transfer. Time to go? get dressed?eat?turn off the tv?clean up?go to bed? Okay! She says. Almost no tears over changing activities. I LOVE that.  She also is so funny.  But she pulls her sister's hair out! 

Erica is my easiest because she talks well and is so polite. "Here you go. Thank you. You're welcome". I hear over and over. If she has an ouchie on her knee and I kiss it better than I hear, "Thanks, Mom."  She is so energetic and fun. She loves to move and climb and is very capable of doing so. She is my hardest because she is so fiercely independent. I can't do anything for her! "I do it" is her most common phrase. And oh man can she scream if I don't do exactly what she wants exactly when she wants it! She is so easy to compare to Rachel because of their looks and personality but I do see differences.

So basically all of this 'oneness' added together means that I am losing my mind! But I also think we have a pretty good system around here. The olders take care of themselves, each other and the youngers. Ryan works hard and diffuses all of my explosions with his humor. The youngers bug each other and everyone else. I drink Diet Dr. Pepper everyday even though it's toxic and go to bed with every intent to give it up tomorrow.  And then we do it again.

(Hmmm...I guess I take a lot of pictures while we eat...I guess it's cause they are holding still!)