Conquering the morning chaos

Since school has started, I have instituted a new system for getting my kids dressed. I have three of the hanging shelves that have a slot for each day of the week. Each weekend I fill each slot with their clothes and socks. When they wake up I tell them to go get their Monday clothes, Tuesday clothes, etc. and bring them to me so I can help them get dressed.

The weird thing is...it's actually working! It has made getting dressed in the morning not quite such a frustrating process. Plus, with uniforms, there is not much arguing since they all wear the same thing. Go figure...

Simple cleaning

There are a few things that help me to feel at peace in my house. I call them the bare minimums: a bed that has been made up, an empty sink, and a clean floor.

If those things are messy, then I feel like there is too much chaos and I can't relax.

The rest of my house can be a wreck, and my car is usually a traveling dumpster, but if those three things are good, then I am good.

What are your "bare minimums" for simple cleaning?

Is this a twin thing?

I have always heard stories about twins who were inseparable, could finish each other's sentences, and had a hard time sleeping as babies without snuggling close to each other.

Mine have never been like this, until recently. Because they were born prematurely and due to differing birth weights required different levels of heat in the incubator, so they had to be separated into individual incubators in the NICU. They have slept separately since then. They are as different as night and day, and seem to do their own thing.

I have noticed that in recent months they have shown a tendency to need to be close to one another. For example #2 is constantly patting #1's hair.

On Saturday morning the boys were watching Word World (one of their favorite shows) and I caught them snuggling together with their heads touching. It was so cute!

Purse clean out

For the fifth time in a week,#3 has "helped" me clean out my purse. The second time he found a nearly full pack of Trident gum, and I found about 20 wrappers all over the floor. I have found my wallet in various places throughout the house, with the contents strewn about. The most recent episode happened in the middle of the night on Friday night, when the boys were allowed to sleep in the tent that is set up in the play room. I woke up to find the following scene, and decided to take a picture with my i-Phone to blog about it. However, when I found my phone it had been COVERED with lipstick. It's a good thing there was a cover over it, but even after careful cleaning there are still bits of pink lipstick crammed into the corners. Ugh!
I am hoping the spankings he received each time he did it will be enough to make him think twice. For now, I'm hedging my bets...

Unhappy Meals

The boys have reached the age where upon learning we are heading to McDonalds they automatically ask, "Can we get a prize?"

Most of the time, I say no. It is more economical to order a 10 piece McNugget meal, 3 waters, and a cheeseburger for me than to pay for three individual Happy Meals plus my own meal.

Today, I gave in and ordered some Happy Meals for them. As Murphy's Law would have it, 2 of them received the same prize, and 1 received a different prize. Guess what they spent the rest of the time fighting over? Yes, you guessed it, the lone prize.

Not one of my boys even attempted to climb in the playplace or slide down. That is pitiful.

The next time I am tempted to buy each one a Happy Meal for the prizes, please remind me that those meals are usually "Unhappy Meals" due to the fighting. Ugh!

Fishin' and flyin' kites

The boys went to visit Gram and Grandpa last weekend. They each caught several fish and had fun flying kites.

Worrying

I am a worrier. I constantly have an issue or two floating around in my head that I keep thinking about, asking "what if's", afraid of the unknown.

My twins begin their elementary school years next week. It will be a big change from preschool, and once again the fear of the unknown is getting to me. They have not been together in the same class before, so I worry about how that will work. I have such a hard time getting everyone dressed, fed, teeth brushed, bags in the car, and out the door in the morning time that I worry about not getting them to school on time. I worry about the homework factor and how much time that will take in the evenings, and I also worry about the increased social level of my kids (becoming a taxi driver to t-ball practice, birthday parties, etc.). I know, I know, all of these changes are GOOD changes. It is just the little worrier inside of me that takes over sometimes.

Today, by reading a verser posted on the blog of my friend Ashley Bray (thanks, girlfriend!), I was reminded again that worrying and being anxious does no good.

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:6-7).

Lord, please give me that peace of God to guard my heart and mind, and surround me with supportive friends and family who have 'been-there-done-that' and have lived to tell about it.

I'm sure one day I'll look back on this post and laugh, but right now, I want to cry.

Toy time out

A couple of weeks ago, I instituted a "toy time out" with our boys for toys that did not get put away when it was time to clean up. I would set a timer for 5 minutes each evening and gave each child a specific task (#1 pick up the blocks, #2 pick up all of the cars, etc.). At the end of the five minute period, if there were items left out, I would pick them up and put them into a bag. Those toys went to time out at the top of my china cabinet.

I have started a system for the boys to "earn" back a toy from time out, and it seems to be working beautifully. Each time they complete a task that I ask them to do, they get to pick a toy to come out of time out. They are thrilled to get the toy back, and I am thrilled that they are also (hopefully) learning the lesson to put away their toys!

Is this an acceptable form of re-gifting or what? :)

Take time to stop and smell the flowers

Social victory

Tonight we had a small victory with #1. Before I tell you the victory, I need to explain the background a bit...

While his brothers have really gotten into the social scene and talk about various friends at school or church, #1 has not really mentioned a friend. Don't get me wrong, he is an extremely friendly little guy, but he just hasn't been quite as social.

When I asked #2 which friends he wanted to invite to their birthday party, he named off a litany of friends. I then asked which friends he thought #1 might want to invite, #2 responded simply, "He doesn't have any friends. He doesn't know how to make friends."

His sweet and simple statement hit the nail on the head. I think #1 really wants to have friends, but doesn't know how to go about it. He has built-in friends with his two brothers, and they play together while at home, which is good practice for his social skills. The statement made me very sad, though. No mother wants to hear that her son is friendless.

In the past few months, whenever I would ask #1 the name of his best friend at school, he would respond, "No, you are my best friend, Mommy!" Although I am honored that he chose me, I also want him to have a peer to be his friend.

So...here's the small victory...
Tonight #3 asked if he could sleep in #1's bed with him. They said their prayers and as I turned the light out, I heard #1 say to #3, "You're my best friend!"

Suffering

A phrase from last week's sermon has struck a chord within me. I have pondered it over the past week and I know it is true, even though at the time it is difficult to believe. Here it is:

"God will preserve us IN suffering,
not preserve us FROM suffering."

As a Christian, I am not promised a better life on earth or an easy time. Why do I continue to believe that being a Christian will somehow make my life easy? When my world is falling apart, it is God who is holding me together.

When we are in the depths of our sorrows or crying out in anger or frustration, He knows, and He cares, and He is preserving me in the midst of suffering. It is not a question of whether or not suffering will occur, but when, and how. It is up to us to keep looking to Him for guidance and support during the trials of life.

Think about it. Do you believe it?