Buy One Get Two Free!: May the force be with us

These kids are really coming into their own. I'm a little nervous of what year 3 will bring us because they have definitely found the power of free will. Elsie's favorite phrase is 'no way' and Mommy's favorite phrase is 'don't no way me'. To curb these undesirable behaviors we do time out. And we all know it starts with 1-2-3. So yesterday I said to Elsie, who was whining and screaming because Sam was playing with the toy she wanted, '1', and she said '2!' and I said 'yes, and you know what is next' and she said '3! time out!' Now it's important to note she said this cheerfully and even a little matter-of-factly testing my resolve. The good news is she cried the whole 2 minutes she was in time out immediately following this interaction, so it gives me some hope she has a conscience and will learn to make better choices. She gets a lot of time outs because she will test you EVERY TIME to see if you are going to follow through and give her one. Listen Peanut, I taught high school for over a decade, follow through is my middle name.

Danny is a little more coy. He will start to do something he is not supposed to, like climb on top of the piano. He will look back at you with a smile and a sparkle in his eye, kind of a mix of 'do you see this? are you impressed? are you going to let me do this?'. Then you tell him no and he pauses. You say '1' and he looks at you and smiles, almost like a challenge. You say 2 and 75% of the time he giggles and stops what he is doing and runs away. He's smart to acknowledge you every time you say his name or count, letting you know he is listening even if he is being mischievous. He gets a good amounts of time outs, but it usually is for pushing or hitting his siblings.

Sammy. Ahhh Sammy. He is my rule follower. Most of the time he minds his own business and does his own thing. He has started fighting back if someone steals his toy or pushes him. By biting his siblings. Not quite what I was hoping for when I repeatedly told him 'don't take that shit' for the last 2 years when he would cry after one of the others took his toy. But part of me hates punishing him because most of the time they deserve it. So usually it goes like this: Danny takes toy, Sammy tries to take it back, Danny pushes Sammy, Sammy pushes his head into Danny like a goat and then bites him, Danny cries, I put Sammy in time out, and I tell Danny 'well maybe you shouldn't take his stuff''. Lather, rinse, repeat. Sammy cries the entire time he is in time out which I feel is his way of pleading self defense.

So the main topic of this post is repetition. I feel like it is the keyword this month. Everything I do is repetitive. The same sentences stressing the same behaviors and routines everyday. Now repetition is a double edged sword, as the kids are also repetitive in their words and actions all day too. Like calling 'Mommy'. I'm pretty sure that word is used several hundred times a day. Elsie says it all day long. It doesn't matter if I'm in the other room or in the same room with her sitting on my lap, everything is 'Mommy'. Mommy? Yes Elsie. Mommy, Mommy, Mommy, Mommy...Mommy. Yes Elsie. She's got nothing, she didn't want to tell me anything, just making sure I'm there listening and waiting on her every word. She even started saying it in her bed this week during nap. She wasn't calling for me, just singing 'Mommy, Mommy, Mommy....' over and over again in her bed. Ay yi yi. I do love being needed, but this is feeling a little extreme.

The kids are saying a ton of words now, and like to repeat any word they hear on Bubble Guppies, Paw Patrol, Mickey Mouse Club, etc. I even heard Elsie say 'no barking' to Yoshi when someone knocked at the door. So I'm pretty sure it won't be long before they blurt out a word Mommy isn't supposed to say. :) Elsie's words are super clear and she is stringing tons of words together. Danny has increased his vocabulary by 200% or more this month, and his words are getting more distinguishable every day. I'm happy to report Sammy is now excited to repeat words and has been using more words in his constant jargon. Now he'll tell you a story and it goes: 'Da ne ti ya de CAR, fa tu ha na 'BLUE', bo ka dra hu 'DADDY!' So that's exciting. And all 3 kids are finally starting to sing. None of them have been interested in singing before so that is kind of exciting. They like Old MacDonald so far because they can make the animal noises and sing EIEIO.

This month we've enjoyed playing on the deck and watching Daddy and the guys fix up the back yard. Daddy put together their swing set this weekend and should be ready to play on any day now. We did some visiting and playing in the park, having breakfast with Mickey and Minnie, play dates with our friends, and celebrated Meme's 90th birthday at a party this weekend. Looking forward to being outside all summer and exploring!

snack time!

I left the room for 2 seconds...

celebrated a nice dinner with these two birthday kids!

Elsie wanting to share a chair with her cousin Lana

My boys

Came up after nap to find him sleeping like this on the floor

waiting for Daddy to come home

swinging with Abby

little miss sunshine

I'll just help myself to this chip and dip

our cousin Joey heading off to prom

Breakfast with Mickey

and Minnie

getting the playground ready

morning potty

Sam has this new thing where he likes to take his shirt off

I love this kid. Spent an hour making the biggest peg tower he could. Every time it fell he cried and got frustrated. I told him to build it again. And again. And again. And he did.