Gracie the Bully...

My sweet, sensitive little two-year old is a bully.  There's no sugar coating it... she is a little bugger to her friends at daycare.  Okay, not all of her friends... just one.  The weak one.  At two years old, Gracie has already learned to signal out the weak in the crowd, and torment them merciously until they cry and become afraid of her.  Gracie has told me that this little girl still uses a soother all day and cries all the time.  I don't know if it's true, but my snob of a daughter apparently looks down on such behaviour!

This isn't a behaviour or an attitude that we've taught her.  But we're doing our damnedest to unteach her!  It started a few months ago... I picked Gracie up and asked Nancy how she was.  "Wellllll...." Nancy said.  "She hit *insert little girl's name here*.  A few times. I gave her a time-out, but as soon as she was out, she hit her again."  So Gracie and I had a very severe talk that night about how we don't hit our friends.  The next day I picked her up and asked Nancy how she was. "Welllll....." Nancy said, "she didn't hit today.  But she kept pushing *little girl*"  So Gracie and I had a very severe talk that night about how we don't hit or push our friends.  The next I picked her up and asked Nancy how she was.  "Welllll...." Nancy said, "she didn't hit or push, but she's pinching."  So that night Gracie and I had a very severe discussion about all of the things we don't do to our friends.  We don't hit, we don't kick, we don't push, we don't spit, and we don't pinch!!  I missed the important one... and the one we're having problems with now....

"So Nancy, how was she today?"  Nancy wouldn't make eye contact.  I thought to myself, "Oh God, Gracie.  What did you do?!"  "She's biting."  Oh no!!!!  I did not want one of my kids to be a biter!  I didn't even wait until we got home.  We had a very severe discussion right there in the driveway.  Biting was absolutely not acceptable!  But the biting continued.  Each day that it happened, we would talk about it at night and it wouldn't happen the next day.  But every other day, she was biting this poor girl.  Nancy was putting her in timeout and disciplining her, so it wasn't accepted at Nancy's house.  But Gracie kept on doing it.  The final straw for me was when Nancy told me that Gracie went up to the little girl while she sleeping and bit her on the leg.  She bit her right through her jeans and left teeth marks on her leg.  I was appalled!  Gracie and I had a very intense conversation in the driveway right then.  I was very angry with her!  That night while we were playing on the floor, I asked why Gracie kept being mean to the little girl.  Gracie just gave me the standard two-year-old answer, "I don't know."  We talked about how we have to be nice to our friends, and how our friends are nice to us.  Then I asked her, "Gracie, has anybody ever bitten you?" and Gracie said no.  I said, "do you know that biting hurts?  It hurts so much it can make a little girl cry!" and Gracie said no.  I asked her if I could show her what biting feels like.  She said yes.  And so I bit her.

I know what they say... that you can't (and absolutely should not!!) teach kids not to bite by biting them.  But I didn't do this in the heat of the moment.  I didn't do it immediately after she had done it to somebody else.  We were having a discussion about biting and how it hurts, and I asked her if I could show her what the little girl felt like when Gracie bit her.  I did it after everything else didn't work!

Poor Gracie's mouth dropped open and she just stared at me.  Then she started to sputter, "Mm..mmm...mama!!  That hurts!"  She whimpered a little bit, but didn't cry.  I kissed her better, and asked her if she thought that little girl felt the same way when she bit her.  She told me "I will never bite her again.  Never, ever, ever again."  And so far... she hasn't!

Every day since, I have picked Gracie up and she runs to me and says, "I no hitting, no pushing, no spitting, and NOOOOO biting!"  She's very excited, and once I get the "nod" from Nancy confirming that it was, in fact, a good day, she gets the biggest hug from me!!  Here's hoping our little bully has had the bully taken out of her... and she stops making little girls cry!!

When the Husband's Away... 2 weeks later!

The hubby has been gone for two weeks now!  I "celebrated" his leaving with big intentions and a positive attitude.  So... how's it going two weeks later??

I am happy to announce that two weeks in, I am still sleeping in the middle of the bed!  No robbers or boogey men have come to eat me, and I have only been woken up by snoring once... and it was by the cat.  Also, my nasal passages have remained free and clear of gaseous odours, and I have realized that not having to inhale toxic fumes while one sleeps can make for quite a refreshing morning!

I have started selling our crap on the internet.  It's not crap to most people, which surprises me.  Sometimes when people are bidding $5 or $6 for certain items, I think "Really?!  You would pay that much for something I was going to throw in the garbage??"  However, so far we have added nearly $60 of wealth to our bank account, so I cannot complain!  I'm not even close to being done finding crap to sell, so hopefully our bank account will just keep on growing. 

I can confirm that the watching of Gilmore Girls has been very successful!  I have finished the third season, and am well into the fouth.  Success! While accomplishing this success, I have also eaten two boxes of chicken wings and one, two, three bags of chips.  Which, conveniently enough, brings me to my failures....

My personal plan to keep on with the healthy living... FAIL!  Although I don't totally blame myself on this one... despite what all those motivation posters you see say, I feel much better in the morning after a lovely snack and some Gilmore Girls, than I do after a workout.  I have to say though, I am eating healthy meals all day, it's just that 9 p.m. can be a very lonely time.  And I love chickens, they keep me company.  Also, my knee is still majorly buggered from Jillian's workouts.  I'm limping around like an 80-year old man and any sort of "sitting down" movement makes pain ricochet through my knee and leg bones.  Next week I'll start over with the exercise... I swear! 

Here I am, making the right choice! :)

Also, I've added another project to my list... remove Christmas lights.  It's embarrassing that Gracie still says "Goodnight Christmas lights, Goodnight candy canes" every night before she goes to bed.  Those suckers need to come down.  Danny doesn't want me to do this, but by the time he gets to it, it'll be almost May.  I do not want to be "those" neighbours with the crazy Christmas lights still up until the middle of summer.  Those babies are comin' down... as soon as I figure out how to use the ladder... and work those stupid gutter clips that hold them up... and figure out what to do with the girls when I'm on the ladder... and if the snow ever melts...

I have only kinda-sorta organized the girls' rooms.  Yesterday during my sick/snow day I scrubbed the whole house from top to bottom.  This included the girls' rooms.  I got the next size of Ella's clothes all washed and hung in her closet.  However, the big piles of clothes that need to be packed back up are still in the girls' rooms.  I wish that we could just decide to have a boy for the next baby so we could donate or sell all these clothes.  They take up so. much. room!  Nudist colonies are under-rated!

I have not learned to knit.  I have not even bought knitting needles.  I tried once.  I went to Walmart and very confidently stood in front of the knitting needles.  There were 6 billion different sizes.  Apparently a size for every human being on the planet.  I had no idea which ones I needed.  I also looked at the yarn.  There were tons of choices, and they all looked different. Some were thick, some were thin, some were twirly, some were straight.  I had no idea which ones were "scarf yarn."  And none of the pacakges said "buy this one if you want to knit a scarf."  So seriously, somebody come and teach me to knit.  Hell, if you're better at crocheting, come teach me how to crochet.  I'll put on a box of chicken wings, and we can make a night out of it.  I'll put on Gilmore Girls and we can knit (or crochet), drink some tea, and eat some chicken wings.  Although, I'm pretty sure knitting involves using your hands and fingers, so maybe chicken wings aren't a great idea....

I also have not decorated and/or painted.  I know exactly what I want to do.  I can explain it in perfect detail.  Others can even imagine along with me and see my vision for the house.  But I haven't bought a can of paint.  Painting is very daunting!  Once you start, there's no going back.  It's also very messy.  And dealing with two kids on my own while trying to paint the upstairs (where we basically do ALL of our living) is scary.  My plan was to paint in the evenings when they were in bed.  Get a wall done one night, the chair rail another night, another wall, and so on and so on, until it was all pretty and finished.  But alas, I have not done it.  So, somebody needs to come and help me paint.  I'll put on a box of chicken wings and we can make a night/week out of it! (Does the offer of chicken wings entice anybody other than me?!)

So all in all, the last two weeks have been... majorly unsuccessful.  I've done the tiny little things that don't really matter (really, can I call watching TV all night a success?) and the big world-changing projects I was going to tackle are left unaccomplished.  I'm down to less than 5 weeks until Danny comes home.  Here's hoping for some inspiration and motivation to help me along... any chance that any of you out there are nick-named inspiration or motivation??  Anybody??

Why I hate babies...

Sometimes... I hate babies.  Not genuinely, of course, cause I love babies (especially mine), but in an "oh my god what is wrong with you" sort of way!  

I know that babies have tiny, undeveloped brains, and therefore their actions cannot be controlled, and they don't really know what they're doing, and blah, blah, blah.  I call bullshit.  Babies know what they're doing... oh they know exactly what they're doing!!!

Let's talk about the baby I know best.  I love Ella... I really do!  But my heavens, sometimes... arrrrrgh!!

Ella wakes up in the morning and she's all happy, and smiley, and coo-y!  We get ready for the morning, with hugs and kisses, and butterflies and rainbows.  And then I have to put her coat on.  Do you think that Ella would be all rational, and think "hey, I have to put my coat on now because it's -6000 and I don't want to freeze my adorable little belly button off"?  Nope!! That baby will throw herself backwards in my arms, wave her arms around like she's trying to fly away, and squawk like a parrot being eaten alive.  You would swear I was putting her in a coat of hot lava.  She's damn lucky I haven't dropped her on the floor during one of these dramatic episodes she flails around so much!  Damn babies...

Later, we're playing in the living room and Ella is all giggles and laughs on her playmat.  She's waving toys around and having a grand old time.   And then, for a split second, I step out of her line of vision. Do you think that Ella would be all rational, and think "hey, mom just had to walk away for a few seconds, I'm sure she'll be right back!"?  Nope!!  That baby will immediately start screaming and crying and kicking her feet and, if I don't step back into her line of vision quickly enough, knock herself over on the playmat, which sets off another round of screeching.  Even Gracie said to her "geez Ella, I said I'd be right back!"  Ella, I only had to go in the kitchen to stir your supper, I'm still right here!  Damn babies...

Next, Ella has had a crap the size of Gracie's head and we're in her room changing her bum.  Ella doesn't mind her bum being changed, so she's all happy and giddy, and having a nice laugh at our peek-a-boo games and our raspberry kisses.  And then it's time to put a clean diaper back on her bum.  Do you think Ella would be all rational, and think "hey!  A clean diaper, that will feel so nice on my bum.  Not only that, but when I need to pee, it wont be all over the change table or up my own back!"?  Nope!!  That baby will grab onto both of her ankles in a sort of death grip, pull her knees into her chest or put her feet in her mouth, and rock back and forth, all the while giggling cause she thinks it's funny!  It was quite humorous, the first time.  But now, I have to wrestle her hand off of one foot (with the hopes of getting that side of the diaper fastened), and just as I think I've got it, she lets go of the other foot, grabs the foot I just had with both of her hands, and before I have a chance to grab the foot she let go of, she grabs it again!  And the game starts over.  Damn babies...

It's 6:15 a.m.  Ella is sound asleep.  I have to get up and get ready for work.  I get dressed, pack the lunches up, stuff the diaper bag, carry them out to the car, come back and wake up Gracie, get her dressed, and since it's 6:55 now, go to get Ella.  There she is so sweet and serene,  sound asleep in her crib.  Now it's Friday night, and do you think Ella would be all rational and think "hey! Tomorrow is Saturday and mom gets to sleep in.  I think I'll sleep till my usual time, or maybe even later!"?  Nope!  That baby, sure as shit, will be wide awake and rearing to go at 6 a.m. tomorrow morning.  Damn babies...

And of course, there's the thing I've been complaining about for a couple of months now with Ella.  It's snack time in the Ford household.  Or, perhaps, it's time to get supper ready.  Either way, Ella is in her exersaucer, surrounded by Cheerios!  She's hungry, of course, so she picks up those cheerios in her teeny tiny little fingers.  Do you think she would be all rational and think, "Hey, I'm hungry!  And look, here are some Cheerios!  I know how to pick them up, so I think I'll put them into my mouth, where I will receive sustenance and be happy!"?  Nope!  That freaking child will fill her hands with Cheerios and then scream at me until I fill her mouth with them.  When I try to guide her hand to her own mouth to show her how it works, that baby will throw herself backwards in that exersaucer, wave her arms around like she is trying to fly and squawk louder than a parrot being eaten alive.  Yes, the exact same "coat tantrum."  She will also throw all of the Cheerios she has in her hands onto the floor, and then for good measure, she will also dramatically sweep her arms across the Cheerios remaining on the exersaucer and knock those to the floor too.  She will cry, and cry, and cry, until I put more Cheerios in her mouth.  Because heaven forbid this baby be like every single other baby in the world and put things in her mouth.  No toys, no soothers, and certainly not food.  So instead, I will be like a trained puppet, inserting Cheerios or wheaty puffs whenever she opens her mouth for more, or else deal with the shrieking, squawking baby.  Damn babies...

Nothing but fingers shall enter this mouth,
unless it is being fed to me by my slave mother.

Okay, I guess with a face like this...
I can't help but love her! :)

30 Day Shred - The End

Well here we are, at the end of The Shred.  My final 10 days... Level 3!  I honestly didn't think I could commit to 30 days of fitness.  I always have the best intentions, but anyone who knows me, knows how much I absolutely hate working out.  Maybe it's because it hurts so much, maybe I am just truly the laziest person around... I think it's because I cherish my bad food too much, and feel guilty when I eat crap when trying to be healthy.  I hate guilt.  So instead of feeling guilty, I stop exercising so I don't feel bad about my chicken wings and fried pepperoni! :)

Here's a little inspiration from Jillian - it pretty much sums up why I hate her so much.  She tells you this throughout the workouts and it makes me want to curse at her.   Sometimes I do and I feel much better!

I've had to take about two weeks off from working out, due to knee problems and some sort of tummy bug.  I'm really hoping it didn't lower me back down to "sloth" position and I can pick up where I left off... okay, here we go!!

Day 21

Wow... Level 3 is definitely more intense.  But I have to say after the first night, it looks like my favourite.  After the first cardio interval, I was cursing and grunting a lot.  It sounded like the last 30 minutes of my labour with Ella.  Danny came to make sure I was okay and I'm pretty sure I yelled the same things as labour, "you did this to me!!!"  I've always known the importance of breathing, but this level really proved it to me... I had no choice but to breathe, and breathe hard!  Bonus - I did every single push-up (walking push-ups, actually) that the horrible woman asked me to!  Take THAT, Jillian!

Day 22

Okay, so I woke up this morning feeling a little like I had been hit by a bus.  Also, I was starving!  By the time work-out time came around, I kinda felt like someone had punched me in the stomach over and over and over again.  But that's a good thing, right?  I was not a fantastic work-outer tonight.  I am super sore from yesterday, and it was all I could do to keep from crying through some of the strength moves.  Here's hoping I heal better tonight and feel more like a real person tomorrow!

Day 23

So I still feel like I've been hit by a bus... except worse today.  In a good way, I suppose.  I know they say you're supposed to hurt, it means your body is changing.  But seriously, my ribs and abs hurt to breathe.  So I'm taking a break tonight... cause I'm pretty sure if I do the workout tonight, I may puke, faint, AND die.  In that order.

Day 24

Yeah, so I'm still super sore, but I got back at it today.  I must say I love this workout.  Okay, that word is a little strong.  I tolerate this workout better than any of the others.  It actually feels pretty good!

Day 25

Are you still supposed to ache after 5 days?  Danny says this is what he feels like almost every day, since he works out hard every single day.  I say, poooey.  On the bright side though, I'm getting this thing done, and that's more than I ever thought I'd be able to do.  I'm actually starting to *gasp* enjoy it.

Day 26

I lied... I'm not enjoying it.  I'm back to feeling like this achy feeling sucks.  Super sucks.  It takes me the first 10 minutes of the workout to loosen up enough to not feel like I'm dying with each move.  And the freaking workout is only 20 minutes to begin with.  But again... I'm doing it!  So yay, me!!!

Day 27

I'm not doing it.  Not today.

Day 28

After my day off yesterday, I feel much more energized.  I actually completed the workout with minimal grunting and groaning.  I must say, this level is one hell of an ab workout.  Holy guacamole!!  I'm not shaking nearly as bad as I was on Day 21 though, so that's a bonus!

Day 29

I got through the whole workout today without even breaking a sweat.  Okay, that's a lie... I sweated like a gross old pig.  I hate to use that work again, but I actually kind of enjoyed tonight!

Day 30

What's that you say?  The end!?!?  Wahooooooo!  Never to do another exercise again!!  That's actually not true... as much as I hate Jillian, I love the fact that her workouts make me feel like I'm actually working out... and I love that by the end of day 3, 4, and 5, I feel a difference in what I'm able to do... SOOOOO, I will be doing her leg workout, arm workout, and ab workout, with Level 3 in between those days (but not on Saturdays or Sundays, those are my resting days).

I'm very glad that I did this workout... I didn't commit to it nearly as well as I wanted to, and I sure as hell didn't change my eating habits.  I feel like I could have done much better (body-wise) if I had.  What I was happy with was the results of my stamina and cardio... I can do so much more than I could a month ago, and for me, that's so important!  Now that I'm back at work, I can only eat what I bring with me, so I've been eating much healthier the last couple of weeks.  Stay tuned for an update in another month or so to see if I've adopted this healthy, working-out lifestyle (sadly, I have my doubts).

And for the record, here are my before and afters (sorry, no swimsuit pictures! lol)

Before:

Weight - 118
Chest - 31.5
R. Arm - 11
L. Arm - 10.5
Waist - 27.5
Hips - 33
R. Thigh - 20
L. Thigh - 21.5


After:

Weight - 113
Chest - 32
R. Arm - 11.5
L. Arm - 11.5
Waist - 26
Hips - 33
R. Thigh - 19
L. Thigh - 20

Did that really just happen?!

Sometimes things happen that make me think... did that really just happen?  Are you serious?!  What were you thinking?!

For example:  I was at the Emergency Department a few days ago with Ella, and there was a little boy there who needed some severe parenting... or any parenting at all, really.  When I first got there, he was running around in circles screaming.  Okay, I can understand that.  Hospitals are boring, and we all feel like screaming after being there for a while.  Next, he sat in his chair and chirped liked a bird.  Really loudly.  Okay, I still get it.  He has some extra energy, and he needs to get it out.  But then he came over to where I was sitting, with Ella sitting on the chair beside me.  At first, he just reached out and touched her foot.  I smiled.  Then he reached out and held onto her hand.  Okay.... Then he crawled onto the chair with her, put his hands all over her face, and talked directly into her breathing space.  This boy was probably around 6 or 7.  He should know better than that.  His dad (I'm assuming) was the one who was there with him.  He said, "get off the chair, honey." And the boy jumped down.  Then he got right back up and started putting his face in Ella's again.  I looked at the dad.  "Get down please, sweetie."  Seriously?  This happened 2 or 3 more times.  If my child ever climbed onto a chair with another person (whom I didn't know) and proceeded to touch that person's face and cough into their mouth, I sure wouldn't be sitting in my chair all sweetly asking her to get down.  You better believe I would be out of my chair faster than germs spreading in an ER.  I would pick up my child, take her back to her own seat, and tell her how that behaviour isn't appropraite. And then I would make sure she would not do it again.

Another time, Danny and I were at the grocery store and a father was shopping with his two children (probably 7 and 10).  He was staring at the coffee, and his kids were blocking the end of the aisle with their shopping cart, screaming at each other.  I said "excuse me, please."  The kids just stared at me.  "Excuse me."  The dad looked over at his kids, said "move guys, you're in the way" and stared back at the coffee.  The kids didn't move.  I said excuse me again, and the dad asked them to move again.  Nothing.  So I had to physically move their cart out of my way, and knock into one of the kids with my own cart while trying to get through because he still refused to move.  As if that wasn't bad enough, when we got to the next aisle, one of the kids had picked up a bag of coffee and threw it over the top of the aisle they were in, into the one we were going into.  And not a word from dad.  WTF parent?

But it's not always lazy parenting that astounds me.  Sometimes, I can completely understand where kids learn their behaviour!  One day while walking at the mall, I had Ella in her stroller and Gracie walking beside us.  We got to the doors to go outside, and as any parent knows, unless that door is automatic, getting through it is a bitch.  I turned around to walk through it backwards, so my butt would open the door instead and I could pull the stroller through.  I told Gracie to come through and she was waiting patiently for me on the other side.  As I was walking backwards trying to get the stroller through I saw a lady coming at me in a sort of jog.  I thought to myself, "aww, she's going to hold the door for me so I can get this damn stroller through it!"  Nope!  She said, "excuse me" and then (after holding onto the stroller to support herself) stepped over my stroller and through the door herself.   I was flabbergasted!  And apparently so was the man who was standing nearby who said, "what the hell!?" and just stared at her open-mouthed (and then held the door for me).  I can maybe (maybe) understand if that woman was in a hurry (and to be fair, maybe I didn't notice that her arm was cut off and she was bleeding profusely from a stub), but there were 3 other sets of doors she could have walked through without stepping over me and my children!

I wish I could discover a good way to handle these situations.  Mostly I just smile at these people.  I have never said anything to any of these people, although I have had make-believe conversations in my head:  "Hey crazy lady!  You wanna try maybe holding the door open for a woman with a baby stroller, instead of walking over her?"  "Hey dad!  Your kids are throwing shit all over the store while screaming and blocking the way of the aisles.  Wanna tell them to pipe the fuck down?"  "Hey daddy.  I'm assuming your kid is sick because he's in a hospital waiting room and he's the one wearing the yellow bracelet.  You maybe wanna get him off my infant's lap?  Or at the very least, could you tell him to stop wiping his hands all over her face?"  If only I started saying these things out loud... my blogs would be soooo much more interesting!! :)

When the husband's away...

Well that's it... Danny's gone!  He left this afternoon to travel to Borden, Ontario, for a 6-week leadership course (PLQ).  By the time he drives there and back, he'll be gone for a whopping 7 weeks! Whatever shall we do while he's gone!?!

First of all... I'm gonna sleep smack dab in the middle of the bed!  I try to do this every night, and every night Danny makes me move!  Sometimes I'm awake and I don't put up much of a fight... but when I'm already asleep and he tries to move me, apparently I growl!  Of course, this will only be fun for the first couple of days that he's gone.  Then, it'll be like it always is when he's not here... I'll start sleeping on his side, farthest away from the window - where bad people are lurking and planning to break in in the middle of the night.  Yup, that's a rational fear!

I'm also going to start selling some junk.  I don't like crap and clutter!  I'm not saying that Danny does, but he has an awfully hard time parting with some stuff that I would totally throw in the trash.  And since a friend introduced me to the Facebook world of yardsales and auctions, maybe I'll actually make us some money, instead of just loading up garbage bags full of stuff!  And since he's not here to watch me work, I doubt he'll even know half his stuff is gone!! *insert evil laugh here*

Since the plan is to sell this house this year, it also needs some re-redecorating.  I doubt I'll get much painting done while he's gone, but hopefully I'll at least get all the colours picked out and the rooms cleaned and ready to go.  I normally hate renovations, but I'm so excited about this selling place, I think I may actually enjoy this round of fix-me-ups!

I'm going to learn to knit!  That has been my goal since January!!!  And since I have it on good authority that knitting is easier to learn than crocheting (at which I have failed at least 4 times already), I'm gonna have a scarf finished before he gets home.  My ultimate goal is to have some mittens, scarves, and blankets knitted for Christmas gifts.  Possible??  We'll see!!

I'm going to finish the last 4 seasons of Gilmore Girls.  That's right, I started watching Gilmore Girls when Danny took his "two-day" trip to Yellowknife.  After three weeks, I had finished the first 3 seasons.  I don't care what anybody says.  That show rocks! 

I'm going to organize the girls' clothes.  The crappiest thing about having girls so close in age is that I'm constantly shuffling clothes from box to closet, from closet to box.  It sucks!!!!!  Right now, all of Ella's 0-6 month clothes are on the floor of her closet.  I have to get out her 9-12 month box, unpack those clothes, and pack up the 0-6.  All of Gracie's 18-24 month clothes are on her dresser in her bedroom.  It's time to pack those up in a box too.  I hate clothes.  Even though I once said they were awesome.

I'm going to have a beer... or two!  Not that I can't do that when Danny is here... I just don't seem to.  But since I'm going to have weekends to myself, I'm going to enjoy a nice cold beer (or two) while I learn to knit, while watching Gilmore Girls in the middle of the bed, and accepting bids on online auction sites for  our old crap.  

And finally... I'm gonna miss Danny.  Even though I have the next 7 weeks planned so that I'll always be busy and I'll be able to get some stuff done that I've been wanting to do for months... it's just not the same without him here to keep us company.  

But let's be completely honest... even though I have all of these great intentions about getting us organized and de-cluttered, I have a feeling most of my spare time will be spent either (a) browsing Pinterest looking for ways to keep us organized and de-cluttered, or (b) sleeping.  Cause that's how I roll!

Its a Girl Thing...

So far, in my short existence as a parent, I have been blessed with two beautiful girls.  I hear that in 13 years or so, I will rue the day they were born!  But for now, having girls is pretty darn awesome.  Here are some of the things I'm loving in my girls-only household:

1.  Pretty In Pink

Let's admit it... girl clothes rock!  There are all sorts of pretty pinks, purples, yellows, reds, even greens and blues.  There are dresses, skirts, vests, hoodies, sweaters, jeans, shoes, headbands, and hats.  Girls look adorable in everything you dress them in!  Not that boys don't have cute clothes (I can't wait for the day I can put a little sweater vest on a tiny man of my own!)... but girls' clothes are definitely cuter!  And best of all, we get the cool clothes for the rest of our lives!! :)

2.  Adorable Lint

I know that may seem odd... but can I just say that whenever I wash a load of the girls' clothing, I always smile when I clean out the lint trap.  It's just a big ball of cute pink fuzz!  And I kinda like pink!!

3.  They Clean

Yes, that is a stereotype I am assigning to my girls... but seriously, Gracie loves to clean with me!  "Can I sweep too, mommy?"  Absolutely, here's a broom!  And while you're at it, how about you unload that dishwasher too?!

4.  They're Quiet(ish)

I have spent a decent amount of time with boy children... and they are loud!!  And rambunctious! They never stop moving.  They are sooo energetic!  And I... am lazy! Gracie has her active times, and I can keep up!!  But then she gets quiet, and lays on the floor and colours.  Or plays with her Barbies.  Or reads books.  I like my rambunctiousness mixed with a little sleepy time, and girls have that perfect mix!

5.  Make-Up

Instead of having someone huff and puff outside the bathroom door while I get ready, I'll have two mini-me's who will want to join me around the mirror.  Gracie already asks to put on mommy's make-up and asks to be told that she's pretty.  It's a good opportunity for some self-esteem building and some special "mommy and me" time!

6.  Potty Time

Girls are easier to potty-train (so I've been told).  Gracie already convinced me of this when she was potty trained by 20 months.  Also, girls pee sitting down.  This means no pee to clean off the floor, the toilet seat, the wall, etc.  Yup, girls rock the potty!

7.  They Notice Things

Apparently this difference between boys and girls starts at a very young age!  Yesterday morning when I woke Gracie up, we were in the bathroom getting ready for the day and she looked down at my toes and said, "mommy, that's a new nail polish on your toes!"  She was very excited.  And so was I!  It was a new nail polish, and somebody had noticed! Also, when I put on a different necklace, or switch up my regular black shoes for a different pair, she always points it out.  "Mommy, you have on a new necklace.  It's pretty!"

8.  Sensitivity

I think girls are more sensitive by nature.   When Ella cries, Gracie goes over, rubs her back, and says "There, there Ella.  It's okay.  Mommy will be right back.  I'll play with you.  Don't cry!"  It's adorable to see!  Also, when Gracie sees scars or boo-boos, she kisses them better and then brings you a toy to make sure you're feeling top-notch again.  She's amazingly sensitive and it's super cute!  Of course, she also excels in the over-sensitivity as well.  "Mooommmmmy, Ella touched me." "Mooooommmmmmy, daddy said no to me."  But it's okay, both kinds of sensitive make me smile!



There are tons of other things I love about having girls... like the fact that when I was pregnant with them, the hair on my legs stopped growing (apparently it was the extra estrogen!), the fact that they aren't (yet) amused by farts and boogers, the fact that they aren't constantly reaching in their pants to see if their privates are still there, and the fact that I don't have to worry about being peed on (or at) when I change a bum.  Little girls are awesome!  That's not to say that little boys are not...  I just have no experience with them.  Also, I hear that boys are terrific to deal with during the teenage years.  So... please feel free to check back in 13 years, when I post "8 Reasons I Wish You Were a Boy."