Sticking to it

As a child when things get hard we are always told to stick with it and it will get better, like sports or math. It can also be true for illnesses, stick with these antibiotics and you will get better. But like antibiotics if you fail to take the whole dose what you could get is a nasty drug resistant strain of disease. The same can be true for parenting, if you don't stick with your rules then you are prone to raise a child that doesn't respect them. Yesterday a rule was broken in our house which has a pretty strict penalty. I could go through it blow by blow but in respect to the rule breaker who could read this later in life I will decline. I will relate the important bits. The rule in our house is that if you throw something in anger it gets thrown out. Yesterday a very special pair of light up shoes was thrown and because of that action the shoes were thrown in the trash. I would definitely rank this as one of my most difficult parenting moments. There are times in life when you almost think the battle isn't worth the war. Yesterday I found myself snapping in response to the breaking of the rule, however the fallout was intense. I find sometimes that parenting is difficult but by sticking to rules it will make both my children and myself stronger. The realization that actions cause reactions is not only handy for physics but also for real life. I think I impressed a friend yesterday by sicking to our consequence but I impressed myself by believing this is an effective way to parent. This morning I received an unsolicited apology, I also got one last night, and a request to buy new shoes with a gift card on vacation. In that moment I felt I made the right decision. It is our job as parents to raise the best kids we can, yesterday I suppose was the hard part of doing just that.

Hi...My Name is Julia

My full name is Julia Grace. I just turned 6 months old. I weigh 16 pounds 9 ounces and I am 26 inches long. My newest skill is crawling and I'm exploring my house at every opportunity. My favorite activity is bouncing in my bouncer and crawling on top of my sister Genevieve. My least favorite thing is getting my teeth. So far I have 4 and they've made me a little cranky. I'm a cat napper and I like to wake up at night for a midnight snack. Although mommy makes some delicious food for me I don't like eating it. I'm looking forward to pulling up on things and starting to cruise.

Hi..My Name is Genevieve

My full name is Genevieve Catherine Montoya. I just turned 6 months old. I weigh 15 pounds 14 ounces and I am 26 inches tall. I can roll over and like to play with my toys.

I love watching my big sister Gabriella dance for me

especially while I'm in my bouncer. I'm almost ready

to learn to crawl, I'm up on all fours and rocking. My

favorite food is rice cereal with bananas. Mommy

makes it fresh for me at every meal. I'm a good eater.

I'm a really good sleeper at night but am not a big fan

of taking naps. I'm looking forward to learning to

crawl and discovering new foods.

A Mother's Love

The job of a mother is never done and her love grows as her children do. Raising my three children is full of it's own set of challenges and rewards. I can't speak for anyone else only my own experiences, but sometimes motherhood is really hard. The constant sharing of attention between those who want it and those who need it. Choosing who to go to first when all three are crying or which twin to feed first when I know they are both hungry. But for each scheduling or physical challenge placed in front of me a greater reward will be waiting for me when I finish. Sometimes those rewards are small like a smile or a giggle other times they are bigger, like being told what a great cook I am after dinner. The best thing that my children have done and I pray will continue to do is light up when they here my voice or see me enter a room. I imagine that is what movie stars feel when they step on stage at an awards show. The elation in their eyes when they see me first thing in the morning or when I give them their goodnight kisses, it takes my breath away. In those moments I feel like I'm on top of the world, they make all the difficulties worth while. I would take a million hard days just so I could get those looks again and again.

Partied Out

The super bowl is a huge deal for Greg and his family. They've hosted a raging super bowl party for 26 years. It is epic and for the past two years we've been forced to watch it on the computer via skype. This year we were so pleased to be there in person. The prep work started days earlier with cleaning, yard work and shopping. The event approached and the backyard began to take shape. Friends from all over descended on the household to help set up tables, run cables and put up canopies. The day of the big game everyone arrived carrying their delicious food to share and libations to enjoy. Hugs were given and received and long missed friends were given 2 years worth of hugs. The babies got to meet a lot of new friends and Gabriella was able to reconnect with a few old ones. It was amazing to see how big the kids have gotten and how wonderfully unchanged everyone else was. Two years seemed so long to be away from this party and yet the party was the same as always. The only difference was us, we had two more kids to keep an eye on.

Getting Out

I've finally decided that getting out of the house is a must for my personal sanity and the running of my household. We need food and other errands need to be run and sometimes I can't put it off until someone is around to babysit. I'm learning that a lot of places aren't very twin friendly. Shopping carts only seat one child, the aisles are small and there just isn't a simple way to get in and out of the store. My favorite stores are changing, I love Trader Joe's but I'm like a bull in a China shop when I'm in there with both girls. I can avoid that when I have Gabriella go with me and push one of the kiddie carts, but those are pretty small and fill up very fast. Then of course who's going to carry the bags out to the car? Certainly not the 5 year old. I've mastered having one girl in the seat of the cart and me wearing one. It works well unless I'm digging for milk in the freezer section or busy looking at ice cream with the door open. And I always make the wrong choice of who wants to ride in the snuggly and who would rather be pushed around in the cart.

The one store that can accommodate all the kids is Costco. Their carts can hold the twin girls in the seats and Gabriella can hold onto the end while I push what I estimate to be a combined body weight of 75 pounds. Then of course add in all the groceries, which is usually quite a list, and it makes for a pretty heavy cart. Another great thing is that Costco is a warehouse so if someone is fussy or loud no one really notices and they have tasty snacks. These little outings are made more complicated by feeding schedules, diaper changes and school pick ups but they need to be done and it will be.

5 by 5

It's a bit of a zoo at our house these days. All three girls have been sick off and on for the past few weeks. Runny noses and grumpy dispositions have been the challenges of the day. For the most part each girl handles there illness pretty well. Gabriella uses quite a few tissues, close to a box a week, when she's sick. She's finally remembering to throw away the used tissues without us having to remind her. Which is good for me because I'm pretty sure that I'm holding off this illness by sheer will. Genevieve seems to have had a lingering cold for most of her life however she handles it with grace and patience. She does seriously dislike the nasal aspirator and when she sees it she actually starts to cry hysterically. Even with the bottle in her mouth she still gets upset. Julia doesn't seem to mind as much, but she's still not a fan.

As I was thinking about the girls I realized that this is the only time in their life that they will share an age number. The girls are 5 months old and Gabriella is 5 years old. It's an interesting coincidence. Gabriella will be turning 6 in just a few months. Julia and Genevieve will be 6 months in less than 2 weeks. Time is passing quickly and I honestly feel that these girls are growing up too fast. Julia will be crawling before she turns 6 months and I think Genevieve will be following soon after. Gabriella is doing great in school and is already discussing her birthday party. Each day while full of challenges brings its own great rewards.

Do Kangaroos Have Twins??

I wonder if they do because I find it hard to carry around my two little girls. I bet if I had a pouch that I could put things in maybe I could carry them around a little easier. The little girls are getting big and are on the move. Julia is probably a few days away from crawling and Genevieve is not far behind. Every school day the girls get up early and eat, then watch Gabriella get ready for school and then the suiting up begins. Thankfully we live in San Diego where the weather is mild, even in winter. But there is still a nip in the air in the morning so we need to make a point to bundle everyone up for the walk to school. We walk to school because the traffic jam in the parking lot and surrounding streets is horrendous and the little girls like the fresh air. Once back home the hats come off and the girls retire to the cribs for a quick 10-30 minute nap.

Today I finally ventured out to go shopping with the twins by myself. They were fed, burped, dressed appropriately for the weather and in clean diapers. Everything was done around their nap and eating schedule and I had a plan. We pull up to Target and I get a spot conveniently located next to the shopping cart return. I have my list and it's short. The plan was simple, Julia would ride in the shopping cart with the little fluffy cart cover and Genevieve would be in the baby bjorn. I felt Julia was a stronger sitter and I thought she would enjoy the new view of life. It went well for about 10 minutes then in the card aisle Julia started to break down. I managed to keep her entertained until I had just a few things left on my list. She was tired, falling asleep in the cart and when the she slumped over causing her head to bump on the cart and wake her up. Deciding that it would be better if I just held her I picked her up. So let me paint a picture. Genevieve is in the bjorn she's comfy and happy. Julia is in one arm and I'm using the other to push the cart. I grab the last few items on my list and head to the cashiers. By the time I get there Julia is fast asleep her head bobbing back and forth each time I turn. I head towards a fairly short line and a man with a loaf of bread starts to head to the same line. I immediately agree to let him go ahead. He says thank you and says the little girls are beautiful. I start unloading the cart, doing my best to keep from whacking anyones head into anything. A mom and her young son pull up behind us in line and she offers to help, I decline since I was doing fine. She asked all the typical questions, how old, girls or boys, is it hard, any other children and how it must be annoying to have everyone stop you when you are out. I don't mind any of those questions and I honestly expect them when ever I take the girls out. They are in matching outfits today, because they were at the top of the drawer. I'm proud of my beautiful daughters, all three of them, and I love telling people how amazing they are.