Rocks in His Head

Josh is absolutely obsessed with rocks. When I picked him up from school today, he was in the bathroom washing the ones he'd gathered from the playground. He rushed outside when we got home to put them in the Rock Home he's been building for about a week. (He has great plans to glue stuff on it and paint it and other things I don't quite understand.)

Today he presented it to his dad and me. While he calls it a home, it really seems more like a condo tower or apartment building; but I won't stifle his genius with my labels. I'm sure he'll be giving tours this weekend if anyone wants to make an appointment.

Shopping Lessons

Every time I try to give them a little rope...they hang me with it.

What on God's green earth makes me take my kids to the grocery store? It's hell I say. Hell. I only bought two fancy goldfish cracker things I didn't want to get, so that part was okay. But it's a bad sign when the checker at the next lane chastises one of your kids (Zach) for pushing a button he shouldn't and the bag girl says goodbye to your kid by name (Zach) only because she heard you say it 67 times in the space of 4 minutes.

Inexplicably, the cashier gave me several paper towels "just in case" before I left...said you could tell he was a grandfather. From paper towels? Whatever. I didn't take them with me.

Oh, and Josh's lips are so red because his after-school snack was Nacho Cheese Doritos (from the orange and crunchy food groups).

Candy for Breakfast

They really are sweet...when they're sleeping.

So, my back 'went out,' as they say. It was really and truly miserable, but there was a silver lining: getting the kids off most sugar. Somehow, every meal had evolved into a Pavlovian experiment: "If you eat your lunch/dinner, you can have a treat!" Then there were endless negotiations for how much, what constitutes an actual treat, and on and on it went.

Well, Jay has long argued that if we're gonna give the boys sugar, we should give it to them in the morning so they can work it off before nap or nite-nite. Being a girl of strict motherly principles, I objected to candy in the morning. However, he got the chance to prove his theory when I was immobile for four days.

They've been getting treats in the morning if they eat their dinner the night before.  They fall asleep almost immediately every night...not even getting out of bed for water or a hug or a kiss or to pee or to make sure I'm okay or to get a toy or to check on the progress of world peace. Nothing! It's been a week and a half of pure bliss. Jay and I actually speak to each other in the evening about grown-up things without spelling a single word.

I might just get the hang of this parenting thing one day. Not today, but one day....

Budding Artists

While I thought Josh and Zach were taking a nap today, I fell asleep. Apparently, they were feeling less tired and more artistic, and expressed themselves on one another's face.

As you can see, Josh got the worst of it (no wonder Zach looks so happy).

I had to get to the pharmacy before it closed and didn't have time to scrub it off, so they went as is. I only got a few more strange looks than I usually do....

How I spent the last 6 days....

This is not actually me....

I'm trying to figure out how to trade in my current back for a new model. Still working on that one but, in the meantime, I'm ever so grateful for my wonderful hubby, who took care of the heathens during his coveted four-day weekend (during football playoffs, no less). He says every dad should have to do that at least once to see what moms really go through. Once?!?

For my part, I thought it was easy having kids if you didn't have to feed them, brush their teeth, wipe their butts, put them to bed, get up in the middle of the night or answer all 6,784 questions they ask before breakfast.

I don't think Jay's ever been so happy to go back to work : )

Pocket Treasures

These photos represent about two days worth of Josh and Zach's pocket contents. How they stuff all of these "treasures" in there (along with sand, which I don't save), I'll never know. Josh is so attached to his rocks that he has created a bed for all of them (complete with top bunk for the babies) and has to kiss his big rocks goodnight outside.

Does every kid do this or are mine just 'special'?

I've learned the hard way to check pockets before washing...some very unpleasant things have made their way through the rinse cycle.

Just Like the Grown-Ups

Jay and I went to an actual grown-up post-holiday/55th birthday party at the home of my good friend Donna. We just sat in a corner on the couch by ourselves for much of the evening and conversed in complete sentences without yelling at anyone to quit fighting or spitting or to eat before they could have a treat. It was heaven....

Many thanks to my sweet niece, Jordan, for watching the units.

"I'm Zach"

A "play" cup at preschool was dropped on Zach's head by another kid, giving him a really good knot on his rather sizable noggin. His teacher told us that he didn't cry, for which we dubbed him "brave."

He said he wasn't "brave," he was "Zach." Can't argue with that....

WARNING!

I have pre-schoolers. They say and do and think gross things. If that bugs you, avert your eyes.

Honestly, I don't know where he comes up with this stuff.

For those of you still with me, Josh got on the potty and did his business. When he started to leave the bathroom without flushing, I asked him to take care of it. He declined, stating that he wanted "the family to be together."

"Huh?

"That was the Daddy Poop and the Mommy Poop and in my tummy are the Baby Poops. They need to be together, so I'm gonna wait."

Sure hope the reunion happens soon, I'm not sure how long I can leave the toilet unflushed....

Here we go....

The men in my life: Zach, Jay & Josh

I have one husband, two kids, two cats, plenty of dear friends, one jam-packed storage unit and a whole lot of stuff that needs to be done...but I just can't seem to get out from under the twinfluence.

My husband, Jay, and I were married 10 years ago on a beautiful February day in Pasadena, California. More than five years and numerous setbacks later, we welcomed Joshua and Zachary into our lives. We were so happy. We felt so blessed. All of our wishes and dreams had come true. Alas, as the well-worn saying goes: careful what you wish for....

I had spent a lot of time with my nieces, Jessi and Jordan, when they were growing up and only then began to dream of the day when I would have a child of my own. Those girls were so much fun. So funny. So curious. So interesting. Relatively quiet. And really quite tidy (at the time anyway). My boys? Fun...yes. Funny...definitely. Curious...endlessly. Interesting...uh, huh. Quiet and tidy...not so much. Something told me that this wasn't going to be quite the same experience with boys as it was with girls, especially two boys at the same time.

My path to wife and mother didn't follow a straight line. Making things easy has never been my strong suit. Still, here I am...trying to figure out how to mix marriage and motherhood, hoping to find the funny along the way. When all is said and done, sometimes the best that we can do is ask for help and be willing to give it to those who need it (including ourselves).

So, join me on this journey, won't you? Some days it might make you laugh. Some days it might make you think. Some days it might make you cry.  But I hope that...most days...you might find a little of your story in mine.