The Color of Innocence

Snuggled into my bed, Abby and I were enjoying some alone time together watching the Twins game. Abby says very little when asked about preschool. But get her alone with a little snuggle time and she opens wide up.

The following is a snip-it of our conversation Thursday night.

Abby: "Kyla is chocolate."
Brooke: "What does that mean?"
Abby: "What color is chocolate?"
Brooke: "Brown."
Abby: "Kyla is brown."

And that was it.

I Love That Dirty Water

When Abby & Lauren get a song in their heads they lose control and turn it into the dance party of a lifetime.

Here's what I found my lovelies doing when they thought no one was looking....

I Love That Dirty Water

(Remember to pause the playlist on the right side of the screen.)

Turning Thirty-Two

Each morning of my birthday since I can remember my first waking moments are spent thinking, "Today is my birthday!" When I was younger it was always a feeling of excitement.... the special cards, happy birthday wishes, gifts. All for me. All about me. The milestone birthdays were especially important, packed with new privileges that only that magical birthday can bring. And then some time in my mid-twenties the realization that the big Three-O was creeping up began to cast a cloud over my birthday. When the day of the big Three-O arrived it was filled with clouds. And rain. But it was also filled with family & friends who gathered to wish me a happy 30th, a happy golden birthday. It was a great day.

But turning 32.... I guess a mother of two preschoolers should expect nothing less than what I got on my 32nd birthday. I was awakened at 4-something by the word, "Mommy!" No time to even think, "Happy Birthday to me." I ran to the bathroom, grabbed the puke bucket, and cleaned up my lovely. The rest of what should have been our sleeping hours was spent either catching the projectile or waiting for another round. I woke up on the floor of our family room, our traditional staging area for the ill. Lauren crawled into our make-shift bed with Abby & I when she awoke, and the girls and I snuggled, watched a little Good Morning America, I fielded a few early bird birthday calls, and then the best gift a 32 year-old mom could ask for erupted around me. My girls serenaded me with their misstepped version of Happy Birthday To You. It couldn't have been more perfect!

Thank God for that moment. The day just went downhill from there. Oh Abby felt better, and there were no more vomiting episodes. And Geoff did come home at lunch with a beautiful bouquet of flowers. But there were countless behavioral issues, followed by burnt take-out and a homemade birthday cake that was short on frosting. And I did receive several phone calls, e-mails, cards and Facebook birthday greetings, which in themselves truly helped to salvage my spirits. I've certainly had better birthdays, but I'm quite happy to be walking in my shoes.

So how do you follow a day like that? Well, if you're a mother of these two lovelies, you start the next day with a peaceful walk so early the sun has not even begun to rise wearing those comfy worn-in shoes. You admire the clear skies and vibrant stars, and then you become a casualty of the darkness, and step in your own dog's steamer.

I'm still quite content to be walking in my own shoes.... I just keep them out of the house. At least until I can be sure all of the poop is off.

Snack Confusion

Tonight Abby questioned, "What does Mrs. Hart say, 'Sit like a pretzel' for when she reads us a story?"

Trying to reinforce Mrs. Hart's policies I replied, "So you keep your legs under your body and to yourself. Do you like to sit like a pretzel?"

"No, I like to sit like a Dorito."

The Mean Mom. The Bully.

Life with Lauren has been trying, to say the least. If life in the twos is terrible, life in the threes is far from a breeze. It is one thing after another with this young lady, and today was really no worse than usual, it was just put on public display.

Twice today I had to remove Lauren from a store by hauling her carcass out over my shoulder. The tantrums escalate to a display worthy of an Academy Award. The first came in Target, the result of not getting an Icee. Out we went. The second was on a much grander scale, this time I paraded right through the food court with my naughty just as the patrons were flocking for lunch. Only this time I wasn't just accessorizing with Tiny Tot over my shoulder, I was also wearing the crustiest glare I could muster up.

After we enjoyed a nice mid-morning snack, I told Lauren she could spend some time playing in the kids area. She was having a ball, running, climbing, and bouncing about. That is until she ran into Long Hair Boy. Lauren had climbed up onto a delivery truck and perched herself onto one of the sides. What Long Hair Boy had against Lauren I do not know, but he was bound and determined to take her place and never give it back. Ever. She moved on for a while, but when she went back, there was Long Hair Boy. Eventually Lauren ran to me in frustration, "She is stupid," she proclaimed with her eyes full of tears. We took a few minutes to gather our good graces and I reminded her that the perpetrator was not a girl, but a boy with exceptionally long hair. With just a few minutes until it was time to bug out I wanted to leave on a high note, so I encouraged her to give it another shot. Well, you can about guess what happened next. When Long Hair Boy saw her coming, he reclaimed his post at the top of the mountain. If I had a mirror, I'm sure I could have seen the smoke coming out of my very own ears. There was no way around it; this kid sucked. His grandma was oblivious. Does Long Hair Boy not know that the slightest thing sets off Lauren, and as a consequence, I have to deal with the wrath? I wanted to pull his scraggly long hair and point out how much I loathed him in that moment, but that would not solve anything. It also would not set a very good example for my young daughter. So I did the next best thing. I stared him down. It was a piercing stare. And several times I broke from it, only to stab him again and again with my angry mommy eyes. He may have won in his battle with Lauren, but in this Mommy vs. Long Hair Boy playground rumble, I was the queen of the mountain.

I'm not particularly proud of my behavior. But I have this to say, it is a classic example of a gift mother nature has given to all of its mothers. Don't piss off a mom.

Paradise

Abby left the dance floor twice at Bob & Cassie's wedding dance.... Once to go to the bathroom, and another time to get a drink, and only because I insisted. That's it. She was dancing before the dance even started, and when it was over asked, "Why is everybody leaving?"

This video pretty much sums up her evening.

Abby In Paradise

(Remember to pause the playlist on the right side of the blog to hear the video.)

Preschool Day II

Day two of preschool is now in the books. Abby arrived at school and joined her classmates in the art room again, like she will each morning. Today she chose to do a chalk drawing that she informed me are vegetables.... oh to have a peak inside of her mind.

Because my dear Lauren is still suffering from a severe case of Bad Attitude, I opted to go home instead of out and about while Abby attended school. Nothing special, just a day of tending to chores for me, and play for Lauren at home.

When Lauren and I arrived in the Language Arts room to pick up our dear preschooler, we were greeted by Mrs. Hart with a big smile on her face, "Whatever you did worked," she exclaimed, "because Abby followed the directions perfectly." Of course, I'm sure it helped that Abby also got to be the leader, so she felt quite honored and special. We are going to have to practice making Lauren the leader at home in the days between now and day III of preschool so Abby is well aware that other people, too, enjoy the privilege.

Abby herself was also pleased with how the day went. It was obvious being the leader was the highlight, but she was quite proud to share her caterpillar, butterfly, and chalk art with her sister. She did choose to have a snack today, something she informed me she passed on her first day because it upset her stomach.... crackers & juice, really Abby?! But whatever. Today, she enjoyed it. After a little poking I also discovered that she made a new friend today named Lexi. "She's a girl and she wears a pink shirt," is about all she had to say about that.

We're getting this preschool routine down and its only the second day. Kudos to us, but mostly kudos to Abby. She's taking her role as a student seriously; what better start to her career as a student could I ask for?

And let's not forget, kudos to Mrs. Hart and all the preschool teachers of the world. Enjoy what you've got this year, because next year is a whole new ball game....