What a day.

I had to stay at work last night as there was no one scheduled to relieve me at 1130pm. Luckily a day shift nurse came in at 5, so I was only there 14 instead of 16hours, but still, it meant I was up for 24+ hours. Yawn!

Add to that the winter storm we had the entire time I was at work, and it made for an interesting drive home. Made even more interesting by the announcement that the girls would get a snow day and be home all day with me. (Chris works for one of only 3 districts in this area that did NOT cancel, so he had to go!)

All of this excitement just as I arrived home at 6am!

And then along came Katherine, bouncing out of bed ( highly unusual for my sleeping beauty) because her bottom tooth was very loose. You have to understand that Katherine is the last kid in her class to have all of her teeth. She's been waiting to lose a tooth since Kindergarten. This was a MAJOR development.

So while I'm trying to keep my eyes open, talk to Chris, get my bearings, make new plans for my day, etc  Katherine is begging for an apple.  I finally told her to just get an apple - but that she should be gentle with the tooth and realize that it might be loose for a few days before it actually falls out!

She started gnawing on that apple like an animal, determined to lose her tooth today. She quickly realized that it hurt to do that, and then was in tears - not so much because of the pain, but because she wanted the tooth OUT!  Tears about a tooth, at 0615, after no sleep. I took a deep breath and tried my best to be gentle.

Very long story shorter, after Chris left we all camped out on the couch for a bit and I guess she was just pulling on the tooth the whole time because before 0800, the tooth was out and I had a VERY HAPPY Katherine in my house!

The rest of the day is a blur. We had some TV, some play time, some nap time. Honestly, the girls were very patient with me and we all made it through. We got all the laundry done and even managed to throw together a nice dinner - thank you leftover spaghetti sauce in the freezer and bread machine for your simplicity!  Later afternoon, I was feeling bad that on a snow day the kids hadn't even gotten to play in the sno, so we went out to shovel/play. They had a blast. The snow is so deep and wet/heavy that Katherine lost her boot a few times and Abby kept getting stuck/falling over.

Of course the day couldn't end without a little drama. Back to the tooth. Katherine couldn't decide if she should leave the tooth in an envelope, or in the special tooth holder box that Maggie shared with her. She went back and forth a few too many times, because at some point, the tooth was lost. (Mom guilt, I feel bad that if I wasn't so tired/ambivalent today I might have stopped this extra playing with the tooth and it wouldn't have gotten lost.) She was upset, but I reminded her that the tooth must be in the house, most likely in her room. So either the Tooth Fairy will find it herself, or we will find it eventually, but that I was sure theTooth Fairy would understand if she wrote a note.

I guess she did write an addendum to her note, but it was all sealed before I could read it: Stay Tuned!

And now, my bed is calling. Tomorrow is a new day!

"I'm not wearing boots to school today!"

This is the statement that started an interesting conversation this morning. Maggie thought since she knew for sure that she had a student council meeting during recess, that she didn't need to wear boots to school.  When I pointed out that even if she wasn't outside for recess, she still had to get to and from school (and oh by the way, we're under a weather advisory later - it might be snowing on the way home) she stomped her foot and whined,"NOBODY wears boots!"
"Really? No one?"
"Well, Addie and Karlie don't have to wear boots to school!"
Right.......
So I took a deep breath, and attempted to have a logical conversation with Maggie and Katherine while we finished doing their hair.

I asked them again to remind me what my job was as their Mom.
"To keep us safe so we don't get hurt"
(They've been told that many, many times!)
Exactly, so I told them that my decisions are always based on that job description. And that many times in the next 10 years (or more!) they will not like the decisions that I make. But that my decisions always start with the idea that 1) I love them so much, and 2)I need to keep them safe.  We talked about how other moms and dads will make different decisions, and that's fine. I told them that sometimes I will make the wrong decision, I'm not always going to be right (but I usually am!) And, we talked about how they are welcome to disagree with me, but that calmly talking (rather than stomping feet and whining) will make me much more willing to listen to their side of the story.  I also said, I might be the uncool Mom, but I was OK with that if it meant they were safe.

It might have been a bit heavy for 0800 on a  Tuesday morning. But,  I wonder if we talk about things like this now, if it might make it just a tiny bit easier as the disagreements become bigger. When it isn't just about wearing boots to school, but something bigger and scarier?

I don't know. But for today, I was the uncool mom, pointing out that if the teacher for Student Council suddenly had a conflict, and Maggie ended up outside for recess, she'd be very glad to have boots (And SNOW PANTS!)

Little did I know that wasn't my only UNCOOL moment of the day!

When Abby and I arrived at Dance class, we saw that the costumes for the spring recital had arrived, and the other girls in her class were all taking theirs home. When we started this class in January, they offered Abby the opportunity to be in the recital, or just take the class and learn the dance, but not participate in the recital. Seeing a picture of the costume (ugly/not age appropriate in my opinion) learning that this costume was going to cost about $50, and then learning that the recital would be admission by $8ticket/person only, I quickly decided that Abby's life would not be destroyed by NOT participating in the recital. She could have fun in class, learn other things, learn the dance, and just explore the concept of Dance Class this year, and perhaps do a "real" recital later in her life.

I was NOT prepared for Abby to understand the difference. And I was certainly not prepared for the complete devastation of that understanding.
It looked something like this - but with more pouty lip, tears streaming down her cheeks, and in her adorable leotard!

It's pretty much impossible to reason with a 3 1/2 year old, so I just gave her hugs and distracted her and went on about the day. But, sheesh, I'm totally the "uncool mom" today. Let's hope I can redeem myself tomorrow!

Funny Abby story:
She was given a bag of M&Ms at school today - a birthday treat from Madison.

Of course that meant that the whole car ride home, I heard whining "Can I eat them NOOOOOW?"

We went through the usual, we have to eat lunch first, we have to wash your hands first, (think of all the germs from school,) if you whine you won't get any at all, etc.

Then, just to taunt her a little, because it's fun, and I'm her Mom, and that's what I do, I said, "Abby, those are M&Ms and 'M' stands for MOMMY - so I think I get to eat them all!"

(Yes, I'm cruel)

"NOOOO! My name is Abby, and they're for me!"
"But does Abby start with 'M'?"
"Noooooo! Abby is A-B-B-Y!"
"Well, Mommy starts with 'M' so I think I get to eat them, MMMMmaybe I'll share with MMMMMaggie?"
"Nooooooo  Those M&Ms are NOT for you, they are for ME!" (pause while the brain clicks in)
"HEY.... ME starts with 'M' - the M&Ms are for ME and ME starts with 'M' so *I* get to eat them, not You!"


"Well, OK, I guess you can eat some, but not until we get home, wash your hands, and eat some healthy lunch!"

Tomorrow Maggie is participating in a piano competition, or audition, I'm not sure what you call it. She has to play 2 songs for a judge, just Maggie and the judge in a room.

Because there is no audience, I asked her to pretend for me tonight-and perform as she will tomorrow.

Of course, she won't wear her pajamas tomorrow!

Part 2 of Abby Magic

So, then she thought a hat would make her trick work. But it didn't.
After she was near tears of frustration, I gave her special magician advice.......

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Abby's Magic Part 1

Oh Abby. Could you be any cuter?

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

 Let's just call this a hodge podge of things I've thought about in the last few days - all combined into one post.

Above you see the girls for Valentine's Day. The picture wasn't taken until the 15th. We were supposed to have 3 days of class parties - so 3 days of Valentine's shirts. But, Abby was rather sick this week, so she missed her class party. I let her put on a valentine's shirt Friday with Katherine, and Maggie just happened to be wearing pink. Once upon a time I planned these outfits well in advance, this year I almost missed the photo-op. AHHH!

Abby's fine now, though I was pretty sure I'd be taking her to the ER in the middle of the night Wed/Thurs. When she gets a bug, it settles in her lungs and she needs nebulizers to loosen it all up. She was given oral steroids on Wed, but they hadn't taken effect, and she got into a few coughing fits that were pretty scary. Everything is scarier at 2am! Eventually nebulizer +steam shower in the bathroom+ cold air through an open window+lots of Vicks rub+sleeping with Mom and Dad=a little bit of rest for all.  She's almost back to normal now, still a little sniffly, but feeling better every day.

 Today we wish Chris a Happy Birthday. He'd rather not make a big deal, but come on, I love birthdays!  So we've had the weekend of yummy food - I made Coq Au Vin last night with garlic mashed potatoes. This morning we had Cinnamon rolls (I was trying to think of something yummy that would work with our need to have everyone up, dressed, and out by 0730 for Church. These were yummy, but getting up at 0530 was rough!)  We had lunch at Mike LaSusa's, a restaurant we enjoy, but don't get to often enough. Special bonus - Sunday is Kids eat free - Cheap dates! And tonight we'll enjoy steak and baked potatoes, Chris will make his bearnaise sauce and grill himself asparagus, and we'll sing Happy Birthday again with the cupcakes that the girls made this afternoon!  The highlight of the day will be watching the Season Premiere of AMAZING RACE - his favorite show.

Earlier this week, the girls got a very special surprise in the mail from my Aunt Janet - Aprons and oven mitts for their American Girl dolls! There were squeals of delight when they realized the aprons and mitts would actually fit their dolls, and giggles when they asked if *I* could sew things like that and I explained that sewing a button was about as advanced as my skills are. The dolls have been cooking quite a bit this week which has been fun to observe - except when the dolls offer "grandma" a snack. I'm not old enough to be called Grandma!  Thank you Aunt Janet!

Yesterday as I was cooking dinner, I noticed that Abby and Katherine were happily playing together. And after my brain registered that there was no screaming or whining, I paid attention to what they were saying - and I heard them singing made up songs. When I went closer to see what they were doing, I discovered that they were using the Princess dolls and Jenga pieces to create something like a fashion show - where each Princess walked along the Jenga path singing a special song. I'm not sure they've ever seen anything like this on TV, so I'm not sure where it comes from. But it was hilarious! I wish I had video, but that would have been too obvious.  Sidenote: The crown that Abby is wearing was made at a Christmas Craft session at the Library, and Chris thinks it was to represent a Yule Log? She has decided she must wear it when she plays Princesses.  I swear, the 3 year old brain is incredible!

And finally, a funny Katherine-ism. While we were at lunch today, we were asking the girls what they had talked about in their CCD classes.  Maggie was able to tell us about Tax collector and Pharisee, but it took a minute longer to figure out Katherine's story. Have you ever heard about the "Portable Son?" 

The girls are usually interested in looking for footprints in the snow and guessing what animals have been in our yard. (not that I ever know what any of the prints are, but we guess)

Last night we saw an opossum across the street as we drove home from basketball, so this morning they were looking for prints.
When we opened the garage door to leave for school, I called them over to identify the print I found in the driveway.




DADDY PRINTS!


Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Talking about Ash Wednesday, and what it means, led to talking about the concept of giving things up for Lent.
Maggie's quite excited for Ash Wednesday as it will be her first Mass as an Altar Server.
All of this came about because as we talked about our dinners for the week, I mentioned that we would try not to eat meat on Wednesday and Friday this week. The conversation then went to giving things up, fasting, abstinence, the idea that rather than give something up, you could add something to your every day routine to remind you of Jesus.
I, personally, have not given anything up for a few years, but we talked about why people do, what it means, it's been an ongoing conversation all day.

As we got ready for bed tonight Katherine said, "I'm going to give up sleeping in my bed for Lent. I will just sleep on the floor."
Huh?
"Well, Jesus slept in that garden, so I can sleep on my floor!"

Once we moved past that, she said to me, as I helped her brush her teeth, "I just don't know what to give up. Maggie said Chocolate, but I don't think I want to do that."
I offered, "Maybe you could give up fighting with your sisters?"
"Oh, NO! That would be HARD!" she exclaimed!
"Harder than chocolate?"I asked?
"WAY harder!"

So,  there you have it.

It's not so important that they give anything up, but I'm glad we can have conversations about what people do and why, and help them grasp some of these concepts in their smart little brains.  And I love the glimpse into their brains as they make the connections!

It had to happen sooner or later-one of my children forging my signature!
I thought I had a few more years, and I would have expected it to be on the sly.
Instead, she proudly called from the table-"I checked the 'yes' box and signed my name ..... and yours too!"




And, yes, much parental pride-she's getting harder Math Homework because she's bored by the regular assignments!


Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

This is an equal opportunity blog. Here you can enjoy Maggie's basketball from this afternoon.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

It was another exciting week at Basketball. Katherine had this memorable moment as she took the ball all the way down the court....to the wrong basket! And then all the way back again for a missed shot. Chris gets credit for video- the video starts as she's almost to the wrong basket.

(In her defense, that was the basket we had been practicing t before the game, it was an honest mistake!)


Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone