How Does It Feel to be an Older Parent?

This is what the flight attendant on jetblue asked Jeremy on his way to take Isaac to the potty.
I just couldn't keep this to myself! Sure they gave us unlimited bags of snacks, but where were their manners!?

Raya Brass Band

A girl and her band

This is Raya and the band that was named after her. They are both now 5 years old!
As per her momma's request and as a condition for naming the band after her, they agreed to play for her birthday every year.

Lucky Rayas! And lucky us!

Does mothering equal waitressing?

*Where it all goes down!

You're on your feet, running around, all day, being nice to (little) people. And then when that blessed moment comes when they go to bed and your shift is "over", it isn't really. You have sidework: Load the dishwasher, wash the pots, the highchair, the floor under the highchair, the table top, the bibs. Switch the laundry, or start the laundry, or fold the laundry, or all of it. And then the cat box. Always the cat box! Plus the baby potties that weren't emptied before. Yick.

Ok, enough complaining!

Onward!

I do love them btw, all the way to the stars, and that helps.

*photo credit - Lena Corwin. She made my workplace look so darn nice!

Three Year Old Poetry

The poet, trying to smile on command.

Yesterday as he ate his snack, messily, as usual,

Hey Mamaa? There are tears of lime yogurt dropping down my face.

This morning, talking about the crust he had pulled off his toast, after I talked about wringing out a towel,

We've got to wring this dead branch of toast.

The other day as he was giving me a strong hug,

I have this machine, vmmmmm! And I'm machining you into love.

Also on the love theme, this time about his little sister,

I'm going to knock Noa into love.

And while I was trying to get him to "add" his pee-pee to the potty,

How about I add myself to you for a hug?

First Word Alert!

Yep, I said it.

Noa was sitting in her highchair today and threw her green spoon overboard. That in itself is very much par for the lunch course, but today she added a new dimension to the experience: She said, "Uh-oh!' and kept on saying it until I picked up the spoon!

Beautiful Baby Hat

Beautiful Baby! They match :)

So much more to say, but I am oh so tired. Tired-er than I've ever been before.
Good thing they are cute. (I say that often.)

Toddler Meltdown Miracle Cure

LOVE!

Seriously. I think I'm onto something here. And today was a day of major meltdowns, so I had lots of practice.

List of meltdowns:

1. For a lollypop, during dinner
2. For how to take off a necklace
3. For breast pump parts
4. For tractor wheels taken off on the toddler bed. I took them off on the floor and was not forgiven.

Except for the last one, I cured him of all his manias by telling him I loved him. And reminding him that he was my favorite boy in the world, and hugging him like crazy. When I put him on my lap after the lollypop meltdown, he became a completely changed kid. 

I told Jeremy about it, and he said he thought it worked because it no longer is a battle of wills. And it did really feel like we were on the same side. It felt good to tell him that I loved him rather than that he was making me nuts.

And it made me love him more.