So last night as I was putting Maddie to bed, I got a little irritated with her and snapped at her. After saying her prayers (during which she poked me in the face) I sat there for a second, just thinking. Maddie asked me "What's the matter?" and I just started crying. I try not to cry in front of the kids, especially when there's no reason for it. She picked my head up and asked if I was okay. I started choking it back and said yes and apologized for snapping at her.
Maddie: Mom, you sad?
Me: Yes, a little.
Maddie: Puppy (her favorite stuffed animal) told me to be happy happy.
Me: What?
Maddie: Remember when I was like you earlier? (She had a melt down when I told her she couldn't take something from Sean).
Me: Yeah?
Maddie: I told puppy that I was sad. He told me to be happy. I think you should be like puppy and be happy.
Well, I couldn't help but smile and gave her lots of hugs and kisses.
Maddie: Momma, I'm sorry.
Me: Oh, no, Maddie. You're fine. It was my fault.
Maddie: Momma, I'm sorry it was your fault.
At this point, I laughed out loud.
The McNeffs
Thursday, May 29, 2014
Thursday, May 22, 2014
What a week...and a half!
What a whirlwind of a week! I'm so shocked it's already over, and at the same time I have no idea how we got everything done!
This organizing stuff has been a lot of fun to do and plan. This week there were a lot of sales on things I was wanted for my organization project. So, lots of shopping, returning, etc. Matt also totally mutilated a pair of yard work shorts, so I went out and got some options for him, then returned the rejects. I feel like after this week I've mastered shopping with two kids. Key things: pacifier for Sean, snacks for both, and a stop at the park. Also, anytime there is a patio swing on display, stop and rock. On the celebration side: I have started on the basement!! This includes much of my teaching stuff, and piles of things I haven't wanted to even start doing for the last 4 or 5 years. I have a long way to go, but I am so proud of my initial progress!!!
At one point this week, Maddie was watching a show and Sean wanted to share the rocking chair. Maddie called me over to help. Once Sean was seated next to her, she rocked and they laughed and giggled for a while!
Friday I took the kids swimming by myself. That was another adventure. Wanted to see if I could do it alone, and then also I wanted to test out the new things I got the kids. Sean's floating thing works great! And it folds up into a small bag. Maddie's little floaty-vest didn't work as well. It kept her at the surface of the water, but if she leaned too far, she couldn't really get back up. However, I was able to do a couple of laps (one arm at a time) by holding onto one end of Sean's floating seat, Maddie holding onto the other, and then I dragged them along behind me. That was Sean's favorite part, too. I'm excited for the second pool to open because it will have more things for the kids to do and they won't have to just sit and float. :)
Saturday was Astrofest, so Matt was helping with that all day long. We stopped over and made rockets and took a tour of the ane...a... the room that has no echo..... It was kind of weird. My ears felt like they were plugged up for a little while and the room got uncomfortably warm. Otherwise I was fine, probably because I had to focus on the kids who wanted to touch and play with the expensive material on the walls. Making and shooting the rockets into the air was definitely the highlight for them. I think we launched them 5 or 6 times. Awesome!
After Astrofest, I ran Maddie over to Alexa's brithday party. We gave her some of the puffs (pom-pom) animals. Sean and Maddie loved the whole thing. Maddie got a butterfly and ladybug painted on her arm and Sean discovered the joy of dirt... which he shared by dumping dirt down his momma's front while she wasn't looking. Mix dirt with the sticky of a dum-dum sucker and the picture below is what you get:
Later, after naps, we went to Jeff and Becca's party. It was so good to see them! Becca is one of my favorite people ever!! They had a pinata that all the kids loved. When it popped little pieces of paper came out announcing that they are going to have a baby!!! Soooo excited for them! Unfortunately, Maddie got a hold of a Butterfinger, so we had to rush home where we had a rough night of allergic reactions. But after a blessing, a few yucky buckets, and a bath, she quietly slipped off to sleep, poor girl. We went to Sacrament meeting, but then I brought the kids back to get a good nap to recover. Then we went to dinner at the Swingles. The kids liked all the toys and we parents enjoyed getting to know some others in the ward.
Monday was normal, believe it or not. :) Tuesday was not because I got a bad stomach ache that had no explanation and ended up immobilizing me on the couch by late afternoon. I have the satisfaction of knowing that I made a door to door salesman a little uncomfortable when he asked Matt for a drink of water and walked in to find me on the couch. Bwahahaha! Wednesday dawned to a full recovery and an itching to organize and sort, which I did every second I could until about 10:30pm. Phew! The kids have been great, so sweet while I was stuck on the couch, and so helpful with sorting and keeping me laughing! And Matt has been an angel! He stepped right in and took care of everything on Tuesday, even when he had to go back to school to help some scouts get their astronomy merit badges! He's amazing!
This organizing stuff has been a lot of fun to do and plan. This week there were a lot of sales on things I was wanted for my organization project. So, lots of shopping, returning, etc. Matt also totally mutilated a pair of yard work shorts, so I went out and got some options for him, then returned the rejects. I feel like after this week I've mastered shopping with two kids. Key things: pacifier for Sean, snacks for both, and a stop at the park. Also, anytime there is a patio swing on display, stop and rock. On the celebration side: I have started on the basement!! This includes much of my teaching stuff, and piles of things I haven't wanted to even start doing for the last 4 or 5 years. I have a long way to go, but I am so proud of my initial progress!!!
At one point this week, Maddie was watching a show and Sean wanted to share the rocking chair. Maddie called me over to help. Once Sean was seated next to her, she rocked and they laughed and giggled for a while!
Friday I took the kids swimming by myself. That was another adventure. Wanted to see if I could do it alone, and then also I wanted to test out the new things I got the kids. Sean's floating thing works great! And it folds up into a small bag. Maddie's little floaty-vest didn't work as well. It kept her at the surface of the water, but if she leaned too far, she couldn't really get back up. However, I was able to do a couple of laps (one arm at a time) by holding onto one end of Sean's floating seat, Maddie holding onto the other, and then I dragged them along behind me. That was Sean's favorite part, too. I'm excited for the second pool to open because it will have more things for the kids to do and they won't have to just sit and float. :)
Saturday was Astrofest, so Matt was helping with that all day long. We stopped over and made rockets and took a tour of the ane...a... the room that has no echo..... It was kind of weird. My ears felt like they were plugged up for a little while and the room got uncomfortably warm. Otherwise I was fine, probably because I had to focus on the kids who wanted to touch and play with the expensive material on the walls. Making and shooting the rockets into the air was definitely the highlight for them. I think we launched them 5 or 6 times. Awesome!
After Astrofest, I ran Maddie over to Alexa's brithday party. We gave her some of the puffs (pom-pom) animals. Sean and Maddie loved the whole thing. Maddie got a butterfly and ladybug painted on her arm and Sean discovered the joy of dirt... which he shared by dumping dirt down his momma's front while she wasn't looking. Mix dirt with the sticky of a dum-dum sucker and the picture below is what you get:
Later, after naps, we went to Jeff and Becca's party. It was so good to see them! Becca is one of my favorite people ever!! They had a pinata that all the kids loved. When it popped little pieces of paper came out announcing that they are going to have a baby!!! Soooo excited for them! Unfortunately, Maddie got a hold of a Butterfinger, so we had to rush home where we had a rough night of allergic reactions. But after a blessing, a few yucky buckets, and a bath, she quietly slipped off to sleep, poor girl. We went to Sacrament meeting, but then I brought the kids back to get a good nap to recover. Then we went to dinner at the Swingles. The kids liked all the toys and we parents enjoyed getting to know some others in the ward.
Monday was normal, believe it or not. :) Tuesday was not because I got a bad stomach ache that had no explanation and ended up immobilizing me on the couch by late afternoon. I have the satisfaction of knowing that I made a door to door salesman a little uncomfortable when he asked Matt for a drink of water and walked in to find me on the couch. Bwahahaha! Wednesday dawned to a full recovery and an itching to organize and sort, which I did every second I could until about 10:30pm. Phew! The kids have been great, so sweet while I was stuck on the couch, and so helpful with sorting and keeping me laughing! And Matt has been an angel! He stepped right in and took care of everything on Tuesday, even when he had to go back to school to help some scouts get their astronomy merit badges! He's amazing!
Thursday, May 8, 2014
Organization, laundry, and pom pom toys
Well, we've had some colds this week which has slowed us down... a little. Good ole' necessity doesn't let you slow down too much, huh? :) Besides pretty long naps and long snuggle times, life is pretty much normal. (Though the extra snuggles are a really nice treat!)
This week the kids and I decorated a couple of cardboard boxes and called them cars! Maddie is currently loving the movie Cars and asks for it constantly. Sean thinks it is really funny and will laugh at just about anything Mater does. :) I started pushing them back and forth in the cars making car noises. After a while, I needed a break, so I said, "Red light!" To which Maddie immediately responded, "Green light!" and we started all over. Now I have to say "Stop sign," because they require a slight pause in motion, and Maddie can't rush it. :) It's fun. One of my favorite parts about these cars is that occasionally, Sean will find one and he'll climb in and then look up at me with an expectant expression. Another is that I tease them by "crashing" them into each other. Maddie will giggle and giggle. Today I came up with "Traffic!" for which I inch one forward a few inches, and then inch the other, and back and forth. It's a good break trick.
So, I love the Orem library! One of my favorite things is 10am story/lap time. We try to go once every other week. The last time we went, one of the activities they showed us was "making a pizza" on your toddler. So every now and then I'll scoop one of the kids up, toss them like pizza dough, roll and smooth out their limbs and then I'll spread sauce on them (miming of course!), place pepperoni, and then sprinkle with cheese (which usually involved some light tickling), followed by eating the pizza (for some serious tickling!). Sometimes I'll ask Maddie what she wants on her pizza, and we get some crazy toppings. :)
The last two weeks of doing the laundry, I've had a lot of help. When I fold, I'll separate the kids' clothes into bags that I can take into their rooms later. Last week, I brought Maddie's clothes in, and asked her to help me. Well, Sean followed her and wanted to help. So he would pick something out of the bag, I would tell Maddie what it was while he handed it to her, and she would put it away. It was incredibly cute to see them laughing and putting the clothes away. Sean looked so proud to be helping. He then followed me into his room and emptied his bag, giving it to me so I could put it away.
Last night, Julie and I got crafty! We pulled out a bunch of my craft supplies (many from her) and made little pom pom animals. I need to go get my camera so I can show a picture of them. Maddie loves them! I'm going to use them as church toys. (Always looking for quiet toys that don't roll away because our church is sloped.) I hope they last a few weeks. Sean has a good grip! He thinks they're pretty cool, too. Julie and I had a blast, and I am planning to make more... once we get some more big puffs.
Other than that, we're very happy with Matt's Spring semester schedule! He's home so much and both kids just love it! Not to mention their mother! We just bought some swimming floating stuff for the kids because our gym is supposed to reopen their pool this month, but it's all 3ft or deeper, besides the ramp to get in. Got Sean a floaty he can sit in, and Maddie a life vest that fits her better. I've been working through some of my "deal with later" piles and organizing some things. Wal-Mart has shoe box size tubs for 88 cents, so I've been stocking up on, and using, them. It's so nice to be able to see what I have and have it stack-able! Hooray! I love organizing! Can't wait to attack the basement and the garage....! One half hour at a time (since that's about all I get a day without kids to worry about).
Speaking of which, it sounds like nap time is over! Grocery shopping!
This week the kids and I decorated a couple of cardboard boxes and called them cars! Maddie is currently loving the movie Cars and asks for it constantly. Sean thinks it is really funny and will laugh at just about anything Mater does. :) I started pushing them back and forth in the cars making car noises. After a while, I needed a break, so I said, "Red light!" To which Maddie immediately responded, "Green light!" and we started all over. Now I have to say "Stop sign," because they require a slight pause in motion, and Maddie can't rush it. :) It's fun. One of my favorite parts about these cars is that occasionally, Sean will find one and he'll climb in and then look up at me with an expectant expression. Another is that I tease them by "crashing" them into each other. Maddie will giggle and giggle. Today I came up with "Traffic!" for which I inch one forward a few inches, and then inch the other, and back and forth. It's a good break trick.
So, I love the Orem library! One of my favorite things is 10am story/lap time. We try to go once every other week. The last time we went, one of the activities they showed us was "making a pizza" on your toddler. So every now and then I'll scoop one of the kids up, toss them like pizza dough, roll and smooth out their limbs and then I'll spread sauce on them (miming of course!), place pepperoni, and then sprinkle with cheese (which usually involved some light tickling), followed by eating the pizza (for some serious tickling!). Sometimes I'll ask Maddie what she wants on her pizza, and we get some crazy toppings. :)
The last two weeks of doing the laundry, I've had a lot of help. When I fold, I'll separate the kids' clothes into bags that I can take into their rooms later. Last week, I brought Maddie's clothes in, and asked her to help me. Well, Sean followed her and wanted to help. So he would pick something out of the bag, I would tell Maddie what it was while he handed it to her, and she would put it away. It was incredibly cute to see them laughing and putting the clothes away. Sean looked so proud to be helping. He then followed me into his room and emptied his bag, giving it to me so I could put it away.
Last night, Julie and I got crafty! We pulled out a bunch of my craft supplies (many from her) and made little pom pom animals. I need to go get my camera so I can show a picture of them. Maddie loves them! I'm going to use them as church toys. (Always looking for quiet toys that don't roll away because our church is sloped.) I hope they last a few weeks. Sean has a good grip! He thinks they're pretty cool, too. Julie and I had a blast, and I am planning to make more... once we get some more big puffs.
Other than that, we're very happy with Matt's Spring semester schedule! He's home so much and both kids just love it! Not to mention their mother! We just bought some swimming floating stuff for the kids because our gym is supposed to reopen their pool this month, but it's all 3ft or deeper, besides the ramp to get in. Got Sean a floaty he can sit in, and Maddie a life vest that fits her better. I've been working through some of my "deal with later" piles and organizing some things. Wal-Mart has shoe box size tubs for 88 cents, so I've been stocking up on, and using, them. It's so nice to be able to see what I have and have it stack-able! Hooray! I love organizing! Can't wait to attack the basement and the garage....! One half hour at a time (since that's about all I get a day without kids to worry about).
Speaking of which, it sounds like nap time is over! Grocery shopping!
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