Shooooo- weeeee

Shoo weee ( WORD OF THE WEEK)- this week has meant " Oh my gosh how do people with more than two kids do it?" OR "Holy cow will I make it through the day" OR "Oh my goodness Daddy better be home soon"....I guess it also could be a substitue for some other inappropriate language but after my week you would be shoo weeing too! Actually most fo the time I use it when I am changing dirty diapers but for some reason I have said it outloud many time throughout this week as shoo wee has taken on many differen meanings.... Those that know me well know that I do not use inapporpriate words at all but this week was about to take me over the edge with all the chaos at our house.

There was a lot of shoo weeeing going on as I was breaking up fights, disciplining, sending the kids to time out, attempting to put them down for a nap...thankfully I am married to the most amazing man on the face of this Earth who calls me on his way home, tells me to get dressed and go out as soon as he makes it home ( wheter it is just for a mental break, work out or whatever...)...YES- after a long day of work he comes home, feeds the kids, plays with them and gives me a much needed break...he never asks when I will be back if I happen to leave the house and makes sure I know he is fine to put the kids down for the night on his own If I needed to go work out late...Needless to say this week my running shoes were on by the time his handsome self made it through the door. Thank you hon- for allowing me to keep my sanity and for putting up with my 101 phone call per day this week. I am also thankful because once I walk out the door even to run errands I will not receive phone calls about where stuff is, what he should do- he is a super dad and what he is not sure about he just figures out on his own.... for that I am thankful.

Tonight we enjoyed a wonderful evening with my small Bible Study group and their hubbies at dinner. We headed home after dinner and missed the after party but with the way kids have been we were not going to let sweet Mimi  and Papa have a long night with the munchkins especially since they are super awesome to keep the kids tomorrow night for us too...Tomorrow night we have a double date night with two sweet friends and we are very much looking forward to spending some more adult time together.

I love my kids...I adore them...I couldn't imagine my life without them...yes- there are times when they push me to my limits  to where I have to stop and say a quick prayer and take a long deep breath before moving on..... this week has been the ultimate test of my parenting skills and patience to say the least!

They refused to nap...they fells alseep 3 days in a row right after being sent to time out- I am talking about Mia falling sleep in front of her bedroom door while serving a time out and Luka's little body hanging off the bed ...every day they went to time out around 4:15 and by 4:20 they were OUT...

So you might wonder WHY 10 minutes??? "I thought the kids were supposed to get  a minute per age time outs...?" which would mean 2 and 3 minutes for our kids...Well if you could see the pinch marks,  bite marks, the fights I have had to break up and jelousy tantrums over Braxton- you would agree that 2/3 minutes were not long enough...Mia is literally walking around with 5 different HUGE marks of Luka's teeth imprints on her arms...His explanation " But Momma she hits me with that arm"....

So this week we have been focusing more on what is expected of them when they go into their rooms for time outs ( now Luka has to stay on his bed- which he is doing well with most of the time), what we talk about after the fact, how we apologize, how we look people in the eyes when we say we are sorry, how we don't just say " sorry" but we talk about what we are sorry about in our apology...YES- it is a lot for a 2 and 3 year olds to take in but they are so smart and if I could record one of our sessions you would probably die laughing at our little sessions. I know it will not happen overnight and I know tantrums, biting, jelousy, difficulty expressing emotions at 2/3 are all common issues at this age and will not go away any time soon BUT we will continue working on this stuff over the next several years...

This week I have often asked myself "How is that I can take care of 75 hormonal pre teens every day 187 days per year without issues and I seem to want to pull my hair out on daily basis while handeling my two toddlers".... Well- I believe discipline is the key and as much as hate that my own mother refers to me as the Discipline Nazi- I believe Justin and I are doing things right by teaching Luka and Mia what is expected of them and that there are consequences for certain behaviors...Bottom line is I want my kids to be respectful, responsible, caring kids and if it take 3o time outs a day to continue correcting certain behaviors than I will ask God for some sanity, patience and wisdom as I same things keep reoccuring! This week has not been a typical week for our kids in any way, shape or form...Sure they fight, sure they have tantrums but I am thinking between having to share Mommy with Braxton, no naps, being tired and missing being out and about doing fun stuff and swimming and playdates- they will do better as we return to our normal routine.

In between all the chaos we have enjoyed some fun too- puzzle time is their favorite! We made cookies for the first time together and they were just beyond themselves excited about helping out. We also picked up a ton of fun stuff to make on Luka's birthday ( next Tuesday)...we will make/decorate sugar cookies, make/decorate cupcakes for the first time ever ( first time for both Momma and the babies). I have a ton of fun stuff planned for Little Man's 3rd birthday since their joined birthday party is not until September. I want to start setting up traditions in attempt to make them each feel very, very special ont their actual BIG DAYS! Luka is so excited and I had to tell him 4 times in a row the process we will do to make cupcakes...actually that was his bedtime story!

WANTED

In case you see these little guys...you know the two happy, loving toddlers I blog about all the time----- please return them to us...pleaseeeee!

OKay now that I have felt like I had a pretty good therapy session...I guess it is time for bed! SHOO WEE I am one tired Momma!

Little Stinkers

So today has been rough to say the least. Mia has been to time out- oh I don't know at least 20 times...10 of which were in about a 3 hour span. She has a mind of her own and when she decides she wants something you better forget about talking  it over with her. She started being super jelous of Braxton this week and is acting out left and right as soon as she sees me paying attention to him. She spilled water all over our floor, got into Luka's closet and threw everything she could reach in a pile in the middle of his room, got into folded laundry and messed it all up plus managed to bully her big brother all stinkin' day. She pinched him so hard at one point that he won't even let us look at it- that is how much it hurt! It looked like an insect bite and was bleeding like crazy! After she served an extra long and hysterical time out I kept reminding her all day to give Luka kisses on his boo-boo..At one point Luka held out his arm towards her and said " It's okay Mia- that's enough hugs."

Mia also knows a way into my heart after I discipline her...she has been going to her room for time outs with door closed...I always tell her why she is going to time out as we are heading to her room and when her time is up I have the dreaded coversation "do you know why you were in time out?" as we talk about good choices...Luka took forever to be able to tell us why he was in time out after the fact...Mia totally knows and most of the time can tell me " No hit Bubba, Mia nice" or " Be nice to Momma" or "No throw water" or "No spit" ( yes she has been getting in trouble for spitting at anyone who tells her no)....Well, she also knows that I absolutley love the way she says BLESS YOU after she hears someone cough or sneeze and little stinker would tell me BLESS YOU today right at the end of my " do you know why you were in time out" and smile as she said it...UGH! Teenage years - I am very nervous about with this little one!

Luka on the other hand has been super sweet all day and was an awesome helper with Braxton and Mia. Braxton was having a rough day ( poor little thing) and Mia was just not liking me loving on our little friend. The whole "momma's helper" thing worked until right after missed his nap... actually both Luka and Mia decided to skip their nap time and even Braxton didn't nap well...YES_ today it was very much 3 against 1 at our house! When our kids had to serve time outs in their rooms for fighting, pinching and kicking each other over a toy around 4:30 today- they were so pooped that I found them both sound a sleep...Mia in the recliner in her room and Luka on the edge of his bed with his legs hanging off the bed.

Speaking of Luka being a good helper- apparently when I handed him my cell phone last Thursday as I was feeding Braxton he decided that since the phone was off "it was broken". I turned the phone off on purpose because our kids are known to make phone calls, send text messages and even send video attachments...Well, I have been looking for the phone all weekend and all day yesterday and all day today...I looked EVERYWHERE!!! I never thought to ask Luka where it was because I was sure it would come up. Last I had it was in the living room before I handed it to Mr. Luka...today as I am still searching for it he asks me for the first time what I was looking for...I told him and he responded :" Momma your phone broken I put it in the trash can"....WHAT?????? Well, of course our trash pick up day was yesterday and the phone is long gone....I do recall him telling me my phone was broken but never in a million year did I think he was going to throw it away...I really have to keep an eye on him because he has been into throwing stuff away. I am thinking it might because I have been throwing a lot of stuff out of the playroom and garage saying the things were broken....Oh boy!

So in conclusion- if you have more than 2 children- I don't know how you do it...they are always 5 steps ahead of me and I feel like I am trying to catch up with them and prevent disasters! Days like these make me want to go work out extra long just to get away and regain my sanity but I sure love, adore and cherish my time with those little stinkers! Tomorrow will be better- I can feel it!!!

On a more positive note these precious little stinkers have done great sleeping in every morning since Friday...they have slept in until 8:30-9...At the lake this weekend we all woke up at 9:20 on Sunday! We had the best time at the lake- I seriously without a doubt have to say that that is by far my favorite place to spend family time. Very relaxing, low key, just beautiful! We hung out by the pool, went on a few boat rides with Papa and Mimi, ate some yummy food, relaxed on the swings. We even floated in the lake for a while on Saturday and the kids did much better than last time. We can't wait to go back for Labor Day!

Lately....

Lately...I have not taken any pictures due to my camera charger being left in Arkansas last month when I went to my cousin's graduation  ( have not taken a picture since June 25th---YIKES)...for some reason blogging without pictures is just not the same....

Lately...we have tried time outs a little differently- each kiddo goes to their room ( has been working out well)...

Lately... I have been playing rescue as Luka loves to lock himself in his room---his first time he figured out how to unlock it without an issue...second time he was not able to, he kept telling me the handle was slippery and started freaking out after trying to do it for 15 minutes. We ended up holding each other's fingers under the door, when he regrouped I asked him to try again and he responded "Not right now Momma, wait while I eat my muffins ( he snuck in a muffin in the room)"  In my attemp to calm him down I seriously debated whether I was going to have to call the fire depat to come help me get my child out of his room ( all this of course happened with Braxton in my arms and Mia hysterically crying in her concern about her Bubba).... SO after the "muffin break" before calling the FD I decided we to try plan B- I had to go to the window and teach him how to let me in...You should have seen his sweet face light up when he could finally see me. His first reaction was " Oh Hi Momma...Hi Mia ...Hi Braxton" like he had not seen us in days.....since then ( even with the safety thing on the door now) Momma has been forced to crawl through the window many, many times...one of those times Luka refused to open the window when he relaized how upset I was with him...his exact words " No Momma...I no open this window right now....no time out!" As soon as I smiled he decided I was over being upset....Now- our plan C is to reverse the door knobs so we avoid this whole situation again....

Lately...we have been looking for and researching different playsets for two specials birthdays coming up...our kids love being outside and we thinkg turning 2 and 3 is the best age for one of these nifty things....we found the perfect one...it includes 2 swings, one of those things on the very left( not sure what it's called), slide, climbing wall, picnic bench and table, ladder and even a nice shady area for a sand pit.

Lately...we have been soaking up all the sweetness baby Braxton brings to our daily lives...Mia and Luka love to do tummy time with Braxton, they love to all lay on the same pillow when he comes each morning, they bring him toys, they make him smile...Mia in particular freaks out when Ang shows up at the door to pick him up.

Lately... we have updated and reorganized our playroom and garage...

Lately...we have enjoyed swimming and playdates with friends...

Lately...I started planning the kiddos joined birthday party in September and I am guessing my good friend Stacey is rubbing off on me since I have never planned anything that far in advance EVER. Thanks Stacey!

Lately...I took a trip down memory lane back to my student teaching days in AZ as I was searching for some of my old lesson plans for a friend...Man Oh Man- I got so emotional looking through some sweet notes, books, pictures and other things my kindergarten classes made me before I left. I truly had the best student teaching experience, the best mentors and was lucky enough to find one of my best friends going through that experience ( love you Les). Okay I'll be honest- some of those tears might have been after I saw how small I used to be and how rested and fresh and young I looked....

Lately...we have been working on learning different prayers that Luka is now in charge of saying on his own....He is seriously the most precious thing ever as he says his prayers!

Lately...Daddy has been training hard core for his triathlon ( tomorrow 7.24 is the big day- Good Luck Daddy-o) while Mommy has been hitting the gym running in preparation for the 5K in October.

Lately...Mommy was spent way too much time dealing with Time Warner Cable and we have only had their service for 24 days....ugh!!!

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Today has been one of those days that blogging without pictures would have to do...

Today we had friends over to play. Luka and Mia had a blast playing with Cole and Jackson. Luka was in heaven having two boys to play with and they were truly "such little boys" the entire time. Sweet Mia tried to keep up and do whatever they were doing. There was chasing, racing,  and lots and lots of noise. We are looking forward to adding baby Drew to our playdate fun ( Cole and Jackson will welcome little brother Drew in October).

Today we skipped naps....but overall it went pretty well.

Today Mimi and Papa came over to visit for a while and we had fun being silly with them....

Today we enjoyed some first time fun with glue and glitter while getting some special signs made for Daddy's race tomorrow...( not sure what I was thinking breaking out the glitter but the kiddos had a blast...Zach & Ang- sorry if you discovered your son being covered in glitter since I didn't mention this little craft in our daily schedule)

Today we had super fun family evening...first out to dinner at our kiddos favorite place - Chick-fil-a...they had a blast playing and were in great moods...for some reason that place has a magic spell over Luka because he turns into most well mannered child and does not takes breaks from questions and silly talks the entire time we are there...To clarify- he has pretty good manners most of the time but this is beyond anything I could possibly describe. My favorite part of dinner these days is Luka saying the prayer before our meals- we hold hands, he smiles big, closes his eyes as he bows he head and softly says" Dear God...Thank you for the food...we love Jesus...AMEN ( always loud)!" Is there anything sweeter than hearing our almost 3 year old lead our family in prayer before meals- I don't think so!

Today after dinner we made our first family trip to one of Momma's favorite places ever- BRAUMS! We actually decided to take the ice cream cones home and eat them in the front yard...so fun but WHAT.A.MESS!

It is 8:42 and even though we should all be in bed by now- Luka and Mia are having a blast outside "lawning" while I blog on the front porch ( Oh how I love evenings like this- no fights, no screams, ice cream covered babies with smiles on their faces)...tomorrow morning Daddy heads out to his race bright and early as we cheer him on from home...the race starts at 7 so there would be now way we would make it out of the house with him at 5; thankfully Mimi and Papa will be there to show their support).

What else....potty training- well there is nothing to blog about other than the fact that Mia loves her big girl panties...loves to sit on the potty...but will not take her diaper or her panties off while she sits there...Luka- he still LOVES his diaper and refuses to give it up...still hates diaper changes and if he could he would stay in the same diaper all day long....We are looking forward to a fun family weekend at the lake- we leave right after Daddy's race...we are ready to relax by the pool, enjoy boat rides and spend some quality time together.

3 kids under 3

Nope- not pregnant! This week has been quite the adventure as I spent the past three days with 3 kids unnder 3... For the next 4-5 weeks we will have a special little visitor who will spend 4 days a week with us.Starting this past Wednesday our friends' precious little 8 week old son has been hanging out with us while his mommy and daddy are at work. Braxton is about the easiest baby I have ever see and such a joy to be around. Talk about baby fever- holy cow!  This little guy totally stole not only my heart but Luka and Mia's as well. All we talk about around here is baby Braxton these days.

The kids have been absolutley WONDERFUL. I was thinking they would be jelous but that is not the case at all. They adore Braxton and have adopted him as "their brother". They are so sweet- they take turns throwing away his diaper...they want to hold him and kiss him, do things for him, read books and share their toys. They even sit next to me while I feed him which sometimes takes a while. It totally suprised me and melted my heart at the same time seeing them with Braxton. Seeing Mia as she tries to be a big sister is so stinking cute.She has been such a little helper. She asks about him as soon as her eyes open in the morning, she cries after her nap when he goes home...yesterday after he left the kids asked to hold his diapers...weird but sweet! They have also had a chance to hang out with their Mimi and Baka some and get out of the house each day.

I have had times when I had to pretend burp my almost 2 and 3 year olds, hold them like babies and pretend feed them a bottle. They are so funny but sooooo sweet! This week could not have gone better and I am looking forward to the next few with these three sweetie pies. We have had no time outs, not fights, no tantrums...they are all napping really well which at times has given me some alone time with sweet Braxton. After such busy first few weeks of summer I am enjoying staying inside and watching my favorite shows during nap time with a newborn in my arms.

I know what you are thinking...do you want #3 now? I think 2 kids will be it for the Bates family...Actually if I could carbon copy how easy this little guys is I would totally consider it 5-6 years down the road but we all know how demanding  Bates kids are so Justin and I are pretty much on the same page...2 is the perfect number!

Oh Mia!

Little Miss has been an absolute little terror today...here are the highlights of our day today...

 #1 - she got into out cleaning supplies cabinet, managed to pick out the Clorox bathroom cleaner with bleach out of all things and somehow figured out how to take the top off by herself...then got it ALL.OVER.OUR.WOOD.FLOORS!!! Thankfully I took care of it super fast and we don't see any permament damage at this point....

 #2 - somehow found one of my eye shadows- the one I never use and couldn't tell you where she even got it from...it has black, silver, and white option....Mia - our sweet little darling- felt the need to go with the black and silver choice...got herself COMPLETLEY covered in those nice colors and then managed to get it ALL.OVER out leather ottoman

#3 - permanent marker all over her legs- not even going to explain how, what or when....

#4 - last OOPS of the day was using the few seconds it took me to change Luka's diaper to sneak away withthe vaseline tub and get it ALL.OVER.HER. HAIr just minues before we were supposed to head out the door to see Nanny at the hospital....

Yes- I understand that as a Mom I get a big fat F on my parenting skills today as my childproof home attempt failed miserably BUT seriously OH MY GOODNESS GRACIOUS SAKES ALIVE OF AMERICA as Kristi would say!!! What are we going to do with this little toot! She can be the absolute sweetest little thing but at the same time our little Energizer bunny can just totally swtich into the exact opposite! Sleeping at night has also been horrible as she is waking up 2 or 3 or 4 times a night wanting milk....Fixing her hair- oh you can just forget about it....eating- she is totally making me have some serious headaches/anxiety/stress over the fact that she doesn't want anything but junk....

My prayer for Luka tonight was short and sweet as I seriously had some major praying to do for wisdom and patience and guidance for our darling little girl..As Justin puts it : "The mother-daughter feud has begun!"

Mia Nicole- my sweet girl, my precious darling- Momma NEEDS.A.BREAK!

Yogurt hair and 11 pairs of panties

After two weeks with no internet and no cable we are back in business as of noon today! So you are probably wondering what is up with the title?

Luka has discovered that using yogurt to fix his hair works and smells better than Daddy's hair stuff...When I asked him what in the world he was doing he responded "Mama, I fix my hair...I'm cool like this"...WHAT???

Mia loves, loves, loves her big girl panties....NOPE- she is not potty trained she just likes to wear them over her diaper...right now she is wearing 10 pairs + 1 on her head = 11 pairs of Dora panties....never mind ----she just added another pair to her collection....

Not sure how we survied these past two weeks with no TV and internet but we did...we had a lot of fun watching Sponge Bob goes Prehistoric DVD...Barney's Sing Alongs...Spongebob goes Prehistoric....Barney Songs...We also managed to get through some kid movies like Finding Nemo, Finding Nemo and some more Finding Nemo....We enjoyed some fun playdates, birthday parties, swimming, special visitors, long family naps and even a few date nights for Mommy and Daddy.