Multiples & More Question of the Week...

Multiples & More Question of the Week...

Here's how it works...go to Multiples & More and link it up to your blog by answering the question below...don't foget to comment while you're here answering the question. 
Thanks so much and Happy Sunday!

And now.. here is your question!

What is your policy on giving kids candy?
What age do you think it is appropriate?

And.. be honest.. do you eat your kids Halloween candy?:)

My policy on giving kids candy has really been limited since they are only 6 yrs old.  I believe candy should be a "treat" not a daily occurrence.  There are a couple of days a year though that I just let my girls eat until they are sick...Halloween is one of them.  So tomorrow will be the day.  Easter and Christmas we allow them to do the same thing.  You figure you are getting candy from the Easter Bunny and Santa, you can't be rude, you have to eat it.  The age we started giving our kids official "candy" is around 4 to 5 yrs old.  However we are very healthy eaters and we don't keep candy in the house.  It really is a treat in our family. 

And as much as I don't want to eat their Halloween candy...we have to make sure it's not poisoned...right? 

Will post pictures today of the girls' costume!

For more answers to the above question...click on the "Multiples & More" link above.

Moving + Halloween = Craziness

Halloween is a crazy time anyway...finding costumes, dressing up w/ makeup and the whole 10 yards, coordinating trick or treating, etc.  Throw a move in the mix...and you don't actually have to dress me up for people to think I am wearing my costume already. :)  the costume is... I am playing the roll of stressed out mom!
I know that moves can be hard on our children.  Thankfully we are not far away from the other house and we have actually been hanging out at the pool of our new house we just bought for the whole summer as my mom lived in the Mother-n-law house and we were blessed by a phenomenal woman to let us buy the whole place.  This is truly a testament that good things happen to good people. 
Anyway, my girls have already become comfortable here, but none the less, it's still a change in their little lives. 
So they are super excited for Halloween and all that goes along with that and then they are moving...I felt bad for them today as I believe they were very overwhelmed. 
Then to top it off, we had a lot of family over and that always gets a little crazy in itself.  Anytime I feel that my girls are out of their element or feeling uneasy, I stress to the max!  They are my whole little life and if everything is not going perfect in their world...mother nature has me unsettled as well. 
So tonight, they lay down in their new bedrooms and we are in ours.  This house is crazy big and I am going to go back to having a monitor so I can hear them at night.  That would make me sleep better...not to mention our big dog sleeps in their room at the foot of their bed.  That does help a mom sleep better also.
Tomorrow we will finish the house and officially be moved in to our new house.  Very exciting with a lot to get used to!
We will move for half of the day tomorrow and then get the girls in their costumes and ready to rock and roll the Halloween night.  Can't wait for them to be kids and enjoy themselves greatly!
Have a safe night tomorrow everyone!

So, according to Kailani from An Island Life, Friday is the day in Hawaii where everyone takes it easy! So I will post a simple question, and you can leave an answer!

What are you or your kids going to be for Halloween?

 My girls are going to be Thing 1 and Thing 2.  I always want them to do something "twin related" and this is the 2nd thing they have done twin related.  Last year one was Hannah Montana and one was Miley Cyrus.  It actually worked out really well because one girl wanted to wear the wig and the other one didn't.  So it didn't matter who was who, just as long as one was dressed up as her and one was dressed down. 

For the Thing 1 and Thing 2 costumes, this was a little challenging.  I thought these outfits were going to be so super simple that I would be able to find them easy.  What I learned is that no one sells costumes of Thing 1 and Thing 2 anymore.  So I started looking for the blue hair wigs early on.  We ended up ordering those from The International Wig Co. online.  The hair is perfect and was very reasonably priced. 

Then I had to find the outfits...this is where the challenge was.  I searched online for outfits specifically for Things 1 & 2 and there weren't any cute.  I then proceeded to all the Halloween stores, party stores, etc.  Mind you, I wasn't just looking for Thing 1 & 2 costumes, I was looking for any red costume that I could turn into Thing 1 & 2.  My last stop was Target.  I just started looking for the separates that I could put together to make the costume.  I found red long sleave shirts, red sweatshirts, but no red sweats however I did find red leggings.  I thought my poor little ladies were going to freeze to death.  I had everything it was going to take to make the costumes and then I decided to look at the costumes in the Halloween section.  By this time, I knew they weren't going to have specific Thing 1 & 2 costumes, but anything close with a red outfit could have a Thing 1 & 2 circle put on the front very easily.  I finally found THE PERFECT outfits.  They were intended to be little devils (which I would never allow my girls to be just for the record) and yet you wouldn't know they were devils if they didn't have all the extras (horns, tail, bow tie, etc.).  They are fuzzy red long sleeve, long leg...kind of reminds me of a red Grinch costume without the puffy stomach!  They were so awesome!  The only challenge was that the stomach to this outfit is sequins.  So no iron on.

I went to Wal-Mart over the next couple of days and picked up some iron on material (about a yard), then I got white fleece (about a half of a yard), I have an awesome picture of Thing 1 & 2 from the movie with Mike Meyers.  I took a large plate, put it face down on the fleece and traced around it with a pencil.  Cut out the fleece and followed what it looked like on the picture to write Thing 1.  The first time I wrote Thing, I realized it was too small.  Thankfully I got enough iron on to have a test piece.  I turned the test piece around and did it again a lot larger...it was perfect.  I then cut out another piece the exact same way and put it over the sample and traced it.  Then did it with Thing 2 as well.  That turned out really well because they match perfect since I traced the same one.  Then I put the same large plate face down on the fleece and cut out two pieces of that.  Took the iron on and the fleece to the ironing board and ironed it on. 

Time to sew it on the outfit.  I had the girls try on the red suits so I knew exactly where to put the Thing 1 circle...then I used white thread and just tacked it on (with them out of the suits, of course). 

They turned out SO ADORABLE!!!  I can't wait to post pictures.  After Saturday, I will put pictures on...so keep an eye out!

Remember Thing 1 and Thing 2 do exactly the opposite of what you say...so Saturday is going to be interesting. 

Happy Haunting!

"Which one is older..."

There are so many things that crack me up that people will say to my identical twin girls and they think they are the only person in the world that ever thought it up.  For example, "double trouble", "boy you've got your hands full", "are they identical", etc.  I know the other twin moms reading this will totally know what I'm talking about and then some.  There are many many more things that people say to twins and twin parents, those were just to name a few.
Recently there has been one question that my girls are getting asked over and over...first question, "are they twins" the question right after that one "which one is older"?  We have never raised my girls to know that one is older than the other.  They are 2 minutes apart and they don't know that one is older than the other by two minutes cuz we have never wanted to go there.  I am a firm believer in not comparing my girls at all.  Even to the extent to say at the dinner table, "look at your sister, she is eating good."  We never compare them at all! 
It's so funny when people say, "which one is older" cuz my girls will say, neither of us.  We were born at the same time."  The person asking the question is bound and determined.  It's almost like they HAVE to find something different about my girls before walking away.  They look closer at my girls when they are told no one is older and have to go into the whole thing..."well who was born first".  I always speak up and say, they were born on the same day and they are the same age, neither one is older.  Like that wouldn't be good enough they continue, well ne of them has to be older.  I then have to tell them, for the sake of competition or an argument, they are both the exact same age.  And they really are.  They are 2 minutes apart for heavens sake.
Whats so funny to me is that two friends can be born on the same day, same year and they are exactly the same age and everyone is fine with it, but when it comes to twins, people have to find something different and will actually go down to the last second of when they were born to find something different. 
I have been reading a really good book that I recommend to anyone who is related to an identical twin in someway; married to, sibling of, child of, parent of, etc.  The book is called, "One and the Same" by Abigail Pogrebin.  She is an identical twin who is writing a book about identical twins.  She interviewed identical twins and got a lot of statistics about twins.  It is such a raw insight on how identical twins are.  I highly recommend it!
There is really nothing that bothers me that people do with my girls...stare, talk about them, stop them to find out how they are different, etc.  These things don't bother me because I know that identical twins are fascinating and there is a lot of curiosity out there.  My girls will never know what it's like to not be stared at, talked about, compared.  So the easier I can make it on them, the better.
Happy Thursday!

Halloween moment I wish I had on video...

I'm participating in a Writers work shop today at Mama Kats Loosin It. Today's question is which Halloween Moment do you wish you had on Video?

The Halloween moment that I wish was caught on video would be when my girls and I are putting together their Halloween treats for school.  It is so much fun and I love to plan parties so much that we really try to find a "creative" treat for school that is easy, but still healthy. 
This year's Halloween treat...actually consisted of two...
1)  We got large marshmellows and small craft sticks.  We used white chocolate for dipping and melted the chocolate, dipped the marshmellows on a stick in the chocolate and then the girls would dip them in halloween sprinkles.  I then buy a pack of the celophane bags that you can get at the dollar store.  We cut the bottom of the bags off, put them over the chocolate covered marshmellows with the stick in them and put colorful ribbon around them.  They look so cute.  It looks like they have really cute suckers for the kids, but their just a large marshmellow.  This is fun for the kids to do and even funner for their friends to eat.
2)  Then we got bags of the long pretzel sticks and we got the colored chocolate for dipping. We used the green chocolate. We dipped the pretzels in the chocolate and then the girls would roll them in Halloween sprinkles. They turned out so cute.
These moments are so fun and special for my girls and I.  This is something that I would like to remember forever!
Happy Halloween!
To read more answers to this question, click here.

Things I love Thursday...video phone

My very favorite item in the whole world is our video phone.  This is a phone that hooks up over the internet and anyone that has this phone can see the other person they are talking to.  It reminds me of the Jetsons...My family has one and my 6 year old twins love to call Grammy and see her when they talk to her.  Erynn lost her first tooth recently and all she did was call Grammy and smile and my mom could see that Erynn had lost her tooth.  This is such an awesome way to keep in touch with loved ones that you don't get to see very often.  To buy the phone is only $99 (which I thought was going to be way more expensive) and the service is $29.99/mo for unlimited local and long distance calls.  It can actually replace your home phone.  This is the only phone we use in our house.  Another cool thing is that you can actually plug your current base that goes to your cordless handsets into the back of the video phone and your existing handsets still work. 
My mom made my girls a blanket the other day that she couldn't wait for Christmas to show me, so she called and showed me!  There is no delay, it's picture perfect and in real time.  It's like sitting in front of her.  These phones and the company were actually featured on the Celebrity Apprentice in March of this year.  To learn more about the phone...click here.
To find more Things I love Thursdays, click here.

Works for me Wednesday...

For this Works for me Wednesday, I have two things to write about.  First, I have 6 year old identical girls and as much as I would love for them to keep their adorable outfits clean, they don't.  When they get home and they have something on their clothes, I instantly have them take it off and in the laundry room I always keep a bottle of dye free dishsoap...I put that all over the stain, fold it over and let it sit there until the next load of laundry.  Then I throw it in there and it comes out perfect.  That has saved many items of clothing.
Second, the thing that helps me clean my microwave is so easy and works so good.  I get a coffee cup, fill it 3/4 of the way full and then microwave it for about 3 minutes.  The steam that is created by the cup of hot water loosens everything on the microwave and when you are done, you can take a wash cloth and just wipe everything out.  It works perfect!
Those are a couple of things for my Works for me Wednesday!  For more things that work for others, click here.

The path God intends...

There are so many times through my life that I have prayed to God, please let me be on the path that you intend for me.  And I know by my praying that I got the positions that I was supposed to have and worked for the companies that I was supposed to at the time that I was there. 
The one thing you have to think about is that 99% of the time the path that God intends you to be on is going to look different than the path you think it is.  This was so true for me...I had always had "glamorous" jobs...jobs that my family and friends really looked up to.  I loved what I did and made really good money doing it.  Then one day I looked at a business that I really prayed about and it was a business that I would never have seen myself doing.  You see in my opinion, the path that God intends for you is not going to be glamorous, it's going to be humbling and it's going to consist of helping people.  Well that's exactly what God has put in my lap and blessed me with.  For the last year and a half, I have been working from home in a Telecommunications business that is the most unbelieveable blessing I have ever witnessed.  All I do is help people and change peoples lives.  In addition, I look inside of myself and am constantly trying to become a better person.  I have been blessed to stay at home with my girls for over a year now.  I take them to school, pick them up, volunteer in their class, go on the fieldtrips, etc.  This is something that no amount of money would ever be able to buy for me to get back.  I love what I do so much and it's in an industry that is only going up.  It's the phone for heavens sake...and there is a HUGE shift in technology that I am right in the middle of.  Like being a part of the internet before it went big or cell phones before they went big...I thank God everyday for letting me be open minded enough to see what was right in front of my face.  I was told once that the most expensive thing you can own is a closed mind...and I agree 100%!!  To check out what I have been blessed with to stay at home with my 6 year old twins, please click here. 
Don't be fooled by the economy...every time you pay your cell phone bill, home phone bill, TV bill, internet bill...someone is making money off of that.  Why not that be you? 
Pray about it...you never know what path God intends for you to be on.

Why do you blog?

Please comment below with your answer....

I just recently started blogging...a good friend of mine who has Garibay Soup got me hooked on blogging.  The reason I started to blog is because I think that all of us have so much to learn from one another...even in our daily lives.  Also, I have twins and have so many funny stories to share in my journey to raise my girls.  Blogging has really turned in to therapy for me.  I have a pretty humorous life and think others would enjoy reading about the daily things we go through.

Also, I have learned that there is a company that at the end of every year, they will make your complete blog into a hard cover book!  I love that...we would be able to look back and read about our lives through the eyes of mom!

To find out more answers to this questions...click here!

Pumpkin Patch w/ twins

Today was fieldtrip day for the 1st graders to the pumpkin patch/science farm.  Today was also going to pose a new challenge that I have never had to experience yet...two different classes.  How was I supposed to go in two directions?  I had to take into consideration how many parents were volunteering for the two classes...and then go where I was needed the most.  There is a lot of mom guilt associated with that though.  For example...you get one picture with the sheep, then you want another picture with the other daugther and the sheep.  And the for the whole day I kept running back and forth from class to class to make sure that they both felt like I was there with them.
Kids this age are so funny.  They just say what is on their mind without any filter since they don't know yet what exactly is the right or wrong thing to say.  And I look at these sweet little innocent kids and wonder what life is going to bring them.  When they're in high school, no matter how they turn out, I will always remember the sweet innocence of 1st grade.  I thank God everyday that I get to work from home and NEVER have to miss out on these precious moments with my babies.

Welcome to The Multiples and More Question of the week:

What is your favorite thing about Halloween?

My favorite thing about Halloween is planning the costumes and the school parties.  I love party planning so much and try to be "creative" with my girls costumes so I start researching it months in advance.  This year the girls will be Thing 1 and Thing 2.  I know it's not the most creative costumes, but it was good for twins and the other ideas they would not go for.  For example, I wanted them to be one of those friendship necklaces, where one of them is half of the heart and the other is the other half...and when they stand together, it would say "Best Friends".  They weren't going for that this year.  I also thought it would be fun to be a pair of dice...but they really got excited about Thing 1 and Thing 2 because when they dress up asThing 1 and Thing 2, they also get to adopt the philosophy of Thing 1 and Thing 2 and that is that they do the exact opposite of what you say.  So the whole day that they are dressed up, we are going to have to be very choosy with how we ask them to do things.

Have a safe Halloween everyone! 

To hear about things that my girls have been in the past...click here.

To find out what others think about Halloween...click here.

Welcome to this week’s edition of Aloha Friday

Aloha Friday is the day that we take it easy and look forward to the weekend. So I thought that on Fridays I would take it easy on posting, too. Therefore, I’ll ask a simple question for you to answer. Nothing that requires a lengthy response.

Oh and don't forget to click here to go to the original post and play along with us!

 

 

My question this week is:

 

What is your favorite saying?

 

Directions...

There are times I have to drive for my business and when I do, it is more often than not that I have no idea where I am going.  I have had to rely on the GoogleMaps application on my phone which is truly my absolute life saver.  There are some issues I have with this application, however.  For some reason any of these "map" programs always seem to think that the person who is reading it has an internal navigation system.  I must be the exception...cuz I don't.  You see anywhere I face is North.  Unless I am by the ocean can I figure out where the N S E W are. 
When I am in a location that I have no idea where I am and I get out the old handy dandy cell phone with the Google Maps application,  I love that I don't actually have to know where I am.  There is an option that says to start, Use My Location.  I love that.  So it actually finds me where I am and then navigates me from there.  Here is the hard part...it never fails to say something like, "Head Northeast on Woodside."  O.K. I can actually be going NE on Woodside and have no idea.  So this is where I end up going around and around in circles as I continue to reset my GoogleMaps until I actually figure out if I am going the right direction or not.  It does take me a little bit longer, but if I was doing it by myself, I would never get out alive...so I guess I can't complain too much.
What about a navigation system you ask?  Well, if they had a navigation system for the"Strong Willed Child", that would work for me.  But to be perfectly honest with you, I can't stand having a women with an english accent in my car telling me what to do the whole trip.  She is very bossy and stresses me out a bit.  And she never stops talking!  I feel better just writing about it.
You see, we strong willed children don't like to be told what to do.  I didn't actually know there was such a thing as a "strong willed child" until I had children.  That's when I was turned on to a book called, "You can't make me, but I can be persuaded."  (Great book for those of you who have strong willed children.)  The problem was, when my husband and I were reading it together...he threw reading it for my kids out the window and learned that his wife was, in fact, a strong willed child.  He was learning how to handle ME!!  And then he would use the "tactics" on me, they seemed like GREAT ideas until I realized what he was doing with me and we would crack up.  Then I just look right up the generations and realize my mom is DEFINITELY a strong willed child.  So the apple obviously doesn't fall far from the tree. :)  I wonder if my mom has an issue with using a navigation system...I'll have to find that out.

FREE Weight Loss Website - Unbelieveable!!!

I love the website http://www.sparkpeople.com/   This website actually creates a plan for you over a specific period of time to help you reach your weight loss goals.  It creates a menu for you and tracks what you eat, how much water you drink.  It can also break down how many calories you have eaten in a day, how many carbs you have eaten, and gives you a work out routine that is specific to you.  You have to take a look.

Below is an excerpt from the website itself:  Click here to go directly to the site.

• Our weight loss program teaches people to stop dieting and transition to a permanent, healthy lifestyle. Far beyond just weight loss, SparkPeople helps everyone learn to eat better and exercise regularly—for life. And people who don’t want to lose weight can still join and benefit from SparkPeople's tools, resources and community features. In addition to informative articles and interactive tools, such as fitness trackers and meal plans, members can find support and encouragement from our vibrant, positive community of members and experts.
  All the components of our program mix in an element of fun so that our members truly do stick with their programs. With millions of members, we’ve witnessed thousands of success stories firsthand. We’ve found that using sound nutrition and regular exercise as a “springboard” for success helps our members find greater enjoyment in life and strive for even more goals, creating their own real-life adventures!

Here is why Sparkpeople.com can do this for free:

Read a note from our founder
This site really is free - with no strings attached. Hundreds of thousands of people around the world use SparkPeople.com to lose weight and make healthy lifestyle changes. Our biggest source of new members is word of mouth from existing members who love this site and tell their friends, family, and co-workers. SparkPeople can be free because my wife and I were very early eBay employees and are now using our earnings from its success to make the world a healthier place, as our way of giving back to society. Join today to see what everyone is talking about!
For more Things I Love Thursday, click here.

A fun Halloween craft...

When working in the classrooms (my twins are 6 and in first grade), it's fun to know some inexpensive crafts that you can do quickly and that really WOW the kids.  This is one that I found to be a great success. What you will need:

• A salad spinner (The Dollar Store usually has them cheap)
• white cardstock paper
• orange, black and possibly green paint (you can find this in the bottles at The Dollar Store)
• orange glitter, black glitter and possibly green glitter
• containers to hold very watered down paint
• plastic spoons

The night before volunteering in the class, I would find a really cool pumpkin outline and print it on all of the cardstock.(1 per child in the class).  This will be used for them to cut them out.  (Another idea would be to print out a couple, cut them out yourself and ask them to trace that pumpkin and cut out their own.  Depending on the age of the class).
Then you would take the paint and squeeze a medium amount in each container, add glitter (a fair share of it) and then add water and mix it up.
When you get to the classroom, you would ask the students to cut out the cardstock pumpkin and put their name on the back.
Then one by one, you place the individual pumpkin cut out in the salad spinner, ask them to put how many colors and the amount of paint they want on the pumpkin in the salad spinner. (Keep in mind the glitter is in the paint and I found that works the best instead of adding glitter after the paint).
You then place the salad spinner lid on and ask the child to spin really fast for about 10 seconds and when they open it up, it looks like spin art.
They love it and each one is very different.
You can do this for any holiday with any cutout...for example:  a christmas tree, valentine heart, shamrock, easter egg, etc.
The clean up is very simple as the paint is a water based paint and will come off of everything.
Happy Spinning!
For More Works for Me Wednesday Ideas, Click here!

And the saga continues...

So my girls come home from school yesterday and Emilie has been asked out by a boy.  In a previous post I wrote about my sheer terror that girls actually start having "boyfriends" at this age.  Well during dinner we came to find out that this boy, who is in 1st grade but in a different class than Emilie, actually came up to her sister Erynn (mind you they are identical twins) and asked Erynn out, calling her Emilie.  I couldn't help but laugh to think how crushing that could be for a little boy, the first time he ever asks a girl out and he accidentally asks her twin sister.  When he found out that wasn't Emilie he said, "Oh" and then moved to Emilie and asked her out.  LOL 
So the girls come home and they are thinking this is really a fun thing.  Erynn decides that she is going to school tomorrow to get herself a "boyfriend".  And as the evening continues, they have come up with a criteria on how they will determine who can be their "boyfriend"...the list goes as follows:

1. Who is your boyfriend?
2. Why do you like him?
3. What grade is he in?
4. What is his favorite color?
5. What is his name?
6. What color is his hair?
7. Is he a good writer?
8. Is he a good runner?

And that about sums up what it would take to be their boyfriends.  I was laughing so hard at how funny kids are at this age.  Emilie actually told me that I could use the list too if I needed it.  So I dated the list and am keeping it for there rest of their lives. :)
We arrive at school today (the first day of school with a "boyfriend") and as we are walking up, this truck is driving past and the window rolls down.  This little boy yells out, Emilie.  I realize this is Rudy...the "boyfriend".  I said hi to Rudy and before I could turn around my girls looked at each other with sheer panic and took off running as fast as they could go.  Rudy gets out of the truck and tries to catch up...no luck.  They were nowhere to be found. 
I had to go to Rudy's classroom to talk to the teacher about the holiday party that is coming up.   Her daughter is in Erynn's class and she wants to help out.  Rudy sees me and starts laughing and grunting and saying, "Emilie".  Well that's it...that's all it took for me.  They're done.  All the rest was O.K. for me, but a little boy grunting and saying my baby girls name, they're through. :)
I was really thankful that today is my day to volunteer in Emilie's class.  I told her that if she wanted to just tell Rudy that she wanted to be friends that it would be o.k.  She looked at me with relief and said, "O.K. mom, thanks". 
And that was that...another day in the life of a mom of 6 year old twins.

Husbands...

I got my hair done today which is always an excting day for me.  You see my hair grows like a stinkin weed...and I know those of you out there whose hair does not grow are disgusted by my complaining about this, but you have to figure how much money I have to spend on getting my hair done.  My hair has grown out over an inch in 5 weeks...ugggg!!! 
So today, I was back in getting my hair done.  I love my friend that does it and she does do such an excellent job.  She LOVES me...cuz I cover part of her mortgage payment ever month...I can tell you that much.  Not to mention it makes me feel brand new when I walk out of the salon.  :) 
So I mentioned to my husband tonight that I had bought some of the hair supplies there...and do you know the first question out of his mouth was, "how much?"  There wasn't any care for..."how does it work?", "what is it gonna do for your hair?", "what brand is it?"...only, how much is it? 
So I thought it would be funny to let him see the bottles of the hair products.  They were Pureology products and on the bottom of the bottles, it says $22.00 each.  Now I know my husband well enough to know that he would just pass out knowing that I spent that much money on a "little" bottle of stuff for my hair, when I actually don't need any at all.  The funny part is that I got them out of the 75% off basket...which made those $22.00 bottles of hair products turn in to $5.50 each...can I get a what, what?  That was a phenomenal deal!  Mind you, I did buy every one of them in the basket, but why wouldn't you.  I could get 4 for the price of 1.  Woo Hoo!
I am thankful that my husband is still in training...so next time I will buy products just to give him the opportunity to ask what it does before he asks how much it is.  LOL  What a loving husband!

I can't believe it's starting...

My girls are 6 years old...not 6 1/2, not 6 3/4...they are six.  Today Emilie came home from school and was telling her sister in the back seat of the car that "Rudy" asked her out today...and she said YES!  *insert double take here*
This is all new to us...and having identical girls, we are getting a double dose of it on the first try.  What do we do?  How do we act?  I asked her about it and she said no, then I said, "You can always tell me about it" and she said yes.  I hugged her and said that "exciting" and said this will be the first of many boyfriends. 
Do kids at 6 YEARS OLD...really have feelings for each other?  For the love of goodness...what does one do?  So I am going to sit down with my girls tonight over dinner and we are going to "talk" about what it means to have a "boyfriend"?
Should I discourage it at this age?  Should I tell them they are not aloud to have a boyfriend until a certain age?  Personally, that would have made me had more boyfriends than not.  If they don't think its a big deal, maybe they won't do it. 
Oye ve...what am I gonna do?

If it is to be...it's up to me!

I love this saying..."If it is to be, it's up to me!"  This has been my motto my whole life.  There has never been a time that I put my life in anyone else's hands...except for the time that I had a J-O-B...and we know that stands for Just Over Broke!  When I worked for someone else, my life was in their hands.  And I remember when that was the comfort zone, you go to work you get paid.  Well that's not so anymore.  Actually, I was listening to the audio CD on this month's SUCCESS magazine and a speaker on there said the worst place you could be right now in today's society is working for someone else. 
Analysts actually state that the next year and a half is the best time in our lifetimes to become an entrepreneur!  See with the way the economy is right now and all of the BIG businesses shutting their doors, the playing field has been evened.  For those of you who have ever wanted to start a business or had an idea that you thought would sell great in stores, there is no better time than right now to get those started!  In the next 20 to 30 years, the big businesses that will be the size of Targets, Jack in the Boxes, Ross...they will look back and see that those business owners started their businesses from scratch in 2009-2010.
This is where the "if it is to be, it's up to me" comes in...I have taken the "business owner" mentality myself and quit my "J-O-B" and went to work for myself.  Yes, it has its challenging times and there will be ups and downs...but at the end of the day, I am my own boss.  I will never work harder for someone else than I would work for myself...and I live that to be true every single day. 
There is one more thing you have to look for in this economy...and that is a shift in technology.  Please know, and let everyone you know know...we are going into a shift in technology right now and it's with the phone.  If you would like to learn more about this awesome way I am able to stay at home with my kids every single day...please send me an email  adamandkandi@comcast.net ...I would love to share it with you.  It's changing peoples lives. :)
Now get to work...LOL

Other people's kids...

I don't know why I have this obsession but I can promise you it's not healthy and I need to seek therapy....for other's peoples kids that is.  Not that I am addicted to other peoples kids and can't live without them, what I have to seek therapy for is how other people's kids are treated. 
I walk in to a grocery store or Walmart or where ever and see a kid that is not clean, has a bruise on it's face and it's on...I am almost in the fetal position rocking back and forth.  O.K. so I don't really take it to that extreme...but inside that's what my heart is doing.  It seriously bothers me so bad that I forget what I am shopping for and am consumed in making sure that this child is not mistreated throughout the shopping trip.  I have actually gone up to parents before that were mistreating their kids and said, "you should be REAL careful how you treat your children.  I am with CPS (California Protective Services) and if I see one more incident, you will be reported and I will have the cops here in a heartbeat!"   Now, Im not really with CPS, but boy does that change the rest of the shopping trip for that child!  LOL  I actually recommend that more of you pose as "CPS" workers, or whatever the child protective service in your community is.
This "condition" I have has always been bad and then I had kids...and it escalated by 100%
IT IS OUR JOB AS PARENTS TO PROTECT OUR CHILDREN...NOT PUT THEM IN HARMS WAY!!!
I realize that people have to go to more effort to get their driver's license, than to have a baby!!! 
It's my opinion that there should be some form of parenting classes REQUIRED prior to having a baby and then the parent actually has to be determined mentally capable of caring for another life.
I just got out of church and there was an absolutely phenomenal group there called, Teen Challenge.  This is an organization that takes people that have an addiction and puts them through a very long, christian based program to help them get well.  There were about 8 people from Teen Challenge that actually gave their testimonials...and I was a bawling baby the whole time.  What their message was is that they felt guilt...like it was there fault and they did the things they did to hide the pain they had inside.  Since being a part of Teen Challenge, they have since forgiven themselves through the grace of God and their lives are on the right path!  It was amazing...I recommend if you have it on your heart to donate to an organization...this is a very worth while one because it is helping the dysfuncional adults, that were products of a bad childhood, become law abiding, God loving citizens!  http://www.teenchallenge.com/
The first one started off by stating that she started being molested at the age of two...then it got way worse from there.  The next one was a meth addict by the age of 14...and you can imagine where that went.  Another one was a young boy who was 22 years old and his mom went to prison when he was young and he was raised by his father.  His own father started molesting him between the ages of 5 through 7 years of age. 
We look at society and are so worried about where the future of this country is going with all of the horrible things that are happening...rapes, murders, break-ins, drug abuse...the list goes on and on.  Hasn't anyone figured out that the people that are acting out in horrible ways as adults...that it has stemmed from their childhood. 
I believe we need to change the future of our society...starting in the homes.  There will be a day in the next couple of years where I start an organization and completely fund it myself that will be out there to protect children.  Perhaps it is going to be a state mandated testing before someone can be considered "qualified" to take home their new born baby.  Where would the rest of the babies go...to that large group of people in society that would give anything to have a baby, have the perfect atmosphere and would provide a loving and nurturing home and are unable to have babies themselves. 
I used to wonder how this could happen to little kids. They come in to this world as blank canvas'...it's what happens to them as children that paints their life picture...we should be more responsible as a community and join together in making sure that all kids that are born in to this world are in an environment where they can excel.  That would cut back on crime, molestation, rape, drug abuse, prisons could be decreased in size, etc. etc. 
Since the main reason that there is all of this dysfunction in the world is in part to the way that our children are treated...let's do our part to make sure that those new litte lifes that are coming in to this world...soon to be the leaders of our future... are protected!
I don't know what it will be and I can't pin point when...but mark my words, within the next 3 - 5 years, you will hear about a foundation/organization, etc. that will be out there to protect kids and I will be behind it!  I hope I will have your help and support!

Close call...

I had to go out of town for a couple of days for business to Ashland, OR.  I love Ashland and actually went to college there so I was excited to be back.  My Regional Vice President was going to be going with me and I was so so excited about that.  She is an amazing person, not to mention she is 6 months pregnant and was not going to be able to make this trip on her own, so this really worked out for us.
We were getting going...about an hour out of town on the freeway and Eva was driving.  We were in a solid line of cars in both lanes of the two lane freeway and everyone going about 65-70 mph.  At the very last minute we saw the car in front of us swurve and the next thing we knew, we were coming up on a HUGE ladder laying sideways in the middle of the fast lane!  Eva turned a hard left and half of the car went over the ladder which did damage to the bottom of the car.  The scariest part was that the car started going back and forth, back and forth, about 6 times...ready to go out of control in any second.  What was going through my mind was that if we did go out of control...we wouldn't make it.  We would have rolled the car and been an massive multiple car pile up on the freeway.  The song "Jesus Take the Wheel" by Carrie Underwood is exactly what happened in our car yesterday!  By the grace of God, Eva was able to straighten that car out and continue on!!!  We pulled off to the side of the road, held hands and thanked God immediately.  I know in my heart, He is the reason that we are still with this world today. :) 

Buddy Boy...

We have two dogs...one is a 1 1/2 old boxer named Martini and then we have a Boston Terrier named Buddy who just turned 13 yesterday.  Buddy's story is an unusual one so I'll start from the beginning.
My brother, who lives in Texas, about 13 years ago, bought a new puppy for my nephew, Kyle.  They named him Buddy Boy, he was a baby Boston Terrier.  Now, I must share with you that my brother is not the most patient of people in the world...actually he could probably rank right up there with the least patient of most people you know.
Anyway, after my brother's divorce, he and his ex-wife both decided neither one of them wanted the dog.  My brother knowing what an animal lover I am called me to see if I wanted it.  I am not exactly a "little dog" person.  So I thought instead of me saying no, I would put it off on my husband.  So when my brother asked, I knew my husband was going to say no, so I asked him, "Adam, do you want my brother's dog?  You know it's that kind that has bubble eyes, a smashed in face and it snores."  And I just knew he was going say no when he answer, "Yes!"  What?  That couldn't be...well it was.  So on an airplane Buddy comes, flying to us.  My mom and I had to go to the airport and pick him up and he was the sweetest little black and white thing you've ever seen. 
We got him home and he was such a smart dog...but slightly skitzo.  Well he definitely took a liking to Adam right off the bat and for a very long time was our baby of the house.  He was so good and so smart...but seriously, if he was a person, he would have been a complete ass.  You know those kind of dogs that just have an attitude.  Well that was Buddy to everyone but us.
He actually got sweet revenge on one of our friends that was over for Adam's birthday party one year...we kept Buddy outside during the party just because he really didn't like people all too well...other than his family that is.  But when the night was winding down and there were only about 3 or 4 of our friends left, we let Buddy in.  There was one of our friends that thought it would be funny to make fun of Buddy and bark in his face, "Yap, Yap, Yap"  Buddy sat silently waiting...then he got right in his face again and did it over..."Yap, Yap, Yap"...I was out of the room at that time or I would have known Buddy was not about to stand for this.  He definitely had small dog syndrome.  Well that last time did it, in one clean swipe Buddy nipped at this guy's face and drew blood.  Bit him right in the lip.  Mind you it was bad enough to have to go to the hospital and get stitches and of course the authorities had to come to our house to view all the paperwork on Buddy to make sure that he had had all of his shots, etc. 
I felt HORRIBLE...I saw lawsuits flashing through my mind...thank God we had renter's insurance, but would that cover it?  I was a wreck.  We apologized profusely!  After our friend went to the hospital for stitches, the others were laughing so hard and high fiving knowing how well deserved that was.  What could we do...we couldn't discipline Buddy knowing all too well that he deserved it.  That was the last time anyone got in Buddy's face...needless to say. :)
Then we got pregnant with our twins and I just knew that he was not going to be a nice dog to them.  He has always had the run of the house and now that wasn't going to be so.  We broke him from getting on the furniture as soon as we found out we were pregnant so he didn't associate that with the babies. 
Well here they came and you know how you can become a mother bear with one baby...just imagine what you become when you are delivering a litter like I was.  I was twice the mother bear of any one person I knew.  I told my husband that if I even saw him look at them cross, he was gone.  Now mind you, I loved Buddy dearly, but when you have your own flesh and blood, all bets are off.
The day they came home, Buddy had found a new purpose in life, and it was those babies.  He knew they were his babies.  Anywhere they were, he laid right underneath them.  There were many times I would be breast feeding them in the chair and go to stand up and accidentally step on him cuz he was right underneath me.  I was so proud of that crazy, slightly skitzo dog!
So then life kind of started to take it's toll on Buddy.  He has always been one of those dogs that although you love him, you know he is going to live to 25 just to spite me.  And he's proving it! 
In his early years he was one of the best looking Boston's I have ever seen.  His markings were beautiful.  Too bad my brother had him fixed before we got him.  But after he turned 10 yrs old., life really started to take a toll on him.  He started to gray and he started getting arthritis.  See in his younger years he could jump from a standing position and reach your chest, well that starts to wear on you after awhile and Buddy is living proof of that.  Then he started to not be able to control his bowels so well.  I am a very patient person until I walk in to my girls' room in the morning to get them up for school and the first step in their room I step in throw up and the second step lands in Buddy's stool.  There are only so many words that would fit what I would have liked to say at that moment but it came out in a much more pleasing to the ear way!
It was that day that we realized that Buddy would have to start sleeping outside.  He loved it!
Then we moved to the current house we are in and until we bought a house, we knew that we would have to take Buddy to my mother-n-laws house (she lives on 10 acres).  But in the meantime we let Buddy and Martini (our boxer) stay at the house for a night. 
The night we left them at the old house, we got a call from the neighbor in a complete panic.  He said, "something is really wrong with Buddy.  I think he has been attacked or something.  He got out of the back yard somehow and he doesn't look good.  He can't even walk."  I was out of town at that time and was devistated.  I called my husband, Adam right away and said you have to get over there right now,  Buddy has been hurt and he doesn't look well at all.  I told him NOT to take the girls, cuz they didn't need to see Buddy that way.  My husband finally got over there and took one look at Buddy and knew nothing at all had happened to him, he was exactly as we left him.  We cracked up laughing, the only problem was that our neighbor hadn't seen Buddy in some time and didn't realize that he truly looks like a dead dog walking.  So I was relieved to know that he was fine. 
Prior to taking him to my in-laws house, my husband and I had to make the decision of whether or not Buddy needed to be put to sleep.  I just didn't have it in me though.  Just cuz he looks like crap, and can't hold his bowels, and can't walk very well on his back legs..doesn't mean he is ready to go to the big dog house in the sky.  I had to ask my husband, "When I can't hold my bladder (which is happening a lot sooner than I had hoped for after twins) and when I have arthritis, is it time to put me down?"  So we decided that Buddy had all of his faculties about him, he was just having the symptoms of getting old and living a very good life.  So my mother-n-law told us that he was welcome up there and they would take good care of him until we get into our new house. 
Buddy loved it right away...he got to chase cats, chickens, other yappy little dogs,etc.  My mother-n-law understood immediately why we couldn't have Buddy put to sleep, he was just old, that's all.  So when I asked how he was doing, she told me that his best friend is a rooster.  The rooster flies the coop each and every day to hang out with Buddy.  They sleep together, play together,etc.  Of all things, Buddy would befriend a rooster.  I just love it!

Mom Guilt...

My girls are 6 years old and have started 1st Grade in September.  I had this fabulous idea that I was going to split them up this year.  We found that in Kindergarten we wanted them to be together because this was their first big venture into school and they truly are each others comfort.  What I found was that they actually had challenges that a child without their sibling in the same class would not have.  For example, when they would come home, instead of hearing how math went or coloring...I would hear that "sister played with MacKenzie and MacKenzie didn't want to play with me."  I have always told my girls that they don't have to have the same friends...but their friends do have to be nice to their sister.  And this was a challenge that I didn't think my girls needed and was probably going to get a lot worse as they got older if I kept them in the same class.
So this year, we decided to go with separate teachers.  On the first day, my girls loved it.  I was a little concerned however, and I say this as humble as I can, but my girls are very advanced.  I owe that to being able to stay at home with them for the first 3 years of their lives.  But an example is that when they were starting Kindergarten, they were already reading chapter books on their own.  They were later tested in Kindergarten to find out they were reading at close to a 3rd grade level.  They were able to add double digit numbers in their heads, etc.  So going in to first grade was hard for me because I actually had to sit down the their Kindergarten teacher at the end of the year with the discussion of letting them skip 1st and go straight in to 2nd.  I did see value in that, however their group of students they're in school with is SUCH a great group of kids, with excellent, very involved parents, that I decided to let them stay in 1st.  Also, to think that they could be on the lower end of 2nd grade and the top end of 1st grade, I would rather that.  There were many things to take in to consideration in making this decision...and as a mom, you hope it will be the right one and they won't need therapy later on because of it.
So they started school and I knew just from the "Back to school" night that Erynn's teacher was definitely going to challenger her, but more importantly he identified right away how bright she was.  Emilie's teacher on the other hand had not, Concern#1.  When talking to Emilie's teacher after "Back to school" night to find out how she is going to challenge Emilie, she really didn't know and was having Emilie read and participate at the rest of the classes level, Concern #2.
After talking to a couple of parents whom I trust, who have had their children with the same teach as Emilie, I learned very quickly that this was going to be a hyped up Kindergarten and now I was slightly freaking out!  What the heck was I gonna do...either have Emilie go in to the same class as Erynn and have to put up with the challenges that would bring.  Or to have her go in to another class.  I started talking to older parents about the other teachers and learned that there was one particular teacher who would do very well with Emilie being advanced and had extra room in her class. 
That day I went to talk to the principal and she and I have been friends for years so I felt comfortable with coming to her about this.  She totally understood and was going to look in to it.
During the time that she looked in to it, I volunteered in Emilie's class and that was all it took to go from asking to have her switched to telling them that I needed her to be switched.  Don't get me wrong, we absolutely LOVE the other teacher.  She is the nicest person and was so good to Emilie.  However she cannot control the level that the kids are at in her class and Emilie was way way advanced compared to all the other kids.  Her teacher totally understood where we were coming from.
So a month in to school, Emilie switches classes and I have started volunteering in that class.  I feel much better about this class.  There are two other kids in the class that are closer to Emilie's reading level and I think she is being challenged...at least a little more than she was.  I make sure to continue challenging her at home and making sure that she is not getting bored. 
The reason for my writing about this today is because today is the first parent teacher conferences...I am about to go to them.  I am excited to hear what Emilie's teacher has to say about her.  And what I have learned by volunteering in each girls class once a week is that Erynn's teacher is seriously one of the best teachers I have ever seen.   So here comes the mom guilt...is this going to continue all the way up because honestly, as moms we put enough pressure on ourselves to then add this.  My guilt is that one of my girls might be getting a better education than the other one.  I see the long term effects and keep let my mind snowball.  :)  We may be looking at private school by 4th grade...we'll see.
Have a great day!

Puppy Love

Yesterday started out like all the other mornings and then the girls were off to school.  When I came home, I was on the phone with AT&T once again resolving a cell phone issue, when I let my puppy, Martini go out and go potty.  You should probably know that our animals are treated better than most kids...so Martini is a pure white albino boxer, 1 1/2 year old.  She is the best dog ever!
Anyway, I let her out to go potty and with this horrible storm we like her to come in right away otherwise she is not longer our "white" puppy, if you know what I mean.  I called her and she didn't come...I thought she might be enjoying the rain.  We don't get a lot of rain here so when we do, she is usually pretty intrigued.  After I hung up with AT&T (about 15 min after I let Martini out) I went out to get her.  When I went around the side of the house, much to my surprise I saw that the fence had fallen all the way down by the wind!!  My puppy was missing!!!  Now this is a dog that we had to train to sit when the door opens or she is out and its all over...she will run and run and run.  So my thoughts immediately were how many minutes have gone by and that she could seriously be half way to New York by now. 
I ran all around the neighborhood and she wasn't anywhere.  I made a quick flyer and emailed it to Staples and picked those up within a couple of minutes...thank you Staples...and had been looking for her ever since.  She had been missing since around 10am.  My hope was to have her home before my girls got home from school so we didn't have to break the news to them, cuz that wasn't going to go well.  I had called Animal Control and nothing.  Then my husband and I started going door to door in our neighborhood with the flyers to see if anyone had seen her and if they did, let them know she was ours.  My last attempt was going to be handing out flyers to the parents picking up their kids at school because they all live "somewhere" in my town and if they all had them, then we should have a lot better chance at getting her home. 
We pick the girls up at 2:15pm and at 2:05pm I was walking out to go get them when the phone rang...it was Animal Control.  An awesome woman saw my puppy running down the middle of the HIGHWAY!!  Yes, that's right, the highway.  She didn't have it in her to keep driving so she pulled over and called Martini and she ran right over.  She put her in her back yard and called Animal Control.  We are so very thankful for that wonderful, animal loving, woman who saved a part of our family yesterday!!  Needless to say, Martini slept for the rest of the day and the whole night, she was beat. 
We love her so very much and it makes us appreciate her even more!

Halloween Twin-style...

Personally, I like to celebrate "harvest", not Halloween.  My girls love this time of year so much so I didn't really feel like it was right not to let them celebrate it just because of my own personal biases.
Having said that, I am a HUGE holiday lover!  For those of you that don't know this about me, I am a huge party planner and this is just another opportunity to have a party! 
Planning for Halloween costumes with twins is a lot of fun but there is actually a lot of stress involved.  Perhaps if they were boy/girl twins, there would be a lot more opportunity.  But since they are identical girls, we have had to be a little more creative. 
For example, their first year they dressed up for Halloween they were almost 2, and they were Piglet and Eyeore.  The closer it gets to Halloween you can find THE BEST deals on costumers on http://www.thedisneystore.com/ and they will have the most adorable outfits shipped to you before the big day. 
The second year we celebrated "harvest", my girls dressed up as a ladybug and a bumblebee.  We live in a fairly warm climate, however the end of October is still a little chilly and for those first few years, it was more important to me that my girls were cozy warm vs. having award winning costumes. 
The next year, we had gone to Disneyland for our first time and so of course for Halloween my girls wanted to be princesses, but when it came right down to it, they changed their minds.  They ended up being a really cute leopard and an adorable horse costume. 
And then the fun begins...because last year they had finally started to let me dress them in "coordinating" costumes.  So last year...they were Hannah Montana and the other was Miley Cyrus.  Super fun and adorable.  However I did have to buy the make up and the microphone and wig for each of them cuz that wouldn't have been ok in our house with one microphone, etc.  :) 
And so this year, we had several choices...I thought about making them a pair of dice, and they were excited about that but we decided that would be too bulky, then I thought about making them a Friends forever necklace that is a heart and is broken down the middle and each one of them have one half....and when they stood together they would have completed the heart.  And then I wanted to think about something fun, easy and warm.  We are great big fans of "The Cat in the Hat" with Mike Myers and we finally decided on Thing 1 and Thing 2.  And for those of you who have twins that are not very excited about being Thing 1 and Thing 2, don't forget what their role in "The Cat in the Hat" was...they did everything the opposite of what they were told.  So we have told my girls that when they are dressed up, we will play along with that rule and know that they are going to do everything the opposite of what we say.  I have a feeling that night is going to be very interesting.
So now to make the costume...I found a great set of "troll wigs" online that were blue and for kids...they were perfect.  And I am going to the fabric store and buying red material and a pattern to make both of their costumes, very easily.  So aside from the wig, the red outfit and the white label on the front that says Thing 1 and Thing 2, we only have to make blue makeup on their eye brows and eyes and a red nose and we're good to go. 
And then we found the CUTEST costume for our albino boxer puppy, Martini, to be The Cat in the Hat!!  We can't wait...it will be super cute!  I'll post pictures. 
If you have twins, I would love to hear what you have done in the past that turned out really cute for your twins.

Moving...ugh!

So I have never been a big fan of moving...I actually don't know anyone who is. 
Prior to buying my first house, I rented a house for 5 years.  When we started looking at places to buy and finally found "the one", we made an offer.  Mind you my girls were about 17 months old and I wasn't really thrilled about the idea of living out of boxes not knowing whether or not we would get it.  Especially while trying to be a mom and what if the escrow fell through.  I was not about to start packing until we found out we got the house...bad decision #1. 
So we found out we got the house and within that week started moving in to it...for the record, this was the single worse move I have ever gone through. 
It rained the whole time, again...my girls were 17 mo. old and I hadn't packed a box.  Not the best situation to be in on moving day. :)  Have I mentioned before how patient my husband is...I thank God for him every day. 
Well needless to say, it took a REALLY long time to get moved in to our new house.   You know when you have everything at the new house that you need to live and the rest of the stuff you still need to move from the old house is stuff you would never miss.  I secretly hoped that it accidentally caught fire and we would never have to see that stuff again.  Well it didn't...and it took us a month to move.
So now to the present time...we are in the process of short selling our "first house" and in between buying another one, we moved into a rental.  We have been in the rental for less than two months, the old house is not empty yet and we have just bought our new house that we are moving in to on November 1st.  Thankfully, the new house is our "dream house" and is the house we will be in forever...until we decide different. :)
I have just spent several hours in our old house that is being short sold and my girls' room had a lot to be desired...imagine for one second if all you did was move the furniture out of your childrens rooms and what was left...that's how this house looked.  Every other room in the house is in perfect shape ready to go...except my girls' room.  Now I know better than to let my girls help me or we will have to go through an emotional moment with getting rid of anything and everything, including the toys from McDonalds.  So I have to go at this one on my own. 
I just got through salvaging anything on the floor worth saving or yard selling and the rest is going to need a shovel to just come in and throw away.  So I am taking a well needed break from the room and will make another go at it tomorrow. 
But I have discovered things that I think may help the rest of you...all of your socks that you think the dryer ate the other one...they are under your children's beds.  And for the headbands that you can't believe could be lost two minutes after they were wearing them...those too...can be found under their beds. 
I have learned a valuable lesson today, the beds for the new house will be beds that have no way of anything getting underneath them...I think IKEA has a great set. 
Off to shopping...have a great day!

Thanking God...

Every single day when I am dropping my kids off at school, I thank God.  I thank God for my wonderful, beautiful, heathly precious girls.  And I also thank God that I have such a wonderful stay at home job that I don't have to fight the long car line of moms and dads waiting to get close enough to the school to kick their kids out as close to the curb as they can so they can make it to work on time.  Everyone is always running late and in such a hurry and a rush.
Let me share with you how my morning goes...I set my alarm in the morning to wake my girls up.  I get them up and we have a very relaxed and calm morning going through the morning routine.  Now not always is it relaxing and wonderful and I can't wait to write about those days as they come...but for this morning, very relaxed. 
I take them to school and instead of fighting that long line of cars that are killing each other to be first in line...we park a small distance away from the school and walk up.  I am blessed to walk both of my girls to class, talk to the teachers and see how they are, go to the office and see how the principal and the office staff's morning is going and then go back to my car after all is settled in their classes and ready for the day.
It's at the moments when I am walking back through the halls on my way to my car that I thank God for this wonderful business that I am so blessed to be a part of that has given this freedom with my family. 
I volunteer in their classes once a week, have never missed a fieldtrip, drop them off, pick them up and get to know all of their friends and their friends' parents.  There is no amount of money that could pay for what I get every single day with my sweet little twin blessings from God.   To find out more about what I do to work from home with my precisou girls...please go here.
Have a blessed day!

Identical or Fraternal??

This is something that has bothered me since I have had twins.  I did a little too much reading when I found out I was having twins.   I want you to know that I LOVE fraternal twins as well as identical.  But being that mine were identical, I read a lot about identical twins and this particular issue has made me crazier and crazier the more I come across obviously identical twins that think they are fraternal.  It happened to me yesterday actually and that woman was in her 40's.  So just a forewarning...I am venting here and appreciate your listening ears. 
The problem is...when a woman is pregnant with twins and they are in separate placentas, her doctor will automatically tell her she is having fraternal twins.  There are so many sets of identical twins walking around out there that don't know their identical, other than the fact that they look just alike, because their mom was told early on that they were not.

There are three ways of having identical twins...

• Same placenta, same sac, only 3% of identical twins are born this way, and it is a very, very critical pregnancy.  Because they are not separated by a membrane, they are likely to intertwine and possibly kink each others umbillical cord.  These pregnancy often end up in losing one or both of the twins or having to deliver very early.
• The most common way to have twins is with the one placenta and each twin has a separate sac.  The sac that separates them is called "the membrane".  This is how my twins were born.
• Then 30% of identical twins are born in two placentas.  Each has their own placenta, own sac.  30% is a very large number...that means 30 out of 100 sets of identical twins are born this way. 

And Fraternal are always separate placentas, separate sacs.
Here is the reason that I started to get a little sensitive about this issue...anytime I see a set of obviously identical twins whether it be in Costco, the mall, the grocery store, etc. and you ask if they are identical...the mom and dad will say no.  When you ask them why they say that, they have not ever had them tested, the doctor just told them from the beginning.  Remember you guys, 30 out of 100 twins is A LOT of twins that are born in separate placentas.
Know this...there are things that happen with identical twins that don't happen with fraternal, for example:

• It is true with all identical twins that one of their heads will be oval and one will be round.  I don't know why this is, it totally trips me out but if you think about identical twins you know, you can pick out who has which head.
• They usually stay between 1 to 2 lbs. of each other in weight, around 1/4 to 1/2 of an inch difference in height, with their shoe size being a half of a shoe size difference.  Crazy I know.
• They usually go to the bathroom within 10 minutes of each other
• They get their teeth around the same time (within a couple of days of each other)...my girls got the same tooth on the same exact day, same time.  Totally tripped me out.
• They get sick at the same time
• They get along better...for some reason identical twins tend to get along better.  Or they make up really quick when they do argue because they have to be best friends again really quickly. 
• Usually when identical twins are born, their birth weights are further apart than fraternal twins.  For example...they may be 9+ oz. difference while fraternal are a lot of times 1 to 2 oz different.

Since talking to several moms who have older twins, who are still obviously identical, I asked them questions about their twins childhood and they said yes to everyone of the above things that are unique to identical twins.  I have had several moms get twin tests for their twins after talking to me to find out that their twins are, in fact, identical. 
Case in point, one of my best friends from high school called me one day crying.  I asked what was wrong and she said that her and her husband had just got back from the doctor and found out she was having twins.  She had already had one daughter who was going to be 17 months old when the twins were due.  Her daughter was exceptionally difficult and she just couldn't imagine having two more of her.  I calmed her and let her know that God doesn't put things on people that they can't handle and He also gives us close to 9 months to get used to the idea.  She told that she has absolutely NO twins in her or her husbands family.  That told me right away that these have to be identical.  Why...because anyone can have twins.  This is not something that is hereditary.  Dropping two eggs is something that can be passed down from generation to generation.  Having identical twins is a fluke of nature...medical society cannot figure out why our bodies split that egg.  So anyone can do it and once it has been done, it's highly likely to do it again.
The doctor immediately told my friend that her twins were fraternal, but I was a little suspicious from the moment she found out she was pregnant with them especially since there were absolutely NO sign of twins on either side.  I know that twins run on the moms side (the woman determines how many and the man determines the sex).  Anyway, throughout her pregancy she did start to get very excited about being a twin mom. 
At her baby shower her mother in law came up to me and told me that they saw the ultra-sound pictures and she just knew there was no way that they could be identical.  I said why?  She said because it was obvious from the ultra-sound that one had an oval head and one had a round head.  I cracked up and told her that was how identical twins were. 
At the birth of her twins, my friend asked the doctor to test the placentas to find out.  This was something that she really wanted to know so she continued to ask me ways to find out if they were identical or not...so I told her to ask the doctor for their blood type.  If they had different blood types that would answer her question that they were not identical.  Well the blood types came back the same.  Then I researched twin tests and she ordered one and sent it back and sure enough those twin boys are 99% identical.  How many times does this happen? 
Why does it matter, you ask?  I agree...it doesn't matter.  They are both precious lives in this world.  The reason that I started to get passionate about it was because we pay SO MUCH MONEY to our wonderful doctors that I just think that they should be a little bit more knowledgable about twins.  Especially how often their being born now-a-days.  My friend went to her doctor and told him they were identical. 
Twins receive the , "are you identical?"question all or their lives...whether they look alike or not.  If they do look alike though and they say they are not identical...the conversation is not over.  Now they have to be examined closer to see the differences.  And for medical purposes...they share the same DNA.  They were one egg that split and if anything happened to one of them that they needed medical attention, knowing that they were identical would save a lot of time and worry in trying to find a perfect match for the twin if ever needed. 
Phew...I feel so much better having been able to vent about my pet peave with doctors throwing out that twins are fraternal the moment they see two sacs.  Is it possible they are, absolutely, but just don't rule out that there is a possibility that they are identical as well.

My Twin story...in the beginning

Being a mom of twins is the most rewarding blessing any mom could have.  Having said that, there are many crazy moments as well.  I want to write to you a little on my twin adventure and what I have learned along the way.
I found out I was pregnant with twins on my 10-week appointment and have never been so excited in my life.  The day the doctor told us, "I don't know about you, but I see two heart beats" while looking at my ultrasound, I have never been the same.  I looked up at my husband and he had a tear running down his cheek.  To this day I'm not sure if that was a look of happiness or fear!  :)  It was that day that I had two concerns run through my head, one...if I could carry them, because I had broke my back in a car accident when I was 24 and now at 25 I was pregnant with twins.  I knew I was not going to be able to gain a ton of weight or this could be dangerous.  Two...was the delivery. 
I did really good through my pregnancy...I carried my girls to 38 1/2 weeks and only gained 40 lbs. which I lost 35 of 10 days after my delivery.  I was able to successfully breastfeed my girls at the same time (football hold) for a year and a week. 
During the end of my pregnancy, the doctor didn't know if we were going to be delivering naturally or not because one girl was head up and one was head down.  So we went to "birthing class"...after the first night I was convinced that I would just sign up for the C-section.  HOLY COW...to imagine that one could come out naturally and you might have to go through a C-Section also was too much for me. 
It was kind of fun to know the exact date you were going to deliver.  We had family fly in from all over.  My husband and I wrote a scrapbook page to our girls the night before we delivered.  And I remember to this day just crying because I didn't want them to come out in this scary world.  I had protected them the whole time they were in my belly and now was going to have to bring them in to this uncertain world.  My husband looked at me, put his hand on my belly and said, "It's time to share them with the rest of us."  I just cried.
We knew they were identical at the first appointment because of how thin their membrane was (I will write later posts on my HUGE pet peave of doctors and their instant assumption that all twins in two sacs are fraternal). 
We weren't really sure how to name them...so we decided the first one out would be Emilie and the second one would be Erynn.  I knew I wanted their names to start with the same letter but not to end the same way.  Why...because I grew up as the baby of 5 kids and all of us started with a K, except my brother.  We have Kelly, Kathy, Pat, Kimberly and Kandi.  All the girls names end with the same sound and when someone is calling your name, you generally only hear the end.  So we never knew who my mom was talking to and had to ask her again. 
Their middle names are Jolene...we name both of them the same middle name.  Why...becuase when thinking of names, Adam and I wanted to name them after us.  We thought maybe Emilie Jo and Erynn Darlene (my middle name is Darlene and my husbands is Joseph).  But we didn't like the idea that one would be named after one and the other after the other.  We wanted them both to be after both of us.  So when trying to put our names together...I took the "Jo" out of Joseph and the "lene" out of Darlene and made both of them have the middle name Jolene.
When they were born, Emilie (who came out first) was 6 lbs. 4 oz. and 19 inches long, Erynn was 6 lbs. 13 oz. and 19 1/2 inches.  From that moment...I learned that identical twins don't look alike to the mom!  It must be a mother nature thing. 
We were in the hospital for 5 days...I learned many things during those 5 days.  I learned that I was a freak of a mom.  I didn't want them to be passed around.  It didn't take long to learn that everyone just "stops" by after you have babies.  So we had to have a note on the door saying we were sleeping so they would check in with the desk and could see if we were ready for visitors.  I learned how hard my husband sleeps at night and I also learned that there can be ABSOLUTELY no privacy when breast feeding twins. :) 
We took them home on the 5th day and it was such an overwhelmingly scary feeling of having my babies in this great big huge scary world!  The mother bear was already coming out in me and they were only 5 days old.

Where to begin...

This is my first go at the whole "blog" thing.  I have a good friend of mine who writes about her life and daily experiences and I was thinking how fun it is to read.  Then I thought, I probably have a lot to offer moms and families with sharing the experiences we go through, good and bad.
To begin, I will tell you a little about us...we live in a very small town where I was born and raised.  It's one of those towns where literally, "everyone knows your name".  That made for some pretty interesting times going to school here and having my mom know what went on at school before we even got home.
I am the baby of 5 kids (four girls and one boy).  My mom had three kids, waiting 10 years and had two more.  My sister and I that are the youngest are 11 months and 3days apart.  It has always made me laugh my whole life when my moms says..."and I planned it that way."  Who plans to be pregnant for two years...seriously!  My mom is the best mom in the world...she is human and has her faults as we all do, but is truly the best mom role model anyone could want.  Not to mention...she raised all 5 of us by herself.
I am married to my high school sweetheart, Adam.  He has to be the most easy going guy on the face of the earth.  We are happily married and have been for 7 1/2 years.  Over the last year has probably been one of our most challenging years ever...however we are very committed to marriage and will always do whatever we can to make it work. 
And then my whole life...my sweet, precious girls, Emilie and Erynn.  They are 6 year old identical twins and are the best blessing one could ever be given. :)  My pregnancy with them was awesome...I decided during the first month that those pregnant woman that use pregnancy as an "excuse" to be mean, eat everything they want and be very demanding...I wasn't going to be one of those.  I said to myself, "being happy during pregnancy is a mindset and I want to be a blessing to be around."  And so I was...at least if you ask me.
Through this blog you will hear my views on:

• Motherhood - which I believe is the single most important job you could ever have in your life. 
• Marriage - which many would tell you Im lucky to have my husband becuase no one else would put up with me, I beg to differ. 
• Faith- which comes first in our lives
• My philosophies on Life - I belive life is what we make it and our future depends on our decisions and choices we make now.
• Attitude - Mindset is what life is all about
• Parties - I LOVE to plan parties...I planned my 10 year high school reunion and my wedding single handedly...and I plan my girls parties a year in advance every year and can't wait to share with you the awesome parties we have had.
• And many more... basically daily life...and how we live it.

I hope you get inspired, have ah ha moments, get parenting advice on what to do and what not to do, and basically learn from us as you go through our adventure we call "life" with us.

My twin story...the first year.

Bringing them home was a scary thing for me...there were so many questions going through my mind, like how do you pick them both up at once and still support their heads?  These were a few things I was just going to have to figure out.  Adam was able to be at home for two weeks before returning to work and then my mom took a week off to spend with me...then it was all me. *Insert scary music here*  
I had read the book, "On Becoming Babywise"...and that helped so much with knowing how to breastfeed them.  Also, I learned how to put them on a schedule.
The girls slept with us for the first week and then I needed to start getting them used to getting in to their own beds in order for Adam to get good sleep to go to work in the morning.  We had a basinett right next to the bed that they slept in. 
I remember the first night we got home all the books had said that when one wakes up, you wake the other one up too.  Yeah right...who can wake a sleeping baby?  So when one of them woke up, I would take her in to her room to feed her in the rocking chair, then quietly put her back in bed and think I was going to get a little sleep before the other would wake up, yeah right.  As soon as I put one down the other would wake up and I would take her in and feed her and quietly put her back in bed...and it was time for the other one to wake up.  AHHHH!  Getting up 8 times in the first night taught me real quick to wake them up and feed them at the same time. :) 
Once we started putting them in the basinett...I needed Adam's help.  So when they would wake up, I would take one, he would bring me one.  I would always change their diapers in the middle of the feeding to wake them up a little so they would keep eating.  Then when they were almost finished, I would call to Adam and he would put the heating pad in the basinett (under their blankets) to keep it warm so they got back in to a cozy bed.  If you don't have a heating pad, you could put their blankets in the dryer and swaddle them in toasty warm blankets too.  We never had any issues with them falling right back asleep in their cozy, warm bed.
This did not go on very long however, due to the schedule that I put them on after reading the Babywise book, my girls slept through the night at 12 weeks old.  It would have been 9 weeks old, but they were waking each other up. 
I kept them in the same crib until they were 8 months old.  They were each others comfort and I had read that if you separate them, they are more likely to get sick .  So keeping them together was awesome and they did perfect.
I was very blessed to be able to breastfeed for a year and a week.  I would hold them "football hold" and I just knew that when I had to feed them one at a time because they were getting so big, that's when I would be done breastfeeding.  They never got too big, their little butts just kept scooting back. 
So it was time to start a routine right after Adam had to go back to work and the girls were 2 weeks old.  That was a little interesting, but the best thing we have ever done.  The routine was feed, wake, sleep (just like it told us in Babywise).  So the girls would eat, I would read books to them (even at 2 weeks old) and they loved it.  The Mother Goose nursery rhymes would work perfect.  They were short and they rhymed and it would keep their attention.  My husband did not believe that they would really listen at 2 weeks old until he saw it for himself.  It was amazing.  We had more books than any one human being needs...I used to hit yard sales with kids stuff and buy all the kids books.  It was awesome. 
And I really owe my girls being so advanced to reading to them since they were two weeks old.  They are in first grade and were just tested at a 4th grade reading and comprehension level and got 96%. 
Now the schedule was going good and every week or so we would up the amount of time that they would stay awake.  That was fun...it went from 15 minutes to 20 to 30+.  Being able to spend more time with my girls awake was so much fun.  We started playing a little on the ground with toys, etc.
When they hit the 4 month mark, I was thrilled...we got to start cereal.  I had always imagined this as such a really fun thing to do.  They were going to be little baby birds and I was going to feed them.  I decided that I would pump my milk and that is what I would mix the cereal with.  The girls loved the cereal, however the delivery of the cereal did not go quite as expected. The first day we started cereal...I had them in their high chairs and would give one of them one bite and then the other a bite and so forth and so on.  This had to be one of the MOST stressful days yet because all they did the entire time was SCREAM cuz they wanted another bite quicker than I was giving them one.  Holy Cow...this was going to take some getting used to.  I was feeding them super fast (so I thought) but not fast enough for them.  I coulnd't wait for them to be done quick enough so I could breastfeed them they could CALM DOWN!!  Phew!
Now the first Babywise book I read took me from conception to 5 months old...and the next one took me from 5 months to 15 months.  This was called "On Becoming Babywise II".  In the back of the book, it taught us about 15 signs to teach our children sign language so they could be able to communicate during feeding time when they knew what they wanted to say, you just couldn't understand them.  I thought this was the coolest idea ever.  I had always wanted to learn sign language and there was no better way than by teaching my girls.  So we started at 4 months old.  By 8 months old, they were signing back to me!!  It blew me away...the system worked.  They knew the signs for more, milk, water, all done, mom, dad, please, thank you, hungry, thirsty, yes, no.  Very simple signs but they could do SO much!
We decided that since they learned those so easy, that I would keep on with this whole "sign language thing".  So we got a book that taught me more signs so that I could incorporate them into our daily life.  It was so much fun.  The girls were picking up on signs left and right.  Every word that we said had a sign that went with it.  One of my friends learned that they could do sign language and she got a hold of a number for us that was for an audition for a Baby Einstein baby signing video.  I am not a big fan of exploiting my kids.  I would not ever have them in a movie or commercial unless they came to me and asked me to be.  I'm not against others doing that, just didn't want to do it for us.  But a video that was sign language, this was something we already knew.  So when the girls were 13 months old, they were called to audition for the Baby Signs (produced by Baby Einstein) videos.  We were pretty excited...at that moment they knew over 75 signs that we signed on a daily basis.  Again, every word had a sign.  After auditioning, they told us that we would know if our child made it in to a video because they would send it to us.  And that was that.
So we waited for about 1 1/2 years and here came two DVDs in the mail.  They had made it in the DVDs!
I remember the moments during the first year when I just didn't know if I could do this.  I actually became very strict with people just "dropping by".  I would put a note on the front door when they were sleeping that would say..."PLEASE DON'T KNOCK...babies are sleeping.  Sorry for the inconvenience, please call before you come over next time."  I was blown away at how well that worked.  Everyone used to say, "Kandi, you have to expose them to noise or they will be light sleepers."  Considering I was a stay at home mom, the house wasn't noisy anyway when they were sleeping.  So when the UPS guy would come to the door and pound as hard as he could, that would wake my babies up.  And when the girls slept during that first year, I would sleep.  So if someone was going to just "drop by", I would not be able to rest when the girls did.  The sign was a life saver and I recommend it to anyone. 
I found that paying bills was a little challenging due to the fact that I barely could brush my teeth during the day, it was close to impossible to actually get my checkbook and pay bills.  This was when I finally resorted to online bill pay.  Ahhhh!   What a blessing that was.  We wouldn't have had electricity if it wasn't for online bill pay.
My husband really didn't have a lot of choice in what his role in this whole "fatherhood" thing was going to be...he got home from work and he got a baby!  After spending all day with both girls, Adam would get a baby, he would feed that baby, bathe her, and rock her to sleep. 
Then there was "fussy time"...oh my.  To think there is actually such a thing.  There was.  It was at about 7pm every night.  My mom worked right across the street from where we lived and she would come over every single night when she got off work to help with one of the babies.  You see at this "fussy time" they would just cry and all we could do was hold and rock them.  We would sing to them, we realized that this was just something that babies went through but still, it was over an hour of straight crying.  Neither one of them woudl cry for more than 5 minutes at a time, they would cry for each other.  Take turns if you will.  Oh my!  So for me, it was listening to over an hour of straight crying.  I would look so hard for my happy place, I was never very successful, but I would look. My mom would come over so she could take a baby.  So she would take Adam's "baby" and he would eat dinner, then she would take the baby that I had and I would eat.  Adam and I would switch babies every day so we didn't have the night time routine with the same baby every night.  That way we could spread our love to both of our babies.  My mom was a life saver!  During that time she worked for the Fire Academy and there was a really bad fire in our state that she had to go to.  She was gone for 3 weeks!  Talk about tough love...Adam and I had not ever done the night time routine without my mom.  The girls were 7 months old, we figured it was probably time to start learning how.