Being a parent is hard...

If you're a parent you know this is true.  Parenting is probably the most challenging yet rewarding thing that I have done thus far in my 28 years.  Each morning I wake up wondering what kind of day it will be.  Will Jael be in a compliant mood?  Will Jada take her scheduled naps with ease or will she fight me every step of the way?  What form of discipline will be most effective with Jael today?  Is Jada getting enough while she nurses or is she coming up short?  How many times will I need to wipe those two little rear ends and as a result do the massive amount of laundry associated with blow outs and accidents?  The list of "what ifs" goes on and on and as parents we have to be on our toes and ready to adapt.

Last night as I was heading into bed I decided to look in on our two little stinkers and found sleeping angels.  As I walked into Jael's room I gently arranged the covers off of her pretend baby and onto my baby.  She didn't budge.  There was no negotiating or arguing.  She allowed me to cover her to keep her warm and kiss her goodnight.  Next was Jada.  She too had kicked off her covers but slept soundly on her belly.  I covered her, patted her bottom and told her I loved her.  Moments like these are the ones that keep me going every day as a mommy.

It also made me think about my Father in Heaven.  How many times do I argue and negotiate with Him about what He knows is best for me?  It's not until I rest in His arms that He can cover me with his love, warmth and kisses.  What a wonderful thing  :-)

The baby whisperer

Luke calls himself the baby whisperer.  I never believed him until now.  Watch the movie below.

Now every evening I count on Luke's playing to keep Jada happy during her cranky time before bed.  I guess I'm going to have to learn to play the guitar!  Yikes!

Hot chocolate makes things better!

Jael and I are both fighting nasty colds so I thought we could enjoy some hot chocolate!  Jael really enjoyed it and called it her coffee!  :-)  She thought it was fun to drink it with her pinkie up in the air.  Jada sat and watched with her thumb in her mouth.  Good times were had by all!

Separation Anxiety

I've heard about this terrible monster attacking children of all ages but never really experienced it until NOW!  Jael is going through some intense separation anxiety.  It all started at her first drop in preschool experience.  I was hoping it would be an isolated incident but am quickly learning that it is indeed going to be a PHASE.  Jael use to love Sunday School.  In fact, she ran Sunday School.  The past few Sundays have been rough but today the anxiety peeked for her.  At John Carroll School nursery through preschool are all in the same gym area but separated by portable walls.  I walked in and dropped Jael off to class first.  She had a couple of tears but did pretty well.  I then walked to the back of the gym to drop off Jada.  After a few minutes of talking to Jada's teacher I started back towards the door (which meant walking past Jael's class).  I spotted Jael standing alone, head down, toy at her side crying.  I tried to get by without her seeing me but she looked up.  She threw the toy to the ground, screamed "mommy" and ran full speed ahead into my arms.  She was hysterical!  A few of the helpers tried to encourage her to rejoin group but it was all over.  She clung to my neck with a grip no person could pry apart and SCREAMED.  It was clear that she was not staying at class so I brought her up to worship with me.  You can imagine how that went.  So we hung outside of service and visited with friends until Jada's number came up (as it always does) so I could go down and feed her.  It was a rough Sunday morning.  I pray that this phase is almost over!

Good Times with Family and Friends

Dave & Paula were here for a week and Kyle & Callie came for a long weekend.  We had a blast!  Luke and Kyle played in the three on three basketball tournament and WON for the second time!

Here's the Winning Team!

After the tournament we attended the Habitat for Humanity Dream Builders Ball.  Included in the evening was a dinner, presentation, silent auction, live auction and dancing.  We had a wonderful time and were so grateful to Papa and Mema for watching the kiddos!

Jael and Jada had so much fun playing with all of our company!  Papa and Jael went on an adventure every morning in an effort to keep Jael from waking up the rest of the house!  It was nice to be able to sleep in a little bit.  Unfortunately Mema caught a bit of a cold while here.

We also went to the Bel Air Athletic Club for some basketball and swimming.  I promised Kyle I was going to post this picture to document his fantastic tan line!  You're welcome Kyle!  

Friday Evening we had a delicious dinner at Rod and Liz Ross' house!  Jael thought that she was so helpful!

She decided to help Liz wipe out the sink.

It was a wonderful week!  We are so thankful to Papa and Mema for all of their help as well as Kyle and Callie for coming to visit!  We love you all!

Big Girls!

Jael is growing up so fast!  She's intelligent beyond her little 3-year-old body.  But emotionally she is definitely a 3-year-old.  One thing Luke and I have noticed is her increasing imagination.  It's so fun to watch her play and play along with her as she makes up all sorts of situations.  A lot of which she has seen around the house.

She's been fighting a cold the last few days and was very relieved to find out that it would keep her from attending preschool again this past Thursday.  Hopefully that fear will turn into excitement sooner than later.  She was a little weepy when I picked her up from Sunday school today which is not normal for her so I think she's going through a rough patch of attachment.

Jada is growing too!  She has finally come to enjoy taking baths!  I had to do a little photo shoot because she's just so darn cute!

Happy Valentine's Day (Yesterday)

We had a wonderful Valentine's Day.  A friend from church came and watched the girls while Luke and I went out to dinner.  We went to Outback Steakhouse and boy was in crowded!  We purposely went around 4:30 and still had to wait.  We sat next to an older couple and boy were they a piece of work!  The guy sitting at the table on the other side of them sneezed.  The lady said "do you have a cold?"  waved down her waitress and asked to be moved!  Of course the restaurant was slammed and there was no chance of that happening!  It was amusing.

Jael had a big event today as well.  It was her first day of "drop-in preschool".  A lady at church runs the program out of her house.  You can bring your child as much as you want for as long as you want for $5 an hour.  It's a pretty sweet deal!  Jael went from 9 to 12.  When I dropped her off she cried but I assured the teacher that she would be fine.  When I picked her up at 12 she was still crying!!  The teacher said she cried the entire time!  She would stop for a minute or two and then remember that I wasn't there and cry!  My heart just broke!  I think I traumatized her because she woke up early from her nap hysterical because she didn't know where I was!  She's suppose to go back Thursday so I will let you know how it goes!

Jada is getting bigger and more fun!  She loves to be held which makes life a little more difficult for mommy.  So as you can see in the picture, I have started strapping her to me as I do what I need to do around the house.  I read that it helps burn more calories to carry them around while you do stuff so I guess that is an advantage!