Ouchies

We had our first big ouchie of the season yesterday. Ellie was going crazy in the kitchen, despite repeated requests to GET OUT while I'm making dinner...I guess she was too absorbed in her new jump rope to listen. Anyways, she is jumping up and down like crazy when BAM! she jumps right into the center island...Somehow, someway, her poor little nose hits the underside of the island, which leaves a deep cut right across the bridge. Ugh. Of course, as anyone would do, she starts screaming bloody murder. Poor thing.

As a mother I cannot stand it when one of my girls gets hurt...breaks my heart every time. I will never forget when Koda (our beagle) pushed Ellie's stroller down the cement front stairs on 2ND street in Manistee. All I remember is looking down and seeing the stroller face down with two little hands waving frantically from underneath it...and a wailing that resembled a very unhappy banshee.

So far Emma has not had to many accidents. She did get stuck head first in the toy box with the lid down on her the other day but that was on Grandpa's watch, not mine! I blame it all on Kevin. I never had these issues when I was little. I was a calm little girl, never even got a broken bone. My wonderful husband on the other hand was like a walking catastrophe when he was little (sometimes still is). Hopefully my genes will kick in soon and they will grow out of it.

Bedtime Routine Madness

My daughter Ellie has mastered the art of stalling. This is especially evident at bedtime. Emma will grab her blankie, stick that (somewhat pickled) thumb into her mouth, and walk to her bedroom door. Very easy. Very peaceful. Not so will the other one. After we brush teeth, change into PJ's, and read a story then the real fun begins. First we have to make sure she has her baby, her "baby dolls blankie" and the "baby doll buba" all in her bed. Then she needs a drink of milk. And then after that's gone in about 15 or so minutes she wants a drink of water. Oh, and then it's that she wants Kleenex...And no way is she going to accept unused Kleenex from earlier..."no way, mommy, it's old!" She will get up 5-6 times every night for SOMETHING, spread out over any where from 1-2 hours. I have tried putting her to bed later...to bed earlier...makes NO difference. Ahhhh!!! And it's inevitable that when I won't give in, she will throw a fit, and Emma will wake up. Great fun. I refuse to be her "fetch servant" and I refuse to give it just because she whines and cries...but sometimes it would be so much easier just to give her what she wants. But I guess part of parenting is not always taking the easy way out.

Beeps and Questions

The newest fad in our house? Listening to our "beeps." I have a portable Doppler machine to listen to the baby's heartbeat, something I did with my first two. Well, Ellie has come to the conclusion that she also has a baby in her tummy, and nothing I can say will convince her otherwise. Nothing. So every morning and every night she wants to listen to her "beeps."(aka. her heart) Cracks me up.

She is getting very excited about the new baby, and keeps asking me how it is going to come out of Mommy. She understands what is going to happen, she just doesn't know how. And that's fine by me. I don't understand how some mothers can have their children in the delivery room with them. To each their own I suppose....but I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that if I have been in labor for a while the last person I want to see in the delivery room is Ellie. Not because I don't love her...but because I do not want her to think of her Mommy as a screaming, swearing monster of a woman with wild hair and what must look like fangs. Not a pretty picture for a 3 year old. Not a pretty picture at all, for that matter. So...instead of showing Ellie first hand how her new sibling is going to come into the world, I will be making a trip to the local children's book store and getting some material from the professionals. :D

Baby Doll Drama Part 2

Here is the continuing saga of the baby doll...After posting the other day I got some good advice from a very good friend and mommy...And I tried it...Wasn't sure if it was going to work or not, but I thought, "Hey, I'm up for it." Whether it worked or not I never really got to find out...Yesterday afternoon I got a package from my grandma yesterday. In it was this tiny baby doll. I'm talking like 4 inches big. Naked. Cheap plastic. I am sure grandma got it at the thrift store where she works, which is just fine by me. Anyways, Emma instantly fell in love with this little thing of a toy. So did Ellie. No joke folks. At first I thought it was going to be an answer to my prayers and that Emma would be satisfied with the new doll. Which she was, don't get me wrong. But now Ellie wants to play with this doll that probably cost all of $1 and doesn't want a thing to do with her big doll. Funny, huh? So now Emma runs around the house with this doll and Ellie chases her, trying to bribe her with the big baby doll. We have had conversations regarding sharing, which have an impact for exactly 2.5 seconds before this all starts again. The funniest part? The doll has a mat of white, curly hair. When Emma carries it around it looks just like a mini me :D

Baby Doll Drama

A storm has been brewing in my house for some time now...I big black cloud that hovers, waiting to just open up and poor rain down on all inside. The cause for this tension?? Ellie's baby doll. Ellie has had the same baby doll for a couple of years now. She loves it. It's hers. Last year around Christmas Emma began to show a mild interest in the doll. Naturally I got her a baby doll of her very own as a present. A nice baby doll, not one of those all cloth ones. One similar to Ellie's. However, Emma does not like that baby doll. Neither does Ellie. Nope, the only baby doll either girl likes is Ellie's. Go figure. There is daily fighting over this one toy...Who will carry it around, one constantly snatching it out of the hands of the other, who will take it to bed. Ugh. It's a learning experience, a lesson on sharing...and I honestly do try to present it that way to the girls...However, if I am to be honest here...I am ready to take baby and bury it somewhere in the backyard where it will NEVER be found. Or maybe cut it in half so each girl gets some. Evil I know...but I am just being honest. I am sick and tired of the Drama. DRAMA DRAMA DRAMA. Though I don't want either of my girls to grow up faster than they have to, I am ready for Ellie to outgrow the doll...any day now.