All Caught Up

It's catch up day over here at Planet Pink.  Which means while I catch up on laundry and dishes (oh who am I kidding?  I NEVER catch up!), you get to catch up on what's been going on with us lately.  Yay!  Aren't you excited?

Princess #3's excited face ~ circa 2009

We had our little birthday shindig for Princess #4 a couple weekends ago.  I do believe Minnie Mouse would be pleased.

We tried to get a pic of all four princesses together and well, we might as well try to herd cats.

We did manage to get a halfway decent shot of all 6 of us, only because hubs and I were holding the rowdy ones down.

Sheesh, do I look tired or what?  Must work on my "I'm wide awake and happy about it!" look for pictures...

Then last weekend we set out for a little R&R.  A little weekend trip away.  We dumped lovingly left the kids in the care of my aunt and grandma and hubs and I had some uninterrupted down time. 

... which of course included coffee.

And now I'm back at home, surrounded by the aforementioned mountains of laundry and dishes (did I mention our dishwasher decided to crap out on us?  Ask me how fun it is to wash dishes for a family of 6 by hand).  How is it that these things multiply when you're not even home?

So there you are, all caught up.  And I'm still not.  Sigh.  If you don't hear from me for another week, you know what I'm doing...

Ciao!

Flashback Friday: Baby Crack

Originally posted October 22, 2009

I ran across an interesting bit of news today that I thought was worth sharing because, well, I think it's hilarious. Apparently, Disney is offering refunds to parents who are dissatisfied and thus willing to return their purchased Baby Einstein videos. Dissatisfied how, you ask? Shockingly, Disney has admitted that having your baby watch these videos will not make them smarter. You can read information about it here and here. 

Or you can just stay here and read my take. 

OK, seriously? Allow me to let you in on a little secret: putting your baby in front of a TV will NEVER make them smart! It's comical to me to think that there are parents out there who not only purchased these DVD's under the impression that they were raising little Einsteins themselves, but also ones who are irritated enough because little Tommy can't spell his name by 9 months or isn't recognizing Van Gogh or Beethoven by a year old that they are actually willing to return the DVD's. It's a tragic, misguided error!

Parents of babies and young ones: Do not, I repeat, DO NOT return these movies! These movies ARE magic. But not in the sense that Disney intended. I like to refer to them as "Baby Crack". It may just be a screen shot of a black sheet with a plastic toy sitting on it, or some cheap little hand puppet, but as God is my witness - these movies are the only reason I've been able to get a shower in the last 7 years. I don't know what it is about these things, but I can plant a baby in a bouncy seat in front of a TV with Baby Einstein playing and I know I've got a golden 15-20 minutes to shower before boredom sets in. Is it the mesmerizing music? The contrasting colors? Shoot, for all I know they've got some hypnosis voodoo going on. Whatever it is, I don't really care. 

I know, I know, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends NO screen time for children under the age of two. So tell me, is the AAP going to come sit at my house everyday so I can shower? I think not. There will always be some parent that proudly claims their child has never watched TV or they've never used a video to get something done around the house. And I'll say now - they are LYING. Let's just cut through that crap right now. We mommy's are hard enough on ourselves as it is without the added pressure of feeling like we're some sort of failure because we need a cheap video to occupy our kids so we don't stink. 

So, maybe Baby Einstein isn't going to make your kid an Einstein. That's OK. Get over it. You shouldn't be relying on TV to make your kid smart anyway. BUT, do think twice before sending your DVD's back to Disney in a huff. You may need to get your shower in tomorrow.

You Know What Comes Before The Fall

I was so proud of myself.  With the snow keeping us out of school for the last two weeks, the princesses' Valentine's parties were rescheduled to this week.  I hit Target on the 13th, and managed to remember to pick up Valentine's for their classmates, knowing that once the 14th came, those Valentine's would be long replaced by 4 leaf clovers and Easter eggs.

Last night after a full day of child wrangling, dish washing and clothes folding, I drug my tired body off to bed just after midnight.  Only to drag my tired body back out of bed 30 minutes later when I realized that Princess #3 was to have her party today.  And I hadn't even opened the boxes of Valentine's yet.

30 minutes later (now 1am) I taped the last heart shaped lollipop to the paper card and crawled back into bed for a few precious hours of sleep.

Princess #3 was thrilled this morning at the pile of lollipop adorned cards.  She proudly carried the bag out to our van as we loaded up for school.

And on the way I was feeling pretty smug.  I sometimes feel quite inferior to the Super Moms who go above and beyond with their homemade cards and confections  and given my track record, I was just happy that I remembered and got Princess #3 all set up for her party.

....Until I pulled up to the school.  As the cars in front of us unloaded, I saw a child after child wearing what suspiciously looked like pajamas.

I glanced over at my 3 year old, decked out in her heart adorned tshirt, jean skirt and pink bow in her hair, carefully chosen in honor of the Valentine's Day party.  She looked at me with wide eyes and my heart sank.  Apparently I missed the memo.

I hate when I do that.

Comparisons: Just Born

One of the most fascinating past times of people I know is to try to figure out who my kids look like.  Hubs?  Me?  Each other?  A few months ago I got this idea to do a comparisons album where I could place side by side the pictures of each of my princesses at the same age.  I've collected 2 years of photos now and it's so interesting to see the transformations of each girl in the same stage.  Obviously I have too many to share at once, but periodically I'll be sharing my little photo collages.  Here are the first couple:

Meeting Mommy

Going home

A New Kind Of 2

Today you turn 2.  

And today holds new meaning for me.

I've celebrated many second birthdays.

I've seen many babies morph into toddlers with the arrival of 2.

But this time is different.

This time is the last.

Never again will a number 2 grace the top of a cake.

For the first time ever there is not another bun in the oven, waiting to follow in footsteps.

It's an odd feeling, to be experiencing this rite of passage.

As you grow into a toddler, I too, am growing as a mother.

No longer in the phase of having babies,

I am now entering the phase of growing up babies.

Despite the pang of wistfulness I feel at knowing there will not be one to follow you,

it's a good place to be.

You are my forever baby.

The one we did not plan with our heads, but the one who found our hearts.

You are the best of us, the culmination of our family.

You complete us.

Happy birthday my baby.