DAY 1

Day 1 - Introduce yourself, recent picture, 15 interesting facts.

I am Melissa! Most commonly known as mommy :o) I am weeks away from 26 and was born December 14, 1984! I am happily married with 4 children. I am a toddler teacher full time, a full time mommy,a full time wife and a full time accounting student. Sometimes I wish there were a few extra Me's :o)

(I have no recent real photos of just me so this will have to do from Andrew's Birthday Party last week)

Interesting Facts??? Well I am a rather boring person. Opinionated but boring so here I stand High on My Soap Box as I use this post to let you know about me :o)

1. A few co-workers pick on me because I refuse to wear socks that do not match my work shirt. If my shirt is green so are the socks. If the shirt is red "ditto" If I do not have socks to match my shirt then they match my undershirt. On "clash day" for LL spirit week I wore pink socks with a green shirt but still refused to actually "clash" If I do not match it is purely unintentional.....I have a major sock issue LOL

2. I LOVE to bake, yet I eat VERY FEW things that I actually prepare. People routinely ask me how I have time to cook or bake etc...my response is that I WILL bake before 9am and after 11pm if those are the only times I have to bake. I get ridiculous satisfaction from other people enjoying what I make. One of the few things I KNOW I do well and it makes me happy.

3. I believe candy is part of the food pyramid. Specifically candies like Now & Laters, Laffy Taffy, Jolly Ranchers etc etc...

4. I have had braces for 1.5 yrs now and after I eat I still talk to people with my hand in front of my mouth because of my paranoia that there is food in my teeth.

5. I LOVE my husband and appreciate everything that he does for me and my family, from wash dishes, to cooking dinner, giving baths, working OT etc.. I am sad when he is not home and thrilled when he arrives home...I love cuddling on the couch with him and just being in the same room as him! However you wont see me giving him a shiny medal each time he does these things because I believe that as a Father and Husband he should take pride in his family and do these things without hesitation. Call me a feminist if you want or a B*tch BUT I don't get a shiny star each time I cook my family dinner, or bathe the kids, or work 40+ hrs per week why should he? I show my love and appreciation to him and he knows he is loved and he knows I would be lost without him. We live with this knowledge of each other and he is satisfied with this and that makes him a happy man.

6. I cannot stand Lauryn's hair. Every time I see a little girl at the daycare with dirty un brushed hair I get MAD. Mad that I got the hot mess of Lauryn's curly Afro while mom's who don't even run a comb their kids hair get a beautiful head of hair! Makes me jealous.....I do however Love Lauryn despite the cranial hair flaws.

7. I have twins. No they were not conceived with fertility drugs. I do not know if they are identical, yes they were premature, no they did not go to the NICU, they are both girls, yes they are small, I really don't know if twins run in our family, YES I have my hands full, etc etc (that's really not that interesting but strangers like to know :o))

8. 4 years ago at Andrew's baby shower a relative wrote on her "advice card (actually it was an "advice diaper" but that's neither here nor there) "Stop at 1. Anymore is too many" Yeah total B :o) I sure showed her didn't I. (yeah I never graduated middle school LOL)

9. I enjoy cleaning. LIKE A LOT. Cleaning puts me in such a good mood. If someone makes me angry I usually do something drastic like cleaning the cupboards, pantry, closets etc. When I a "bored" I clean. If I can take a nap I clean instead. I believe it is a control issue. I LOVE the smell of clean, the feeling of clean....the word clean. Don't believe me? Ask Eric :o)

10. I pretty much don't ever think about how what I am doing effects the environment. Not that I don't "care" but it's never really a thought. I'm not a bad person for that it's just me. No, I am not a big fan of gas guzzling SUVS and such but my light bulbs are cheap and my electric bill not as much. I don't recycle and I have no better excuse for this than I just don't do it. Yeah it makes me a little selfish but 95% of the time I am selfless for my family so it evens out ;o)

11. I have never breastfed. I have 4 children and I formula fed all 4. I do not actually believe in the saying "breast is best" because it is far tooo generalized. Most nutritious in my book isn't necessarily "best" Without too much over explanation....this is my opinion....BF was not for me and NOT A DAY has ever passed where I regret my decision. All 4 of my kids are happy, healthy, growing, hitting ALL milestones, some early some not, throwing tantrums, telling me NO, hitting, changing their eating habits daily, occasionally getting a cold, etc etc...you know all the NORMAL things even the BF kids do. AJ and Lauryn were both Similac babies and they are polar opposites SO....I refuse to argue that formula wasn't "best" for my family :o) I think the only way to make the "breast is best" a fact is by making it personal about your families choices. BC by saying that as a formula feeding mommy I CHOSE not to give my child what I felt was best just angers me :o)

12. I love to make lists. I make lists for everything!!! EVERYTHING!!!

13. I am the kind of Mom to twins that LOVES MATCHING. I have to have their bottles match as well. When I picked the babies up from daycare yesterday they had been given 2 different colored bottle and that literately made my blood pressure rise....though this may somehow fit into the OCD statement above???

14. My best friend is OCD. I love this trait about her! Most of my friends are OCD. Do we see a pattern? My blog however has proven to the world how CRAZY I really am.

15. I have a serious problem with my weight. By problem I mean I think I am fat when I am in fact not that fat, a little chunky maybe? but not fat. I have no self control so there are no concerns about an eating disorder LOL BUT regardless I weigh myself each and EVERY time I go into the bathroom and make several other trip into the bathroom just to weigh myself...DAILY...I have had 4 kids in 4 years weigh 120 lbs can wear a size 2 skirt and size 4/5 jeans and YET I feel like a fatty daily....:o(

30 Days of Me!

*I have copied this from a good friend's blog! :o)

Are you paying attention? I've decided to close out 2010 with this 30 days of me do whacka do.

Day 1 - Introduce yourself, recent picture, 15 interesting facts.
Day 2 - Meaning behind your blog name.
Day 3 - Your first love.
Day 4 - Your parents.
Day 5 - Your favorite recipe.
Day 6 - A picture of something that makes you happy.
Day 7 - Favorite movies.
Day 8 - A place you've traveled to.
Day 9 - A picture of your friends.
Day 10 - Something you're afraid of.
Day 11 - Favorite tv shows.
Day 12 - What you believe.
Day 13 - Goals.
Day 14 - A picture you love.
Day 15 - Bible verse.
Day 16 - Dream house.
Day 17 - Something you're looking forward to.
Day 18 - Something you regret.
Day 19 - Something you miss.
Day 20 - Nicknames.
Day 21 - Picture of yourself.
Day 22 - What's in your makeup bag.
Day 23 - Favorite vacation
Day 24 - Something you've learned.
Day 25 - Put your iPod on shuffle, first 10 songs.
Day 26 - Picture of your family.
Day 27 - Pets.
Day 28 - Something that stresses you out.
Day 29 - 3 Wishes.
Day 30 - Any picture.

Ready... set... go

"You're Gonna Miss This

"...You're gonna want this back. You're gonna wish these days, hadn't gone by so fast"



Isn't this the truth.

As moms we all say that we want our babies to slow down as they hit each milestone, yet at the same time we anxiously wait for the next milestone. Once they crawl we "can't wait" until they walk and etc.

While buying diapers and toilet paper tonight I stopped and looked at Bat shaped Halloween place-mats. I took two from the rack one for AJ and one for Lauryn. I knew how excited they would be in the morning to see the new place-mats. BUT as quickly as I picked them up I put them back thinking why waste the $2 on place-mats since October is more than half over. While I was paying two older children were in line behind me buying a whoopie cushion and make-up. Fighting with each other and spending their own money. It made me think about how simple life is with our children right now. A $1 place-mat can make my kid's entire month. An airplane in the sky get them more excited than payday does for me LOL. 1 single M&M lights up their eyes...and a hug from mommy can still make everything all better. When I walk in the door after work I get 2 kids yelling "MY MOMMY'S HOME!!!" Then the "NO it's my mommy" fight ensues which I secretly LOVE :o)

I really have a hard time looking to the older years. While new milestones lie ahead and new special moments will pave the road. I want to hang onto these moments for as long as I cant because who knows how much longer I have with my "babies" before they become big kids? I don't mind diapers, teething, and runny noses. I really don't. I'm not ready to deal with "real" make-up and boyfriends/girlfriends....etc

Needless to say, my kids now have 2 shiny Bat Place-mats :o)

I Just want my boy to want mommy's kisses forever:o)

Ants on a Log

I am on a mission.

A mission to teach my children that crackers, chips, cookies, etc aren't the only kinds of snacks that exist.

While I admit I eat TERRIBLY I hope to teach my kids better. MOST of you agree the schools aren't exactly a good source for nutrition education. Even Daycare. As a teacher it certainly makes my like easier having processed crackers and cookie type snacks in the class every afternoon. As a mother it leaves me wincing as the kids eat the sugar and sodium filled "tasty" processed snacks. The kids love it, however and its far more "cost effective" in a group childcare setting.

Here at home we like our yogurts, cheeses, apples, crackers etc etc.... We are slowly working with Lauryn to develop a taste for the "good stuff" she recently discovered she like apples. But those veggies are still tricky.

THAT'S THE KEY TRICKY.

Lets make the good stuff fun :o) And that's what we did today! And Lauryn successfully ate Fresh Celery without having it spit straight out onto the table :o)

(note: we washed the celery first but chose to cut it at the end in order to make it easier for little fingers.)

That kinda night.

Lost.

My husband got home from work tonight expecting the usual. Well put together, bubbly wife, the kids in bed, the house clean....etc.

Tonight he got housework in progress, upset wife and kids in bed. He came to the playroom to find me working on putting toys away. I begrudgingly stated "I bet you expected this housework to be done when you got home." He said "Actually I did" Of course he did. Not that he expects me to have it done for him but just because its what I normally do.....

He then said he was disappointed that I was soo upset. Sadly I am too. I am disappointed that I don't think i can do this!

I have taken on far more than one person should have to handle. Today was the first day that I truly felt like it IS possible that my plate is too full. I am at the buffet and that last plate has given me a bad tummy ache. (so to speak)

Today was bad. Not like "ugh I can't wait for bedtime bad" but like "OMG I have become a horrible mother and wife" bad.

You cannot understand what I am feeling tonight. I can't even explain it. I have been overwhelmed in the past SURE, haven't we all? But I am happy with life; satisfied for sure! I REALLY AM...I look around me and think "amazing" TRULY.

But tonight I am struggling. I hated myself at the end of the day. My kids loved me. The love between a mother and her young children is unconditional. If my patience is low my kids still love me and if the kids scream and fight all day I still love them. Thats one of the best parts of being a parent.

Tonight I feel thankful for my child's unconditional love. As I sat at the end of Andrew's bed in tears repeating how sorry I was for being a "mean mommy today" AJ laid their playing with my hair and wiping my face, the whole time with a big smile. All he had to say was "I love you mommy. You sad mommy? I loves you mommy."

Once all the kids were asleep peacefully I started working on my schoolwork. Same as I do every night. But tonight I cannot concentrate. As I sit hear and type through tear-blurred eyes I feel like I have no one who I can talk to...Eric has a "simple" solution that isn't an option....

and NOW it wouldn't be a fitting end to my night if 5 minutes ago poor Lauryn didn't wake screaming and covered in vomit (which hasnt ceased) would it?

I love my life! BUT TONIGHT LIFE IS KINDA CRAPPY!!!