Sibling Love?

If you've had the privilege of spending time with my family you'd notice within just a few minutes that 2 out of 3 of my children do not get along very well.  This is not a new phenomenon.  Not a stage that they will eventually grow out of. (although I pray that they will)  Put frankly, for one reason or another, Joey and Katelyn just don't like each other.

Sad?  Right.  Yea, it's a real downer.  I've tried countless ways to figure out why my oldest and youngest don't show the love for each other like they do towards Olivia.  They both really love Olivia.  I guess the main reason I can come up with is that they are more similar in personality.  Joey and Katelyn seem to take after me in the personality department.  Strong willed, opinionated, inquisitive, strong willed, stubborn, strong willed... yea, that about sums it up.  Olivia is more subdued like my husband.  She of course has her own opinion about things, and can throw a tantrum over a pack of gummies with the best of them, but she is definitely more compliant and accepting than the other two. 

Joey and Katelyn battle over just about anything.  Toys, shoes, (yes, Joey will wear her most favorite sparkle shoes around the house just to piss her off), what to watch on TV, who goes first, last, etc.  It's pretty endless.  And beyond frustrating as a mom who just wants peace in the house.  Sometimes they do it deliberately.  For example, Joey will purposefully act like Katelyn mispronounced something even though she didn't.  Katelyn will yell about it.  Joey will insist that she said it wrong.  Katelyn will yell some more.  Joey will yell back.  And eventually one of them will either throw something or smack the other one unless I break it up by using my scary mom voice telling them to CUT THE CRAP!

I noticed something the other day while I dropped Joey off at school.  These two, who act like they can't stand each other 90 percent of the time always say goodbye to each other.  He even turns after getting out of the car to say goodbye to Katelyn with a wave and a smile.  Maybe it's because they are so glad to have 7 hours away from each other.  But I'd rather think that its because deep down they actually do love each other.  So I'm going to go with that.  They totally do, right?

Sibling Rivalry... When Will It End?

I'm sure any mother of more than one child will admit that THE hardest part of raising a family is making the children of the house get along with each other.  Lately I feel like they are all vying for my attention, fighting incessantly, and hurting each other more than ever.
 
"Share!"
"Don't take that from her!"
"You may not lay on your sister!"
"Yes, you can have one too!"
"No, he's not hurting you."
"I said share dammit!"
"Give that back!"
"Don't pull her hair!"
"It'll be your turn in a minute!"
"Share!"
"In a minute!"
"In a godforsaken minute!!!"

That's pretty much what my house sounds like every afternoon.  If I say nothing else all day, I say each and every one of those phrases at least 10 times in any given day.  Getting my children to get along is proving to be more and more difficult as they get older.  The girls are approaching 3 years old, and are not as passive and easily distracted as they once were.  Joey is getting older, wiser, and more manipulative by the minute, and has in turn become the World's Worst Sharer.  Sometimes I feel like I'm living in a war zone, just ducking to avoid a plastic domino to the head.

If I buy 2 of something, I should have bought 3.  If I buy 3 different items, I should have bought 3 of the same.  If we do happen to own a singleton toy of something, it more than likely is owned by Joey, and it more than likely NEVER gets played with because it's hidden somewhere so that "his sisters can't get it."  What good is that???  I've tried to explain to him that it doesn't even make sense, but more often than not his bed will be strewn with a series of favorite toys that no one (not even he) plays with.

So how do I stop the madness?  How do I teach my children to chill the you-know-what out and let each other play with whatever he/she/it pleases?  What works in your house?  The timer method?  The "if she can't play with it, no one can play with it" method?  Maybe I'm just destined to a life of referee-ing children that have lost the ability to share.  Or perhaps it's time I just sit back and let them battle it out, and the last one standing gets all the toys... (sounds kinda sick but fun, doesn't it?)

Absolute Sweetness

While browsing files on my laptop tonight I somehow came across this photo of me and my sweet girl.  I'm rarely in any photos with my kids (since I'm usually the one taking them), and I had actually forgotten all about this one of Olivia and I.  My dear friend Marija took it last Christmas during our too-short holiday visit.  She then emailed it to me, I saved it in some random folder on my laptop and it gave me a warm fuzzy feeling to find it tonight.  So I decided I'd post it here to share it with ya'll.

I Love Mac & Cheese

Seriously, I do.  Next to ice cream, good macaroni and cheese is probably my biggest weakness when it comes to eating unhealthily.  I have favorite brands of course, and typically buy the name-brand, but every now and then I'll try to pass of a generic-brand mac & cheese dinner to my kids to save a few bucks.  (more like save a few quarters... I know it's not expensive but I'm cheap, OK?)  More importantly, I know that feeding them sub-par, generic mac & cheese will make me less likely to eat it from the serving spoon directly out of the pan.

Well that theory went out the window at dinnertime last week.

After I passed out the plates to my hungry, hungry hippos, I took a taste. (straight from the cooking spoon nonetheless...)  Embarrassingly enough, I then lapped up that Great Value brand Spirals mac and cheese like a rescue cat would when given it's first fresh taste of warmed milk at the SPCA.

To make matters worse when Katelyn and Olivia both announced that they wanted more, I had to guiltily admit to the fact that there was no more.  "Mommy, you ate it all?" was Katelyn's response.  "Yes, Katelyn.  Your pig of a mother with no control over cheesy goodness finished off the box of mac and cheese that was supposed to be your nutritionally-sound, well-balanced evening meal.  Would you like some applesauce instead?"  So not cool, I know.

But I have to say, it was good while it lasted.  It's a rare occurrence in this house when all three kids enjoy eating the same thing.  And clearly they were enjoying themselves.  Look:

And no, I was not paid in any way, shape, or form by Walmart for this blog post.  I'm just sharing with the world that I have a child-like love for mac & cheese and I was pleasantly surprised with the fact that the $0.57 box of Great Value brand Spirals mac & cheese turned out to be sinfully delicious.

Moving On Up

I didn't post this earlier because I didn't want to jinx myself, but it looks like it's really gonna work out this time, so I've decided to go ahead and make it blog-official... we're buying a house and moving at the end of this month!  I am so excited to finally have our own home again!  Here are some of the reasons I'm excited:

• A yard for my kids to play in.
• Neighbors to become friends with.
• My children will be able to walk to school.
• 2 fabulous playgrounds
• Neighborhood pool
• lots of flat, wide sidewalks for walks and bike rides.
• a designated play-room away from the main part of the house.
• a dining room!!! (finally!)  I've never had a formal dining room before. (I'll probably use it as my craft area though. hehe.
• a whirlpool tub in the "master suite."
• enough bedrooms for everyone. (although the girls will still share.)
• a covered porch with a ceiling fan.
• ceiling fans
• gas fireplace
• 2 car garage
• no upstairs neighbors that let their kids bounce around at all hours of the night.
• knowing that the only dog poop that my children will step in will be from our dog.

Lastly, I'm really excited to finally feel like we are settling into our new life here.  We've been living in limbo for quite a while, often very unsure of what the future holds, and I'm so happy that we are moving forward towards our dreams.

I am not, however, looking forward to packing again.  Or unpacking.  Again.

Staying Connected

The hardest thing about moving is the people you leave behind. Joey has bonded with a lot of friends and family members in his 2 years of life, and saying goodbye to those people was (and still is) a huge struggle for me. I don't want him to lose the strong connection to the people who matter most to him.

We were quick to set up our computer with Skype, so that Joey could continue to see his BFF (and cousin) Mollie, and his now far away grandparents, Nana and PopPop. Skyping is something that we've all come to know and love, but Joey still enjoys the plain old telephone.

Since my little boy has ants in his pants 98% of the time, I really think he prefers the phone to Skype due to it's portable nature. When he's on the phone with Nana and PopPop, he is often wandering from room to room describing the things that he finds along the way. I'm pretty sure that his telephone companions have gotten used to hearing "wook, na. wook dis," while Joey tries to 'show' his blocks, book, or random household object.

Furthermore, Joey enjoys finding little crevices of the apartment to climb in while he's on the phone. I think he likes to shut the world out and just focus on the love that Nana and PopPop are sending him through the phone.

Here is Joey sitting amongst the clutter in my bedroom closet:

And here he is laying in the ottoman in the living room:

After I took that picture Joey said, "bye, bye mom. my go ah-ah-man." He then closed the lid, and carried on his conversation in private.

*Please note: these photos were taken on different days. Different weeks, actually. It is purely a coincidence that he is wearing the same outfit. I swear he has other clothes.*