Skating Take 2

We took the girls skating for the second time today and it was fun but we had a bit of a cranky-pants in Maddie. She had a nap today as she was just zonked. I had to wake her up to go to the public skate and she wasn't fully awake! lol We went with our friends who have a 3-year-old named Ben. He is a good friend and calls them "the girls!" He told his mom when he gets older he is going to bring "the girls" to Vegas! Yikes! Anyway, at one point Maddie shouted "I want to go home with Ben so we can play right now!" and she sat on the ice with her arms crossed! Too funny. They are doing really well on skates, and Nicole, Ben's mum also said the same (so it's not just me being a biased mummy)! I am sure we will go again next week!

We came back here and watched the Chipmunk movie and had a nice dinner. The kids had way too much sugar (cupcakes AND timbits, I am definately not getting Mother of the Year for that dinner) and were bouncing off the walls until 9:00 pm! They finally got to bed after a busy day. Earlier in the car I told them dad would be bringing them to Auntie Julie's tomorrow because mummy would be saving them a spot in kindergarten. Emma was so excited she started jumping up and down saying she can't wait to go to school! Huh, wonder how long that enthusiasm will last!

Giggling Girlies!

John and I can tell when the girls have crossed over from tired to overtired. They get giggly. Not just a little laugh here and there but super, crazy, drunk-like giggly! This happened tonight around 6:30 but we managed to wait until 7:20 before going to bed. It's funny as when Emma laughs a lot she always gets the hiccups and of course those make her laugh even more. They had a serious case of the sillies when we were trying to put them to bed. They were telling lot of poo poo jokes and blowing raspberries while trying to tuck them in! But within 5 minutes of saying our last goodnight both girls were sound asleep. I couldn't hear a thing and I thought for sure they were still awake since it had literally been about 4 minutes. I peeked in and they were conked right out! There is nothing sweeter than a sleeping little girl, especially my sleeping little girls! I heart those two!

Tomorrow we are going skating again. Ben, Nicky and Jon and coming too. The girls can't wait, they are really excited about going again. We were thinking of getting one of those walker type things toddlers use when learning to skate but I think we will save the $$. They didn't need it last week and we didn't have to bend over all that much so our backs were ok. I am excited to see the progress they make this week. Last week they were fantastic!

Gearing up for Kindy registration

Not sure where the time went but my girls will be starting kindergarten in Sept. Registration is on Monday and I am still stunned that I am in the middle of this whole process. I am happy they will be in school as I think they will really enjoy it. But I am sad because my babies are growing up so quickly. I am grateful that they still want to cuddle with me and they will still let me hold them, hug them and kiss them. Ems still snuggles in bed with me in the morning (Maddie prefers the tv, but that's ok, she prefers her snuggle time at night). They are very affectionate and loving little girls.

They are really into jokes now, specifically anything that has the word "poo" in it. Making toot noises is apparently particularly hilarious. When I incorporate this in my bedtime story I am a big hit even to the point of the girls getting hiccups from laughing so hard.

We have a busy weekend planned including Music class. The girls will perform in the play "The Lady with the Alligator Purse." Emma is Miss Lucy and Maddie is the lady with the alligator purse. Can't wait to see it! We will also go skating with friends and have them to our house after. The girls love skating seeing as they have only been once, they want to go again and again! I am still amazed at how quickly they picked it up. Let's hope round two is just as fun as the first time!

First time skating!

We took the girls to the public skate at the local arena. We had the best time. They started off with total spaghetti legs but after a few minutes they were much more comfortable and the last half of the skate they were doing it on their own. Emma wanted to do it by herself and could even get up on her own after she fell. We think Maddie's skates might be a tad too big but she was amazing on them. They loved every minute and did not want to get off the ice. We promised them we would take them next week and we can go when we are in Ottawa. They looked so sweet with their helmets with cages! Emma wanted to dance and twirl like some of the other people! I said after a few more practises she could!

My little big girls!

My babies are growing so fast. They have just learned to zip up their jackets by themselves. They can officially get dressed for outside on their own! This includes: boots, snowpants and jackets. Unreal! There are some grade two's in my school who cannot do up their jackets. Thank you Auntie Julie! When they zip them, they are beaming with pride and they say "we are ready for kindergarten!" I guess they are and enrollment is in less than 2 weeks! YIKES!

Tonight the girls and I were snuggling in my bed watching a bit of tv while John was out at hockey. Emma said "mummy, you sleep in here with dad?" and I replied that yes, I do. Then Maddie says "and what about grandma and grandpa, do they sleep in the other room? Let me go and check." So she runs to the guest room and comes back and says "no, they not there, they are in Ottawa in their bed with Rocky and Bailey and Santa." Good thing my parents have a big bed as that's pretty crowded, especially with Santa in there too! Ha ha!

Whining, hitting and fighting. Oh my!

We've noticed a slight increase in whining and swatting with Emma (she sometimes makes contact and the swat turns into a hit). It happens when she is tired and when she wants her own way. Julie assures me it is just a phase, as of course my concern is she will be a hitter in kindergarten, and the teachers will have a preconceived judgement on her as a behaviour problem (I've seen this happen at my own school). But, as Julie has said, it may just be a phase. Luckily it doesn't happen often, and she goes right into time out and always apologizes later. When asked what she did wrong, 95% of the time she will say "I hit Maddie" (or whoever it may be) but sometimes she will dig her heels in and say "I don't know" when of course, she does. Still testing those boundaries!

Maddie is on a whining kick, but that has lessened recently (and, like in Emma's case, Julie told us it was a phase, she is so smart and we are so lucky she watches the girls for us)! When she forgets and does whine, we just say "say it again with a big girl voice" and she will.

We are emphasizing problem solving when they fight as well. So instead of putting one of them, or the toy in time-out, we ask them if they can think of a way to share it or play with it together. Surprisingly, they have come up with some great ideas! They put both dolls in the toy shopping cart and pushed the cart up and down the hallway together for ages. Or, if they fight over a toy dog, I'll say "how about the other is a cat and they can chase each other" and they are all for it. So while they are fighting a bit more these days (the weather, being cooped up inside) they are also learning to problem solve.

I guess I won't be retiring early

We asked the girls tonight what they want to be when they get bigger. I was fully expecting to hear "a princess" or "a ballerina" or even "a mummy" (Maddie loves to pretend she is mummy to a plethera of dolls we have around the house). But no, Emma said a "type"-rope walker and Maddie said she wants to blow big pink bubbles. Anyone know what the pay is like for those jobs? Ha ha!

We picked up their kindergarten registration packages. Yes that's right. My babies are going to school this year! I cannot believe how fast the time has flown. John and I have decided to start them off in separate classes if we can (they go on Mon/Wed and alternate Fridays or Tues/Thurs and alternate Fridays). Obviously I want them on the same day for logistical reasons, but if they have a few kinder classes we will put them in different ones. The schools tend to encourage that twins be in separate classes eventually, so why not start them off that way from the get-go. I never worried about mine being in the same class as they really have their own identities and they are not dependent on each other socially, as some twins are. But, I don't want them to be in a situation where there is too much competition, or where a teacher will be comparing them to one another. Imagine "I got an A on my test and she only got a B." Or whatever the case may be. If they have different teachers, the learning environment will be different and it will take away a bit of that competition. Auntie Julie is getting them ready for school so they already know how to get their snowpants, jackets and boots on all by themselves and they can do the whole potty thing by themselves. Yes they have been potty trained for ages, but I would still lift them on the toilet and wipe them. They do that now by themselves. They can put on a backpack and even zip it up. My little girls are growing up. WAH!

Kids say the darndest things part who knows?

I've lost track of how many times I've used this title or a similar title. We were sitting in the parking lot of Shoppers today while John ran in to get a bday card for our nephew. We were talking about how mummy and daddy have other names too (Pam and John). Emma asked what grandpa's other name was and I said "Peter." Maddie chimes in with "oh no, no, no, no, no, grandpa is not Peter, grandpa is a human." I said "of course he is a human and his name is Peter." She says again "oh, no, no, no, no, no he is not Peter Pan he is a human. Grandpa can't fly and he doesn't know Tinkerbell." Ha ha ha! She is a hoot! I said that she was right, grandpa is not Peter Pan and he is a human AND his name is Peter, but she can call him grandpa! Emma would let out a huge giggle each time Maddie said "oh, no, no, no, no, no!"

Swimming Sunday

The girls have been asking since we woke up this morning when we are going swimming. The party doesn't start until 3 so it's been a long day! They were up this morning around 7:30 and went and turned on their cartoons. The tv was loud so it woke me up but it's ok as I was about to get up at 8 to get ready for my Sunday run anyway. The girls are much better at accepting that I go running 3-4 times a week. They see me in my running gear and know where I am going. They have asked a few times if they can go too and I tell them when they are older. I hope they do want to run with me, that would be great.

Emma has been off this weekend which might mean she is coming down with something (it usually does). She is super clingy and seems low in energy. They don't really nap much anymore but I feel today she could have used one. But we are leaving soon for the pool party, so unless she naps on the way there it's not going to happen. Hopefully the distraction of swimming and the party after will be enough to get her out of this mood.

Maddie was cute this morning. I told her she couldn't have a piece of gum and she came over to me, stuck her face in mine and said "I don't like you mama." I said "I love you Maddie" and she said "no, you can't love me because I don't like you." I said "you can be mad at me for saying no to come, but you can still love me at the same time." At this point she gave a look like she was really thinking about what I had said. I asked her if she loved me and she said "I think, well, yes." But it was in a very angry voice! lol So cute!

Musical Monsters!

Today was their first day of Musical Maestros. Not sure what was up with my two girls, but the sweetie pies that are usually Emma and Maddie were replaced by these horrific, whiny, cranky-pants! At one point when I was trying to get them dressed, to the washroom and out the door for class I had had it with Emma (who was not listening and not co-operating when getting dressed). So I said "I'm leaving, and you aren't ready so you can stay home with dad" (who was upstairs sleeping as it was his sleep-in morning). I went out to the garage to start the car (knowing she would think I was leaving) and when I came back, she was sobbing so hard that she was practically convulsing and was definately dry-heaving! It reminded me of when she got the H1N1 shot, I thought she would vomit! This kid really works herself up! She has only done this a handful of times, when I first started time-outs, when she got the shot and today as she obviously thought I was leaving without her (little does she know that was never my intention but I admit I wanted her to think it was). So I calmed her down and asked her if she was ready to be a good listener and ready to get dressed and she said she was. She later apologized. It's funny, as I never force them to apologize. Why bother, as they are only saying it because I am forcing them to, they don't mean it. But both kids almost always apologize for whatever major infraction albeit they do it hours later. Maddie often does it at night! It's almost like she is confessing her sins before bed! lol She will say "sorry I hit Emma and then sorry I spilled my chocolate milk" and I have to think for a second to when she did that. "Oh right, ok Maddie, thanks for saying sorry." But when they say it of their own accord, I know they actually mean it. So hours after the class was over, Emma came over and said "sorry I wasn't being a good listener." Sweet! When we got to the class it was a bit strange. They had no problem when we started dance class and swimming classes. They ran to the instructors without even noticing I wouldn't be there. But this morning, Maddie was clinging to me and Emma wanted up (saying she was shy. Yeah right. I could think of a thousand adjectives for Emma before using shy to describe her). They didn't want me to leave even when I assured them I would be in the lounge. And this is the same building that they went to for dance. They are with two of the same kids, but something was off with them today. They eventually went, but when I picked them up after the class was over, Emma said she didn't want to go back. I asked her later in the day if she liked it and wanted to go again and she said yes, so maybe she will be more into it next week. I hope so!

Tomorrow is Makua's second birthday party (Makua is my nephew) and it is at a pool. I told the girls that mummy and daddy would be swimming with them tomorrow and Maddie says "ok mummy, you can go but dada has to watch." I asked her why and she said "cause dada don't have any hair." I asked her why that mattered but she didn't explain it to me, she just kept repeating he has no hair so he can't go swimming. It's funny how their minds work!

First week after holiday!

We survived the post-holiday week back to work and daycare. The girls were excited to see Julie and Bruno (I was much less excited to go to work). Julie has been taking the girls out in the snow and she pulls them around in the sled. They also love to make snow angels and their favourite thing is to make "tracks" in the snow with their footprints. Emma has really become attached to this toy fairy that Kristina, her friend at daycare, has. She holds it all day long and often has it in her hands when I pick her up. She always gives it back to Kristina and asks me if she can have her own. I have gone to 5 stores looking for this thing over the last few weeks and no luck. I am going to try and track it down online for her birthday. The girls love watching the Alvin and the Chipmunks Christmas cartoon and they sing along to all the songs and say all the words. It is the cutest thing and Maddie is particularly fond of it. She can actually turn on the tv and dvd by herself!

They loved their swimming lesson on Tuesday. They are in different classes: Maddie is in Sea Turtles and Emma is in Salamander. They have the same instructor though, Andreas. Emma has all boys in her class and Maddie has all girls. I had to take them to their first lesson by myself, one was at 6 and one was at 7. Maddie and I sat and watched Emma's lesson first. If I had a dollar, no, if I had a penny for every time Maddie asked if it was her turn yet during that half hour I would be able to retire comfortably! But she was good, other than that slight annoyance! Then Emma and I watched Maddie's lesson. I had packed a snack for them and as Emma munched on her snack she said "this is like the fuatre" (theater). "We are watching Maddie at the fuatre."

They are fighting a lot more over toys and things, and they take turns antagonizing each other. It's grating on our nerves at times, but a normal part of raising children. We are still finding the counting system extremely effective and the girls know if they hit each other they go to time out without warning, and if they fight over a toy the toy gets a time out. Let's hope this system lasts!

I watched Dateline tonight and it was the story of the little boy, Sean, who was kidnapped (parental kidnapping) by his mum when he was 3. His dad fought for his son to come back to the US for 5 years (the mum actually died and they still didn't return Sean to the US). Anyway, the story was devastating, but the father and son are now reunited and the dad has full custody. I cannot imagine being separated from my girls for that long. Heartbreaking! Sometimes when I am annoyed with the girls or I don't want to play barbies with them (barbies is so boring, people) I think about people who have lost children, and it puts a different spin on things. I get a little less annoyed and playing barbies on the floor for a few minutes doesn't seem so horrific, I look at it more like time spent with them. I tell them I love them all the time, but I know actions speak louder than words, so I want them to feel they are loved. If that means playing Barbies with them, or reading them the same story for the 50th time, I will do it gladly!

Girls and Video Games

As I type I am watching the girls play a wii game where they race on cows. They are fiercely competitive already! While playing each one is cheering for themselves (Maddie screaming "go Maddie" and Emma doing the same for Emma). They know who has won and the non-winner puts the controller down and slinks off into the corner and gets very upset and angry. John and I have told them umpteen times that it's just a game and it's for fun but they haven't internalized this yet.

The girls had their first day back at school today. They missed Julie and were happy to be back. Julie said they had a great day and were very well-behaved, playing with the other kids. They were tired when I drove them home. This morning when I was getting them into the car, Maddie said "it's too early for this girl mama, I tired!" I thought for sure they would nap, but nope. As for me, my first day back was fine but I am already looking forward to the March break!

Day 3 of 2010

I'll come up with more interesting titles as the year progresses, I am sure. Today is my last day of the holiday vacation (I was off for two weeks). It's depressing having to go back but at the same time I am looking forward to getting back into the routine of things. I told the girls they would be going to Julie's tomorrow and they were fine with that. They asked why and I said "mummy and daddy have to go back to work" and Emma asked "why?" (her new favourite word) and I said "to make money so we can live in our house and have food to eat" and Maddie said "food like broccoli?" Yep, like broccoli. I have been enlisting the help of the girls over dinnertime. I have found that they try new things if they have a hand in making it. Emma never ate broccoli but I had her help me make a dressing that we sprinkled over broccoli and she ate all of hers. I couldn't believe it. She keps saying "this is delicious!"

The girls were playing in the playroom today on their etch-a-sketch type toys. Emma came into the kitchen and said "mama, may I have a word?" It was so cute! I said "of course" and it turns out she wanted me to see her drawing. They are both very good at drawing. Maddie in particular as she spends more time on hers and she colours everything in the lines. She can draw whales and faces really well (better than me)!

This is going to be a busy week getting back into the swing of things, and it's a cold one (- 17 and worse). Hopefully it's not too bad Wed and Thurs when I go running. I skipped my run this morning as it was - 24 (winds from the North at 50 km/hour)! The conditions didn't look safe so I gave it a miss. Turns out I could have gone, the other die-hard runners were out there. Next time I will just do it!

Day 2 of 2010

We've had a great holiday this year. NYE we had some people over. We decided the girls could stay up until they started to crash. They lasted until 11! I was amazed. When they are overtired they start to get crazy and wild! Once that happened we put them to bed. They only slept in until 8, which is not much later than normal. They lasted until about noon on New Years Day and then told me they were too tired to do anything so they had a nap. Woke up 3 hours later! I couldn't believe it as they don't tend to nap anymore these days, but they obviously needed a catch up. They keep wishing John and I a Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and Happy Birthday! It seems like it's been one celebration after another! My cousin's daughter, Katie, also had her birthday party today at a play gym and the girls had a great time.

Behaviour wise they are still very good. Emma is trying at times as she is quite bossy and gets upset when things don't go her way (sound familiar)? She can grab toys out of people's hands and we have to nip that in the bud. She actually bit Maddie a few weeks ago and Maddie had a bruise on her cheek for a week. Emma has never been a biter, but Maddie grabbed her barbie and she just sort of snapped. She has not done anything like that since and she was very embarassed and remorseful after. They do swat at each other now and then (always over a fight about a toy) and they come and tell me right away and almost always apologize to each other right away, so that's good. They still stall at bedtime, but I don't mind, as it isn't as bad as it has been for some of my friends and their kids. They like it when I tell them stories. Emma says "tell us a story, not out of a book, from your mouth." They like it because the heroines are Princess Emma and Princess Maddie and I link it to the events of the day. They think it's funny when I put on voices and when I mimic them fighting about something. It reminds me of when I was little, my dad would tell stories about Alemap (my name backwards). After that story, they want to be tucked in and then we go through a routine of telling each other secrets. It starts with what we are doing tomorrow (ie. tomorrow we are going to a birthday party or we are going to do a puzzle or whatever it may be) then it turns into a silly secret (ie. dad's feet smell like poop-poop). They think the silly ones are hilarious. We never say them about the girls, only about John and I. Then we have to shoo the monsters, caterpillars, pirates, ghosts and spirits out of their closet (this has to be done by mum most of the time) and then another hug and kiss followed by lot's of I love you's and good nights. It's hard to stand firm with the stalls when it's such a cute time of night.

Emma had a balloon from Katie's birthday to day and she put it between her legs and said "look at my big peanut mummy!" Yeesh, that kid is a hoot! Maddie was super cute at the play gym, she hung from the bar and walked across the balance beam and was beaming herself that she was able to do it. She can be so stubborn at times and yet so sweet and caring. I measured her today outside of our bathroom (there is a mark from last Jan so I wanted to compare) and I said "you are so much taller this year" and she said "and Emma too? What about my sister?"

We have explained to the girls that they will be in different swimming classes this season. Emma is in Salamander which is Tuesdays at 6 and Madison is in Sea Turtles again which is at 7:00. I couldn't get them in at the same time (the 6 slot for Maddie's was all full). It's a real pain to have them at those times, but John and I are so busy ourselves during the week that we decided we had to keep it on the same night. Monday and Fri John has hockey, Wed and Thursday are my running nights, Saturday they have music and Sunday I run again, so Tues is the only night. Oh well, it's only a few weeks. I am curious to see how they do in separate classes and at separate times. So one will watch the other and it will give us one on one time with each daughter.