Conversation with Laynie

Hey Moms of Young Children! Do you feel like you've lost all your conversation skills? That's probably because your days are full of this kind of talk....

We were 30 minutes into this "discussion" when I realized I should film it. I'm not just a mom, I'm a foreign language translator! I'm sure most of you can relate.

Maybe now my husband will understand why I beg him to tell me about his day...

Too cute to skip!

Gav woke up before six, played hard all day, ran, climbed and swung at the park. Then he tried to convince me he wasn't sleepy.

Ten minutes into Prep and Landing (his new favorite show), he's comatose.

Gav is not, however, a Sleeping Beauty. No kiss was waking up this beast!

Friday Night Hair Cuts

After piggies, before hair cut. Lovely.

She didn't cry, but I wouldn't say she was happy. She sat stoically throughout the whole cute.

Just a little trim, but it made a big difference. The stylist twisted her sides up into little clips. That lasted for about two seconds. Oh well. I guess it was worth a try.

Sister Sunshine on Sunday

Moving to 11 a.m. church is great for a lot of reasons. One of my favorites is that I have time to take pictures of my kids when they are all cuted up.

Not only did my darlin' look darling, but I caught her "Momming."

She takes her princesses for "walks" and tells them stories. Sometimes she even wraps them up in blankets and sings to them. It's so fun to see her instincts in action.

Apparently she also has a flasher instinct. Haha.

I'm a Good Mom...Today.

When we lived in Houston we RARELY had snow. My mom sent us a package that included some artificial snow. My kids love it.

I, however, do not. In Houston, it was super easy to clean up. I just vacuumed it off the tile.

And although I always coveted hardwood flooring, I never imagined how difficult it is to clean....well, at least my floors. If you can't tell from the picture, the crevices between each board are about a quarter-inch deep. So to clean up the snow, I have to scrape each little flake out of the crevices, vacuum, then dust and mop.

At this point I'm sure you're wondering how this makes me a good mom, right? Well the answer is obvious. I'm letting them play with the snow even though it makes a huge disaster that I will have to go through a painstaking process to clean later.

I also realized that there are a lot of other reasons I'm an exceptionally good mother, TODAY.

1) I let Laynie accessorize her own outfit today. She chose stickers for bracelets and I let her wear them.

2) She has medicine on her face. Usually that makes her scream hysterically, but I did it anyway.

3) Both my kids started the day with socks on. (It's 10:30 and Laynie's already taken hers off...shhh! Don't tell Jamie!)

4) I've done two loads of darks and one load of bed linens.

5) I blow dryed my hair (it would take a whole separate post to explain why that makes me a good mom).

6) I've disciplined my children properly.

7) I had a dance party with my kids. They love The Fray. (And although these pictures are from yesterday, they still apply.)

8) Gav and I worked on some of his awesome dance moves. This one is called the Elbow Shrug. He picked up "hold-your-pants-while-you-dance" from somebody else.

9) And I can (sometimes) get my children to share. Yesterday it was the hat. Today it's the "scoop trucks" and "Loooooooaderrrrrrrrs."

Okay, so this list isn't very impressive. I know there are a lot of incredible mothers who will look at the this post and say, "Really? She has a long way to go." And they are RIGHT!!! But, I've recently realized that it's the small successes (even the speck-size small ones) that are going to get me through the day.

But shouldn't I feel like a good mom because I've done the things that make my kids happy without sacrificing our rules? Sure, I'm not getting the stuff on my list done. But I think - this is still a theory and not a fact - that if I let them do the things they want then I'll have more time to do the things I want.

One piece of evidence: I got this whole post written without a single interruption. Thank you snow!!

Valletts at the Air and Space Museum

Here's a great view...I mean of course if you were looking down at the planes.

Since we've already been to the museum and posted those pictures, I thought these nontraditional shots might be a little entertaining.

A perfect description of the whole museum. Don't get me wrong, it's awesome. But pretty much we're spending our time admiring junkers.

This is Laynie's "I'm stuck in the stroller again" face. She's obviously thrilled to be looking at the junkers.

Wendy! We miss you! Saw this and thought about you flying a plane somewhere over Canada. Maybe hunk-a-chunk (is that the right name?) will build an airstrip on your property?

Here's our debate: is the male acrobat wearing a thong or are his butt cheeks just hanging out? Either way, we loved this depiction on the plane.

And here they are! Standing in front of the space shuttle! It was a fun trip! Especially after Grandma bought Laynie an Astronaut Monkey and Daddy let her push it in the stroller. Jamie had to keep her busy while we were all trying out the flight simulators. I'm super proud that my mom didn't barf as my dad piloted them through 100 barrel rolls. Way to go!

Post-Christmas Visitors

Here's a picture of the biggest sucker in the world. You might not be able to see the word stamped on her forehead but there is other evidence. Take for instance the new tutu, pajamas and ballet slippers for the Little Princess.

Here's Laynie in her "Tutu and Who Who." Yep, her Who Who. We laugh every time she says it. She decided to don this ensemble for her viewing of High School Musical 3. Thanks Uncle Paul!

Gav's break dancing as we watch the show.

Later, Papa snuggles with his boy.

And the beasts are read a story.

Lucky, spoiled little creatures.

Holy Christmas!

Pretty sure Santa's sack was loaded with gift's labeled "Wallace House." And he was so kind to deliver the table (and assemble it) for Grandma Ardy and Papa Dave. Thanks Santa!

Santa took a little misstep with Laynie's gift. Oops. She thinks she's too smart for the Tag Junior.

The table was a huge hit. Both kids love to eat and color there. And so were the gifts from Liz and Travis. Thanks for Baby Gwendy and the Cabelas Truck!

Daddy observing Christmas festivities.

Pretty sure you're not going to find anymore gifts in there, Laynie. But, I love your Christmas bling!!