You Want What?

"Mom," Emma said to me one morning this week, "I want Weeds for breakfast." I raised my eyebrows at that.
"I'm sorry, you want what?" I asked, picturing the compost pile in the backyard. That had to be it; she couldn't possibly be pointing out her knowledge of drug slang. Could she?
"I want Weeds," and she pointed to a cereal box on top of the refrigerator. I quickly scanned the choices, and wondered which one was the mystery choice. There was Special K, Kix, Chocolate Cheerios and Mini Wheats. It had to be the Mini Wheats, so I grabbed the box. "Yah, the Mini Weeds!"
It's great that she's reading, but she has come up with some funny pronunciations now and again.
Yesterday afternoon I was texting one of my sisters-in-law and asking for dinner ideas. Emma was sitting beside me when this text arrived:
"Crepes! like French breakfast for dinner."
(We had crepes for dinner when Michael and Blair were over for dinner once. And we are certainly NOT opposed to having breakfast food for dinner.)
Only Emma didn't get it at first. She looked at me and said, "What are Creeps?"

Lunch Time Fun

As I was in the kitchen preparing lunch, I heard Elizabeth giggling and squeals from one of the twins. Then Elizabeth came racing around the corner and said, "Mommy," (giggle) "look at" (giggle) "the Baby!" And this is what I found.

Elizabeth stuffed a pair of yesterday's jeans and several blocks into Annie's pjs. I never cease to be amazed at Elizabeth's creativity.

Hidden Treasures

For some strange reason, our VCR isn't working very well lately. It couldn't be the spoons, binkies, DVDs, pennies and pencils I periodically have to dig out of there, or could it?

I Thought It Wasn't Monday

There are those mornings that are so contrary, I just want to go to bed and start over. It all started with Ryan's morning. He usually goes into work between 6:00-6:30 am (generally closer to 6 am), but was still searching for his school keys at 6:30. I don't get up until about 7, so I was still in bed (and asleep) when I was told to cover my head because our bedroom light was coming on. Ryan eventually had to leave for work without the keys.
Then it was my turn to get up. I fed the twins their first bottle and tried to get Emma and Elizabeth to get up. Elizabeth let me carry her to the living room, but Emma wanted to stay in bed. I made breakfast and finally got Emma out of bed. The twins and Emma ate their breakfast, but Elizabeth just sat there looking at hers. I made Emma's lunch to take and tried to encourage the girls to get dressed. They sat like little bumps on the couch. It's got to be the weather that is affecting every one's mood. It's been cold, gloomy and rainy it seems like forever. I finally chose clothes and sat the clothes by the girls on the couch and told them to put them on.
Fast forward to time for coats, shoes and backpacks. I practically have dressed my unmotivated children, found their backpacks and shoes and was wandering around, wondering what have happened to all of Emma's socks. I found some in the closet in her room, some under her sister's bed and none of them were clean. She just can't seem to put them in the dirty clothes basket for me to wash. Even if she leaves them in the living room, I will put them in the laundry room myself, but no. They just disappear. So I gave her a dirty pair to wear, put the twins in their coats, grab my keys to go start the car. I was really looking forward to getting the girls off to school so I could come home and finally eat my breakfast.
Well, I pressed the keyless entry button, opened the driver side door and started the car. Then, having brought Annie out with me, I grabbed the driver's side rear door and pulled the handle. And it didn't open. I pressed the keyless entry button again, and still nothing. Oh crap.
I walked around the other side of the van and grabbed that door. It didn't move either. Oh no, not today! @#$%^&* I was running late as it was.
I went back inside and called Ryan at school for ideas on how to unfreeze the van faster. Ryan's great idea was just to let it run and eventually it will thaw. That's just what I wanted to hear, as I see Elizabeth grabbing the binky out of Maddie's mouth and bumping her over as she runs away from my stormy face.
Over the next 6 minutes I went out 6 times to try the doors. At last one opens and I herd all the kids into the car, having to climb in to get Annie seat belted. That's when I noticed Elizabeth was without her backpack. She gives me that big-innocent-eyed face and proclaims she doesn't know where her backpack was. 10 minutes ago it was on the couch; that's plenty of time for a 4 year old to make it disappear.
I took the keys from the ignition and went back into the house. That backpack is no where to be seen. I find it a little while later in the kitchen by the fridge. Obviously. Back to the van.
I turned the van back on, throw it into reverse and head out. The light that says I have a door open is on and the bell dings at me. I stop and try to open the door all the way so I can then shut it, but alas, it is still frozen in place. Fine. Be that way.
I made it to the corner before a voice from the back asks me why the car is beeping. I glance up at the roof of my otherwise dependable van and ask, why me? before shouting at the dashboard to shut up because I can't do anything about it. Oh, did I mention both the twins have thrown their binkies in the floor and are crying? Gosh, I love mornings.
After hitting both stoplights on the way to school, we finally arrived and clearly the first bell has already rung. I tell the girls to hurry up, and tell Emma that she'd better hurry and run to class after walking Elizabeth to her class. Elizabeth hurries to the door of the van and is ready for me to help her down, but Emma is not. She hands me a necklace that I guess was sitting in the cup holder in the backseat and asks me to put it on her. Wow, really? The, "You're late" conversation didn't stick very well. I said no and helped her down, grabbed the necklace and told her I'd help her tomorrow.
Now I am home, the twins are napping and I am looking back over my morning and thinking to myself that I really could have handled things better. Mean Mommy made an over-long appearance this morning, but not until the van didn't cooperate. I had kept my temper in check that long; but it still wasn't enough. So now I'll spend the rest of today beating myself up about it. I get up in the morning thinking that I really am going to do better, to be a better mom. Maybe someday.

Grins and Giggles

Tonight we were all on the floor in the living room, just playing. When no one was particularly paying attention, Annie walked from the couch to the papasan chair. Just like that. So, being the supportive parents that we are, we cheered and clapped and made a big deal of it. (AHHH... walking....)
So while Ryan was on the phone telling his mom about our latest escapades, I was trying to keep the kids entertained and semi-quiet. Elizabeth likes trust exercises. A lot. She stands with her back to me, leans and waits for me to catch her. She can play that game longer than I can.
After a while my arms, shoulders and back start to get tired. Really tired. The words, "We need to be done now. I'm pooped," came rolling off my tongue.
Elizabeth gave me this appalled look to my face then glanced down at my jeans. "You did?"

More Messes

Annie found the dvds. The twins have mostly moved on from the bookshelf, and I think have decided the dvds and cds are more fun to unload. Luckily they can't get into the dvd cases, but the cd cases prove easier to their curious fingers. At the end of every day I have a stack of cds on top of the entertainment center. Someday really soon I'm going to get Ryan to put child locks on it. When we have some time....

Empty or Not?

I went to put plastic wrap over a bowl of left-overs, and this was all that was left in the box. Isn't there some kind of unwritten rule about not leaving insufficient amounts? A dribble in the milk jug, two small broken pieces of what was once the bar of soap in the shower, two squares of toilet paper, or 1 1/2 inches of the plastic wrap is close enough to empty to warrant NOT PUTTING BACK for use later.
You know who you are.

No Pants? No Problem.

Elizabeth's pants got wet in the rain in the tiny increment of time she was outside on the way to the car, and then from the car to the house. So she took them off and is resistant to getting another pair from her bedroom.