Two In A Row!

Ahhhh sweet sleep!! Sweetie graced us with another quiet night. I was soooo happy with that, yet inexplicably, was still feeling exhausted when I woke up. There's some nasty cold business going around the house so Murray thinks my immune system must be maxed out fighting that. If she has a good night, we've been giving her a penny in the morning. So far it's only cost us 2¢ but so far tonight's looking good... (knock on wood)


I was doing my usual Friday clean up when Mumma phoned to say she'd be arriving earlier than usual. I was more ready than most weeks when she arrived, but it still took me a half an hour to get out of the house after she got here. I had a great afternoon & hit the bank machine, the dollar store, the bulk store & got groceries too. Sweet Friday afternoons, Mumma, you're too good to me!!! (although I did treat her to a loaf of bread and some maple filled cupcakes!)

Honey's not feeling well today and has spent most of her time sleeping. She's spiking a bit of a temp but nothing over 102º yet... She took some Tylenol earlier today but when I tried to give her more at bedtime she was totally against it. I managed to coax her into eating 2 out of the 3 tablets but all to no avail as she gagged and puked them all up. Lovey's got a bad cough too so she'll probably be out of it soon too.

Since Honey was out of commission, that left Sweetie & Lovey to their own devices as I did laundry, vacuumed & mopped. They played incredibly well together, sharing & not one bit of fighting! They even worked well together on a joint endeavour. Unfortunately their mission was to pester their sick sister trying to have a nap in the LaZboy! Why is it that even when they're doing something good, it still has an evil tinge to it??

As you can see, one dress was a little more popular than all the others. Why do you suppose that is? It's the one that Weaze wore to our wedding & I showed them a picture of her from that day. She was only 3 years old & they were fascinated by her as a little girl. Lovey won out & got to wear it the rest of the day but Sweetie has put a reservation in for its use tomorrow!

Worth EVERY Penny!

We slept! We slept!!! At least 7 hours straight for me!! Wewt! Wewt! Murray had hockey last night so I'm not sure what time he crashed out but once he did he also got some uninterrupted sleep. I know the "crazy Sweetie nightime menace" stories are probably much more interesting to read but don't worry, she'll probably be back. (although I'm totally ok with it if we never see that again!!)

We went to gymnastics this morning and then brought Teena & Boo back with us for more playtime. I made some waffles for the kids & healthy nutritious salads for us moms. Then after lunch we did a craft & all the girls made caterpillars out of egg cartons. Do those girls ever love to PAINT! Sweetie must have put 5 coats on hers! Lovey's was of course painstakingly detailed and Honey & Boo did a great job too. They enjoyed the caterpillars so much, they named them! There was Alphabeta, Frank Peachy and I forget the other two but they were every bit as distinctive.

After our guests left, we had a long purple bath and then it was almost supper time! Another successful, trauma -free day.

I had choir practice tonight & I am BEAT. We were singing our guts out for 2 full hours. This is always crunch time as we're practicing like mad for the music festival. There are 2 pieces we're learning for that & for the first time ever, we're not going to use our sheet music. I can't read it anyway so that doesn't really bother me. Once I've memorized the lyrics, that paper is pretty much useless to me. I have to read her lips & watch her hands for the timing, entrances, crescendoes etc. Then besides that, we have to work on the line up of Sunday anthems and practice a cantata for Easter. With Easter being early this year, panic mode is setting in as there's not much time left before we have to perform this sucker! I came home with my voice half shot & now I'm off to bed! (BEFORE 11PM!!! *gasp*)

Crazy, just plain Crazy!

Ahhhh Wednesdays! By now, you alllllllll know how much I adore, anticipate and savour Wednesdays!! Well today the fact that it was Wednesday may have very well saved a life! Last night we had yet another episode with Sweetie from midnight til about 1am or maybe it was 1am til 2am. That's what this is coming to, we can't keep track because it's getting so constant & frequent. We took her for her early potty break without incident. I was in bed when she started. I tried to ignore her but she was saying she needed to pee rather urgently & it didn't seem wise to take chances there! So we got to the bathroom & she did indeed have something to contribute. Everything seemed to be fine... until she got an itch. That was all it took to send us into the mad mad world of Sweetie's night rage. She was trying to scratch it and I tried to do it but she screamed some more, it was still bothering her, "TOO SCRATCHY! TOO SCRATCHY!! (by which she means "itchy"). Due to all the previous incidents and my lack of sleep, I'm immediately cranky and really want to wrap this up & go back to sleep. So I scratch some more & some more but no matter how I rubbed her back, nothing alleviated her discomfort and recognizing the futility of any efforts to soothe this savage beast, I gave up & put her back in her bed & crawled into mine. The screaming continued. I went back in to her room, opened her blind to let in a bit of the streetlight so it wouldn't be pitch dark in her room, closed her door, turned on the lullaby music CD in her sisters' room, closed their door, closed our own door, turned our fan on high & braced myself for the onslaught. Actually, it was well underway well before I got through very many of those steps. I tried to doze a bit while I waited her out but she was relentless in her fury. Eventually she figured out that she didn't have to stay in there & opened her door and came screaming out in to the hallway and stood there for quite awhile. Murray & I just stayed put, hoping she'd give up & realize we weren't getting sucked in this time. She continued to ramp it up for a little longer, then decided to try a little harder to get our attention and opened OUR door. Then she came & stood screaming inside our room. We continued to ignore her (verrrrrrrry hard to not react to this!) She kept it up and kept it up until she was just about out of steam and could only whimper. Then she changed tactics and claimed she wanted to go back to her bed & wanted someone to come with her. I was trying to hang tough but was worried Murray might be ready to surrender our position. I was sooooo proud of him when he sternly said "NO! Sweetie, we are SICK of this every night. Now GO BACK TO BED." Unfortunately it didn't work. She continued her now pathetic soft cries and sniffling & gasping to talk, (apparently an hour of raging takes a lot out of a 3½ year old) and claimed it was too dark & too scary in her bedroom and she needed someone to come with her. We refused & insisted we were sleeping in our own bed. Eventually we did cave a little & told her we weren't sleeping in her room but she could sleep with us. She refused this a few times and kept trying to insist on her room but gave up and flopped down & immediately fell asleep. Somehow, I don't feel like we won...

And to kickstart my day, I awoke to the melodious sounds of Lovey in a full throttle fit, a screaming, crying, down on the floor tantrum. Her problem? someone was flaying her? nope. She wanted her ponytail curled into a "drop" (their name for a ringlet). I got out of bed, not a shred of patience or understanding left in my body! I can't imagine how unpleasant the making of that drop was, the brush was not kind to her this morning but she never said boo. Luckily she'd just had a bath yesterday and she was just repeating the same hairstyle as the day before so it wasn't tangly.

After that breakfast went fairly smoothly but I was a little concerned about the weather. It was snowing again. Ice pellets again. School cancelled again. Oh dear God in Heaven, PLEASE let there be playgroup!!! And then He smiled upon me & said "Shazam! Playgroup is ON!" ;) or something like that. Anyway, I hauled butt to get our stuff together & get them dressed. It wasn't pretty & it wasn't pleasant. I distinctly remember someone saying "that wasn't very nice!" after being unceremoniously dumped out in to the hallway in midscream. But none of that matters! Once they were strapped into their carseats all was well with the world. They were quiet, they were content and we were on our way. Why the actual getting out the door process should be so arduous, I have no idea! They looooooooove to go places & always enjoy our outings! Again, it was really just Sweetie making things difficult. Once Lovey's hair issues were sorted out, she was fine & Honey couldnt' have been more accomodating. She even went & put her boots on all by herself, on the right feet at that, without even being told to get her stuff on. She was so proud that she'd done it "before ya even said to me!"

Because of all the messy snow, Murray had taken the car & had to come back to pick us up. I had Lovey & Honey out in the porch ready to go but Sweetie was having yet another issue with something (her pants were bothering her I think) so I walked out & left her in there while I got the others buckled in. Murray went in and put her under one arm & carried her to the car.

It was not a good night and the morning wasn't a great beginning. I was feeling the effects of all this late night rage dramas. It's exhausting, mentally, physically.. you name it! I was cranky & irritable and very much looking forward to a couple hours at playgroup. When Teena suggested going to McDonald's afterwards I was all for it. Anything that delayed me going home with them. I knew it wouldn't take much to push my buttons today and didn't think Murray would be too impressed to come home to find us down to twins! The kids had a great time & we all survived another dicey day. They played in the McD's playplace til after 4 & then it was time to get home & make supper! Cinderella looked after them til Murray got home and we will see what tomorrow brings.


(pictures are all from yesterday, no way was I attempting to suit them up in full snow gear today!)

Woohoo! Narrowed it down!

Here's what I'm ordering for our family pictures! Can't wait to get them although it'll probably be awhile as I have no idea when Shelley will be sending in another order.

I found this display layout online & showed it to her & she recreated it with our own pictures in the frames. Considering my extreme lack of decorating skills/interest, this will definitely be the nicest, fanciest thing I've ever had on my walls. The large centre pictures are going to be square though as long as she can get the crops to work for that.

Any volunteers to help me line these up when it comes time to actually hang them? They look great here but I'm not so sure I can get them quite this even & straight....

oh whoah whoah Sweeeeeeet Chillllld of Miiiiine

Ohhh this girl!!! What are we going to do with her?!?!? We've had some success with Murray's 10:30 potty run. Instead of waiting for her to stir & need to go, we take her while she's still in a dead sleep. Sometimes it works but the last couple times it hasn't. One night I was late & it was already close to 11pm. Of course she's mad to be in the bathroom in the first place so we're off to a great start. After she does her thing, I pull her pants back up. Immediate screaming ensues. I WANT TO DO IT MYSELF!!!!!!!!!! Okaaaaaaay fine. You handle your own drawers then! Whatever. Just go back to bed. She kept up her tirade for an hour before finally winding down. THEN she managed to get herself fired back up around 3am for another half hour. Who has that much energy in the middle of the night????

One other night after Murray took her to the bathroom she was furious with him and started demanding that she wanted the pee BACK IN!

The fits are just as glorious during the day too. I was upstairs trying to get supper together and she starts crying for a drink of water (because I'm a cruel mother & NEVER let them have beverages...). I remind her that she forgot her water cup downstairs.

S: I want COLD WATER!

K: fine, bring me your cup & I'll get you some cold water

S: I'm too scared to go downstairs (more crying & high pitched screaming and whining)

K: ask one of your sisters to go with you?

S: NO!!!!!!!!!!! I DON'T WANT MY SISTERS. I WANT SOMEBODY ELSE!!!

Realizing I'm wasting more time arguing about the ^%#@ cup than just helping her get it, I take her downstairs and quickly see the cup over by the couch. I go pick it up & bring it over to her.

S: NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!! I WANT to get it MYSELF!!!!!!!

Now really annoyed, I drop the cup at her feet & turn around to head upstairs.

S: NOT THERE! I WANT TO GET IT BY THE COUCH!!!!!!!!!

I'm outta there, she's totally driving me around the bend. Not content with my exit, she chases me upstairs screaming her headoff about the cup, making sure I don't miss a brainscalding moment of her tirade. Imagine her confusion and frustration when I crack up! I'm trying to be serious & ignore her but I can't stop laughing my head off. The ridiculousness of it all!!!!

And you know what? She LIKES to have these fits. She tries to drag them out, she tries to make herself cry as long as she can. She has even started to try to instigate them!!! The girls all take a cup of water to bed with them but I try to discourage guzzling, especially with Lovey who won't wake up when she needs to pee. So, I started calling it "two-sip water", as in, have 2 sips and then take a break instead of chug a lugging the whole thing. This was all fine, they all called it two sip water for a long time and then we just sort of dropped it. Last week, at bedtime, Sweetie asks "Mumma, is this..... two sip water?" with a note of pride in her voice at remembering the name of it. I quickly congratulate her on her good memory & tell her that's exactly what it is.

S: Noooooooooo! I DON'T WANT TWO SIP WATER!!!!!

The little turkey SET ME UP! She totally wanted me to tell her she was right, just so she could have a freak out!! I decided to head her off & quickly backtracked and told her it was just plain old water but it didn't do any good. She wanted the two sip water out & new water in. We were disinclined to acquiesce to her request! ; )

It's just tantrum city with her lately! It's so frequent that the first episode of the day has me gritting my teeth and my temper flaring. Last night the early potty run went smoothly. However she woke up again later on and I was already in bed asleep so Murray went to help her out. BAM! It's tirade o'clock. His offense? He wasn't me. She didn't WANT HIM to take her to pee she wanted MUMMY TO DO IT!!!!!! It takes awhile to sink in, especially since I've closed our bedroom door & have the fan running its nice white noise at top speed. However, I finally rouse from sleep, take her to the bathroom, only to blunder by not noticing her nightie hanging behind her and it dipping in the toilet. So she says. I check the nightie and can't find anything wrong or wet. Knowing she's going to insist on an exact replacement of the same nightie, I immediately concede defeat and go back to bed. Or at least, that's what I assume happened as I barely have any recollection of the incident at all & didn't remember it until Murray mentioned it tonight.

As if Sweetie's night rages weren't enough, Lovey was also having some sort of problems last night. Not nearly as mentally draining but I still got woken up & had to go in and check on her at least 3 times!!! Murray was having major coughing fits and decided to sleep downstairs so he wouldn't bother me and missed all the action. Maybe I should sleep downstairs tonight so he can rest comfortably in his own bed.... ; )))



Sorry to harp on the same subject over and over but some of these episodes are just too funny not to record somewhere!

Pish Posh Tish Tosh

We had an awesome day today! Flowergirl's still in town & she suggested coming to see us. We picked her up before lunch & we got to spend the whole afternoon with her. It's a rare treat to have her all to myself and get all the updates on what she's been up to. I did have to share her with three other little fans, all vying for her attention though!

A friend is bringing her daughter over this weekend to get pictures done & I was a little nervous about the lighting in the living room for the time of day I suggested. I always second guess everything! Since Flowergirl was here at that particular time of day, I decided to take advantage to test out my set up. Anyway I think it all went fine & the timeslot on Saturday should be ok. I'm sure I'll find lots of other things to worry about instead before then though! Flowergirl was very patient with all my testing & posed for quite awhile as I tried different angles and stuff.

The girls had a great time with our friend! They had more "secret" meetings which they decided would be held at the farm & so dragged out alllllllll the stuffed animals they could find and then discussed I don't know what all! All 4 girls were VERY into it though and it all seemed quite serious so I left them to it. They couldn't get enough of her & I know what that's like! I had to lure them away from her to do the pictures by turning on the TV. LOL It has its uses : )))

these 2 little turkeys got into my clean laundry and decided to try on some stuff!
I can't believe my flowergirl is in university! It dawned on me today that the visits with her will become more and more rare now that she's away at school. I normally got to see her whenever we were at the cottage. She lived near that area & would come spend several days with us. We still chat on MSN & keep up to date through Facebook with pictures and whatnot but it's not the same as being with her. Between her sports & now summer jobs, there won't be any more hanging out at the cottage and eventually, she won't have summer vacations or March Breaks at all and I am really going to miss those visits. Not only do I get to live vicariously through her exciting life, she's an incredibly special girl who means so much to me! So I soaked up every minute I could today, drilled her relentlessly on all aspects of her life that I hadn't been filled in on for awhile and then reluctantly took her home when she had to go. How on earth am I going to survive my own children leaving if it's this hard to let my flowergirl go????????

Luckily my girls are still a long ways off from being all done with me, although I hear it happens earlier and earlier these days but I think I'm safe til at least age 8.

I lost track of how many outfits we went through today, and that was in the morning before we went to pick up Flowergirl!