Getting to GTMO

Well we made it! Finally arrived in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba on Tuesday afternoon. Had to be at the airport at about 3:00 am that morning for our flight because of the dog, supposedly you need to be there 6 hours early if you are shipping a pet. We obviously did not heed that and a good thing because as it was it took about 10 minutes to check us all in and then we sat around waiting for 4 hours. Met a charming old man at the airport who was flying out to Italy to see his grandkids. He told jokes to the kids and shared some of his adventures, boy could that guy talk! The flights themselves were pretty uneventful. I was a little worried about my Bueller and how he would handle the flight but he didn't seem too traumatized.

When we arrived at GTMO Joey's boss was waiting with about 5 or 6 other guys and gals to meet us and help get all our luggage home. Everyone was very excited to see us and very friendly and helpful. They drove us and all our baggage to our house, which already was set up with loaner furniture. I imagined us on air beds or something with no where to sit or anything but we all have real beds and dressers, a dining room table and chairs, and a couch and chair with a few end tables for the living room. They also had a dish pack with basic dishes so we can cook. We were lucky enough to get a 4 bedroom, so that will be nice. Joey's boss also let us use his vehicle to go to the exchange/commisary and get a few items we needed and food of course. We definitely had a full day.

Wednesday Joey had to report for work. He met more of his co-workers and got to start settling into his office. I pretty much worked on laundry and getting the girls organized in their rooms. After work his boss offered to take us on a tour of the base and we got to see his office too, a real office, not like his cracker box office on the ship. LOL We saw pretty much everything the base has to offer. The girls favorites were Glass Beach, where they have already found a few pieces of sea glass for their collection, and the Pool of course. Once again this guy could talk and he was a fount of information. I had no idea there was so much history here! Joey also met our next door neighbor and arranged for us to share their internet until ours is in, which they say could take a month or two!

This morning I took the girls to school and got them registered and in class. There are a total of 13 girls and 3 boys in the class with my girls. They have been eagerly awaiting the girls arrival. They have a nice big classroom and their teacher seems nice from what I saw today. We will see what they have to say when they get home.

That is it for now. I will post more as we have more adventures.

Made By Sydney

This actually happened a few months ago, however, it has taken me this long to get over the horror and embarrassment and be able to laugh about it. Here goes. The other night I went into the "family" restroom, which is mostly used by the girls. When I get to the toilet there is a humongous pile of crap in it. Seriously, it looked like it should have come out of a horse and not one of our little girls! And of course I am about to go into their room and read them the riot act about flushing the toilet when I see this little hand written sign on the back of the toilet that says "Made by Sydney". . . there are no words that can sufficiently convey how dumbstruck I was by this.

Savannah's Big Imagination

I've been helping out in the girls classroom this past week so that the teacher can do some testing. It is actually pretty fun to meet the kids and work with them and my girls get a kick out of seeing me there. Their teacher has been doing some reading tests. she pulled me aside after Savannah's to tell me how she did. Basically part of what they do is they have the kids read the first few pages and then stop and ask them to predict what they think will happen int he story. Savannah's story started out about a bunny rabbit who finds a giant head of cabbage. When the teacher asks most kids to predict what will happen they say "the rabbit will eat the cabbage and be happy" which is pretty much what they are looking for just to see that they understand what they are reading. Well Savannah took it to a whole other level. She said "A bad rabbit is going to steal the cabbage and the bunny will be upset and cry. Then he will go to the mall and win $7,000 so that he can buy cabbage lunch for all the woodland animals. Then they will all cheer for him and have a parade in his honor." The teachers eyes were wide and she told me she had never had a child tell her a story with that much detail and imagination. When Savannah read what actually happened in the book she came back to the teacher and told her "That story didn't go anything like I thought it would!" We both had a good chuckle at that one.

Sydney the Activist

School pictures were this week. They sent home the info. and I was a bit annoyed with the way they are doing them this year. In the past they sent home the largest package of pictures so you could see what they looked like then you kept what you wanted and sent the rest back with payment. I'm sure this went well (sarcasm)! This year they want you to pay in advance of them even taking the picture and the package prices went up again and you have to pay for any background except gray (the gray is ugly, and isn't blue the accepted "standard" background anyway?!). They aren't even sending a proof home to see? Ridiculous! So I decided I wasn't even going to mess with school pictures this year and would just go up to Walmart and get them done. When I explained to the girls why they wouldn't be getting all dolled up for picture day Sydney told me that I should write a letter to the school to complain. Frankly, it's not that important to me so I hemmed and hawwed and basically blew her off about the letter.

Well, after her homework was done that day she sat down with pencil and paper and started writing a letter of her own. It started out "Dear Skool" and said that it wasn't right that we couldn't see the pictures before buying them and what if we didn't like them, etc. Very cute, but I figured she'd forget about it by bedtime.

The next day when I showed up to sign in at the office in order to help in the classroom the office staff informed me that she had delivered that letter this morning. They all loved it and thought she was the most adorable thing ever. The teacher even kept the letter to use in her writing grade!

Letters to Santa

Sydney, mailing her letter to Santa

Savannah, mailing her letter to Santa

We took a little family excursion to the mall today. The girls wrote their letters to Santa last week and have been very anxious to mail them to Santa. So we went over to one of the malls to look around and to mail their letters to Santa. The mall Santa area did not have a mailbox though! Oh no! So hubby asked if they would like to give their letters directly to Santa since he was there talking to kids and getting pictures taken with them. This was met with much resistance, which he could not understand. Finally they explained it to us. According to them they saw in a movie that the mall Santa's are not real. They went on to explain that Santa would be much to busy in the North Pole getting ready for Christmas to be at our mall taking pictures. So they had to take their letters to the special Santa Mailbox to get it directly to him. So hubby asked the mall Santa "elves" if there was a mailbox anywhere and they told him that when they get letters to Santa they take them to the box at Macy's. So we had to traipse to the other side of the mall and all over Macy's to find the special mailbox. We finally found it, in men's fragrances (how is men's fragrances the sensible place to put the Santa mailbox?). Later, over lunch, Sydney told me that she was so glad not to have to worry about the letter anymore, she was so relieved that now she can relax. Evidently they were pretty stressed about this!

Surprise Package

A package arrived today and the girls brought it in to the kitchen all excited. They were wondering if it was for them and I heard hubby telling them that it must be for mommy. Well, I knew I hadn't ordered anything so I asked hubby if he had ordered something and he got the gleam in his eye that told me he was up to something. I knew then he must have ordered something FOR me. He whipped out his knife lickety split and went about opening the package like a kid at Christmas and lo and behold what should it be, but a GPS for the van!

You see, he has been wanting to get one, but I've been putting him off because we don't really need it and I know once we do get one we will be completely addicted. Plus I am one of those people who get "lost" and that is how I really learn my way around somewhere and as much as we move I am lost a lot! He suggested it again when I started planning a trip half way across the country and back this summer, but I put him off again . . . or so I thought.

I have been waffling though, and considering that I might actually like to have a GPS for this trip, of course I would not admit this to hubby.

Off now to figure out the GPS.

Good thing my hubby knows me better than I do.

Locks of Love Haircut

Savannah and Sydney sportin' new do's!

Sydney, the bravest

Savannah, the 2nd bravest

Well they finally did it! I've been trying to talk my girls into donating to Locks of Love for about a year and a half now and today was finally the day. Several friends daughters and one good friend herself has done this and I have been wanting the girls to do it for a while now. The reason is twofold.

1. While I love my babies and think they are beautiful they have, unfortunately, inherited my hair. This means that it is super thin, super fine, and has a tendency to look stringy. It also tangles very easily, especially Sydney's for some reason, even though she and Savannah have pretty much the same hair. Also, since we are going to be in the pool everyday while we visit Nana for the next 3 weeks, it would be easier.

2. Locks of Love is a great cause, nuff said.

So, I've been suggesting they cut their hair for a while, but their response is always "NEVER"! They are pretty girly and believe that true girls (not like mom) must have long hair. Well about 4 or so months ago their little friend Purple Savannah, (they call her that to differentiate from "regular" (our) Savannah, cut her hair. She is 5 and got the scissors out one day and cut her hair. She actually did a pretty good job and they just had to even it out a little in the back. At this point I had a serious talk with my girls about proper scissor use and they assured me that they would never cut their hair.

Well the other day we had Purple Savannah and her family over for a BBQ. Hubby, knowing that I had been talking up getting their hair cut and not liking to mess with their hair anyway started talking up how cute Purple Savannah's hair was. At first the girls were still not having it and said that, while her hair was cute, they wouldn't cut theirs. After a few hours of Hubby badgering them about it Sydney finally says "I want to cut my hair." WHA ????? At this point hubby is running for the scissors and ready to chop it off then and there but I told him that we needed to be sure she wanted to do this and wasn't just saying that in front of people and that we would take her to a salon and get it done. Savannah still was not on board with this.

So when Sydney woke up this morning I asked her if she still wanted to cut her hair and she said "Yes, let's go." Meanwhile, Savannah woke up complaining that her ear was hurting, which is usually a sign of an ear infection and with all the time we have spent at the pool at the Y between swim lessons and just playing in the swimming pool I thought we should hit the doctor before we went on this trip halfway across the country we are leaving on in 3 days. So I called the doctor and they could get her in this afternoon, so we set out to get Sydney's hair cut and then take Savannah to the doctor.

When we get to the hair cut place Sydney is still excited and Savannah is very nervous for her. Being the good mom I am I ask her several more times if she is sure she wants to do this because nobody will make her . . . and she can still change her mind . . . and she doesn't just want to do it because daddy and I say it will be cute . . . etc. She is still hyped so in we go. Sydney is a trooper. Doesn't get phased when they cut the pony tail off, doesn't get upset when she holds it up for a picture or anything. While the lady is evening it out and cutting the bangs Savannah is watching and crying! So sweet, but so sad. When I ask her what is wrong she says that she didn't want Sydney to cut her hair because now they won't look alike. My heart, my heart is just squeezing so tight then. Up to this point I had been fine but now I tear up a little because it is a big step. These two little girls have done EVERYTHING together for the last 6 1/2 years and for one to go and do something so major without the other just makes it come slamming home - they are going to grow up! I try to tell Savannah that she should be happy because this is what Sydney wanted to do and so she should be happy for her and she tries but I can tell she is still upset. But now we have to rush out to get to Savannah's doctor's appointment, so off we go.

The whole time we are at the doctor's Sydney is flipping her hair around and saying how much she loves it. Plus there is a mirror in the waiting room so they are both checking out Sydney's hair and Savannah starts thinking she may want to cut hers. The good news is that she does not have an ear infection and they even check for strep and nothing. So, no idea why the ear was hurting but she's not sick so . . . great. After the doctor's office we ran by the game store to pick up the new Wii Resort hubby had pre-ordered, and Savannah is saying she thinks she wants to cut her hair but she is still a little shaky, and then we are back at the hair cut place.

Savannah still seems a little shaky. So, I do the whole spiel about how she doesn't have to cut it . . . nobody will make her . . . she should do it because she wants to . . . not to do it for daddy or mommy or Sydney (because I'm pretty sure that this is her major motivation: to look like Sydney). She still says she wants to do it though, so back in we go. When we walk in the door the ladies at the hair cut store laugh and say that they knew we would be back. Savannah does really well through the hair cut and seems happy afterwards. Meanwhile Sydney sweet talks one of the ladies into giving her a pretty pink comb and then also convinces her to give her one for Savannah too. Then when we went to the vet to pick up food for Josie the cat they told them they had given their hair to Locks of Love and scored balloons. Then I took them to the dollar store to get a new hair item and got ice cream at Dairy Queen so they had quite a day.

Right after bedtime Sydney brought out a broken headband (one of her new ones) and what she was doing with it in her bed when she took it off and put it away before bed I don't know. Then when Savannah came out to potty she was commenting that there were not as many hairstyles to do with short hair.

So . . . wish me luck!

To TV or not to TV

Sadly, one of the things I miss most about my husband when he is gone is his ability to control the television. I realize that it is a silly thing to miss but there you have it. Not that there aren't about a million other things I miss but this is the one I'm thinking of tonight when he is gone, yet again (just for the night though). Part of it surely relates to my inability to make a decision when faced with a million worthless choices, another part of it is probably just the joy of not having to make a decision after a long day filled with a million descisions to be made for myself and two six year old girls. However, another part of it is just one more way that he shows me he loves me. On the surface it sounds like we are the same old stereotypical couple where the man rules the remote and poor wifey doesn't get to watch her "women's shows". That could not be further from the truth though. First off, for the most part, I hate "women's shows" and secondly I would rarely turn on the television myself anyway as I would rather read a book. In fact, if it weren't for hubby surfing through all the garbage and managing to find something we both can enjoy together I would probably be a complete recluse and live inside my own head 95% of the time. Luckily he loves me enough to avoid this or we would surely be divorced or insane by now. So while it may seem trivial on the surface there are plenty of reasons to love my man who rules the remote.

Bednight Games

All parents know about the bedtime "games", those excuses kids come up with to get out of bed and pester you with when they should be sleeping. Tonight I had some good ones.

1. Savannah came out (FYI, it is almost always Savannah who comes out because she has the bottom bunk of the bunk beds, so Sydney is to lazy and sends Savannah on her errands. Of course, Savannah does them so . . .), anyway she says "Sydney dropped the journal she likes to read in bed behind the bed". I told her that Sydney should not be reading her journal when she should be sleeping anyway so to tell her tough luck. Savannah replies with "But it is her favorite one. If SOMEONE is to lazy to get it . . ."

WHAT?!

At this point I give her the benefit of the doubt that she is talking about her sister being lazy and not calling her mom lazy, even though I truly think this is what she meant! I calmly tell her to get back in bed.

2. Savannah comes out and says "I'm rolling out the scroll of Sydney complaints" and pretends she is unfurling a scroll with a little flourish, too cute. "First, she thinks she is sick and says her forehead is hot, so I think she really is. That is all. Oh, and if someone could come feel her forehead she would like it." I told her I would be there in a minute and I did go check even though I knew this to be a ploy.

3. Savannah comes out and says "Sydney wants me to be up on her bed with her", to which I immediately reply "No" and explain that they wouldn't be able to sleep because they both move around too much and someone might push the other off the bed in their sleep. Savannah goes back to the room and I hear her tell Sydney "She said no like this NO! (as she mimics my mean voice)."

4. There were several other escape attempts but I can't remember them all right now.

Sometimes I feel like the meanest mom in the world because I get so tired of this shit. Other times I feel like I must be the biggest push-over in the world because I find it so amusing. I'm sure it is a little bit of both and depends on what mood I'm in.

I also find it so funny to see how these bedtime games have changed over the years. Birth to one year was pretty much just crying. 1 to 2 years was yelling "mommy". 2 to 3 years was just coming out of the room, no real excuses. 3 to 4 years was wanting a drink or hungry. 4 to 5 years was asking for more hugs or scared. 5 to 6 was mostly wanting drinks or having to potty. For the 6 year old the excuse most used seems to be some ailment. Either their tummy hurts or their ear hurts or they have a headache or they feel pukey. I love watching this evolve as they grow older. Glad I still have my sense of humor about it.

Less cartoons, more real shows, equals girls growing up

One more sign my babies are growing up: Just in the last month or two they have started watching more "real" shows (you know with real people) and not as many cartoons. First it was "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody" and then "The Suite Life on Deck", but I thought that might just be because they are twins and those shows have twin boys in them. Now they have started wanting to watch "Hannah Montana", which they previously couldn't stand. They have also started wanting to watch "Jonas". When I asked them why they liked "Jonas" they said because there are three cute boys who sing and dance and play music and they do funny things. This is almost the same reason they gave for liking Zack and Cody, minus the music stuff, and evidently there is a boy on "Hannah Montana" who does funny stuff too. Seems they already have their momma's love of men/boys who make you laugh.

Don't let mommy's ego get too big, please

Yesterday, I'm in the bathroom letting the hair color set when Sydney comes in. She asks "Whatcha doing?" and I tell her I'm coloring my hair. "Does that mean dyeing?" she asks. "Ok, yes, I'm dyeing my hair." "Is this the color it is going to be?" she asks while making the yucky face. "Look on the front of the box, what color is that?" I ask her, to which she replies "Gross?!". Gee, thanks kid. The worst part is that it did turn out pretty gross, not that it looked gross on the box, but it said the color would be dark blond and it came out more like mud brown. Maybe I should start taking tips from the 6 year olds after all.

Blame it on Facebook

Okay, I admit it, I have been the worst blogger ever the last few months. I blame Facebook. Oh, and my new Blackberry Curve. It is just so easy to put little snippets onto Facebook from my phone whenever I'm bored or to take pictures on my phone and post them straight to Facebook. However, I have discovered one drawback . . . I have a lot of trouble condensing my thoughts into the small format on Facebook. Seems that I am a long-winded writer. So I really need to keep up with my blog again. At least I'm going to try. Let's see how that works out for me huh?

Cat with Diabetes

Yep, just heard from the vet last night that Josie the cat has diabetes. Because of this she will have to go on insulin and get shots 2 times a day probably for the rest of her life. Gee, do I really need this added responsibility when I already feel like most of the time I am barely handling what I need to? I already told hubby that I did not need anything else to take care of when he had the bright idea of getting a turtle for the girls right before he left for 7 months.

It all started a couple of months ago. I have one of those new type of cat boxes that have the pee pads in a drawer underneath and the larger clay litter. I used to change the pad about every 4 or 5 days but the last few months I change it every 2 days and it is FULL. This was my first clue. Also, Josie started just hanging out and taking naps in front of the water dish. I has also been a bad flea season and although she is an indoor cat the dog must have been bringing in fleas and passing them to her. So I took her into the vet to get some good flea meds and I knew something else was up too. I had a feeling it was probably either diabetes or some type of kidney problem. She is about 13 years old, not exactly a spring chicken. I have to say that I had no inkling what diabetes in a cat would mean. I certainly did not expect to have to put her on insulin just like a human and give shots 2 times a day.

The people at the vets office have been extremely helpful though. After I picked up the insulin from Walgreens they told me to come on by the office with Josie and they would show me how to give the shots. Fun! Luckily Josie is the best cat ever and so mellow she didn't even seem to notice the practice shot of Saline they had me give her. Then they tell me that there are a few signs of problems to look for such as being lethargic (how do they think she got so fat in the first place, she is lethargic daily) or having a seizure (that sounds fun, not). But they tell me if I notice her being too lethargic to just rub some Karo syrup on her gums. Rubbing it on the gums gets it to the blood stream fast, just like they show coke addicts do in the movies. Wow, this has been such a learning experience. We'll just have to see how it all turns out.

Mom = Foreign Language Expert

Savannah's art

Savannah's note

Sydney's art (that red curly thing is the dog's tongue, he's

panting mom I was told)

Sydney's note

My latest mom job is a writing decipherer (yeah, that is probably not a word).

The girls have obviously been learning to write in Kindergarten this year. Suddenly they are on this total writing kick even at home. They want to write everything. Every picture they draw must have everyone in it labeled, they want to write notes to send daddy, they want to know how to spell practically every word they hear. The other night they were pretending to be babies so ,of course, they couldn't talk but for some reason they could write. Go figure. So they were trying to communicate all night by writing me little notes. I have to say it was cute and this is probably great practice for them. Great! What can get a little old is trying to decipher everything they write. Let's face it, they barely have the form of all the letters down so it can be a little hard to make out which letter they are writing in the first place. On top of that THEY CAN'T SPELL! They really try, bless their hearts. They know several words like their names and each others names and mom, and dad, and and, and the and my and me but most everything else is still foreign. They are sounding things out like they are supposed to and a lot of times once they tell me what it "says" I can kinda see where they were going with it but I can rarely get it on my own. Then I feel bad because I feel like I'm making them feel stupid because I don't understand their words. Ah, vicious circle!

I guess they aren't taking it too bad though because here come more notes, gotta go.

Funny things Savannah says

Last night at bedtime Savannah told me that she didn't like school and didn't want to go. I tried asking her why she didn't like school all of the sudden, because usually she likes it okay, but she didn't really have an answer. Then I told her that it was the law and she had to go so she could learn. Then she said "But I don't want to be a teacher when I grow up!" I had to laugh at the logic but then I told her she wasn't going to school to learn to be a teacher but it was the law she had to go and didn't she want to learn to read and write. She then told me "but I'm not learning to read." I had to explain to her that all these little words they were learning and how they were learning to sound out words was just the first step to learning to read. She didn't really seem convinced, but at least it gave her something to think about.

While walking to school today we spotted several Robins flitting around the neighborhood. The girls were pretty excited about this since that is a sign that spring is near. I asked Syndey how she knew they were Robins and she said "Mr. L is teaching us all about Robins in class". Then I mentioned how they call them "red breasted" but they really looked orange to me. So Savannah says that Robin starts with RO, that must be R for red and O for orange. Okay, sure.

Tonight while watching TV I heard a definite fart (which we call a toot) from Savannah, boy she has been gassy lately. So I said, "I heard that, does someone need to go potty" and Savannah pipes in that "It was the dog." This would make her dad so proud! He is constantly blaming the dog, the cat, other people, the couch, etc. so to hear that his baby girl came up with this all on her own will, I'm sure, bring tears to his eyes.

Hubby's Synapsis of the movie "Marley and Me" (spoiler alert)

The other day I receive this somewhat cryptic email from hubby.

"Never, under any circumstances, see the movie Marley and Me. Love you."

I have to say that it never crossed my mind and here is why. Whoever wrote the book (which I'm completely blanking on right now) is know to write tear-jerkers. I am not a fan of the tear-jerker. So, of course, I would expect the movie to be a tearjerker, which is to say that the dog must die (that is not a spoiler because I don't know that for a fact, I am just surmising so). I am a sucker for the dog dying bit and will bawl like a baby if any dog dies in any movie. I know this and thus avoid these movies. I have a friend who loves a good tear-jerker because she feels that it is a release of sorts and it makes her feel good to get it all out. Me, it just depresses me and I can't deal with that. I told hubby this.

Well today he called, about something unrelated, but later in the conversation he asked about Ferris (his dog) and then the conversation came around to this movie again. "Don't get me wrong," he said "it is a great movie but I cried almost the whole way through it." Now granted he has been away from home for 5 months and does tend to get a little emotional but this seems a little excessive. Then he tells me the reason that it hit so hard was because it paralleled our life with our dog so much and the wife reminds him so much of me the way she is always screaming at the dog and stuff (me being compared to Jennifer Aniston, nice suck up babe!).

His synopsis went something like: They are a young couple, they get a dog and he is a pain, but they love him. Then they have kids and the kids love him and he is still a pain but they love him. Then the dog gets sick and they are all upset, but he gets better but he is still a pain and they love him, then he dies. Hubby and I got Ferris about a year after we got married (14 years ago this June) and he was a major pain but luckily he was cute so we loved him. We had kids, he was still a pain but he'd been around long enough that we loved him. The kids love him as long as there is no food around that he is trying to steal from them. He grew these big cysts which worried us, but we had them taken off and he seems fine, he is still a pain but I guess we love him.

Gee honey we are right on track for the dying part, thanks for bringing that up.

No bad luck, but a strange day

Today was the day for weird conversations.

So, the girls and I were walking home from school today and I asked Savannah "How was your party?" because today was their 100th day of school and they were having some sort of celebration. Her class did Valentine's Day yesterday just so it wouldn't interfere with the 100th Day Celebration. Here is the rest of the conversation:

S: We didn't have a party.
Me: You didn't?
S: No.
Me: That is bologna. Mr. L (Sydney's teacher, who I helped out with his party today) said he saw you guys having chips and juice boxes.
S: There was cake too, with pink frosting.
Me: So you had cake and chips and juice and watched a movie (which I know because her teacher popped in to tell Sydney's teacher the channel it was on) but that isn't a party?
S: No.
Me: Let's see, cake, chips, juice, and a movie. That sure sounds like a party to me.

I think she was just being ornery because she is a little jealous that I always go help in Sydney's class and never in hers. I've tried to explain to her that her teacher has another teacher in the room with her, so she doesn't need help, whereas, Sydney's teacher does not have another teacher but she isn't too impressed with that explanation. I've also tried to tell her that I'm sure that some year she will have a teacher that needs help and Sydney won't but that is just too far in the future for her to contemplate. So next I tell her "That's life kid, welcome to the real world, where you don't always like what you get. Better get used to it." No wonder they never want to grow up.

Much later, after they had eaten dinner and had dessert and were watching a little TV Sydney came in where I was on the computer and we had a strange conversation.

S: Mom, I want to have some Cheetos, but I don't want my teeth to fall out
Me: (??!!) Honey, what are you talking about?
S: Well, we watched this movie in P.E. and it scared me.
Me: Sweetie, that movie is probably talking mostly about sweets and anyway if you brush your teeth good after you eat your teeth will be fine.
S: I wish there weren't such things as bad things that got in your teeth and you had to brush them out.
Me: Well, that would be nice but that's not how it is so we just have to be sure and brush good.

Okay, a little explanation here. From what I can gather they have seen a movie in P.E. several times now about tooth decay. Evidently, this movie tells them that all snacks are the devil and if you eat snacks all your teeth will rot out and that will hurt. Okay, that might just be what they are getting out of it. I'm hopeful that it is really just a cartoon that is trying to teach them to limit snacking and brush and floss, but it seems that they are both (Sydney especially) feeling traumatized by this. I can really tell that she is traumatized because she won't eat Cheetos and most of the time she would live on Cheetos if possible. Later, she wanted me to come and watch her brush her teeth. I'm starting to sense a pattern here.

Me: Why can't you start brushing without me?
S: I want you with me
Me: Why?
S: Because of that movie, and remember we didn't floss last night because you said we were too late going to bed.
Me: Okay, but why is this movie freaking you out so much, what is so scary about it?
S: I don't know how to explain it but it just freaks me out. It just freaks me out all the way to my heart.

Suddenly I'm sure that I will have to go to the school and have a talk with them about this movie because all of the pieces are fitting together and I'm realizing that they are really freaked out about this. When your 6 year old is begging you to floss alarm bells start going off. I'm realizing that they have been completely anal about the tooth brushing and flossing all week, I'm remembering that Sydney has woken me up with nightmares two nights this week, I'm remembering our earlier conversation about the Cheetos, and now this little 6 year old voice is saying "It freaks me out, it freaks me out all the way down to my heart". Holy cow, what the heck are they showing these kids?

Who do I admire?

I have been sick for the last two weeks and am finally, FINALLY starting to feel myself again, thank goodness. Not only have I been sick, but to make it even more fun the girls have been sick too. As if being sick feeling like your head is stuffed with cotton, coughing up a lung, and literally going through a bushel of Kleenex from Sam's Club wasn't enough Sydney had the same exact thing and Savannah had some sort of stomach flu. Truthfully Savannah only had one day of really being sick, but she stayed home from school most of last week with Sydney. Why? Mostly because I just couldn't get up and get her ready and off to school. Pathetic isn't it? This is when I start cursing my husband for being gone on a ship for 7 months. I have to say that I have been doing pretty well with him being gone but let me get sick and it just all falls apart.

This makes me think of how really amazing any single mom is. First of all, I think I have it so bad with my husband being gone for 7 months at a time, but try not having a husband around ever to help with anything. I mean, I like to think of myself as a pretty self sufficient person but just having someone around so you can take a bath in peace can make all the difference in your day. Then add in that I am a stay at home mom and cannot imagine how anyone manages to work outside the home all day then come home and make dinner, get the kids bathed and fed and then wake up at the crack of dawn to do it again. Yikes! I stay at home all day while the kids are in school and still feel like I don't get anything done. People like my sister-in-law amaze me. This woman has to work every day to pay the bills, then come home and take care of her daughter (my completely adorable niece) and she has no spouse to support her so she never really gets a break. To top this off she is a high school teacher (don't get me started on how insane she must be to do this, but she loves it).

One question I always get having twins is "How do you do it?" to which I always reply "You do what you have to do." So I guess it is like that, you do what you have to do. But I still admire those single moms out there, they are an inspiration.

The Dog and the Starfish

No this is not a cutesy little story. Hubby's dog makes me crazy! Here is the latest activity he has come up with designed to make me completely lose it.

Let me start by reminding anyone who does not know it that this dog is the bane of my existance. I have readily admitted to Hubby that if he had gone to sea at any time in the first 2 years of this dogs life he would have returned home to no dog. I have also readily admitted to opening the front door and letting the dog out with the sincere hope that he does not come back (but he always does) on several occasions while hubby has been out to sea. In fact the only time I can really say I like this dog is when he looks at me like I'm crazy with his ears perked up all cute and in the middle of the night when hubby is gone when he snuggles up behind my legs and keeps me warm. The real reason he is still around is because hubby is so crazy about him. Period.

Now that I am sitting here remembering all the things Ferris has done in his lifetime to piss me off the latest insult is really pretty minor, however the shear randomness is what is so frustrating. You see I have done my bathroom in a shell/beach motif and purchased at Michaels or some such place a dried out starfish shell (or husk or whatever you would call it) as a decorative item which sits atop the little shelf next to the sink. Twice in the last week I have found the starfish on my bed with chew marks on the tips. What would possess this dog to suddenly decide that he needs to do this? It is just beyond inconceivable.

As a puppy he chewed everything! EVERYTHING! We are talking rugs, walls (WALLS people! that is usually left to huge dogs like Rottweilers, or Pit Bulls, not Beagles), jackets, books, VHS tapes, pillows, and tables just to highlight a few. Basically it was anything in reach and we had to kennel him anytime we left the house for years. In the last 3 or 4 years he has mellowed though and now we can leave him alone in the house provided he cannot get to the garbage can or cat box (ewww!).

But now the starfish. I just don't get it.

Happy 6th Birthday Sydney & Savannah

Today is my girls 6th birthday! I have been a bundle of emotions all day and I am not even sure why. It's been one of those days where I can't quite catch my breath and it wasn't just because I had 10 million things that needed to be done and only time for about 7.

I've been thinking so much today about how fast time goes by. And I truly believe that for mothers of twins the time just goes by twice as fast. I mean I can remember back when they were babies and thinking "Jeez, are they ever going to walk?", but on the other hand I feel almost cheated because I feel like I never got to have those sentimental "mom" moments because there was just too much to do. You know the moments I mean, where you're supposed to gaze adoringly at your baby who is sleeping contentedly on your chest while you gently rock them in the nursery. Let me tell you, if I ever had a baby contentedly sleeping on my chest there was another one on the other side and that would mean I was sleeping too because I was EXHAUSTED! More often though it was more like me holding a baby in one arm and trying to get them to eat with the other hand, which left my foot free to be bouncing the other baby in the bouncy seat to keep them happy until it was their turn. And heaven help us if my foot got a cramp because then we'd all three be crying.

I know every mom says the time went so fast and maybe every mom feels like they never had time to truly enjoy those moments because they were too tired and too busy. It's hard to say if I just think it was harder or if it really was because I don't know any different so . . . c'est la vie.

So that is part of the emotional issues today. But why this birthday and not last year or the year before I have no idea. Maybe it is also a little guilt because I am starting to have my own life again. I can read a book! I don't feel like all I do anymore is make food and feed kids and clean up food all day! It's quite a change from the last 6 years of my life.

But in a good way.

Yet it still makes me a little melancholy because that time as past and can never be gotten back.

See, I'm just a big ball of conflicting emotions. I'm sad about the past being the past but I don't want it back. I guess that is just all part of being a mom.

Whose child is this?

The other night the girls and I were doing our regular late evening (7:00 pm) routine. This consists of me settling on the love seat with my laptop and them snacking on the couch watching Krypto the Superdog (their current favorite cartoon). Sydney said something to me which I did not hear and I asked her "What baby?" She said "That is the cool thing about being a girl", and I said "What is the cool thing about being a girl?" to which she replied "You know how to do all the cleaning."

!!!???? What ???!!!!!

There are so many things wrong with that statement that I hardly know where to begin. First, it sounds a tad male chauvinist to me, and since her daddy is away right now I can't imagine where she would be getting that from. Second, anyone who knows me knows that I am not much of a cleaner. I mean I'm not a pig, but I don't particularly like to clean and am certainly not one of those people that enjoys cleaning. Third, why is it so cool? That just boggles the mind. Last, if it is so cool, how come she never cleans?

Sweet Sisters

I have to admit that homework has been a bit of a trial for us. There are several reasons for this.


First of all Sydney has more homework than Savannah. Now I know that the reason for this is that Savannah does a lot more in the classroom since her teacher has a helper and they tend to get more done because of this. Sydney's teacher does not have a helper and thus discipline issues must be dealt with at the expense of learning at times because he has to do it all himself.


Second, Sydney is just naturally more easily distracted than Savannah which means it takes her longer to do anything anyway because she gets sidetracked. This is evident in our daily lives too, so it isn't just a homework issue. Just this morning while getting ready for school she went in her room at least 3 times to get panties and socks and came out with neither. In general Savannah can finish two worksheets in the time it takes Sydney to do one and I really don't think it is because Savannah is so much smarter, it is just a matter of concentration.


Third, I will admit to a certain level of frustration myself. I readily admit that I have no patience! Now my mother might argue, because she thinks I have the patience of a saint since having twins. She may think this because it has been a long time since she was dealing with a 5 year old, and certainly not two. Also, I think she has probably blocked out all memories of my brother growing up to protect her sanity and she had to have as much if not more patience then. Plus I think everyone has a certain level of tolerance for different things and I have discovered that while I can tolerate a lot of noise and don't freak out whenever someone gets hurt I have no tolerance for people who can't read!



Anyway, back to the homework issue. So lately I have to make Savannah go into the other room when she finishes her homework so that she doesn't distract Sydney, who is still only half way through. The big problem with this is that Savannah does not like to be by herself. Sydney would be perfectly content to play on her own (which she demonstrated just the other day when she came home early from school with a sore throat and played quietly by herself on the floor in the living room the entire afternoon while mom and I read our latest books). Savannah, not so much. But last night she went into the living room sat down at their little princess table with a piece of paper and a pencil and I didn't hear a peep out of her.



When I went in to check on her she had made the cutest thing. On one side of the paper she had drawn a stamp and made 3 lines of squiggles like an address. On the other side she had written "I love (a crooked little heart) my Sydney. I am happy (a little smiley face) but sad (a little sad face, and this was because she misses daddy she said). Love (the heart again) Savannah."