Only Mommy will do

August 28, 2008 By 4 Comments

I have to tell you…I have reached a new stage with my kids and it drives me absolutely insane that they follow me everywhere!  If I was to stop suddenly, I would have two itty-bitty face prints on the backs of my knees. 

If I leave the room, they yell for me in panic, as though, maybe – just maybe – I’ve left the house without them.  If I go to the bathroom, they pound on the door (that is, if I manage to get it locked before they push their way in)  If I’m changing clothes, they stand in front of me and stare.  If I’m in the kitchen getting them a meal or snack, they are RIGHT THERE at my feet.

It has gotten to be so frustrating that I desperately want to lock myself in the pantry.

But, tonight, there are thunderstorms. And they both wanted to be held.  There is something special about being THE ONE to provide the comfort and security they need. 

I lay in Cooper’s bed and he held me so tight….it was in that moment, that I wasn’t longing for alone time.(despite having a to-do list the length of my arm)  It is when I am truly needed that I feel least alone and most treasured.

Only Mommy will do.

Filed Under: Am I lucky or what?, I can't get enough Tagged With: , , ,

Through my daughter’s eyes

August 11, 2008 By 1 Comment

I used to view the world through my eyes only.  This may not sound like a tremendous surprise, because it is hard to learn to look at everything around you as though through someone else’s glasses.  Having children has changed this for me.

My world is no longer singular. At a mere 3 foot 3, Delaney’s landscape looks very different.  Everything is bigger and anything seems possible.  It is a world where Santa Claus still exists, where every ant, flower and three leaf clover are worth exploring, where every sound could be a jet plane or an impending thunderstorm, where naps are important (if not imperative), and there are no dreams too big.

It is the dreaming big that I remember from childhood.

It was during the summer Olympics 4 years ago that my first true flash of adulthood appeared.  As a child, I always watched gymnastics.  An injury when I was 9 kept me from truly pursuing the sport, but I never stopped being fascinated by the petite girls with the power to launch themselves into the air. But it wasn’t until 2004, as I was again mesmerized by the gymnasts, that my brain moved from thinking, “Wow..it would be amazing to be an Olympic gymnast” to “Wow, it would be amazing if Delaney was an Olympic gymnast.”

You see, it isn’t just about me anymore. My world view now includes a different perspective.  Delaney started in gymnastics at The Little Gym when she was a baby.  She loved it. But as she grew, and she started to take classes for true gymnastics, her fear of being the center of attention took over.  So, we stopped.

Yet, she is fascinated by the Olympics, and specifically, the women’s US Gymnastics Team. Shawn Johnson is quickly becoming a favorite.

As she and I sat snuggled on the couch last night, (Daddy and Coop were upstairs watching baseball) she suddenly said, “Mommy, I’ll be right back.”  She came back down with her leotard.  She stood in front of the TV, trying to mimic the steps and moves of the gymnasts.

And, it was at this moment, that I, again, saw the world through her eyes.  The possibilties are endless.  If she wants to be a gymnast, she can.  If she wants to be a doctor, she can.  If she wants to sing, she can.  If she wants to be a teacher, she can. 

I love seeing the world from 3 foot 3.

 

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Recipe for snapping out of it.

August 7, 2008 By 5 Comments

So….if you read yesterday, you know I was feeling just a little bit funky.

In my determination to snap out of it….I devised a plan.

1) Make it a ‘YES’ day.  I decided to say ‘Yes’ to anything the kids asked for. (So long as it wasn’t physically harmful…like)

~Yes, Delaney, we can bake chocolate chip cookies for your DOLL’s birthday.

~Yes, Mommy, you can have a little cookie dough (note the empty spot)

~Yes, both of you can lick the beaters (even though it is almost 5 o’clock and therefore close to dinner)

~Yes, Delaney, you can have pancakes for dinner

~Yes, Cooper, you can have strawberries, grapes and cheese for dinner

~Yes, you may watch Dora while you eat

~Yes, we can go play outside (even though we are tragically close to bedtime)

2) While you are indulging in the ‘Yes’ plan, ask the kids if they would like to do a little dance party to “All I Want to Do” by Sugarland (a family favorite)

3) Ask for kishes (and LOVE IT! when you get them)

4) And finally…once the posse is in bed….organize a little (or a lot)  of clutter

It clears your mind (and, well, the counter too)

Mission accomplished.  Happy ‘Yes’ Kids = Happy Mommy (currently accepting nominations for Mommy of the Year), Kishes for Mommy = Happy Mommy, Organized Paperwork = Organized (Happy) Mommy.

Try the ‘Yes’ Day….it wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be.  I’d love to know what YOU said ‘Yes’ to…

Filed Under: Can we talk?, Extraordinary, I can't get enough Tagged With: , , , ,

I love you too….

July 3, 2008 By 1 Comment

As a teenage girl, the phrase ” I love you too” holds certain meaning…..on one hand, you desperately want to hear your boyfriend express his love, but there is something about the ‘too’ that gives us a hang up.  We want someone else to say it first.  We don’t want anyone telling us they love us because they feel like they have to…

But now, as a Mommy…”I love you, too” are 4 of the sweetest words in the English language.  Not only do my little mini ones know that I love them, but at 2 and 4 they  love me back and are grasping the meaning of ‘too’.  That is something special.  Without fail, if I tell Delaney I love her, she responds with “I love you, too”.  Sometimes she says it around the thumb she sucks, sometimes it is half whispered as she falls asleep, sometimes it is shortly after getting into trouble, but EVERYTIME, my heart skips a beat.  Everytime it is fresh and fabulous.

I’ll take “I love you, too” every day of the week.

Filed Under: A little piece of Heaven, Am I lucky or what?, Extraordinary, I can't get enough Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Focusing on my Family

May 5, 2008 By 6 Comments

I was in ‘world detox’ this weekend.  I opted to spend time with my family and leave the rest of the world alone….no email, no blogging, no cleaning (nice in theory, but my house isn’t looking too tidy right now), no long chats with friends.  Just Jeff, Coop, Mini and Me.

You know what?  It was heavenly.  I horded a years’ worth of hugs and kisses.  We tickled and laughed, alot.  We did our traditional out-to-dinner Friday at a new place…then hit the park (lots of swinging and sliding!) and had icecream.  We went to 2 birthday parties and a neighborhood get together.  We ran and jumped and skipped.  We ate pizza.  The kids skipped naps both days, and are therefore in bed early tonight. My husband and I watched a movied last night AND actually WENT to a movie in the middle of the day today (I know…the audacity! But thank the grandparents). We all cuddled on the couch and watched baseball. Hubby and I talked.  I kept pausing for regularly scheduled interuptions, but I think Mini and Coop got so much attention this weekend, they didn’t feel compelled to jump in.

I didn’t make dinner the whole weekend.  I have barely tidied our rooms.  I didn’t do any laundry.  I didn’t wash the car.  I didn’t do any dishes or wash the floors. 

I did giggle with the kids.  I did hear, “Mommy……I love you.” enough to fill my soul for the coming week.  I did stop to look at my husband while he was talking. I did have fun.

Divine.  All of it.  I wish you ultimate Family Focus Time sometime in the next week! (We didn’t go to the beach this weekend…but this is just how much fun we have together!)

 

www.ExtraordinaryMommy.com

Filed Under: A little piece of Heaven, Extraordinary, I can't get enough Tagged With: , , , , , ,

I love Chocolate

May 2, 2008 By 1 Comment

I fell in love with my daughter all over again yesterday.  I fell in love with her big, beautiful, chocolate brown eyes. ( they always tell me what she is thinking)  I love when she wears ‘chocolate’ colored clothes.  It makes her positively edible.

She wears her emotions on her face.  Her ‘serious’ look shows you those eyes

She can be joyful (especially after a piece of chocolate!)

Ever the drama queen..she is even happy to share her ‘crabby face’.

And, of course, there is the picture to prove why I call her ‘Sassy’.

I think she is ‘turning a corner’.  She has been an ANGEL of a big sister the past 3 days. (I think that is a record of some kind).  She has been hugging Coop, reading to him, playing with him, sharing with him, protecting him from older kids, comforting him (for example, when he got in trouble for biting…she put her arm around him and said, “it’s ok, Buddy.  I’ll protect you.”) and she didn’t even get mad when he recently broke a new toy of hers.

It looks like my brown eyed girl is turing into a mini adult right in front of my eyes.

www.ExtraordinaryMommy.com

Filed Under: A little piece of Heaven, Extraordinary, Gratitude, I can't get enough, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , , , ,
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