Sunday, June 17, 2012
Cinderella and her Prince
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
The sweetest apology
I have to share this story, just so that I won't forget it one day. . . .
Lucy was having a rough morning today - she didn't want to get dressed, she didn't want to go to school, she didn't want to do anything she was supposed to. (This is unusual for her - she is almost always excited to go to school!) We had put her in time out, we had left her screaming in her room . . . I even took her temperature because I thought she must be sick since she is acting so awful!
Finally, she seemed to calm herself enough to ask for help getting dressed. After she got dressed, she picked up a couple of toys and walked back down to our bedroom. We played for a minute while Michael finished getting ready and about that time, she turned, looked me in the eye and said, "I'm sorry, Mommy. I'm sorry that I wasn't listening."
I was speechless. We had talked about her not listening after her time out, but she was still in tantrum mode and so I had just walked away. And here she was, 20 or so minutes after her meltdown with an unprompted apology. My heart just melted.
There are so many times that I feel like a failure as a parent . . .I'm sure all parents have those feelings. But in that moment, I felt like, maybe, somewhere along the way, I've done something right. One of the life lessons that Michael and I feel is so important for our children to learn is that we should take responsibility for our actions. It's ok to make mistakes - we all do. But WHEN we do, we need to acknowledge it, accept the responsibility/consequences and move forward.
There are so many kids today (and adults!) who are always quick to blame someone else for something that happened. Nothing frustrates me more as a teacher when a child gets in trouble for talking, but then gets mad at me because they got in trouble. "Mrs. Flack, so and so was talking to me first! It's not my fault." (The worst is when their parents write me a note/call me to say this!) I try to always remind them that it was their choice to respond to that person. No one can open their mouth and make sound come out - that's something only they can do. Still, I find it becoming a rarity for a kid to look at me and say, "I'm sorry I was talking - I'll try to do better next time." I guess it's just human nature to want to place blame somewhere else.
I don't share this to toot my own horn, or say what an awesome parent I am. . . believe me, I have so many areas in which I need improvement. But today's unprompted apology shows me that maybe something is sinking in. Lucy is already such an amazing kid, with such a big heart. I forget sometimes that she will only be three this coming Monday. . . sometimes she seems so much more grown up. (Ok, not during the tantrum part. . . ) I am more and more blessed every day by this precious gift God has given me and I am so thankful for every moment I have to be her Mom.
Lucy was having a rough morning today - she didn't want to get dressed, she didn't want to go to school, she didn't want to do anything she was supposed to. (This is unusual for her - she is almost always excited to go to school!) We had put her in time out, we had left her screaming in her room . . . I even took her temperature because I thought she must be sick since she is acting so awful!
Finally, she seemed to calm herself enough to ask for help getting dressed. After she got dressed, she picked up a couple of toys and walked back down to our bedroom. We played for a minute while Michael finished getting ready and about that time, she turned, looked me in the eye and said, "I'm sorry, Mommy. I'm sorry that I wasn't listening."
I was speechless. We had talked about her not listening after her time out, but she was still in tantrum mode and so I had just walked away. And here she was, 20 or so minutes after her meltdown with an unprompted apology. My heart just melted.
There are so many times that I feel like a failure as a parent . . .I'm sure all parents have those feelings. But in that moment, I felt like, maybe, somewhere along the way, I've done something right. One of the life lessons that Michael and I feel is so important for our children to learn is that we should take responsibility for our actions. It's ok to make mistakes - we all do. But WHEN we do, we need to acknowledge it, accept the responsibility/consequences and move forward.
There are so many kids today (and adults!) who are always quick to blame someone else for something that happened. Nothing frustrates me more as a teacher when a child gets in trouble for talking, but then gets mad at me because they got in trouble. "Mrs. Flack, so and so was talking to me first! It's not my fault." (The worst is when their parents write me a note/call me to say this!) I try to always remind them that it was their choice to respond to that person. No one can open their mouth and make sound come out - that's something only they can do. Still, I find it becoming a rarity for a kid to look at me and say, "I'm sorry I was talking - I'll try to do better next time." I guess it's just human nature to want to place blame somewhere else.
I don't share this to toot my own horn, or say what an awesome parent I am. . . believe me, I have so many areas in which I need improvement. But today's unprompted apology shows me that maybe something is sinking in. Lucy is already such an amazing kid, with such a big heart. I forget sometimes that she will only be three this coming Monday. . . sometimes she seems so much more grown up. (Ok, not during the tantrum part. . . ) I am more and more blessed every day by this precious gift God has given me and I am so thankful for every moment I have to be her Mom.
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Bubbles!!
Right now, Lucy also insists on wearing a dress every day. Don't ask me why, but that's what she chooses. I may be doing laundry tonight so we have a clean one to wear tomorrow. . .
Lucy also is very interested in using Mommy's camera. After I take a picture, she wants to see it. She also wants to hold the camera and take her own. Here's one of hers. . . not too bad , right??
In other news, we had another ultrasound on Monday. With twins, from here on out, we'll have at least one ultrasound a month to check on their growth, make sure they have enough fluid, etc. Everything looks great - both of them weigh around 1lb 13 oz. and are growing on schedule. . they measure a few days smaller than average, but nothing of any concern. I have been using my summer vacation to rest as much as possible so far. While we are only at 26 weeks, I feel like (and look like!) I am about 32-33 weeks. So it has been a blessing to be able to put my feet up and take it easy. It is a lot of work to grow two babies! School will be back in session for us in July and it will be hard to get back into the swing of things. . . even though it will only be for a little while. ;)
Monday, May 28, 2012
Saturday Morning Chores
Another sweet clean up story happened while I was folding her laundry. I had washed her stuffed pig and when I pulled him out of the basket, she got so excited, grabbed him, hugged him, and said, "Thank you, Mommy, for washing my pig!" Then, after everything I pulled out of the laundry basket, she said, "Thank you, Mommy, for washing my _______ (Shirt, socks, etc.)." Folding laundry didn't feel like a chore that day at all! :)
Sunday, May 20, 2012
Sunday, May 13, 2012
An update on our lives
Sorry posts have been few and far between this year. It seems like by the time I get home from school, all I have energy left to do is take up space on the couch! So here's a little update on the Flack family.
Lucy has grown so much in the past little bit. I feel like I say that with every update, but I am so amazed at how quickly this little girl is growing up. Sometimes it's easy to forget that she will only be 3 next month. Her vocabulary is quite impressive, if I do say so myself. She knows how to express what she wants and is getting better at speaking her needs and wants rather than getting frustrated and upset. (Don't worry - we still have those times too!) And finally, I think it is safe to say that she is officially potty trained! We have gone all week without an accident. She loves her big girl panties (which of course, she decided to show everyone last week at church! Sigh. . . ) and only uses a pull up at bedtime. She loves to play pretend games - her favorite right now is to be a waitress and take everyone's orders. Then she goes into her kitchen and gets fun food to bring to everyone. She also loves taking care of her baby dolls and playing with them. Another favorite game of hers is hide and seek with her Daddy. Of course, she just wants to hide under the covers and have someone come in and uncover her. She laughs and screams and giggles - who knew such a simple act could be so hilarious? She is now beginning also to "read" books to herself. She has several that she has memorized or knows most of it and then flips through them and tells the story as she goes. She also adds voices as she reads, which is so cute!
The boys are growing as well. For those who haven't heard, we've decided on names. Baby A is Alexander Lee (Alex) and Baby B is Charles Ellis (Charlie). This week marks 22 weeks. Last week, I had a lot of pain and pressure - apparently they had moved and settled into a position that was quite uncomfortable for me. After talking with one of the doctors at my OB-GYN, he explained that at 21 weeks (last week) with twins feels like 28 weeks with a single pregnancy. So I imagine, things only get better from here! Ha ha - but as long as they are growing and doing well, we want them to stay in there as long as they can.
School ends at HES on June 1 and I am more than ready for a few weeks off. We've been trying to get as much done for the boys as we can now, so that when I reach the point where I am the size of a beached whale, things will be mostly ready for their arrival. (I also don't want to be caught off guard like we were with Lucy's arrival at 35 weeks! There will be enough excitement just having two new little ones!) We found another crib to go with Lucy's old one - it looks very similar to hers. It is also a discontinued style, so we were able to purchase it for only $143! ( Gotta brag about bargains when you can find them!) Our nursery theme is Peter Rabbit - I LOVE This bedding from Pottery barn kids!!!
I've dug through all of Lucy's old clothes and pulled out anything we can reuse again. We bought a changing table, since Lucy's was attached to her dresser. Now we just need to rearrange the boys room so everything's where I want it and we'll have it ready for them. I also want to find a chair for feeding the boys - it's difficult finding one though that is big enough to safely hold both of them that is affordable! But we still have some time. . . We also have our two carseats as well as having joined the minvan club. Gotta have room for three car seats plus all our stuff, right??
So that's our life - school is coming to an end, Michael and I will celebrate our 6 year anniversary next Sunday, Lucy will be 3 next month, and Alex and Charlie will be here before we know it!! :)
Lucy has grown so much in the past little bit. I feel like I say that with every update, but I am so amazed at how quickly this little girl is growing up. Sometimes it's easy to forget that she will only be 3 next month. Her vocabulary is quite impressive, if I do say so myself. She knows how to express what she wants and is getting better at speaking her needs and wants rather than getting frustrated and upset. (Don't worry - we still have those times too!) And finally, I think it is safe to say that she is officially potty trained! We have gone all week without an accident. She loves her big girl panties (which of course, she decided to show everyone last week at church! Sigh. . . ) and only uses a pull up at bedtime. She loves to play pretend games - her favorite right now is to be a waitress and take everyone's orders. Then she goes into her kitchen and gets fun food to bring to everyone. She also loves taking care of her baby dolls and playing with them. Another favorite game of hers is hide and seek with her Daddy. Of course, she just wants to hide under the covers and have someone come in and uncover her. She laughs and screams and giggles - who knew such a simple act could be so hilarious? She is now beginning also to "read" books to herself. She has several that she has memorized or knows most of it and then flips through them and tells the story as she goes. She also adds voices as she reads, which is so cute!
The boys are growing as well. For those who haven't heard, we've decided on names. Baby A is Alexander Lee (Alex) and Baby B is Charles Ellis (Charlie). This week marks 22 weeks. Last week, I had a lot of pain and pressure - apparently they had moved and settled into a position that was quite uncomfortable for me. After talking with one of the doctors at my OB-GYN, he explained that at 21 weeks (last week) with twins feels like 28 weeks with a single pregnancy. So I imagine, things only get better from here! Ha ha - but as long as they are growing and doing well, we want them to stay in there as long as they can.
School ends at HES on June 1 and I am more than ready for a few weeks off. We've been trying to get as much done for the boys as we can now, so that when I reach the point where I am the size of a beached whale, things will be mostly ready for their arrival. (I also don't want to be caught off guard like we were with Lucy's arrival at 35 weeks! There will be enough excitement just having two new little ones!) We found another crib to go with Lucy's old one - it looks very similar to hers. It is also a discontinued style, so we were able to purchase it for only $143! ( Gotta brag about bargains when you can find them!) Our nursery theme is Peter Rabbit - I LOVE This bedding from Pottery barn kids!!!
I've dug through all of Lucy's old clothes and pulled out anything we can reuse again. We bought a changing table, since Lucy's was attached to her dresser. Now we just need to rearrange the boys room so everything's where I want it and we'll have it ready for them. I also want to find a chair for feeding the boys - it's difficult finding one though that is big enough to safely hold both of them that is affordable! But we still have some time. . . We also have our two carseats as well as having joined the minvan club. Gotta have room for three car seats plus all our stuff, right??
So that's our life - school is coming to an end, Michael and I will celebrate our 6 year anniversary next Sunday, Lucy will be 3 next month, and Alex and Charlie will be here before we know it!! :)
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