Friday, February 22, 2008

Valentines Day


My mom always set the table Valentine's morning with gifts, and beautiful table cloth, and pink heart pancakes. I tried to do it as well this year.


This is Vaughn huging a new bear and getting it all sticky with a sucker.


Reina is so happy these days.


Reina and Ben are so cute together. This is Ben's birthday celebration at his parents house.

Another one of my girl, why not?

Mommy Trauma

Sometimes I just have to unload. I hope I don't bore anyone.

Vaughn is at the stage where he does NOT want to stay with me when we go places. He used to very sweetly hold my hand and let me lead him, but he's on the move lately. Yesterday I went to the grocery store to pick up some quick things. I held Vaughn and Reina walked, we didn't get a cart becuase I didn't need very much. Well, of course I ended up getting more than I expected, and held Vaughn in one arm and a basket of groceries in the other and persuded Reina to follow us the whole time. The whole trip took about 15 minutes, but by the end I was so exhauseted from holding a squirming Vaughn (or chasing a running Vaughn if he got too squirmy in my arms), and balancing grocieries, and keeping a non-stop flow of conversation with Reina (which goes something like, "no, you can't have popsicles" "please follow me" "put the fruit snacks back," "no, we're not buying more yogurt").

As we left the store I put Vaughn down and let him walk holding my hand. It worked okay until we got to the car. We were parked right in front of the grocery store so the walk is not long. I let go of the kids, put the grocieris in the front seat, and Vaughn was off like a shot running down the sidewalk in front of the cars. I yelled at Reina to stay right by the car, the phone rang, and as I answered it I took off after Vaughn before he could reach the street.

With Vaughn hanging on one arm, and talking to Ben on the phone, I heard someone say, "where's your mom little girl?" I was only two or three cars away (ya, Vaughn had gotten about 15 cars away). I yelled at Reina to stay by the car, as she was standing between our car and the car beside us waiting for us. The man noticed me and gave me this horrible look and then swore at me. Not really at me, more to himself, but loud enough for me to hear. He was very displeased with me. It was embarrasing and frustrating and even maddening. I got the kids buckled in, myself in the car, and I started bawling. I was upset at him and upset at myself that I let Vaughn get away, and that I left Reina alone. And I was scared that maybe that man was right, that I was being irresponsible. I never know what might happen. What if something happened to one child while I was chasing the other? I was scared and angry and I felt beat up.

I am just reminded how difficult it is to be a mom and how important it is to withold judgement. I have no idea what others are going through, and I know that man with his small bag of groceries, nice car, and expensive clothes, had no idea what I was going through and had just gone through. But he couldn't help expressing my shortcomings so vocally and rudely. I hate experiences like these, but at the same time they are always teaching me to be better to others. Moral? Don't judge moms, they're probably doing the best they can.

Friday, February 8, 2008

What to do when there's nothing to do...


We've been very creative. Reina also likes to bake cookies with mom (I think she really just likes to eat the cookie dough), paint, color, and draw. She drew her first face just last week in her journal. It was indecipherable. Reina is also wearing four headbands, she likes to get dressed and do her hair herself.


Vaughn loves his picture taken. He's attaking the camera in this picture.


The kids are really good and playing together, and for some reason the laundry basket is so full of fun: it's a fort, a carrier for toys, a stand for jumping off, and of course a mode of transportation.


Reina took swimming lessons twice a week for a month, she loved it; she's a water baby. We have some great video too.


And of course when there's nothing better to do...

Winter Days

Here are some of the newest pictures of the kids.


Vaughn just learned how to give a lovely smile for the camera, he and Reina like to ham it up.


This is Reina eating her favorit pasta. She likes the long ones.


We had a lot of snow last weekend, so we bundled up the kids and thought we'd have a fun time playing OUTSIDE with some friends. It didn't turn out so fun after all (the snow was a little too wet, and the kids don't know how to play in it).


Vaughn just held on to my leg.


Eventually I was able to show Vaughn how fun it is to hit snow off branches and get us all wet. He LOVED that.