TWO-FERS

RIDER
(if you've ever wanted to know where his name originated... click over to kday's post)

My sweet boy is a real boy today. Two always kind of seems to mark the end of anything "baby" around our house. Well, that's a lie, cuz I don't even think about potty training and binky weening until 3. But still, big fat two is suddenly seeming all grown up - and as sad as I feel about it, I love the little boy that is emerging. I've literally watched this quiet litte introvert begin to manifest the inner workings of his little mind. Oooooh he's a lover - despite that he says "NO!" to just about every. single. thing. that is said to him. But I will say this, and if you know my Rider-roo.... you'll understand - BIRD! FISH!

This boy is such equal parts loud and quiet all at the same time. It's impossible to explain but if you know him, you get it. 

Shy as shy can be. He'll flash that killer dimple of his and then hide his dark sultry eyes as soon as you think you've made progress. And all he'll give you is a half glance out of the very most corner of his eye, head ducked to see if you've given up yet and left him alone. 

Books, books and more books. Rider will sit and read a book so quietly for an hour that I sometimes forget where he is. 

He's as thoughtful as boys come. If Rider gets hold of a binki, his brother is going to have one too - and Rider will march right over to Owen and slide his extra binki into Owen's mouth no matter where or what Owen is busy doing. Then he walks off like "ya bro, your welcome for that." Not a word is ever exchanged. 

He sleeps and sleeps and sleeps. 

And just in the last two weeks he's discovered the joy of playing with his older sister. 

He's excitement stutter is starting to shorten from "ah ah ah ah bird!" to "ha bug, ha bird, ha dad." I kinda hope he doesn't let go of this cute little mannerism for "ha while." 

Mom! Ha Bug!

Most of all, he's my easy boy.... unless Owen get's ahold of him and then they suddendly become a dynamic duo that has no limits. Rider is usually the quiet plotter behind the trouble and Owen is the one willing to be on the front line's taking the risk - like escaping through the dog door and barreling through the house is his cousin's dolly stroller at mach speed. 

 HAPPY BIRTHDAY MY SWEET SWEET BOY.

Rider lost his last surviving GREAT grandpa this week.
He will be missed, as Grandpa ralph had so much to share with my little boys.

BEEN BUSY

A 5+ hour car ride with young kids is no easy endeavor, especially when Kday and I choose not to use DVD/Ipad players in the car. (At least for sub 7 hour car rides! It just works for our family and not throwing any judgment out there to those who use them!) But I was up to the challenge, and so were my kiddos. 

I spent three days before the trip planning and creating a "BUSY BAG" for each of the kids. A quick trip to the dollar store and some around the house items, voila. Some of the busy bag games included: 

FOAM BEAD PATTERNS

 I used the sponges off Layla's foam curlers that we've never used, and a package of new sponges. I cut up the curler sponges into small pieces, made square beads out of the new sponges and pipe cleaners to thread with. I printed out a few patters and Layla really loved this activity.

 MAGNETIC PUZZLES

I simply took a puzzle I had in the play room, (thanks to Kday's oldest sister Sidders who has the best hand-me downs!) I slapped some magnetic strips on the back and used a baking dish. It's the perfect toddler friendly puzzle because the pieces don't slide around during a winding car ride.

I also grabbed a $1 barbie puzzle for Layla and again made it magnetic. The trays are great also to keep pieces from falling on the floor.

FLASH CARDS

Another $1 store find- Numbers, Letters, and Opposites.  I used a hole punch and put them on a ring so the kids could easily flip through them without dropping card all over the back of the car. The boys liked it when I'd ask them to find a specific picture on one of the cards and they'd try to find the right one. 

TACTILE SQUISHY BALL

 A neighbor gave these to the kiddos the other day and I confiscated them an kept them a secret until the drive. New toys are always more exciting.

POM POM POP IN

Kday drilled holes in the lid of a Tupperware that was just the right size to push pom poms into. Owen is really into putting objects into containers and this was a great repetitive task for his chubby little fingers.

PIPE CLEANER SORTING

Same idea as the pom pom's but with pipe cleaners and added the element of matching colors.

 STICKERS

Stickers and a little note pad go a looooong way with my kids. 

 SORTING OF SORTS

I found these magnificent little ice cube trays at the dollar store and they were great for following patterns with the pom poms or divying out treats. Rider likes to shove every single piece of food into his mouth at once, so this was a good way to slow him down and make his treats last. Or, pretend it's a boat which is what Owen did. Hey, whatever keeps them happy for a couple miles - right!?

LAST RESORT

You know that moment on a road trip when all Hell breaks lose and the kids diapers a soggy, everyone is screaming because they can't stand another minute being strapped in a 5 point harness, and you debate stopping just shy of your destination or pushing through?! That's when suckers are a LIFE SAVER!!!! These ridiculous sucker binki's were a hit and they kept all crying mouths quiet for the last 20 miles so we could reach Jackson Hole in peace and quiet. (after many experiments I'd add that a fancy exciting sucker and not just a plain dum-dum makes all the difference in the success of this trick)

Throw everything in their individual bag and magically the kids were super awesome for the entire drive. Boy oh boy did the kids impress! They enjoyed the scenery, played I-spy, sang songs and actually didn't even need the busy bags until the last 50 miles! 

And just in case this post sounds too "peachy keen"... It was still a 6 hour car ride with three kids and thus a little demanding on mom and dad to keep kids entertained, pick up dropped binki's and sippy cups, and potty stops. But we survived another trip sans media devices and enjoyed each other's company and the scenery! Yay Day!

PRIMA-BALLERINA DAYS

The sound of the clanky classic piano music echo'ing across the hardwood floor tapped on my heart. The sunlight was shining through the closed blinds as to keep the classroom private and free from distractions, and the mirrors perfectly cleaned without a hint of grubby little boy fingerprints.  Ballet classes began last week and my little Layla once again reminds me of the changes happening around me. I keep finding myself swooped up into new stages of motherhood and I'm always caught off guard by the speed of passage.

This year marks the beginnings of out of the home extracurricular activities and learning experiences. Preschool and ballet. Preschool deserves it's very own post to cover my waxing and waning emotions on the idea. But ballet has arrived, Layla and I were both whirling with excitement as she donned her powder pink leotard and tights. Top knot bun in tow and her ever growing bare feet itching to learn coordinated movements. A few tears collected in my eyes as I welcomed the excitement of new things to come. My relationship with Layla continues to change as each new experience materializes. My heart felt pride and sadness when I watched my first baby prance away from me and into the ballet studio, without a fleeting look of nerves or need for her matriarch in her eyes. She was completely prepared to let go of my hand and grasp onto the offerings of the outside world. I however, wasn't as poised in letting go of the tiny warm hand of my first miracle baby.

But off she went and her little heart was able to dance, prance, and move to it's content. As her class is closed to spectators, I eagerly waited to see her reaction as she chassé'd across the room and out the door. We met each other with smiles and I listened ever intently as she spilled her guts about her class. We continued home giggling and laughing together about her new adventure, and I focused on how happy I was to be on this journey by her side.

Meanwhile, I think the brother bears were well aware of the new stage in life. 

"Waiting for sister." 

They have a year of waiting outside of ballet classes and preschool ahead of them.

And I think we'll find ourselves making the most of it.

LIFE IS SWEET

Daily life in the household of the triple threat is getting dramatically easier is most aspects, these days. Some circumstances still feels like herding cats - really loud naughty cats, like shopping, sacrament meeting, and pools. But for the most part the brother bears are becoming more and more independent and things like bottles, binki's, bouncers, highchairs, and baby food are going by the wayside. Their needs are changing from screaming fits because they need a nap, to screaming because they're wholly frustrated by new concepts like sharing, taking turns and toys that get stuck in random places and are inaccessible.
We're deep into the single word phase and my ears are going to fall off if I hear my boys say "no no no" one more time. The hardest part about these boys right now is probably that year 1-3 are full of frustrating phases for toddlers, phases that seem to last about 3-4 months at a time. So if you do your math correctly, just as Rider and I conquer the trying phase of throwing food and refusal to eat... Owen enters that phase. I'm rounding the corner from the "no" phase with Rider and Owen is bringing up the rear with the same problem. So what normally is a 3 month phase for a mom to deal with, now becomes 6+ months of toddler frustrations. To look on the bright side though would be to welcome the fact that at least I know what's coming with Owen and I'm fresh off the train of toddler time out concepts and how to ease the poor boy through the frustrating times.
Most mornings are filled with boyish belly laughter as they re-discover their friendship across the span between their cribs. Toys and books are thrown between cribs and if they each stand in the right corner they can reach far enough to swap binki's and sippy's. Rider is finally picking up on his language skills and Owen is riding his coat tails and not far behind.
The boys could not be more different and yet the same in so many ways. Rider hoards everything he can get his long fingers on and Owen could care less about toys. Rider is content to sit and peruse a book for an hour and Owee can't sit still long enough to see the picture on the front cover. Rider is as loud and fast as he is quiet and slow. Owen is just loud and fast and destructible.  Both boys love bikes, water and the outdoors. And I couldn't survive them without my trusty assistant Layla. She is my saving grace, so good, sweet and helpful.

Tonight I made a mean dish of Ham Fried Rice for dinner and I couldn't help but try the facebook recipe for Sugar Cookie Bars. D.Lish. Simple routines like attempting dinner are becoming less overwhelming and more like the daily part of life that it once was. Life is so sweet right now.

OH YES...

WE'LL BE DOING THIS FOR SURE.
I stumbled upon this hot little number of a blog last night and isn't it full of fantastic-ness. That's totally a word so just keep reading and skip the dictionary portion of your search. Anyway, aside from me distracting you with non-existant words that I insist are legit.... How easy and amazing does this idea sound.

Paper Bag Discovery Book:
For full instructions please visit her web page!

photo by "A little learning for two" blog.

Basically some brown bags, washi tape, staples and an adventure to the park. Super doable and super rad.  No go do this over the weekend and let me know how it goes!!!!

THE GIFT IS THE PRESENT

I sat as a single person in the masses of grieving friends and family at a funeral yesterday. I listened as seven incredible children stood and spoke lovingly of their father who passed on at a much too early age. Each speaker reminded me to be present with my children, to live as an example to which I'd hope they would grow to live. Service, thoughtfulness, generosity, humor, hard work and the ability to enjoy daily life, all attributes the children learned from their father. 

With three kids, my youngest of which happens to be a little bitter at the world and is in a constant state of discontent and irritability... it's hard to always be a shining example of patience and time well spent.  But yesterday I remembered the importance of spending the time to tuck my children into bed instead of rushing out of their room to catch the latest episode of some ridiculous prime time show. I'm trying better to be prepared with a fun activity for them when they wake from naps, instead of being bothered that they are awake only to make a mess of the house after my nap time cleaning regimen.  My kids will only learn to love life if I'm willing to live it along side of them and show them the parts I love. Simple time during each day is the best gift I can give them. Time to play, create, learn, explore... time to play in the shower instead of the same old bath routine every evening. Time to go crazy and pour water all over yourself while playing in the sandbox... or time to go outside and dance in the rain. Teaching them that the best part of cooking is licking the bowl... just be present in whatever moment you're in and take the chance to BE with your family.

A special thanks to Steve Barlow and his wonderful legacy for reminding me of the important things in life. May the Lord bless his sweet family in this hard time of loss.