Surviving 4 Kids

STOMP!

2011-04-29T23:45:00.000-05:00

This mother of four made one of the biggest mistakes to date last week. She watched STOMP, Live on Netflix with them. The show was amazing. I vow to do whatever I can to take my children to see them one day. The boys especially fell in love with their amazing skill and performance.

My entire house is a giant instrument now! It's rather ridiculous how loud it is. Notice Maya is not in this picture. When this trio gets bangin' Maya and I head for the other room. We agree they are "annoying". ;)

The Volcano Beast (and other disasters)

2011-04-20T20:12:00.000-05:00

I was doing laundry today and the girls were "helping" me. I sent them upstairs, each with a pair of boys underwear in hand to put up. Time went by and I went on folding laundry downstairs. I figured they got distracted with Lego's or something else forbidden by their brothers if they were home from school. I should have known the trouble those two mess makers could get into in only 15 minutes!

When I finally got around to checking on them I found every single article of clothing my two boys own on the bed.....how thoughtful of them not to throw it on the floor, right?

I walked in the room and squealed in horror. They looked up at me proud and said "We're doing laundry Mama!"

Yes, those are flower print sheets on my son's bed. When you wet the bed at 3 AM, well, you get what you get and don't throw a fit.

In other household news, Zander is studying space in school. He had to create an Alien and write a report. He loved this assignment! He got into my recycle box and made his creature out of 4 paper towel tubes, an egg crate, and a raisin container. Then he added a little paint, a lot of duct tape, and the top of a pineapple and I present to you...

THE VOLCANO BEAST

A few facts about his alien, which he presented in front of his class:

The Volcano Beast is from Venus.
He is 18 years old.
When living on Venus the Volcano Beast usually got hit by lava.
He likes to eat lava and bad guys. (Hints the bad guy wrapped in his tail.)
He likes to dig for fun.
Zander hopes that one day his alien will teach him to breath fire.
In return, Zander hopes to teach his alien friend how not to eat people.

Floating around the backyard

2011-04-19T15:21:00.000-05:00

We've had gorgeous weather lately. The backyard is like an extension of our home with weather like this! The kids found a long box in the garage and Z thought it would make a great canoe.

They took great pride painting their boat.

After all their hard work they had snacks on the sea and then went fishing, of course.

They played so well together this afternoon using their imaginations. I lOVE to watch them pretend. It just melts this mama's heart.

Giant Playpen

2011-04-18T10:59:00.000-05:00

G has been saving his money for a while now. He saved $130!! We helped him out and he bought this trampoline this weekend. The kids lOVE it! And G is SO PROUD to buy this for his family.

Inspired.....again.

2011-04-18T10:01:00.000-05:00

Survivng 4 Kids is BACK by popular demand! or maybe it's out of pure guilt of being a horrible blogger compared to all my dedicated blogging friends. Regardless of why I am making a commitment to blog more often. I'm not gonna make any crazy EVERYDAY promises like some of you....but I think I can do at least weekly updates.

Good Samaritan

2010-12-20T22:06:00.000-06:00

I have the most amazing story to tell. I was at walmart on day and struck up a conversation with a complete stranger in the baking aisle. Eventually we parted ways. The remainder of my trip was hetic to say the least. The girls were in rare form.....pretty much evil....they would take off their shoes and socks and throw them out of the cart. They were hitting one another and bickering non-stop. I was almost in tears from their uncontrollable behavior. It was not a smooth shopping trip to say the least.

As I was about to leave the woman I spoke to earlier came up to me, handed me an envelope, and said "I hope you have a very merry Christmas."

I blurted out a confused "thank you" as she walked off.

I opened it. Inside was a Christmas card with TWO $50 bills!!

Immediately, I burst into tears and chased after her. Once I caught up to her I hugged her neck and thanked her. I was so grateful and shocked by the whole thing.

The day before we were down to only $2 in our checking account. My hard working husband was paid the day I went shopping and met the generous stranger, but still, money was more then a little tight. We wondered how we were going to buy a Christmas tree with the morgage coming up.

So here are the picures of my beautiful children decorating our beautiful tree all thanks to a beautiful stranger.

I am looking forward to the day when I am at a place in my life where I can financially "pay it forward" to a complete stranger like this lady did to me and my famliy.

Have YOU ever been on the recieving end or giving end of something like this?? What happened??

Thanksgiving

2010-12-20T20:58:00.000-06:00

Yes, I realize that it is 5 days until Christmas and I am just now getting to post Thanksgiving picture. The 2010 official worst blogger award goes to yours truly. *sigh* Honestly, I just don't have it in me lately. Hopefully I can get in the grove again soon....

Without further adu, the much anticipated Thanksgiving photos....well, a couple of them anyway....

Gavin, Zander and Jace enjoying what they refer to as "the feast!"

There we all are.

The 2 amigas, hamming it up.

Sun vs. Son

2010-12-06T21:28:00.000-06:00

My husband and I are raising our children without a "religion". We believe they are to young to understand and don't want to condition their little minds. Our goal is to let them decide for themself when they reach an age of maturity. Instead we focus on teaching them love, compassion, and discipline. With that said, Zander is the only 6 year old I know that can point out a picture of Jesus, Buddha, and Krishna....and tell you about all three. I'm not saying this to boast or condemn anyone or their personal beliefs....just giving you a little background inside our family for this very funny story.....

My conversation with Zander (age 6) as we were cleaning my room.

Zander: Mom, next Thanksgiving I'm going to be thankful for Jesus.

Me: Great. Why do you say that?

Zander: I love playing outside.

Me: Huh? I don't understand.

Zander: I love playing outside. Jesus is the god of the sun you know.

your guide to surviving the carpool lane

2010-11-22T13:18:00.001-06:00

Today my kids and I nearly witnessed a fist fight between two dads in the drop off and carpool lane at their elementary school because one was "doing it wrong". It's serious business people. Especially if you're running late on a Monday morning.

Pick Up & Drop Off Survival Guide

1. There is only a 15 minute window when children can be dropped off before school. If you arrive in the first 5 minutes you should be fine. The other parents are more forgiving if your child gets his coat shut in the door (Gavin!) and they have to wait an extra 30 seconds. If you arrive 5 minutes until the bell rings you will most likely hear honks and/or get flipped the bird.

2. When you pull into the school parking lot order your children to unbuckle and put their backpacks on. Every second counts! Have them stand and file in a single line on the right side of the minivan, ready to jump out when the door opens. Be sure to say your "I love yous" and "Have a good day's" while you are still in the line of vehicles. Once you are in the zone you will have no time for all that. Multi-task people.

3. When you finally make it to the front of the line and put your car into park have your kids hop out quickly. No parents under any circumstance is allowed out of the vehicle in the drop off lane! What? Your kindergartner is having trouble with their 5 point harness car seat? Well, my friend, you need to park your car a block from the school and walk your child in.....other wise you are running risk of being an outcast at the PTA.....just sayin'.

Bonus Tip: Run drills and practice all summer long. ;)

What's your pet peeve in the drop off lane at school?

Zoo Trip

2010-11-20T20:58:00.001-06:00

We enjoyed a beautiful day at the Tulsa Zoo today.

It's been a long time since we've ALL enjoyed the day together.

Gavin's favorite subject was "penis" today. Don't really understand his fascination with the word or the actual member itself.....but whatever, he's four. And he's a boy. I suppose it comes with the territory?

We were looking at the elephants when Sneezy (the male elephant) used the bathroom. Gavin blurted out in a crowd of people "WOW! Look at the size of that penis!"

"Gavin, SHHHHHHH!!!" I begged.

"That's the biggest penis I've ever seen!! Holy Moly!!" he continued to yell. The crowd of on lookers cracked up.....which, of course, egged Gavin on.

Ely and I were laughing so hard our stomachs ached. Great parenting, I know.....but have you ever seen a male elephant pee?! In my son's defense, it is a sight. It's like a 5th leg.

Gotta copy big brothers!

At the petting zoo Gavin brought up his favorite topic again. He was bragging to a group of adults about all the animals he's seen that day. "I saw a cow....and guess what?! He had FIVE penises!" The ladies mouth dropped and the men rolled with laughter.

I was mortified at the time, had no idea what he was talking about until the stranger corrected him between his hiccups of laughter, "You mean utters, son?"

"Whatever," Gavin said. "They look like penises"

. Oh geez. Please let this be a phase.

Conversation While in Bed

2010-11-17T21:53:00.001-06:00

Tonight as I was putting the boys to bed I overheard a conversation that was TOOOOO funny not to document.

Gavin: I'm 8 years old.

Zander: No your not. I'm 6 and you're only 4.

Gavin: I'm older then you.

Zander: (getting very upset) No your NOT! I'm 6, your 4!!

Gavin: I'm older.

Zander: You're my baby brother.

Gavin: (getting upset) I am NOT a baby!

Zander: I'm older then you, so you're my baby brother.

Gavin: Yeah? Well, I'm cuter then you.

Zander: Whatever.

Pantless at the Tulsa State Fair

2010-10-09T21:44:00.005-05:00

I put on my super mom cape today and took all 4 kids to the Tulsa State Fair....by myself. Call me crazy, but I'm their mother, if I can't take care of them who can?! Right?

Really it wasn't that bad. In fact, we had a wonderful time. We got there early. Like 9:30 AM. Because we got there so early, we had front row parking and it wasn't crowded yet.

First stop, petting zoo. We spent at least an hour in here. The kids had a blast feeding and petting the lambs, goats, and ponies.

We got to see newborn piglets being washed. My children giggled uncontrollably listening to them squeal. Well, all of them except Maya. She was concerned and repeated, "Baby piggies cry. Ahhh...poor baby." over and over again.

Gavin and Camille

Maya, I think...

The boys lOVED looking at the hissing cockroaches, spiders and lizards....

while the twins enjoyed the ride on toys in the kids building.

Next we got dirty in the giant sand box. This is where my easy day became challenging. First of all, sand is my long time arch enemy. Don't get me wrong, the kids love it. We use to have a sandbox in our backyard and they would play for hours in it. Still I got rid of it. The constant dirtiness of my floors and it getting in every crevasse of their body was driving me crazy. I should of known better then to allow them all in there....but how do you say no the biggest sand box they have ever seen? You can't.

To make a long story short, Camille somehow twisted her diaper and peed through her jeans! Yeah, we're way past the phase where I carry a change of clothes. I drug the boys out of the sand box and headed toward the bathroom.

Zander and Gavin refused to go into the women's bathroom. They're four and six, it would be humiliating right? Geez. I made them swear to sit outside the door together and not to talk or look at anyone. I cleaned Camille up the best I could with wipes, put on a fresh diaper and we were on our way.....pant-less. I called her Lady GaGa for the rest of the day.

Yeah, I felt a little "white trash" but it's all good.

Craft time!

I somewhat planned ahead and had graham crackers to lure the girls back into their stroller.

Money spent at the fair? $2. Memories created? Priceless.

How did I go to the fair with a group of 5 and only spend $2?! I received 2 free tickets from a friend, that covered me and Zander....the other 3 children are 4 and under - FREE! We opted out of the rides. Fortunately, we have never really done them with our children and they don't know what their missing....yet. Plus, when you go early in the morning the rides aren't running yet. Bonus! As for the food, I have no desire what so ever to eat a donut burger or a deep fried twinkie. Gag me. I know, I'm weird.

Around noon the fair started to get busy and I decided it was time to go. Gavin's eyes welled up with tears at the thought of leaving all the fun. I bribed him with a happy meal and we were all smiles as we left the fair.

Hey, no judging. I spent nearly 3 hours alone at the state fair with 4 children ages 6 and under!

Beautiful Day

2010-09-28T13:26:00.000-05:00

I lOVE this beautiful fall weather we have been having!

Today the girls and I went to Hunter park to feed the ducks.

Camille and Maya

Stopping to smell the flowers along the way. As parents we are supose to teach our children about life....but mine are teaching me what life is really all about.

Maya laid like this for a good ten minutes. I had no choice but to put down the camera and join her.

"Look Mama! A SQUIRL!" ~Camille

Tiger Cub

2010-09-27T10:07:00.000-05:00

Zander is a Tiger Cub in Boy Scouts. He lOVES it....especially the uniform. So handsome.

Showing off the boy scout sign.

I love this little man. Anyone want to buy some popcorn? It's his boy scout fund raiser. Apparently the kernels are made of gold because it's so darn expensive. I feel guilty asking friends and family to buy from him! Thanks to 3 people (Jay, Jacque, & Memaw!) Zander has already gone well over the $125 mark and will receive a swiss army knife. (3 sales, $160, told you it must be made of gold!)

Picky Eaters

2010-09-26T21:47:00.000-05:00

My girls have taken "picky eater" to a whole new level. This is totally new territory for me. The boys ate everything I put in front of them. If they didn't like it....well, tough cookies. Eat it anyway or starve. I didn't play that game.

Not sure what really changed. Maybe with the more children I have the more relaxed and laid back I get? Or is it they are girls and I'm more lenient with them? What ever it is, they don't eat if they don't want to. If it's new or different....not interested.

This is how Maya eats her toast. Yeah, most kids don't want the crust, I get it.....but only the top layer of the toast....that's just crazy!

Camille

In efforts to get the girls to eat more I have been trying to include them in the cooking.

Maya

We made pizzas the other night. Kids love pizza, right?

They had so much fun making them.

My plan didn't work. Maya still would not even try the pizza. She picked at the cheese a little, but only drank her milk. Hoping this phase will end, but have a feeling it's just her personality. Oh well. Thank heavens for smoothies....I think that is her only form of nutrition (which I sneak all kinds of veggies in!)

Tall Tales

2010-09-19T19:50:00.000-05:00

Today Camille told a whopper, and she's only two! I'm talking bold face lie here!

I walk into the kitchen where she had halfway climbed the bar stool and with a sharpie started to write on some important papers I had laying on the counter top.

"Camille! No, no!" I scolded. Then I realized that she just wanted to draw and told her ask Momma for the crayons.

"I didn't do it Momma. Obi did it. No, no Obi! No draw on Mamma paper!" she scolded the poor dog.

Sunday Funday

2010-09-19T19:37:00.000-05:00

Ely was promoted to construction manager at work. I am so proud of him....but that means more work. And crazy hours. We miss him around here. My sister Jacque and her boyfriend Kevin took me and the kiddos out last Sunday. It was so much fun!

We met up at Queenie's in Utica Square for lunch. It was a beautiful day.

After lunch we headed over to the Philbrook Museum for the last day of the Egyptian exhibit.

I decided to let the girls walk instead of ride in the stroller. They had a great time learning boundaries. ;)

Just FYI, my children have the loudest voices. Inside voices do not exist.

After looking at all (some) of the art we headed outside to my second favorite Tulsa garden.

He's growing up so fast.

No trip to the museum is complete before you put your head inside the hippo made of car bumpers.

Camille

After our long day "uncle" Keven treated us to ice cream!

Thank you Dooky and Kevin for a great day! We love you!

Fat Man

2010-09-10T20:33:00.000-05:00

It's almost my favorite holiday.....HALLOWEEN!

I figure this is the last year I will be able to pick out the girls costumes, so I better make them good. I am stumped on ideas....anyone have any??

Zander wants to be a super hero. Not any ol' super hero, he made up his own. It's his Incredible Hulk muscle costume under his Red Power Ranger costume. He came down stairs the other day in his get up....it was horrible! The Power Ranger costume is 2 year old and has been in many of battles. I would throw it out, but they love it so much, I haven't the heart. He's still trying to come up with a name. In the mean time, I am trying to talk him out of this horrible idea of his. I just had a great idea, Astro Boy! He loves that movie and it would be super easy and fun....I can't wait 'till morning to ask him what he thinks.

As for Gavin, well, he thought his brother's idea of layering the dress up clothes was brilliant.

"What are you suppose to be Gavin?" I asked.

"A fat man!"

I tried not to laugh, but it was hilarious. I told him no, he whined and begged but I stood firm. Can you imagine the looks and stares we would get walking down Brookside at Boo Ha Ha. Yeah, my son is a fat man...???

Oh, but the story gets worse and even more politically incorrect. My 4 year old then said, "Fine. I'll just be a man with a giant penis for halloween."

I about had a heart attack.

Labor Day Weekend

2010-09-10T19:19:00.001-05:00

Over labor day weekend we took the family over to Greenleaf State Park. It was the first time we took the kids camping.

Here was our home for the weekend. We had a great little spot right on the lake. The boys had a BLAST!

The twins....well....not so much. They were a off their schedule and did not appreciate the beauty of the outdoors. Instead they (Maya) screamed every time a fly got near her. She hated all bugs and anything that resembled a bug....even grass clippings. The poor baby got stung by a bee, which just proves to her that she should fear all bugs. She kept asking to go home and wanted to watch Care Bears.

Ely took the boys fishing several times a day. They caught lots of little fish but nothing worth keeping to cook for dinner.

Gavin keeps asking when we're going back. He absolutely belongs outside.

There is just something about a fire that hypnotizes you.

Even the most wild children.

Zander fishing off the docks.

Camille being extra "cheesy"

Ok. For those of you who can't tell the twins apart. Maya's the one who did not like camping.

Gavin caught his first fish....but I wasn't there to witness =(

I spent most of my days at the playground with these two.

It was definitely a lot of work camping with four young children (esp 2 girly girls!) but we can't wait to go back. Hopefully this spring the girls will be a little older and more easy going.....one can dream right?

window shopping

2010-08-31T19:22:00.000-05:00

So the boys are both in school....ahhhh....

Yeah, yeah. I know they grow up fast, BUT this mama is HAPPY 2 of my 4 children are in school! I am a much better mom when I have structure and a schedule. Without it my house is pure chaos!

The other day after we dropped the boys off at school the twins and I headed to the mall...it was still closed...but honestly, that's the way I prefer it with two two year olds! We just strolled amongst the mall walkers and did a little window shopping. They were thrilled to be out of the stroller.

And I was thrilled to be in the air conditioner.

We pretended to ride rides.....but only pretended....75 cents? Outrageous!

Camille & Maya

I am so very blessed and love spending quality time with these peanuts.

Deep Thoughts with Zander

2010-08-29T19:42:00.000-05:00

Zander is definitely his father's son. This is his conversation with Gavin today at lunch.

Gavin: "Mom, your flowers are dying."

Zander: "Everything dies Gavin. That's life."

Gavin: "I know..."

Zander: "I mean everything dies....plants, people, animals, even this house will one day die."

Gavin: "Yeah, I KNOW!"

Zander: "Flowers have a short life Gavin."

Gavin: "I know."

Zander: "Do you know what even has a shorter life than a flower?"

Gavin: "Ummm....what?"

Zander: "Voice. "

**SCREAMS**

"See? That sound already died. It's over."

**WOOOO!**

"See? That sound I made already died too. That's life Gavin."

Pretty deep for a 1st grader.

another "accident"

2010-08-27T21:31:00.000-05:00

I was busy washing dishes after dinner this evening and Gavin came down stairs and tattled, "Mom! Maya and Camille are naked again!"

"I'll be right up."

After I finished rinsing plates I headed upstairs where Gavin met me at the top. "It was an accident, Mama."

Uh-oh. That's never good to hear.

"They're stuck in my room," he explained.

Gavin had locked his naked two year old sisters in his bedroom!

Not a huge deal if you have normal bedroom door knobs, but the boys bedroom has a knob like this...

Yeah. I never noticed until tonight.

Anyway. I tried my best to pick the lock but had no luck. I tried talking the girls into unlocking the door but they just got frustrated with me for not letting them out. I called the hubby at work....he was no where near being off work and wasn't much help. He mostly just laughed and told me to knock the door down as a last resort.

By this point a good twenty minutes had gone by. I decided to call my sister, Jacque. Her boyfriend tried to help over the phone....but it was useless. Nothing was working.

Soon I heard the dreaded "uh-oh" on the other side of the door followed by "Mama I poo-poo!"

"DON'T TOUCH IT!!" I yelled through the door.

I ended up calling the non-emergency police line. When Gavin heard this he flipped out.

"Mom! PUH-LEEEEEASE don't call the police!! I don't want to go to jail!"

Gavin then burst into tears. It was hilarious. (call me cruel, whatever, YOU try not to laugh at that situation!)

A HUGE thank you to Tulsa Fire Dept for coming to our rescue!! Our hero's!

We are officially the talk of the culdesac.

It only took them 3 minutes to open it up. This is what we found.

Two babies in the buff (well, they were wearing converse and socks!) They obviously had a good time destroying their brothers room. One of them pooped and Camille stepped in it and smeared it in the carpet. Not to mention, there were tinkle tracks throughout the room. It was great.

gavin's haircut

2010-08-26T20:12:00.000-05:00

For weeks Gavin has begged for me to cut his hair for school. I ignored him hoping he would wise up....but he didn't. Instead he brought me pictures of Asian teenagers with short straight black hair and said he wanted hair like them. He was just fed up with all the attention his long gorgeous hair received.

But seriously, how could strangers NOT comment....just look at him!

I finally gave in to his persistence. This obviously wasn't a phase. It was a sad day for this mama.

very. sad.

He thinks he looks tougher with short hair.

Come on Gavin. Can you just act "normal" for one picture? This is his break dancing move which he specifically asked me to capture on film.

There we go....Obi got a smile out of him....

He looks so grown up now! *sniff, sniff*

Yes, I'm still alive....

2010-08-25T20:44:00.000-05:00

Yes. It's been a while. Some of you know that I have a "blog stalker". It's really weird. Someone has made numerous vulgar comments (which have all been deleted by me) in regards to my children....the latest of which has been a flat out proposition of sexual activities they want to perform on them. Yeah. I'm pissed. So much so I have called the police and filed a police report....but nothing is being done.

So here I am. I lOVE to blog....but understandably haven't been "in the mood" lately.

What would YOU do if you were in my shoes?

Funny Kids

2010-08-04T21:48:00.001-05:00

It's hard being a stay at home momma. Some days are awful. The kids are moody and I am preoccupied. But other days....most days lately....are pretty fantastic. I feel like I am finally getting this whole momma thing down. My kids leave me in stitches everyday. Here are a few of my favorite moments today...

We were at the Dollar Tree and, as you can imagine, we attract a lot of attention. Every one we passed commented about the twins or their red hair. Gavin had just about enough of the attention. He was angry at me because I wouldn't let him get any cheap toys. "I like cheap toys." He kept arguing.

A little old lady past and told him what a handsome young man he was and that he had gorgeous hair.

He forced out "thank you" then turned to me and asked, "Can I dye my hair black?"

Camille and I were spending some alone time cuddling on the couch this afternoon. She was being so sweet, I tried to soak up every once of love. "You're my little sweet pea" I told her. She looked and me confused and busted out laughing. "No, Momma silly!"

"What's so funny? You are my sweet pea!"

"Momma, you're my sweet poo-poo!" she said.

Go figure.

stranger danger

2010-08-01T11:20:00.001-05:00

I met up with a good friend this afternoon at our favorite splash pad. We sat and talked while we watched our children try to beat the summer heat. Then we then noticed something disturbing, a super creepy man sitting alone drinking a beer watching our kids play. It's 11am on a weekday, I might add.

We're talking straight out of a movie, stereo typical child predator looks here.

For those who know me well, you know I am the last person to think bad of someone and will always defend the underdog. In fact, I kept doing it with him too. "Oh, he's probably some one's Grandpa."

But deep down I just had a feeling in my gut I couldn't ignore.

We were determined to out stay him or to get enough courage confront him. After 2 hours he finally left. Alone.

Was he there innocently watching children play? Or was he a predator? I'll never know. One thing that I know for sure is that I need to teach my children about stranger danger....before it's to late.

Teaching kids stranger danger

remember my kids are only 4 & 6

Teach them what a stranger is! Seems obvious enough, but I have been teaching my children to be nice and polite and in return they don't know a stranger and will chat it up with anyone. It's also a good idea to ask them what a stranger looks like. Gavin told me a stranger looks like a ninja.
Visuals! Print out color pages and read books. Remember McGruff? He's still around and is a great online research tool for parents and kids.
Role Play! I don't want to scare my children but to empower them. I want to give them the tools where hopefully they won't become a victim. My boys love playing pretend and they thought it was so much fun that Mommy was "playing" with them.

We dressed up and took turns being the stranger trying to trick the kid. As a parent it's a little scary that your child falls for the lost dog or candy trick every time...even though it's just pretend. Hopefully if we keep this up they will eventually get it and recognize the danger if it happens in real life.

It's a shame that the world isn't a safe place for our children. I hope and pray that they will never come in contact with anyone wanting to hurt them.

Family Watch Dog is a FREE website that you can put in your zip code and see all the registered sex offenders in your area. I was horrified by the number in my area. You can click on the map and see a picture of each offender and their crime.

Disclaimer: Not all registered sex offenders are child molesters or violent offenders, I've heard of people being put on the list for "indecent exposure" because they peed in a parking lot leaving a bar. BUT I did find a man in MY NEIGHBORHOOD charged with "lewd act with a child". Yeah. That's enough to freak this Momma out!

Have you begun to talk to your child about stranger danger? What have you done to teach them about child predators? I would love to get more ideas from real moms!

**I realize that 90% of child predators are people you children already know! Like a coach, teacher, or family member. That's a whole other subject....and frightening one at that...

Stylin'

2010-07-29T11:11:00.000-05:00

We've got style!

Yes, we do!

We've got style,

How 'bout you?

When you see us around town, no judging. My 2 older children dress themselves.

Oh, Zander. That is an Incredible Hulk muscle costume under his clothes. He wants people to think he's buff. He's outside skateboarding right now in this get up. I told him it's hot, but he's determined to prove me wrong. This is coming from the kid who refused to wear shorts last summer....even to the splash pads.

Homemade Disinfectant Wipes

2010-07-27T10:11:00.002-05:00

I was running Gavin's bath water last night. Before he got into the tub he used the bathroom....well, sort of. He was at least a foot away from the toilet arching his back trying to stream his urine into the bowl.

"Scoot up Gavin!" I ordered.

"I don't want to step on pee," he argued.

"There's not pee on the floor." I assured him.

"Yeah there is. I always accidently pee on the floor."

Boys are just gross....awfully cute, especially this particular one, but still gross.

That's where these awesome homemade disinfectant wipes come in handy. The disinfectant wipes you buy at the store are very pricey...not to mention what's in them? Do you feel comfortable handing a container of them to your four year old and tell him to clean the bathroom? Not me.

I use the same concept as homemade baby wipes to make these disinfectant wipes. Check out my tutorial here. on "Or So She Says."

Here's what you need:

Roll of paper towels (I like Viva) cut in half

cup of vinager

1/2 cup of water

about 10 drops of your favorite essential oil....I like lemon oil for these wipes

Tall tupaware or other container....a large coffee can would work great.

Cut your roll of paper towels in half, like this.

Pull the cardboard center out. You will pull the wipes from the middle like this.

Place paper towel half in container. Mix ingredients and poor over towels. Put an airtight lid on and let set for about 30 minutes. It's that easy.

These are a non toxic alternative to those pricey commercial anti-bacterial wipes. I wouldn't go as far to call them "green" because you are using paper towels but I really love the convenience of them.

Gavin can now clean up his own pee off the floor and the toilet seat. (Just be sure to tell your children to throw them in the trash not flush them!)

frightening revelation

2010-07-26T20:53:00.000-05:00

I was at the mall today and met a man on the elevator with 5 kids....two of which looked like identical twins.

"You have twins I see." I said to make conversation, making sure I didn't ask the most annoying and obvious question...do you have twins?

"Triplets actually." He then introduced me to his family which consisted of a 6 year old boy, triplet 4 year olds (a girl and identical boys) and a 3 year old girl. Did I mention he was alone? No mom in sight. This guy needs an award of some sort, and possibly teach classes at the local community college for other fathers. I gave my respects and admiration and was on my way.

I kept running in to them throughout our day. I was in total awe of how well behaved his children were. They followed behind him and kept together.....that's when it hit me. He had no stroller.

This is a frightening thought for me. The stroller is my sense of control in public places. My twin two year old's are safely buckled in and I have a handle for each older boy to hang onto. The very idea of not using one scares the heck out of me!

I didn't even realize that I am on my way OUT of the stroller phase. I'm gonna have to get one of those ropes with handles that the former Jon & Kate +8 use....even though I know Zander will boycott that idea because he's way to cool.

I'm also contemplating the possible scares of having two 5 year old's in strollers. Do you think it will have the same social akwardness as breastfeeding a 5 year old?

Dear Zander,

2010-07-25T22:21:00.001-05:00

I can't believe you are already six years old! You will always be my baby boy....but you have such an old soul. You have a big responsibility being the oldest of four children....and you take that job very seriously. You are such a good big brother to your baby sisters. You love to "read" to them and everyday sit with them in the bathroom determined to potty train them.

You are a very sensitive boy and do what is expected of you. Because of this, you pretty much get whatever you want. All you have to do is say, "Please Mom?" and look at me with your big brown eyes and I melt and do whatever you ask.

You are 6 going on 16. Style is very important to you. You like skinny jeans and converse and want to dress like a teenager. You keep begging me so you can take break dancing lessons. You refuse to wear baggy jeans or cargo pants. You think "fat shoes" and long shorts makes you look like Sponge Bob.

A few weeks go you killed a spider outside and came in to brag about it. I informed you that the killing was unnecessary and explained that spiders helped control the insect population and next time to let the spiders living outdoors live. An hour later, we were driving down the road and you began to sob uncontrollably. I asked you what as wrong and you defended your spider killing.

"I love all animals Mom! I am a protector of all animals. That spider I killed was going to kill other bugs! Defenseless bugs like beetles! I love beetles! I protect bugs!!"

Zander, you were an emotional mess. And I love you for it. That's just an example of what a thoughtful, sensitive boy you are.

You love to fight and wrestle with your brother. You are kind of mean to him and like to torture him and tattle and get him in trouble. He makes you so mad when he mimics what you say and follows you around. He admires you so much....but he just gets on your nerves. You're lucky that I can totally relate, because I'm also the oldest child.

My first love. My first born. I never knew what love was until I saw you come out of me....yes, the doctor put a giant mirror "down there" and I saw you with my very own eyes come out of me! It was frightening and amazing all rolled into one. While you were still inside me (TMI?!) I grabbed you under your arms and "delivered" you myself and brought you to my chest. It was the most magical experience I've ever had. All the pain from the 14 hour natural labor vanished. You made everything worth it.

I love you with all my heart and can't wait to see what adventures we have in the next year. You are every mother's dream.

Happy Birthday Zander!

Love, Mom....because Momma is for babies...

Zander's Birthday Party

2010-07-25T20:39:00.000-05:00

Earlier this year I announced to the world my stand against big birthday parties. Don't misunderstand me. A child's birthday should be special. But let's get real, is the party for our child or to impress the guests? Is it necessary to shell out three hundred plus dollars on your kid's birthday? Hmmm....or maybe I feel this way because I don't have an extra $300 in the budget to blow on a party? Whatever the answer is, I declared last year, "NEVER AGAIN!"

Instead I wanted to make my child's birthday special by taking that money that would be spent for a birthday party and do something. Being a family of six on one income we don't get to do a lot of stuff that smaller families do....like go eat at a fun restaurant then go to an amusement park or movie. That was the plan....yeah, my kids didn't like it.

Zander, turning 6, kept talking about his birthday party....making plans....he wanted it to be at Big Splash, or Laser Tag, or Bounce U....like all his friends. The truth is, we can't afford that. I tried to persuade him that instead of a party we, as a family, could go to Big Splash or one of those other places, but he insisted that he wanted to invite his friends.

Call me a liar or call me a push over, we ended up having a party. But seriously, it was small compared to other extravagant parties.

We spent an afternoon hand making our invitations and then delivered them to the neighborhood kids. We bought a blow up pool at Aldi for only $16 and bought 4 boxes of sherbet popsicles for less then $2 apiece. We had a couple of slip n slides (which we received as gifts earlier in the season) set up as well.

For lunch we served Zander's favorite lunch....PB&J, Cheetos, grapes and pink lemonade.

Cheeto hands!

When the kids got hot they came inside for craft time. I bought visors from the Dollar Tree...3 for a $1! They decorated them with glitter, stickers, and such....which I already had.

All in all, the birthday was super fun and super cheap. I decorated the inside of my house with left over luau stuff from a party several years ago.

Pure joy.

One little boy said, "This is the best birthday party ever! "

Best. Feeling. Ever.

You don't have to spend a lot of money to have a fun birthday party. I seriously believe that even IF we could afford the big party that we would opt NOT to have one....we're just minimalist like that. On the other hand, I'm thankful that his friends have parties at all those fun places so my child can experience them....

Obama Rice

2010-07-20T08:08:00.001-05:00

We're at the grocery store yesterday and Gavin asks, "Mom, can we pleeeeze get the Barack Obama rice today?"

I ignored him, and continued to read the ingredients on a box of couscous.

He continued. "Please mom. You never buy Barack Obama rice. Can we please get Barack Obama rice?"

I finally realized what he was asking. "What in the world are you talking about?"

He points up at a box of Uncle Ben's rice. Really? wth? I was cracking up. President's are on money....why not rice boxes?

This is coming from the same kid who saw a picture of Bin Laden and shouted "Santa!" Far from it kid. I'm trying not to read to much into his horrible observations.

vaseline & ken dolls

2010-07-12T10:34:00.001-05:00

Saturday night I went to my friend Danielle's bachelorette party and had WAY to much fun. With that said, Sunday I received the World's Worst Mother Award. I was tired and crabby all day.

Monday morning came around and I had to make it up to my sweet children for putting up with me the day before. I decided to make french toast for breakfast in hopes for their forgiveness. The way to my children's heart is definitely maple syrup.

I called the kids down for breakfast. Maya did not come. I went upstairs and found this...

She found a tub of Vaseline.

"I pretty Mommy?" she asked me when I walked in.

These pictures do NOT do this giant gooey greasy mess justice.

If you ever have this mess to clean up, alcohol works on the carpet and dish soap on the hair. As for the body. Lots of paper towels and time. Ugh. It's a nice way to start a Monday morning before your coffee. But really how can you be upset with a two year old this cute?

In other household news, Saturday I bought a Barbie Dream House for the girls for only $2! I know they are a little young but I loved Barbie when I was a little girl and always dreamed of having her house. I couldn't pass it up.

They only had one doll that they received for Christmas from a relative this past year, so we went to Target to buy another. Zander (my almost 6 yr old BOY) begged me to buy a Ken doll for him...so I did. Two of them, one for each boy. The boys have been playing Barbies all weekend.

I haven't the heart to tell them they are "girl toys"

I have to come clean before school starts....or their friends come over.

It thrills me to have these pictures to torture them when they are older.

Evil? maybe. Funny? definitely.

sick or a phase?

2010-07-10T08:40:00.000-05:00

We're going on day five of Camille's (age 2) non-stop whining and crying. The poor baby has been attached at my hip for four days straight. It seems nothing can make her happy.

I am hopping her amber teething necklace will do the trick. I'm kind of at a loss. I have noticed she is burping a bit more. Could this mean indigestion? or stomach ache?

She's still eating. Well....she's picky....but that's nothing new.

Her voice is a little raspy too.

What do you think? Just a phase? Or teething? Or worse?

It is such a hassle to take my crew to the doctor. Not to mention what would I say? "Yes. My 2 year old is moody and fussy. Fix her."

Calgone, take me away!

2010-07-08T12:12:00.000-05:00

It's one of those days.

It's 11:22 am and my house is finally quiet. All 4 children asleep, hopefully to wake up in better moods. It's been a crazy emotional morning.

The craziness is partly my fault. Last night I let the boys talk me into staying up late and watching Star Wars. It's summer right? Why not. They can sleep in.

Well, they didn't. Instead they were up at 7:30....that's earlier than they usually wake up.

Since we were up so early anyway I decided to get the kids dressed and meet some friends for a playdate over at the mall playground. We were all dressed ready to go, dog in the kennel, and babies buckled in the car seats. I asked Gavin to scoot over so Zander could get by in the van. He refused. Things escalated. Tears and screaming on his side. I was at a loss as to what to do. I told him to get out of the van so we could have a talk. He refused again. I told him that if he didn't listen to me then we weren't going to go play with our friends. He still refused.

What's a mother to do? Make empty threats? Not me.

So I unloaded the twins....who, by the way, did not understand what was going on and were crushed because we were going back inside. They both started crying. Zander was angry at his brother.

Gavin still refused to get out of the van. Screaming at the top of his lungs ordering me to take him to the mall. We all went inside and left him throwing his fit by himself....which lasted about 20 minutes.

Then he can in. He said he would be nice and asked to go to the mall.

"Sorry Gavin. It's to late. I'm glad that you decided to be nice, but we're not going to the mall. The way you behaved and talked to me was wrong."

"Mom! You're so mean to me! I WANT TO GO TO THE MALL RIGHT NOW!!" Followed by more screaming.

Ok. The husband and I have been talking about this a lot lately. He thinks I need to spank him. It's really hard for me to spank my children. It's one thing to swat their little hand when they try to touch the stove. But spanking as a punishment? I have mixed emotions about that.

But I did. I spanked him. Seriously he was acting horrid. I needed to get his attention. He's 4 going on 14 and if I don't get this attitude in check I'm in trouble.

He was sent to his room where he continued to throw stuff and scream and he was making himself sick with anger. I went in there after time had past and the tantrum hadn't ceased.

"Gavin? Calm down. You're going to making yourself crazy. Come here."

I sat on the bed. He walked over with angry eyes and said, "I want to cut your head off!"

I hugged him. "Calm down my son. Mommy loves you. Please stop saying hurtful things that you don't mean."

"I want to go to the mall!"

"We're not going to the mall today. You have a choice now. You can be angry and mad for the rest of the day OR you can get over it. You can come down stairs and eat lunch with us if you want. I made PB&J...your favorite."

Sigh. It's been one of those days.

He gets his wild emotions from me. I can totally relate. But it's my job to teach him how to control them. Right now I'm at a loss on how to do this. He really is a sweet boy. Just very moody and emotional. He's got all the makings to be a very successful musician or artist.

What did I learn from this? It's to late to start a movie at 8pm.

Going Green

2010-07-07T21:24:00.002-05:00

I watched a documentary not to long ago (sorry, don't remember the name of it). Some very educated man concluded that multitasking was a delusion, in reality one simply does one thing, switches to another task, then switches back. HA! Obviously he isn't a Mother of 4 young children like me. I have cooked dinner, helped with homework, and breast fed a baby all at the SAME TIME!

Multitasking is ONE reason I love cleaning green. My twin girls are now two. They love their bath time every evening....usually spending 30 minutes in the tub. I still have to watch them the entire time, but I don't have to be at arms length anymore. When you make your own non-toxic cleaners you can safely clean the rest of the bathroom without worrying your babies are breathing in harsh chemicals. See? Multitasking.

Here's a few other perks of making your own homemade non-toxic cleaners:

You save money.
Down size your cleaning supplies....seriously, go through your house and count ALL your cleaners....I had 32 in my house. 32 different cleaners...that's a LOT of space I could be saving.
It's good for the environment and your families health.
Safety. If your child gets into your homemade cleaners it's not that big a deal. There are over 5 million reported poisoning every year, the #1 cause of child poisoning is household cleaners.

We all love our children and want what's best for them. We all baby proof our home with those annoying cabinet and drawer guards. The problem is both my boys mastered these by age 3. Not to mention they could push a chair up and climb anything. I have the cutest video of Zander in the kitchen when he was about 2. He got into the cabinets, somehow opened the vegetable oil (it was a push down, twist off top!) and poured it all over the kitchen floor. He was so proud of his mess and had a blast slipping around in it. But what if that was Drano?! Drano is the most dangerous thing to have in your home. Don't take my word for it. Check with the all knowing google...he'll tell ya. I'm guilty of buying the liquid poison religiously. With my long hair you know I've got some clogged drains. My husband wonders how I have any hair on my head at all because I shed so much!

I will stop now. As you can see I have become a little obsessed with learning about this kind of stuff and I feel like I need an outlet. Hey, maybe I'll do a spin off from this blog. Hmmm....what should I call it? Going Green w/ Suburban Hippie Momma? Or how about "Learning Green" because I definitely don't claim to know it all and am learning everyday. I sure as heck haven't led a green lifestyle. I'm embarrassed to say I just started recycling religiously this year. Yeah. Shame on me.

So it's settled. I'm starting a new blog. Don't worry faithful followers. Surviving 4 Kids isn't going anywhere. I just know that some people are settled in there ways and don't care about this stuff. I'm not a pushy person, just passionate. PLUS this is my children's blog. It's my mommy outlet. Don't want to weigh it down with startling statistics and non-toxic cleaner recipes.

I also plan on tackling other issues of concern. One step at a time. Like the food I eat and feed my family. Yikes. I love me some Taco Bueno. Not sure if I really want to learn where that food comes from or how it's processed!

I think it will be fun and educational, plus, knowledge is wisdom right? I talk can talk the talk, but can I walk the walk. We shall see.

Any ideas on what to call the new blog? "Journey to Green" ??

And more important, would YOU be willing to take the journey WITH ME??

Secret Agent Zander

2010-07-01T15:15:00.000-05:00

I just had a very funny conversation with a couple of 5 year old boys. Joe (the kid from next door) came down stairs from playing with the other children, looking very disturbed.

"Ms. Dana? Is Zander really a spy?" Joe asked.

I had to pry. "Why do you ask that?"

Kid by day, spy by night

"Well, Zander said he was. A real one. He said when you go to sleep at night he sneaks out of the house to his secret headquarters. He said he fights bad guys that our in our neighborhood. He says he's a ninja and he uses rocks as weapons. Are there really bad guys in our neighborhood?"

"He is just pretending Joe." I tried to reassure him.

Zander joined us downstairs.

"Your mom said your not really a spy." Joe told Zander.

"Yeah I am. She has no clue. She thinks I'm just her normal kid....but I'm really not." He leans over and whispers in his friend's ear, "I'm a Secret Agent."

"But there are no bad guys in our neighborhood!" Joe exclaimed.

"Not anymore. I fought them all. Some tried to sneak in your house, but I fought them right in your front yard! You must have been sleeping. It was around midnight."

"Zander!" I gave him the look. "He's pretending Joe." I could see the look of concern in Joe's eyes.

"Believe what you want." Zander said with an evil grin.

I have to admit that I'm a little impressed of this whole scheme he's got going on. I love his imagination but is it really necessary to scare the neighbor kids?? Joe's parents are just gonna love this one.

uno, dos, tres...

2010-06-29T09:04:00.001-05:00

Say what you want about children watching TV, they can learn from it. Maya came walking downstairs last night counting in Spanish! She can count to 8 all by herself....and to 12 with a little help!

We don't watch a lot of tv in our house, but I do allow the children to watch morning cartoons on netflix. They usually choose Diego, it's the only show ALL the kids can agree on. It gives me a little time to myself to drink some coffee and check my email and facebook.

I got all excited when I heard her and decided to sit the girls down just to see how smart they were. We got some of our favorite counting and color books and I got to work quizzing them.

camille

That's when I observed something very interesting in my girls.

I've been asked several times "Which one is the dominate twin?" I never really know how to answer. They are just different. Both have pretty strong personalities but neither one dominates the other.

When the girls are together Maya answers all my questions. She is very bright and articulate and loves to "play school." Camille lets her sister do all the work and just sits there quietly listening. She doesn't speak up or participate.

I separated them and asked Camille her colors and we practiced counting. She did great....away from her sister.

So this makes we wonder about school in a few years. As parents of twins we have the choice to separate them or keep them together. On one hand preK is a HUGE adjustment and maybe having each other would be nice....but I want each of my girls to shine and not be thought of as a unit.

Maya Princess

A while back at our TMOM's (Tulsa Mother's of Multiples) meeting we had a panel of older twins and their parents. One mother decided to keep her boys in the same class throughout elementary school because she wanted her children to have the same foundation in education. She feared one twin would get a "better" teacher. Not to mention the annoyance of different homework.

I have 2 years before I need to make a decision, but this observation in my girls really got me thinking on the subject. A question for other MOM's ......

Are you going to separate or keep you twins together in school?

Tulsa Kids Magazine

2010-06-28T20:33:00.001-05:00

Be sure to pick up a free copy of Tulsa Kids magazine this month. There is an article in it titled, "Twins Plus More, Giving Siblings Room to Grow" written by the very talented Holly Wall. She interviewed me (yup, I feel like a star) and a picture of our family is in it!

I was so excited to show my boys (ages 4 & 5) their picture in a magazine. Unfortunately, they weren't to impressed. In fact, they were a little jealous of the four children on the opposite page.

"Hey, no fair! They get to go swimming and play with bubbles." Zander pointed out.

"Yeah. We're just sitting in the yard." Gavin added.

5

2010-06-21T21:53:00.001-05:00

The single most annoying thing about babies growing up is going up a size in diapers!

Ugh.

The twins just graduated from a size 4 to a size 5....that's 26 less diapers!! Let me tell you, they aren't peeing any less. Perhaps more now that they prefer a straw in there cup.

Is this Pampers way to motivate parents to potty train?

With Zander I pushed potty training. We sat for hours in the bathroom reading books. We had a chart with stickers, M&M's, and watched video's encouraging it. With Gavin...well, lets just say he taught me the individual child will choose when to go in the toilet. It's their decision.

I've heard through the grapevine that girls are easier then boys to potty train. I also swore that when summer got here I would let the girls go around nude and they would magically train themselves....because, after all, they are so much smarter then boys! Yeah, a couple of accidents squashed that dream.

I've come to 2 conclusions.

#1 I don't know a single kindergartner still in diapers...they will eventually be potty trained.

#2 I've become lazy with 4 kids and just don't have the time or energy to sit for hours in the bathroom reading.

Embrace the Camera!

2010-06-21T21:16:00.001-05:00

OK. I am totally ripping off a fellow mommy blogger today. My good friend over at http://www.50stickyfingers.blogspot.com/ started an "embrace the camera" day. The idea is to capture photos your children will cherish.

Pictures of my mother and I are few and far between. SOOOO here goes. Embrace the camera....which can be hard because I am camera shy, PLUS who do you think takes all the pictures??

This picture just proves how out numbered I am! HA!
(please ignore the unfinished baseboards....we've been remodeling)

love hate relationship

2010-06-19T19:16:00.001-05:00

Oh play dough.

How I love you....and hate you.

You're a lifesaver on these hot summer days.

The kids love you and play with you for hours.

But I find you all over the house....

in the rug,

on the bottom of shoes,

in pockets,

under fingernails,

and

in the dog's bowl.

Play dough is pretty cheap, but if your kids like it as much as mine, you may want to try making it yourself. It's fun and super easy. The kids will LOVE this recipes and there hands will smell good for hours!

What you need:

2 1/2 cups of flour

1 cup of salt

3 tbsp of veggie oil

2 cups of boiling water

2 packages of unsweetened kool-aid

Mix dry ingredients. Add oil and water. Wearing gloves knead for 10 minutes. Store in ziplock or tuperware in refrigerator.

Have fun!

worms

2010-06-18T20:09:00.002-05:00

I am never prepared for the conversations I have with my very grown up 5 year old, Zander. Today at lunch we were talking about the worms they found earlier that morning. The boys began to argue back and forth about the sex of a specific worm. The largest fattest worm of the bunch. Zander said it was a male because it was so big....Gavin said a female (fat and pregnant).

They turned to me for the answer. I don't like to just tell my kids what to believe and encourage them to find out for themselves...with every aspect of life....so I thought we would figure it out together. We turned to google for the answer. Here's what we read, "Worms are Hermaphrodites. That means that each worm has male and female sex organs."

I knew the answer to the question but had NO CLUE where our conversation was headed....

"Hmmm...Hermaphrodite?" Zander said it over and over making sure he got the pronunciation correct. The idea of something being both a girl and boy intrigued him....and cracked him up at the same time.

"Mom, can people be a hermaphrodite?" he asked me.

Uh-oh. What should I tell him?! Truth is best, right?

"Yes son. There are some people born with both women and men parts."

This sent him rolling on the floor with laughter.

I tried my best to explain to him that the way people are born is no laughing matter, hermaphrodites couldn't help the way they were born just like he couldn't help it if he has brown hair. Thankfully he accepted this and stopped calling his little brother a hermaphrodite.

He begged me to look up pictures online and show him. I refused, scared of the images I'd find if I googled the word.

I am certain this conversation will backfire one day and he will ask a stranger at the the grocery store if they are a hermaphrodite. Mark my words, he will not forget the word and embarrass the hell out of me.

doggie dog world

2010-06-15T22:14:00.002-05:00

I'm not a dog person....or a cat person for that matter. Never had one growing up. Never wanted one as an adult.

I know it's a weird hang up and I want my children to love animals....so we got a Boston Terrier puppy last year, Obi. Surprisingly, I have really grown to love the little guy....but he still gets on my nerves a little.

Obi

I had to give you a little background info for my current story. I am dog sitting my sister's 8 month old boxer, Jupiter, for 8 days. Me (the self proclaimed "not a dog person") dog sitting a giant puppy for over a week....while we're remodeling our house.

Let me make sure you understand. 2 puppies, 4 kids, living in construction chaos...and did I mention it's been raining?!

Yesterday morning the kids and I were on our way out to meet some friends for a playdate. Before we left the boys let the dogs out to go potty. Jupiter decided to roll in a mud puddle. Ugh. I wanted to just leave them in the backyard but they had been JUMPING the fence the entire day before. I knew my sister would never forgive me if I lost her dog. So we dragged her giant crate outside to lock her up....I was dressed and didn't want to get dirty. This way I could deal with the muddy dog later. I thought my idea was brilliant.

Jupiter

It wasn't.

It rained while I was gone. Water collect in the poor dog's crate...she was standing in about 5 inches of water! The night before I put a maroon colored blanket inside so she would be comfortable. It colored the water hot pink and dyed her paws!

I felt horrible.

I had to carry a giant wet hot pink boxer puppy to the bath and scrub her down. Let me tell you, it was a sight to see. I'm sure my boys learned a few choice words I spewed off during the ordeal.

I will never be asked to dog sit again.

recycled dresses

2010-06-07T20:56:00.000-05:00

I've been having so much fun "recycling" clothes. I bought a giant skirt from goodwill, cut it up and made a few dresses. Here are my 2 favorite....the first 3 were horrible. Total cost of fabric and ribbon: $2.50!

I love you butt...

2010-06-03T10:54:00.000-05:00

Gavin has been the topic of most my latest blog entries.

I just can't help it...the kid cracks me up...even in times of frustration...

Without further adu...another Gavin story...

We're having dinner.

With a mouth full of food Gavin dazes off into space. Daydreaming. He then takes his dirty fork and starts brushing his hair with it...still in la la land.

"Gavin! Wake up buddy! That's gross!"

Still looking out the window Gavin dips his fork back into his food and accidentally flings it up overhead.

*sigh*

"Gavin, I love you but...."

That's what my Weegie (my dad's mom) use to say to us kids when we would get in trouble. I find myself saying it all the time.

"Mom, I love your eyes." Gavin responded, waking from his trance.

To old for lullabies...

2010-05-31T21:57:00.001-05:00

You know how most children love their momma when they aren't feeling good? Not my Gavin (4). That would go against everything about that boy...to do what is expected of him.

Both boys have been sick since last night. Not sure what's wrong. Just a high fever and sleepy...no other symptoms.

Gavin woke up from his afternoon nap very hot. I brought him a drink of water with a thermometer in hand. As soon as he saw it he screamed and ran away from me. I promised him it wouldn't hurt and tried my best to calm down the hysterical little guy. He wasn't having it. I physically had to hold him down and put it under his arm. I then started singing "twinkle twinkle little star" to try to calm him down.

This only made him MORE ANGRY and he reached up and put his hand over my mouth. "No! I don't like that song!"

Alright. I looked down at the thermometer...it was already at 102 and going up....

So I started singing his all time favorite "Bushel and a Peck."

"NOOO!!" and he reached up and swatted my mouth. "That song is for BABIES!! I'm a BIG BOY!"

Looked down at the thermometer again...still going up...103....I really need to invest in one of those fancy forehead contraptions!

"OK Gavin. I know you don't feel good, but you have to be nice to Mommy. What song do you want me to sing?" I stalled checking the extra slow thermometer again.

"I like rock and roll."

I couldn't help but smile.

Then I busted out some Bob Seger "Old Time Rock & Roll" in my best raspy voice. Not really sure where that came from but it was the first thing I thought of! He liked it, so I guess that's what matters.

103.6 Poor little guy.

A Hot Mess

2010-05-31T12:45:00.000-05:00

Most of you know that last year we purchased our first home. It was is definitely a fixer upper. In fact, it was pretty trashed out. Last month we replaced the carpet upstairs and in the master bedroom downstairs. This weekend Ely started to tear up the tile downstairs. He and my dad are going to lay new tile next month....yeah, that's 2+ weeks living in chaos.

Very thankful to have a handy man husband. Saving us tons of money.

I have never pulled up tile before. No one warned me what it would be like. Let me enlighten you.

It's LOUD! Between the compressor and the drill-thingy that breaks up the tile you can't even hear yourself think....not to mention scardy cat Camille is terrified of the vacuum cleaner. You can imagine what this did to her.

It's DIRTY! Because it was so load and I didn't want the kids to get in Ely's way, we went to the park for a few hours. When I came back it was filthy! You could see the dust in the air. There is, seriously, an inch of dust throughout my entire house!

I opened all the doors and windows to try to air out the house...bye-bye air conditioner. You can bet that this is the hottest weekend of the year (so far).

If I would have known this tid bit of information I would have cleared off all the counter tops, packed up most of the living room decor and instruments. I should have covered the furniture with sheets and made sure all the bedroom doors were shut. But NoOOoo, this is one of those live and learn scenarios.

I am seriously considering taking a water hose to the inside of my house.

I promise I'm not being a spoiled brat. I am very excited about getting new floors....just kicking myself at the same time.

Happy Memorial Day Weekend!

Passive Aggressive Evil

2010-05-29T21:18:00.000-05:00

Last week I was at the pharmacy waiting on a prescription for the girls. (Camille woke up with matted eyes, it just so happened to be the morning of the girls 2 year checkup....turns out pink eye. ugh.)

Anyway, we're there waiting. The twins (2) and Gavin (4) are all sitting at the kiddie table watching Diego on the flat screen. In my opinion, they were being good considering they just got poked, prodded and immunized plus it was lunch time. Most of the onlookers commented how adorable there red hair was or told me about every set of twins they knew.

All but one.

This woman...we'll call her B....sat there with her sunglasses on (yes, we were inside), arms crossed, and a snarl on her face.

"Are you waiting to pick up your Valium?" B asked me.

I gave her a very confused look and shook my head no.

"Humph." she snapped. "I need one and I've only been listening to your children for 10 minutes."

My mouth dropped open. I had no idea what to say to that. I'm a very non-confrontational person, so I just smiled at her uncomfortably.

The truth is I felt sorry for her. But I still felt offended.

A few minutes later the cartoon was over and the kids started getting antsy. They proceeded to rearrange all the furniture in the waiting room. I think that's when my "evil streak" kicked in. Usually I will redirect the children to more appropriate activities but I thought, hey she thought that was bad....I'll show her bad.

Muahahahaha. <---my evil laugh.

I just sat there reading my Good Housekeeping magazine, not even looking up. The twins then decided to spin in circles and sing twinkle twinkle little star at the top of their lungs. I kept reading my magazine. Gavin decided to race his hotwheel on top of the kiddie table crashing it onto the floor over and over again. I continued reading.

Eventually B got up, stepped over a couple of dizzy cuties that had fallen on the floor, and stormed out.

It's official. I'm a little evil. I wanted my children to get on her nerves.

Chores

2010-05-28T22:17:00.000-05:00

I dream of the day when the kids are doing all housework. I mean, it's got to be a perk of having so many children right? I figure in the next 5 years, if I play my cards right, most of the housework can be completed by the kids. The girls will be seven...plenty old enough to set the table, clear it and help with laundry. Gavin will be nine. I see doing the dishes and yard work in his future. And Zander, well by 11, I'm sure he will be cleaning the bathrooms and doing most of the cooking. A mother can dream, right?

look at this lazy bunch of misfits!

I've been working on making a schedule of chores for the kids....well, the big boys. For the girls, a more consistent clean up routine. (I'm the type that does it myself because it's easier and faster)

I involved the boys with the brainstorming. I was surprised at how "on board" they were. They are actually excited about having chores! And even more excited about the reward system (more about that later!)

We went to Mardel's and bought a couple of reusable chore charts and stickers.

Here are their daily chores:

Make bed
Clean room
Put away toys
Dust (once a week)
Feed Obi
Set table
Clear table
Rinse dishes (at lunch and breakfast)
Water plants
Help with laundry
Homework or read
Empty trash in bathrooms
Clean bathrooms (3x's a week)
Practice music or dance
Good attitude

I started making my own cleaning supplies a couple months ago, so I feel comfortable handing my 4 year old a bottle of non-toxic cleaner (made with tea-tree oil or vinegar). He thinks it's fun to spray down the bathroom counter tops and toilet. I wonder how long this fun will last....

I think our reward system is pretty cool too. The boys are NOT good with money yet. They like to keep it in their pockets where it gets lost, give it to their friends or they become obsessed with spending it. So we decided to do a point system. Each sticker is worth one point. At the end of the week we add up the stickers and write the total down then clear the chart to start the next week.

One afternoon when the twins were napping, the boys and I browsed the Toys R Us website. They had a blast looking at all the toys. I printed out pictures of a couple of the things they thought were cool....all ranging in price....$5 to $1200!! At the bottom of the picture I put how many points each one "cost" and hung it on their bedroom door. Obviously they won't make enough money to buy the bigger items, but I went ahead printed it out because I want them to dream AND learn the value of a dollar.

I'm very curious to see what comes of this system. Will they buy a small item...just because they can? Will they save their points for a bigger item? Will they put their points together to share something?

Only time will tell....I'll let you know how it goes....wish me luck!!

Summer Time

2010-05-25T21:12:00.000-05:00

I am secretly excited about school being out for the summer. Please remind me of this excitement when it's 110 degrees outside and the kids are running around and destroying the house because it's just to hot to swim in the shade. Not really sure why I'm so happy....it's not like my kids sleep in or anything! I do have lots of fun stuff planned....zoo, aquarium, splash pads, sandwiched in at the library, free bowling & $1 movies, story time on riverside, utica square music nights....not to mention all the "down time" at home.

In other DesJardins news, Camille fell (again) and hit her face on the driveway. That poor girl always has some horrific accident....at least this time it didn't result in stitches! Ely has been sing "Camille the red-nose redhead" to her all week (the tune of Rudolph).

Our garden is doing pretty good this year. We have 4 raised beds with lots of tomatoes, spinach, eggplant, squash, zucchini, peppers, jalapenos, and more! Ely built a fence to keep the kids and the dog (and hopefully rabbits!) out of the garden. We're going to plant grapes along the fence so they will "climb" it.

Our first bell pepper!

The twins have been fighting so much lately it was super sweet to see them kiss through the fence this evening!

Espresso Banana Muffins

2010-05-23T22:30:00.000-05:00

I had several friends ask me for my espresso banana muffin recipe so I thought I'd go ahead and post it on here so they can all take a looksy. If you're interested in the zucchini-raisin muffins served at the girls birthday party you can get it HERE.

Espresso Banana Muffins

2 cups of white whole-wheat flour
2 tsp of baking powder
1/2 tsp of fine grain sea salt
1 1/4 cups of toasted walnuts
1 tbsp of fine espresso powder (I use 2 tbsp of fine ground coffee)
6 tbsp unsalted butter...room temp
3/4 cup natural cane sugar
2 lg eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup plain yogurt
1 1/2 cups of mashed overripe bananas (about 3 lg bananas)

Preheat oven to 375. Line muffin tins.

Combine flour, baking powder, salt, 3/4 cup of walnuts, and espresso in bowl.

In separate large bowl or mixer, cream the butter until fluffy. Beat in sugar and then the eggs, one at a time. Stir in vanilla, yogurt and mashed bananas. Then briefly and gently stir in dry ingredients. Over stirring causes muffins to be tough.

Divide into muffin tin. Top with remaining walnuts. Bake 25 minutes or until golden. Let cool for 5 minutes then remove.

Makes 12 muffins.

I got this recipe from Super Natural Cooking by Heidi Swanson...love, love, love this cookbook.

These muffins are amazing warm with a little butter.....mmmm....but you know what the best thing about them is??? Your kids can't eat them because they have coffee in them! Yeah, I'm one of those moms that will buy the jalaneno kettle cooked chips so I don't have to share. I'm stingy like that.

Happy 2nd Birthday Camille Rose!

2010-05-21T23:21:00.001-05:00

Camille,

You are are truly a sweet girl. You are so thoughtful. When I give you special treat you hold out your other hand and say, "and sissy?"

You have the nick name "Crazy Camille" for a reason. You are very athletic and love to climb, jump and spin. Seriously, I have never seen anyone spin in circles as long as you can.

Camille, you are my mini-me...my muscle...If I'm getting on to the boys you can be sure that you are right there behind me with your hand on your hip and finger shaking. Last night at dinner your dad and I were disagreeing about something. You said, "Enough Daddy!" He looked at you and said, "I'm the Dad and you don't talk to me that way." You looked at him and said, "That's Mom. Enough." It took everything I had not to crack up! You're a feisty little thing.

You are extremely shy around strangers. You cry when you see a bug or an animal that you don't know. The vacuum terrifies you. You love your pink and brown polka dot blankie.

Camille, you LOVE to color and paint. You can do it for hours. You are also showing interest in playing music. You pick up the djembe daily to drum ordering your sister to dance. You also love to strum your daddy's guitar. Not to mention, you play a mean whistle.

You love to play outside and get dirty. You are not into hair bows or ponytails (it's a constant battle between us!) You are so smart. You can (and will) repeat everything you hear.

I love you with all my heart little one.

~Momma

Happy 2nd Birthday Maya Louise!

2010-05-21T22:43:00.000-05:00

Maya,

I can not believe that you are already two years old! You will always be "Maya Princess." You are definitely a momma's girl and you have your daddy wrapped around your little finger. You love to make your sister laugh. You have a special bond with Zander and LOVE to go pick him up at the bus stop. Everyday you ask him, "Was school? Was school? Was school?" until he answers you.."It was FINE!"

Maya, you would rather be in the kitchen sitting on the counter helping me cook then outside playing with the other kids. You love to sing. You are an extremely picky eater and mainly survive on goldfish and raisins.

You have your special baby that you chew on her feet every night. When it makes a laughing sound you make a sad face and then say, "awww, baby cry."

You're definitely a bossy boss and I think you kinda like tattling on your brother Gavin. You come to me daily saying, "Bubba hut mee" with your bottom lip out. Gavin comes in yelling, "No I didn't!" I may never know the truth.

You've already mastered playing hard to get. Every morning when your dad leaves for work we all kiss him at the door ....everyone but you. You are stingy with your kisses and you make your daddy work for them. You will go to the other side of the room and pretend to be sad or bashful....make HIM come to you. Then he picks you up, you put your head down and bat your lashes and say "noOOoo" until he smothers you in kisses and tickles before you smile and say goodbye.

You love for me to read to you. When we look at animal books everything is a bear or a cow. You are such a sweet baby girl. I am totally in love with you.

~Momma

Best. Rainy Day. Ever.

2010-05-19T13:44:00.001-05:00

I've wish I could say that I have always enjoyed being a stay at home mom. But that's just not true. It was a really hard transition for me. I enjoyed working. I loved having the freedom to go out with my friends whenever I wanted. I was one of those who took off for the weekend to see a concert in another state. My life was to busy for a dog....let alone a child.

Then I got pregnant...by accident. I always new I wanted children. But when they started rolling in...well, I wasn't sure what to do with them. I even resented my husband for "getting" to go to work.

It took me a few years to truely love being a stay at home mom. Not sure when my "ah-ha" moment was. Probably a combination of several things. Moved back to OK to be closer to family and friends. Found the most amazing group of women at TMOM's (Tulsa Mothers of Multiples) and now have a fantastic network of moms. I can honestly say there is nothing I would rather do than take care of my children each and everyday. They have taught me more than I can ever teach them. I am so thankful to have a husband who works so hard to allow me the opportunity to stay home and watch these amazing little people grow up.

Here is our morning in pictures. Best. Rainy day. Ever.

Maya

Camille

Not sure which was more fun: painting or clean up time.

Gavin is not known for his patience. Drying his painted noodles.

Modeling his finished product....obviously bored by all my picture taking.

Kindergarten Program

2010-05-19T12:21:00.000-05:00

See him? In the front row on the far left?

Zander had his kindergarten program Monday afternoon. It was so sweet. He sang his little heart out. I got a real kick out of all his facial expressions. He told me after the program, "Mom, I have zero stage fright."

I am so in love with that little man.

Back Talk

2010-05-12T09:18:00.001-05:00

After my conversation with Gavin (4) this morning, I'm certain I'll have my work cut out for me when he's a teenager.

Me~ What a beautiful morning! Lets go play outside with our new sidewalk chalk!

Gavin~ No. I want to watch a movie.

Me~ You can watch a movie later...when the girls are taking a nap. Come on, lets play outside.

Gavin~ NO! I said WATCH A MOVIE!! You are SOOOO mean! **cry**

Me~ Really? You're crying because I want to play with you outside?

Gavin~ No, I'm mad at you cause I want to watch a movie! You never let me watch TV. You're sooo mean!

Me~ That's enough. And that's not true. Keep up this attitude and I'll give you something to cry about.

Gavin~ You better not. I'll call the police.

I would never DREAM of talking to my father like this....maybe I'm not very intimidating? Zander (knock on wood) usually does what's expected....but Gavin, oh Gavin. He has a flair for the dramatics.

After I told Gavin that he wasn't being nice, I took the girls in the front yard to play...leaving him alone to mope. Eventually (about 5 minutes) he joined us like nothing happened. I made him hug me and apologize.

Have your children started talking back? If so, what's your reaction?

Graduation & Mother's Day

2010-05-09T20:17:00.001-05:00

What a busy weekend!

Saturday my sister graduated from OSU...I am soOoOoOo PROUD! She has worked so hard putting herself through school and now has a degree in interior design. Smart and beautiful.

3 sisters

And single, I might add...yeah this just turned into match dot com. I've set her up before and it was disastrous. Now she thinks I have no clue...but I am determined...if you know a single guy that can handle this sass...

send me his resume. Now that she's out of school she may have time to date. She's gonna kill me.

Happy Mother's Day!!

It was kind of a weird Mother's Day. The boys spent the night at their PaPa'a last night and Ely went to the Temple this morning. So it was just me and my two favorite girls. They decided to take me out to breakfast. We went to Coffee House on Cherry Street and had pancakes and fruit. And I had my current obsession a dirty chai latte...mmmmm...

It was really nice. We had our breakfast then read books on one of the couches for about an hour.

Later on we met up with the rest of the family for Jacque's graduation party. What a fun....and looong...weekend.

Freaking Out!

2010-05-06T19:28:00.001-05:00

Ok ladies. I am seriously freaking out.

Let me back up a bit.

Remember the new year's resolutions I set earlier this year? If not, you can read here, in the Year of Dana. One of them was to go on a vacation with my sisters. No kids. No husbands. Well, that's happening next week....and I'm totally excited.

We're going to Eureka Springs for 4 days. Spa, wine tasting, spelunking, and shopping. I can't wait.

A few days ago I called the wonderful Suchness Spa and spoke to the owner, Caterena. I told her I was a busy mother of 4 young children and wanted the ultimate spa experience. She suggested the Ocean Essence Cocoon with chakra work and a massage. Sounds amazing.

Why am I freaking out?

At the end of our conversation I say, "Thank you Catarena for all your help. Is there anything I should do or avoid before coming in?"

"I'm so glad you asked," she replied. "No alcohol and no coffee before you come in."

Fine. No problem, but better schedule on first day of vacation! hee, hee.

Then she asked, "Do you go to the spa a lot?"

Ummmm. No. I have 4 kids.

"Well, you're more than welcome to wear a bikini if you are uncomfortable in the nude....a g-string and topless would be best."

Ahhhhh! What?! I don't even own a bikini!!

And as for the g-strings....well, they have been replaced by boy short panties.

Look at the belly....and those stretch marks! I'm very blessed to have 4 healthy beautiful children, but man did they do a number on my body. And nursing 4 kids....lets just say I won't be posing for Sports Illistrated anytime soon.

I thought this whole "body image" issue was long gone with my 20's. I guess sitting naked in front of stangers will bring it all up again. *sigh*

Most of you are probably thinking, "Oh whah. You get to go to a spa and be pampered."

Seriously, this is HUGE for me. Taking time away from my family and the money. I feel guilty. Hey, that's what I'm working on right? This is, after all, The Year of Dana!

Bandana Dress

2010-05-05T15:18:00.000-05:00

Have you heard of the pillowcase dress? I have been wanting to make them for quite some time now. They are super cute play dresses that grow with your child. Long dress when they are a toddler and still fits them as a shirt when they are in grade school. This is assuming that my sewing will last the test of time!

Every time I go to a garage sale or thrift store I keep my eye out for cute prints. If you have no idea what I'm talking about just google "pillowcase dress" and see all the possibilities! So precious. Here are some easy instructions if your feeling crafty.

Well, I didn't have any pillowcases that I wanted to cut up....but I did have 8 bandannas that I bought from the Salvation Army ($2!) several months ago. At the time I had no idea why I was buying them....I just liked the print. Lately I've been really into making the girls clothes out of recycled material. I decided to sew 2 of them together for my "pillowcase."

Considering I'm a major "newbie" at sewing (I got my first sewing machine for Christmas this past year!) I think they turned out pretty cute.

Next time I think I'm going to use ribbon instead of making the straps myself. They took a lot of time and don't look very good up close. But then again, maybe I need the practice!

Murphy's Law

2010-05-03T10:00:00.000-05:00

"Whatever can go wrong will go wrong."

There are two things that I am absolutely sure of by being a mother of 4 small children. #1 I will have to do at least 15 loads of laundry every week . #2 If we are running late to the bus stop in the morning one or both twins will have a dirty diaper. Never fails.

The other morning I was in ultra-frantic mode. Running late....again. Trying to get 4 kids dressed, fed and out the door in a timely manner. Like clockwork both girls left a nice deposit for me in their diapers just as we were trying to load up in the van. I got aggravated and marched the kids back in the house.

Zander (5) noticed my frustration and said, "It's ok Momma. They just had to go poop. It's ok if I miss the bus, you can just drop me off at school." How is a five year old so much wiser than a 31 year old?? It isn't a big deal. Murphy's law is true if you believe it...but my goal is to not give in the that frame of mind anymore. Wish me luck!

In a perfect world, I would get up 2 hours before my kids. Take a shower, do a little yoga and meditation drink a cup of coffee with my husband before seeing him off to work. Be totally awake and centered before diving head first into mommy-mode. But that would put me at getting up at 5 am....ugh. Do you get up earlier than your children? If so when and why? I totally want to try it, but the truth is I'm lazy in the mornings and kind of a night owl.

just another day...

2010-05-02T20:12:00.000-05:00

Usually I only post if the kids say something funny or we did something fun or I captured a sweet smile on film. Today none of that happened....but it was perfect. A lazy Sunday spent at home. Played a lot outside digging in the dirt and collecting roly pollies for the biggest roly poly race ever. (Maya not so much into bugs) We grilled out and just listened to Zander talk for hours about George Washington. Man, that boy can talk!

Camille

While the twins napped Ely started building a fence around our garden so the kids, dog, and rabbits will stay out. I decided to go to Target...alone. Unless you usually do your shopping with multiple kids in tow you just don't understand what a HUGE deal this was. I wandered around the store for hours looking at whatever I wanted without rushing in fear of a meltdown for refusing to buy Dora fruit snacks. There was no bribing. There was no scolding. Just me and my list. The downside to shopping without kids? Spending to much time at the store made my bill a little higher than normal...oops!

After dinner and baths I rocked and sang to my babies. This, too, is a rare treat because my almost 2 year old twins are usually to busy for sitting still.

Did you take time and truly enjoy the blessings in your life today?

Great Salt Plains

2010-04-30T10:04:00.000-05:00

This picture isn't of snow or water but SALT covering the earth!

"Great Salt Plains State Park is your gateway to one of Oklahoma's most fascinating natural wonders. The Salt Plains are literally a sea of salt. They offer selenite crystal digging in season and outstanding bird watching all year long. Great Salt Plains Lake is located at the park and covers 8,690 surface acres with 41 miles of shoreline and is a shallow, salty lake -- about 1/3 to 1/2 as salty as the ocean -- with fishing opportunities for catfish, saugeye, sandbass and hybrid striper."

Pretty cool, huh? That's where my family, father, sisters and family all went a couple of weeks ago for a weekend getaway. How have I lived in OK for most of my life and never heard of this place?! It was so much fun getting dirty and digging for crystals! We found a TON and can't wait to make some jewelry out of my little treasures.

Here are a few pics from the weekend. I left my camera at home (boo!) but my sister got some good shots.

Our little gang of hoodlums. As you can see in the background the salt plains was more like the great muddy plains when we went. It rained the entire day before and all through the night. It made for easy digging!

My nephew Jace burring Gavin in mud...it's vacation right? Why not.

All the guys went fishing. Zander was the only one to catch anything! He was sooo proud!

While the guys went fishing we put the 3 babies down for a nap...they were exhausted from all the digging....my beautiful sisters and I had some bonding time. We explored around the cabin and enjoyed nature.

Played a little jenga and had cocktails (and I won, of course)!

And climbed trees. Yes, we were sore the next day!

Hannah with BoBo (aka Samuel)

It was a great place for a family vacation. The cabins were small but very nice. They had full kitchens with dishes and cookware, grill and fire pit outside, and heating and air conditioning. They also provided lots of towels and extra sheets, pillows and blankets. Only $60-75 a night! 2 thumbs up!

Goodbye my baby boy...

2010-04-21T08:52:00.000-05:00

Zander "I'm going to start calling you Mom"

Me "OK. What did you call me before?"

Zander "I called you Momma and I called Dad, Daddy. I'm growing up Mom. Now I will call you Mom and Dad."

**sniff, sniff**

Grain-ola

2010-04-20T09:58:00.002-05:00

I love cereal.
That sentence doesn't even begin to describe my passion for a cold crunchy bowl of wholesome goodness first thing in the morning.

I am NOT a morning person. I love the convenience of cereal. Virtually no thinking involved. If I had it my way I would serve my children cereal every morning. Or, better yet, have my 5 yr old serve himself AND his siblings. I'm not talking about the giant sugary bags of corn puffs ladies. Lord knows the last thing my kids need in the morning is a sugar high.

That's where I run into a dilemma. When the boys were younger I bought the healthy- organic- whole grain- kid- attractive cereals with an animal or character on the cover. They loved it. And so did my hubby and I. A $5-6 box would last maybe two days. So there I was, spending $25 a week on boxed cereal. Ridiculous.

After taking a Dave Ramsey class and really buckling down on our finances this was an area that we could improve on. I was forced to wake up and actually turn on the stove in the morning. Instead of high priced cereal we would eat oatmeal, eggs and toast, homemade muffins, fruit and yogurt. oh poor me. ;)

I have tried my hand at granola several times in the past 2 years. It always turned out just OK. But never lived up to my high expectations.

Well ladies, I have found a fill for the cereal void in my life.

It's from the book Super Natural Cooking by Heidi Swanson

Grain-ola

4 cups of old fashioned or quick cooking rolled oats

3/4 cup unsalted raw sunflower seeds

1 cup walnuts or macadamia nuts, chopped in quarters

1 1/2 cups of unsweetened shredded coconut

1 1/2 cups of assorted "unsulfured" dried fruit (not sure exactly what that means, but I used dried cranberries from the bulk section of Whole foods...hopefully unsulfured? Next time I think I'm going to try dried papaya)

Grated zest of 2 oranges (I didn't have this on hand and left it out. Still tasted great! But I will add this in my next batch.)

3/4 cup of raw mild- flavored honey

1/4 cup of coconut oil

Preheat oven to 300. Set aside 2 rimmed baking sheets.

Combine oats, seeds, nuts, coconut, dried fruit, and zest in large bowl. Heat the honey and coconut oil in small saucepan over low heat. Whisk to thoroughly combine, then pour over oat mixture and stir until everything is well coated.

Divide the mixture between the 2 baking sheets and spread into a thin layer. Bake, stirring every 10 minutes, for about 40 minutes, until toasty brown. Cool completely. Store in an airtight container at room temp.

You have GOT to try this recipe. Amazing. I'm not a big coconut fan and passed over this recipe several times thinking I would not like it. But I have LOVED everything I've tried in the book so far and decided to give it a go....a new fav indeed. Just wanted to spread the love. Hope you enjoy! And if you don't get to making it....well, you can be sure this will be my Christmas gifts this year....you may get lucky!

P.S. Yes, I know the pics have nothing to do with granola...but they were the most recent food related pics I could find. Camille and Maya eating another obsession of mine. Uncle Vinny's Pizza. Mmmmmm...

Letting Go

2010-04-13T21:44:00.001-05:00

Yesterday I took the girls to the doctor, without an appointment, with Gavin in tow, during nap time, by myself. Yeah. Not my brightest mommy moment, but wanted them seen.....pronto.

You know how it is when you start googling symptoms. In my defense, it was a big deal. Camille developed a staph infection from an ongoing battle with a "diaper rash." Not going to go into all the gory details, but she had a single hard bump under her skin where the elastic around the leg was with a few surrounding pimple like bumps. She would scream in pain when I touched it....my poor baby. She was also running a low grade fever.

I rushed her to the doctor. There I waited. And waited. And waited. For 2 hours.

It was zero fun. But I did learn a little something about myself. I am becoming stronger. I felt myself beginning to stress out. The twins refused to sit in their strollers. Gavin was unhappy with the snacks and coloring books I brought for him and was ~~bratty~~ very unpleasant. Maya was on some sort of "lack of sleep high" and running around like a little banshee. And poor little Camille was screaming the majority of the time. Top it off with judgmental onlookers and the outspoken annoyed receptionists. The situation was enough to rattle Buddha himself. At one point I felt myself getting emotional and feeling sucked into all the bad energy around me. But I noticed it and brought myself back to the present. I can't control everything....so I stopped trying. I just let it all go and took a breath.

I hugged my crying baby, singing her favorite song (You Are My Sunshine) and started to pace the halls encouraging Maya to sing along. Eventually, Gavin joined us and decided to lead our singing parade. We ignored the huffs of the grumpy old man trying to read his newspaper,the teenager trying sleep and his angry mother. I then jokingly asked the receptionist if she preferred my singing to the crying baby. After that things calmed down. Camille started to fall asleep in my arms and the other two children started coloring. Then surprise, my sister walked in! She just happened to be getting her stitches out that day! I have never been so happy to see her!

Slowly I am learning to give up my expectations of how I think things should be. And I am beginning to not care how others view me. Not to mention my need to control every situation. Letting go of all that. It really does make life easier.

Silly Sisters

2010-04-11T22:12:00.006-05:00

I've said it a thousand times on here....and I'll probably say it a thousand more....I LOVE having twins! There is something so special between them. It's a joy to watch them everyday.

Sure, it was tough when they were younger, and we still have our days, BUT it's so nice that they always have each other to play (and fight) with.

Camille sunbathing in daddy's chair....but what is so funny?

Sissy's got her toes!

Saturday with the fam

2010-04-11T11:06:00.007-05:00

Yesterday was a beautiful day spent with the family.

We went to Cherry St. Farmers Market. If you didn't get a chance to go yesterday be sure to check it out next week. It was wonderful! They blocked off traffic on 15th for 3 blocks. Tulsa really does have a great community. I bought some maitake mushrooms. I had never heard of them before. They were beautiful...looked like a flower. Last night I sauteed them in butter and a little garlic sea salt....OMG! They were sooo wonderful.

look at this beautiful fungus!

Afterwards we headed to Philbrook museum for FREE family day. The plan was to take some family photos....the kids had a different plan. None of them would hold still and they were all extra whiny....it was close to lunch time and the girls were ready for their nap.

But moody still makes for cute pics. Look at that sas.

Feeding the ducks

2010-04-10T16:34:00.000-05:00

Camille Rose...I love this picture. Dirty face and all.

So happy spring is finally here and we can spend most of the day outdoors! It makes being a mother of 4 small children soooo much easier. My only complaint is we are in the middle of several home improvements right now...new floors throughout home, total back yard make over including: tearing up deck in backyard to redo, building raised garden beds, compost pile, building a "contraption" to catch rain water from roof, and new landscaping in front yard...whew. (I know, I know, major run-on sentence.) I am so thankful we finally have our tax return in so we have a little extra dough to make all this happen BUT our yard is far from baby proof right now!

Instead we take a field trip to the park nearly every day. Here we are feeding the ducks at Hunter Park.

Pretty Camille

I can't express to you how happy I was that no child fell in the pond that day. Gavin actually said, "Mom, I'm gonna touch that duck right there."

Please don't.

Thankfully, Camille & Maya were more interested in eating the stale bread butts than throwing them in the water.

I love my job........most days.

Happy Easter!

2010-04-05T20:11:00.000-05:00

We had a fabulous Easter Sunday! Hope you did too!

We went to the Tam Bao Buddhist Temple for lunch....it was the English Sanga's turn to cook for the monks and congregation so I made couscous burritos with all the trimmings. Yummy!

I made the girls dresses this year. (Thank you Aunt Tami for teaching me how to read a patern!) They were pretty easy...and they only cost me $1 in fabric (walmart clearance rack!) and $1 for 4 pink buttons plus cost of thread. Soooo...less than $3 for TWO EASTER DRESSES!! Their flower bows I made as well...fake flowers hot glued on alligator clips! Considering this is one of my 1st completed duo outfits, I think it's pretty cute.

After the egg hunt we went home and put the babies down for a nap. The boys and I planted their flower seeds they got in their easter buckets. They are now impatiently waiting on their impatiens to grow.

When the girls woke up we headed to the my wonderful Aunt Peggy's house for burgers, kite flying and another egg hunt with the family! What a great day. Hope yours was too.

Fire Under Your Butt

2010-03-27T18:35:00.004-05:00

I was helping the boys clean their room this evening. Gavin was messin' around, off in his own world, not helping his brother.

Then I did the unthinkable. I quoted my father. "Boy, I'm going to light a fire under your butt if you don't hurry!"

Gavin (age 4) burst into tears. "NO MOM! Please don't! I might DIE!"

Ooops. I felt horrible for scaring my baby but couldn't help but laugh at the whole situation.

First, the fact that that came out of my mouth. Then his literal translation. Ahhh...the joys of parenting.

Identical Twins

2010-03-27T14:29:00.003-05:00

When the girls look at themselves in the mirror they say "Sissy!" or the other twins name. It's so cute. This has been going on for a few months now and I think they finally get that they look like one another.

I've always wondered what it would be like to have an identical twin. When I was younger I even wished I was one. I went as far to even make up this horrible story. It was a dark and stormy night and we were trying to scare my youngest sister Rebekkah...poor girl, it's a wonder she's not in therapy now. I was eleven and she was only five. I told her I had an identical twin sister, but she died long ago. Her name was Michelle. I even had a picture of myself standing by a mirror to prove this tall tale. I also told her not to mention it to Dad because he got really upset when he thought about his long lost daughter. Nice job covering my tracks, huh?

Oh, it gets worse.

I told Rebekkah that "Michelle's" ghost would come back and take over my body when it was a full moon....and yes, it just so happened to be a full moon the night I told her this story. Michelle was angry. Angry at the sisters who were still alive.

It was straight out of a Steven King novel. I fell onto the floor and started to have convulsions. Rebekkah came to check on me...only now I was Michelle. Don-don-don. <----that's my spooky music.

Me & Rebekkah...she looks like she has forgiven me, right?

Not my proudest big sister moment. I blame my actions on a combination of being from a broken home and a very dramatic child. *sigh* Not to mention I have an evil streak.

Sooo, my question to my readers....this is normal sibling behavior right? (please say yes) What mean things went on in YOUR house when you were a kid? I want to hear something juicy.

#2

2010-03-17T20:27:00.000-05:00

I get that little boys are "lucky" and can go to the bathroom almost anywhere. It used to be cute how Gavin would drop his drawers and pee on any tree when the urge came. Heck, it's better than peeing his pants, right?

Well this Momma has to draw the line.

I'm afraid my second son will be known as #2 for a new reason. Yup. That's right. Gavin POOPED in our front yard!! Oh, a mother has never been so proud.

Seriously?! I just don't get it. What was he thinking??

He was busy playing with the neighborhood kids. Ely was doing yardwork. Gavin comes comes around the side of the house with his pants around his ankles headed for the front door.

"What are you doing?!" Ely asked him.

"Going to wipe my butt." I need to look on the bright side....at least he has the decency to WIPE!

I'm afraid the poor guys reputation is shot. Their is no way his older brother or the other neighborhood kids are going to let him live this one down. He will be forever known as "the kid who pooped in his front yard and then got in trouble and had to clean it up in front of everyone"!

That should be punishment enough...right?

US vs. France

2010-03-11T20:47:00.000-06:00

This is the sign on the boys door to their room. "NO BaB" (no babies)

Last week I had a GREAT find at The Salvation Army....a $14 Thomas The Train Table!! The boys have been having a blast playing with it. Funny thing is, it's just the table. Not all the trains, tracks, and bridges that some of their friends have.

Just a table.

But according to them they have made it a country. France to be exact. The throw carpet in their room is the USA...everything in between is the ocean of course.

They have set up a very elaborate stage. Sadly the US and France are in war right now....and French are wooping butt. Honestly, I don't think America has a chance. The French army consists of Jedi's, dinosaurs, and Batman.

Gavin's 4th birthday is next week and I thought about getting him a train set. But why? I love going into their room and seeing what their little minds have created. They seem to be having fun without it! Pure joy and imagination.

And the WINNER is...

2010-03-06T13:04:00.004-06:00

Thank you to all who entered my 1st giveaway!

Hopefully there will be more to follow.

And the winner is...

Melony!

Melony is a mother of SIX GIRLS!! What a BEAUTIFUL family you have Melony!

How does she do it? Well, check out her blogs...

http://melonymartin.blogspot.com/ and http://pulleytimes8.blogspot.com/

Congrats Melony! Email me at dana_desj@yahoo.com and I'll tell you how to claim your prize!

Zucchini-Raisin Muffins

2010-03-03T20:38:00.002-06:00

We don't eat a lot of meat in our home for several reasons. Don't worry...I'm not going to get on my soap box and lecture you why....but if you want to learn more check out Food Inc. It seriously changed the way I feed my family.

I'm sure my kids would love it if I served PB&J everyday for lunch. But I have to get creative to keep me and the old man from getting bored.

Here is a great instead-of-sandwich muffin to throw in a lunch box with some yogurt and some fresh fruit. It sweet yet hardy. My boys beg me to make them. My husband prefers them for a quick breakfast.

Without further ado....Zucchini-Raisin Muffins

Here's what you'll need:

1 1/2 cups of whole wheat pastry flour
1/4 cup of wheat germ
1/2 cup natural sugar
1 1/2 tsp of baking powder **did you know that most baking powder has aluminum in it?! Go check the ingredients! Next time you go grocery shopping look for aluminum free baking powder!**
1/2 tsp of baking soda
1/2 tsp of cinnamon
3/4 cup of organic vanilla yogurt (I've used plain & vanilla...both turned out great...vanilla was obviously sweeter)
2 tbsp of light veggie oil
1 cup of firmly packed grated zucchini (I peel mine)
1/2 cup raisins
1/4 cup of walnuts

Pre-heat oven to 350.

Combine first 6 ingredients in mixing bowl. Make a hole in the center of your dry ingredients and add yogurt & oil. Stir together until smooth. Stir in zucchini, raisins, and optional nuts.

Put in 12 muffin tins and bake for 20-25 minutes...or until tops are brown.

I got this recipe from http://www.vegkitchen.com/ if you want to browse some more yummy veggie recipes.

Let me know if you try them!!

Horrible Awakening

2010-02-26T22:56:00.001-06:00

OK. Here's the scene.

3:30AM.

Blindly walking towards the bathroom without my glasses in the dark. Turn on the bathroom light. The bright light blinds me. I sit and then FALL. Into. The. Toilet.

Seriously? Why can't a guy put the seat down?

*sigh*

Which one of these cuties is the guilty party?

This is a new thing in my house. Ely (I know you read this, so if you want me to stop writing about your dirty little habbits then maybe you should fix them!!) never use to leave the seat up. In fact, I was always impressed that he had manners. I chalked it up to him having 4 sisters. Alas, he has become lazy and no longer tries to impress me with his knowledge of bathroom etiquette.

He may become defensive and blame on one of his boys. We may never know who made mom fall into the toilet. But one thing is for certain.....I will never forget to look before I sit.

Guilty Pleasure

2010-02-25T10:18:00.000-06:00

Shhhh...don't tell anyone. I have a dirty little secret.

For those of you who know my family, you know we don't have a TV. Well, we a have a television set upstairs that the kids watch dvd's and Ely likes to play playstation once every six months....but no converter box or cable. We're just ~~unconventiona~~l to cheap to pay for TV. It just isn't that important to us. I mean really? When the heck do I have time to watch tv? There is so many other things I want to do.

But I must confess. I do watch something religiously on abc.com everyday while folding laundry. No, it's not anything cool like Lost or Grey's Anatomy. I watch General Hospital. I know, I know, stereotypical SAHM right?

But this secret obsession started way before having children. At NSU my roommate watched it everyday in our tiny dorm. I was literaly forced to watch it.

So there it is. My guilty pleasure. It's out there for the world to know.

But really...who can blame me for wanting to watch?

What's your guilty pleasure?

One And The Same

2010-02-23T22:38:00.001-06:00

I am very excited to announce my very first giveaway! It's a pretty cool prize, I might add, but more about that later.

When I found out I was pregnant for the first time I read "What to Expect When You're Expecting" religiously, spent countless hours online googling everything baby, and asked to many people for their advice on names. Not to mention, I registered for way to many things...and half of them I never even used!

With baby #2, pregnacy was a little more relaxing. I knew what to expect.

Then, uh-oh, baby #3 turned into TWO BABIES! What? Twins?! I really shouldn't have been suprised. According to my Grandmother me or one of my sisters was "supposed" to have them. My mom is an identical twin and the old wives tale says it skips a generation.

awww...look how tiny they are...

Anywho, I was back at square one. Reading every "how-to" manual I could get my hands on. But I've stumbled onto something better than any how-to-for-twins book. Right now I am reading a very insightful book titled One and the Same: My Life as an Identical Twin and What I've Learned About Everyones Struggle to Be Singular by Abigail Pogriban.

This book is totally different from anything I have read about twins. It's part memoir, part investigative journalisim. As a mother of twins, it's nice to read a twins perspective.

In the book, she talks about the importance of spending seperate time with each child, creating seperate memories. This book isn't only for parents of identical twins, but fraternal too...or anyone looking for an interesting read for that matter.

Abigail also touches on the pressures of being a twin and how there is this novelty of two. Guilty as charged. I get a thrill out of dressing my girls up alike and showing them off. After a rough day at home it's nice to be reminded how stinkin' adorable they are!

Sooo....my point is, you should definitely read this book. Oh, what's that? You don't own a copy? Well you're in luck my friend. I'm giving away a personalized autographed copy of the book. A random drawing will be held on March 5, 2010.

You have two chances to win. #1 leave a comment below. #2 if you are a "follower" of my blog and leave a comment you get your name put in the drawing twice....not a follower? It's easy, go to the right hand column of my blog and click on "follow"!

Good luck!! ~dana

Homemade Wipes

2010-02-23T08:44:00.009-06:00

A friend of mine gave me a recipe for making homemade baby wipes last month. *Thanks Debrah* I've been telling everyone I know about them. I haven't used store bought wipes since. It's SO SIMPLE! My girls have such sensitive skin. Did you know most baby wipes have alcohol in them? Read the ingredients....I can't even pronounce most of it.

We go through so many wipes in our house. We use them to wipe dirty faces, clean grubby hands, and of course wipe bottoms. We are saving over $20 a month making our own wipes...hey, every penny counts! For those of you with more than one child in diapers this is a must!

OK, here's how I do it.

Cut a roll of paper towels in half. (This can be tough if you don't have a sharp knife!)
Take the cardboard center out. You will pull the wipes from the center when using them.
Place in a tall Tupperware container.
In a separate bowl mix 2 1/4 cups of HOT tap water, 1 tbsp of baby oil, and 2 tbsp of your favorite baby soap.
Mix and pour on top of wipes.
Place lid on wipes and let the paper towels absorb all the water.

Viola! It's that easy!

Running into problems? Here's some FAQ

What soap works best? I prefer Aveno or California Baby wash, but any baby soap will work. If it's really "bubbly" soap it makes your wipes tooo soapy (is that even a word?).
Baby is allergic to mineral oil? I read that you can use a tsp of tea tree oil instead. This probably would not smell as nice, but would work just fine! I LOVE tea tree oil.
Why do I have a pool of water at the bottom of the bowl? Your paper towel absorbency is probably different then mine. Just adjust the water amount. If using off brand paper towel maybe only use 2 cups of water....don't be afraid to experiment!
Mold problems? We go through wipes so quickly in my house I've never run into this problem. But remember, your using all natural ingredients so there is no chemicals preventing mold to grow. Be sure to wash your Tupperware out between each use.

Twin Troubles

2010-02-18T20:59:00.005-06:00

If you came here for a funny story....not happening. There is nothing cute going on in my house this week. Instead the kids have been overly obnoxious (writing on faces with sharpies, Gavin of course) and the girls have been sick.

The twins, almost 21 months, have been separated at night since they were about 7 months old. The reason we did this was because they were starting to wake one another up. When we put them in different cribs, set up beside one another, the problem ceased and they were sleeping through the night once again.

OK, fast forward to the present time. I was putting the girls to bed the other night and Maya started crying. I asked her what was wrong and she stood up and reached her arms out saying "Sissy!"

It was so sweet. I laid her down next to her sister and they slept all night and actually slept in later than normal...8 AM!! (Usually up by 7, so this was amazing)

The girls have continued sleeping together at night. Unfortunately sleeping in until 8am was a one time thing.

Camille, the bitee

Nap time is a different story. Which brings me to a new problem we are facing......BITING! Ugh. My boys never really bit each other...well, not like this anyway.

SOOOO...I put them down for naps in the same crib. They had their little baby dolls and were playing....and then fighting....which, of course, led to biting. I had no clue at this point, I just heard screaming and crying....which I separated and they went to sleep.

Maya, the biter

I didn't notice until baths that night. Let me tell you...it was BAD! Poor little Camille had FOUR bite marks!

Any biting advice out there? Especially when you aren't around to see it? And if your going to tell me to bite my kid back, save it. Not going to happen.

Disappointed Child

2010-02-08T16:12:00.006-06:00

This afternoon Gavin's balloon flew out of the van. His eyes filled with tears as he watched it fly up higher into the grey clouds. Soon he was sobbing uncontrollably, scolding me for opening the van door with my key chain instead of my hands. It was my fault. I needed to retrieve his balloon....pronto.

This is just a life lesson, "no attachment," right? But to my 3 year old this is serious business.

this picture is G last year...but you get the general idea of how much trouble I was in

After forcing him in the van.....I had no time to console the poor kid, I was already late picking up Zander from the bus stop....he proceeded to lecture me about his balloon, which he apparently developed deep feelings for in the past 24 hours. I apologized and told him it was an accident and that there would be other balloons.

"Mom. I loved that balloon," he choked out between tears.

"I said I was sorry Gavin. What do you want me to do?" I asked him.

"Get it."

"How?"

"A plane or a helicopter."

"Buddy, we're out of luck. I don't have one of those."

"Call someone that does. I know! Call the airport! They have lots of airplanes!"

"I don't have their number, and besides, they are to busy to catch your balloon."

"Fine. If you won't call them take me to the airport...I'll talk to a pilot."

Alas....my disappointed child....he is now upstairs staring at the string that his beloved balloon was once attached to.