Bramell, Party of Five: September 2012

Friday, September 28, 2012

Fun with Pinterest

Of course, I have jumped on the Pinterest bandwagon. The problem is, I see all these things I'd like to make/try/cook, but never find the time to do it.  Well, we had a rainy weekend a couple of weeks ago and  being cooped up in the house is not something that my busy-body kids enjoy.   On Saturday, we spent a couple of hours playing at the germ-infested mall play area.  On Sunday, I pulled out the instructions for my very first Pinterest-inspired project:  homemade play dough.

We waited until the little ones were napping, then Big Sis and I got started.




These are all the ingredients; things I already had in my kitchen. Even better!



Big Sis chose to make a batch of purple first.  She likes to pour in the ingredients and stir for me.  She also learned that mixing red and blue together makes purple---educational, too!








This is the finished product above.  Below, is our second batch--pink, of course.  



Each recipe made a very big portion, and the kids played with it all afternoon.  It kept the kids busy and still, which was nice.  I did have some clean up when they finished, but that's normal for us. The post where I found the recipe is HERE if you want to check it out.  I give our first Pinterest project a big thumbs up!

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

It's Twin Tuesday!

I was planning to sit down and write a really sentimental story about how great it is to have twins (particularly two two-year-olds) but my day got a little derailed, which sent me down another path entirely.

Our morning started out pretty good; we were on track to win the daily game of "beat the clock."  Then, it happened.  Just like every other day, the wheels fell off the bus.  Girl Twin started her relentless crying and begging to be held, while following my every step through the house.  Boy Twin refused to let me get him dressed.  He only settled down once I gave in and let him wear his nice dress shoes with his gym shorts and T-shirt. (!!)  Big Sis didn't want to get out of bed.  Once she finally dragged herself to the couch, we were in severe danger of being tardy to school.

None of the kids wanted to eat breakfast, which totally annoys me.  Then, a mere ten minutes later, they all wanted to eat something...but not the same thing.  Boy Twin kept licking the peanut butter off his apple slices, then threw another fit when I wouldn't give him more PB on the already-licked apples.

The best part of the morning?  I was in the kitchen hurriedly throwing together a lunch for Big Sis when Girl Twin gets my attention from the living room.  "Mommy?" she said, holding up one finger to show me.  I poked my head into the other room long enough to ask if she had a booger.  "Poo poo" was her answer.  WHAT??  Yes, she was holding up a finger coated in poo.  From her diaper.

At this point, we were so late that the dirty diaper was just going to have to wait.  I cleaned up her hands, closed the lunch box, brushed Big Sister's hair and hustled the kids out the door.  As we sped drove to kindergarten, I let the stink out through the open windows and gobbled down the already-licked apple slices.

I dried the sweat off my cleavage as we pulled up to the school at 7:56.  Ah-ha! I win.

Monday, September 24, 2012

Perfect Lips and Super Soft Skin? Yes, Please!

Did that title get your attention? Read on to get info about some new skin care products that I've gotten hold of.

A few weeks ago, a group of bloggers from Northwest Arkansas got together for some afternoon fun and girly chatter about skin care, primping and the quest for Perfect Lips.  Our event was sponsored by Therapon Skin Health, who sells the Theraderm line of skin care products.  We learned that these are medical grade products, developed by a cosmetic surgeon in Springdale.  Yay--another great Arkansas company! Interesting note: until recently, the products could only be bought in physicians' offices, but now they are available to the public online as well.  Check out their cool little blog here.

At the party, we all got to try the Theraderm Anti-Aging Lip Complex, which claims to repair damaged lips and make them look fuller.  I've been using it for a couple of weeks now, and I do believe that my lips look different.  I can't say that they are Angelina Jolie big or anything, but they do feel better: softer with less flaking.  And, intentionally or not, the gel has a very cooling sensation on my lips. It's very soothing.

We were also able to score samples of some other Theraderm products to try out.  While the lip product is great, my favorite product has been the jar of facial moisturizer.  I have very dry skin, and using this product on my face has given it such a soft, healthy look.  I heart this stuff!!
 
Here is a picture of some of us wild and crazy bloggers at the event.  I guess I'm the meat in an Amy Sandwich....Amy James, myself and Amy Stockton.  Super fun girls!
 
 
 
 
Now, here is my official disclaimer:  The Theraderm products were given to me free of charge, to try out.  I was asked to give my honest review of the product; I'm not being paid or compensated in any manner.  You, as a reader of my blog, also have no obligation to purchase these products.  I'm simply giving a product review, which happens to be favorable.  I have not tried all of the Theraderm products, only the ones mentioned above.

Saturday, September 22, 2012

Show and Tell: The 'F' Word

We are about a month into school now. After much fretting from both of us, I'm happy to report that Big Sis is loving kindergarten!  Her class has been very productive, right from the start.  What I'm most proud of is how quickly she learned to use lowercase letters in her name, which is something I didn't even try to teach her at home.  I was just happy she could write her name at all, in giant block letters, before the first day.  Surely that meant she was way smarter than the other kids, right?

They have been practicing the days of the week, learned some new songs, done lots of art projects and had some really good Show and Tell, apparently.

Here's a good little nugget from the second week of school--

Me:       How was school today?

Big Sis:   I farted at rest time.  Everybody laughed.

Me:  What did your teacher say?

Big Sis:  She laughed.


Oh. So. Proud.


Can't wait to see if this comes up at our first parent/teacher conference next week.

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Twin Tuesday


I realized that I haven't put up a video of the wee ones in a while. This is last night, after baths. They have really been getting into the Hog Callin' lately. It's quite funny. And cute, of course. Sometimes they will spontaneously break out into a Hog Call at random times. I was really afraid Bubba would do it in church on Sunday, but instead he just yelled "YAY!" after every song the praise band played. And "DONUT!" when I let him have one during the service. I'm sure everyone at church just loves us (insert sarcastic tone).
 
Sis was a little more interested in playing with the camera case than cheerleading last night. Bub is sporting his new pj's that we call "Bones."



Friday, September 14, 2012

Conversations With My Kids


As always, my little monkeys have provided me with some good material to share. Read on to see just a tiny glimpse of what Lee and I get to witness Every. Single. Day.  

Last night, we were sitting around the table eating pizza for dinner. Evan asked me for a new piece of pizza with "pepper" on it. Thinking he wanted Parmesan cheese, I held up the shaky cheese to him.  "No, pepper," he insisted. (We have been seasoning their food with salt and pepper lately, as the grown ups do.) I explained that we do not eat pepper on our pizza. He fussed a little, so I asked him, "Pepperoni?"  Maybe he wants pepperoni?  Then Carley looks at him and asks, "Peppermint?" Then she laughed, as if she understood why this was funny. I had no idea she knew the word, much less could say it! 


Kids at the Tontitown Grape Festival last month. Total money suck, but how could I deny them?


After the littles went to bed, I sat on the couch with Becca to catch the end of America's Got Talent. She was excited that Justin Bieber was going to perform. A few minutes into the song, a young black rapper joined the Biebs on stage.

Becca:  Mom, who is that other boy?

Me:  I don't know, but I bet they will say his name at the end.

Becca:  I bet he's Justin Bieber's brother.

FYI: The rapper was Big Sean. I'm totally uncool, so I had to Google it to find out. And just for the record, he is not JB's brother.

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

It's Twin Tuesday, Y'all!


Welcome to Twin Tuesday, which I am going to make a regular feature on the blog. Thanks to some of my new blogger friends for the idea--(Amanda, Karen, Sarah and Ashten).  During this time, I'll talk more about the joys and challenges that come with having twins. And there are certainly plenty of both.
 
One of the cool things about having twins is that they always have each other to play with. An automatic buddy is never a bad thing, right?  Well....it also means that they share EVERYTHING. This is the latest thing they have shared; it's called Fifth Disease.  Not sure why it's called a "disease" when it's really a rash, but probably just to sound super scary. 
 
It started with Carley back in mid-August. I'm not normally one to run to the doctor over every little thing, but a rash like this got my attention. I took Carley to the doctor on Aug. 16; with the absence of any other symptoms, this was determined to be a viral rash (with no treatment necessary).  While the rash itself is contagious, by the time it shows, they aren't contagious anymore.  Weird, huh? Doc said the rash could last "several weeks" and could reappear if she gets hot. Both kids had their two-year well visit the following week.  Carley's rash was getting better but not gone.  The second doctor agreed with the first on the diagnosis.
 
Fast forward to this week.  Carley's rash is almost gone, after four full weeks.  But guess what? Evan now has it! He's on about day four now.  No other kids at the daycare have it or have had it, so I have no idea where they picked it up. I am not planning to take Evan to the doctor; we are just going to wait it out. I know the diagnosis and the (non) treatment, so I'll just save that money today. Another benefit of having double of everything!  Does that make me a bad mom?
 
These are some photos from this morning:
  
 
 
 
 You can see it's a red rash with a lacy appearance. Thankfully, it hasn't caused either of them to itch or hurt. It just looks nasty. 
 


Do any other moms have experience with Fifth Disease? I'd love for you to comment and let me know how long it lasted for you.





I couldn't end this post with those gross pictures.  Here is one from yesterday at our house. Kiddos were lounging and discussing the fundamentals of the "Words" book.  Moments like this are so rare and so precious. There is real love when they aren't beating the hell out of each other.


 
 
 

Monday, September 10, 2012

You are Probably a Mom If (Part 2)....

If you missed Part 1 of this post, don't worry!  You can scroll down and see it from last week. Really, this list could go on forever, but I decided to give you Twenty Signs That You are Probably a  Mom.  Here are the final 10.

You are probably a mom if: 

 1.  You go to a lot of birthday parties for people who are not old enough to drive.

 2.  You've been in every public restroom in town.  Seriously--what is it about walking into store that makes them have to pee?  

 3.  The receptionist from the pediatrician's office recognizes you in Walmart. You don't know her name, but she darn sure knows yours.

 4.  When your house is too quiet, you go looking for bodies.

 5.  Your most embarrassing moment involves Red Lobster, projectile vomiting and a dining room full of people on a Saturday night.  (or again, maybe that's just me)

 6.  You have wrapped a birthday gift in your vehicle en route to a party.  (From my friend Amy at mommyhallpass)

 7.  It doesn't bother you if your little boy wants to wear nail polish and princess dresses with his sisters. But it bothers your hubby, of course.

 8.  You know the "kids eat free" restaurant schedule for the entire week.

 9.  More than anything, you just want new carpet and furniture.  True story.

10.  You know who lives in a pineapple under the sea.  And you wish he'd stay there!

Thanks to my new friend Sarah at Our Daily Craft, a BONUS reason---

You are not afraid of poop--changing it, or talking about it with other grown women in any social setting.

Friday, September 7, 2012

You are Probably a Mom If....


I was recently on a long drive by myself.  Alone.  While that itself is a rarity, I was able to enjoy the quiet time and really think.  Oddly enough, I got to thinking about how my life has changed over the past five years or so.  A lot of the self-reflection I’ve done lately is solely due to the fact that my first baby has started kindergarten.  Seriously, I have a kid in school.  Wasn’t I just in school myself, only a few years ago?  Oh, how the years play tricks on our minds.

After thinking of how being a mommy has changed me, I also realized this will have to be a two-part post.  The “top 10 reasons” just won’t cut it, but it’s a start.  So, you are probably a mom if: 

1. You get a minivan. No explanation needed.  I knew one girl in college who drove a station wagon, but only because it beat walking.   
2. You are not afraid of being stranded in your minivan.  Why not?  Because you know that you could survive for at least a week on all the Cheerios, crackers and Goldfish crumbs in the floor (and whatever is in those half-empty cups in there, if you are desperate). 

3.  You second guess every purchase you make for yourself.  You know that you can use that money for daycare, new shoes for the kids or co-pays for the pediatrician.   

4.  You buy yourself new underwear every five years.  What a splurge, right?!  (see number 3 above) 

5. Your dinner consists of the kids’ leftovers.  And you eat it while standing up.  I can totally remember as a kid wondering why my mom never sat down to eat.  Lord, now I know it’s so much easier to just stand up so you can fetch everything for everyone else. 

6.  You need a social secretary to keep up with your five-year-old.  Play dates, parties and tee ball, oh my! 

7.  You know what starts with the words “Mom, watch this!” never ends well. 

8.  You can rock a baby (or two), read to a preschooler and make a sandwich at the same time. Or maybe that’s just me; having twins forced me to master multi-tasking. 

9. You can fall asleep anywhere, anytime.  Waking up every 15 minutes during the night with a baby has made you this way. 

10.  You need your own mom.  You want to call her just so she can tell you that you aren’t screwing it up (thanks, Mom!).
 
To be continued...
 
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