7:32 pm...

My favorite part of the day is when I start the process of making a cup of tea. Every day it is at the same time and the rhythm of it soothes me. (Why yes... I really am a 80 year old stuck in a 30ish year body!)

The reason it is at the same day each day is because Pookie and Bear go to bed at 7:30 pm. Every night. They may not be asleep at 7:32 pm, but they are in bed with books, an assortment of stuffed animals, a flashlight for Pookie and a bottle of water for Bear. And they stay there. It is really a new stage of life for us...and it is quite beautiful!

My girls don't nap...they haven't for a long time. When Pookie was just over 2 and Bear was a sick screaming newborn, Pookie decided that she didn't need naps. My dream of a break from 2 little ones was dashed in 2 months! This summer, at the ripe old age of 19 months, Bear stopped napping. So late afternoons used to be a little, um, tough. But now, we get home from Pookie's preschool, have a snack and some TV, dinner, bath, gametime or stories and bed. By 7:30. That is 2 1/2 hours of just alone time. Granted, we don't have a social life...at all. Maybe one of us gets out while the other stands guard over the girls, but we rarely have the girls out late. It isn't worth it. They may go to bed at 10 pm, but they will still get up between 6:45 - 7:15am. Then the day is shot.

Nope, we are boring parents with no social life. But come 7:32pm, I'm enjoying the sound of the kettle heating up, cup at the ready with the tea of choice and the option of grown up tv or a good book.

Must go, bath time awaits and 7:30 is fast approaching!

Overheard in an airport bathroom

"Mom! Don't touch my feet! They are MY feet!"
"I have too!"
"NO NO NOOOOOOOO!"
"Listen, I have to touch your feet so that I can wipe your butt!"
Silence....
"OH, OK then"

Ahh the joys of changing diapers in public places...

One of THOSE days...

Yesterday was one of those days where I wonder why God allowed me to be a mother.  The girls are sick and it was raining for the hundredth day in a row.  So I decided to keep Pookie home from preschool, because we don't need to share the blessing of the 'cold'. (if only other people felt that way, then we would not have had the cold in the first place!) But,I digress.  So, our house is a wreck because of the month of repairs, so we started to tidy up, laundry etc and things were going well.  My first hint that the day was going awry was when Bear burst into tears about...ummm...nothing!  Both girls had stayed awake in their beds until almost 11pm the night before and woke up at 7am.  Sweet.  Then Pookie started up with the bossy big sister routine, which consists of "Do it my way or nothing!"  Bear is pretty good to a point, then she figures out that it is NOT FAIR and bursts into tears again.  All this before 10am.  It pretty much was the longest day of my life.  It ended with Pookie in a 2 2/12 hour timeout in her bedroom for her own safety.  Poor Papabear came home to a crazy wife, a stubborn Pookie in her bedroom and a relieved Bear who was just looking for some love.  

Thankfully we ended the day with some "I'm sorrys and I love yous"  There is something incredibly humbling about the way kids so easily show grace.  Don't get me wrong, Pookie was pretty mad at me.  Madder and more firmly entrenched than I've ever seen her.  But at the end of the day, she needed/wanted me to help her with dinner, tuck her into bed and kiss good night.  Getting into power struggles with a 4 year old sucks.  Ending the day with love and kisses is amazing.  And I'm thankful that God is using these times to teach both of us.

All you can eat buffet...

When I lived in Camden, NJ, I experienced the truly American dining experience of the All You Can Eat Buffet. Being a west coast Canadian, I thought such places were an urban myth, since we have no such thing here. So, when I entered the restaurant with 20 teenagers, I was impressed by the selection. And terrified. Could I really eat enough to make it worthwhile? (no) How fresh was the food really? (not very) Was there any healthy options? (only if you consider limp lettuce and shredded carrots healthy) Needless to say, it was quite the trip and I can see why, perhaps, the USA has a high obesity rate.
Right now, Pookie and Bear are treating me and my fridge as short order cooks. Randomly throughout the day I hear calls for cheese! yogurt! cookies! pancakes! Yesterday, as my house was taken over by renovations and we could barely breathe with paint fumes and sanding, the girls took it to a new level. Every 5 mins. was a new demand. Especially from Bear, who must be going through a freakish massive growth spurt. It reminded me of my bar tending days without the gross drunk guys and piles of tip money. Just demands after demands for food. I realize that I am growing strong, beautiful, Amazon children, but this is ridiculous! Finally, I just made a huge plate of raw veggies, cheese, crackers and dried cranberries...placed it between the 2 of them and let them go at it. Why fight it? It is our own all you can eat buffet.