... and babies make four: Our life with twins. : Almost 6!

Okay, okay – I apologize to my one loyal blog follower for my absence, but you know – life! The kids are out of school now so my days consistent of entertaining them, playing referee, cleaning up the messes, and then school all night and studying after that. The days very were much the same when they were in school, but I got a few kid free hours of studying done in the morning before they got out at noon. I figured I should get one more update done before my “babies” turn 6 though. I cannot believe they are almost 6 years old… time is flying by!

Sometimes I see those Facebook and Instagram posts where the parents seem to just be “winning” at keeping the kids busy and finding unique experiences and the mom guilt kicks in hard. I used to plan out a lot of crafts and activities at home. I used to sit down and play with them for hours. I used to be more diligent about monitoring screen time. I used to keep up with the cleaning and the laundry. This feeling doesn’t only apply to my life as a mom, I am letting myself down too. I used to read books for enjoyment and not an assignment. I used to have time to run. I used to get a decent amount of sleep! School is out in just a few more weeks and then I intend to join the full-time working class again, so we will adapt to a new normal. I have to remind myself that change and growth are a part of life. I will likely never feel like I am doing everything that I could be doing, but I need to remind myself that whatever I am doing is enough. The kids are healthy and happy and busy and not missing out on anything. I am going to school to better myself and better the future for them. We will make it through- and have some fun along the way.

Landon doesn’t meet a stranger. He talks to every adult and child that we pass. Riley is a little bit shyer and will find her way to hold my hand if she feels “nervous.” It doesn’t take her long to warm up though and she will soon be talking your ear off. We had a decision to make with them starting Kindergarten next year about keeping them in the same classroom or separating. We talked it over with their preschool teachers, the Elementary school principal, and them. They decided they wanted to be separate and I think it will be for the best. They have two completely different learning styles and being in the same classroom may cause a challenge. Landon seems to “get it” a lot faster when we are working on things which increases her frustration level with not understanding. I think she will be more comfortable without the constant comparison of her brother right next to her. Overall, they do get along well with each other and support each other and play together. Like typical siblings though, they have their moments where they want to be alone.

Landon loves blocks and Legos and following directions to build things, but he also likes to be creative with his Legos. He is constantly using his imagination and having conversations with his toys. He loves to tell jokes and shout out the word “banana” and random times. He laughs hysterically at himself which then in turn causes everyone around to laugh – so he thinks he is quite the comedian. He has an amazing memory and will ask me questions about things that happened several days prior. He asks a ton of questions, mostly he tries to figure out how everything around him works. I answer them all to the best of my ability, but it can be challenging to keep up. He loves to watch Sid the Science Kid and Word World. He is really working hard to learn to read and sounds words out all of the time. He uses his letter robots to spell words and then will bring them to me and ask if he spelled it right. His favorite book is The Very Hungry Caterpillar as he can “read” it to me with a little help from the memorization. I am very excited to see him flourish in Kindergarten. He loves his time in Preschool. Both teachers told me that they would miss Landon and Riley the most, yet also informed me that if they were every not there for the day Landon and Riley could easily “direct” the class. He is showing a lot of progress with his handwriting and his math. He loves to do math! He likes to play games on his tablet that involve equations and is very proud of himself when he figures things out. He likes to sing and dance and just generally be the center of attention. He wants to see people smile and is willing to put himself out there in order to get it done. He is very loving and sensitive and doesn’t like it when he feels excluded from a game. He is always looking out for Riley and wants to help her and make sure she is happy too. My biggest area of challenge with Landon is food. He does not like to eat and has a very small list of preferred options (grilled cheese, pop tarts, cereal, chocolate milk). He also takes a very long time to eat a small amount of food. His little world will be rocked when he is only given 25 minutes to eat in Kindergarten. He did make the adventure into organized sports this spring and found a love for baseball. He enjoyed his time on the field and is pretty excited for the next season.

Riley is non-stop. She runs everywhere she goes and she has the bruising to show for it. She loves to sit down and cuddle, but she does not sit still! She has recently started coming in to our room every single night about 3:15am asking to sleep with us – and during that time she is all over the place making our king bed feel like a twin. She is not as quickly social as her brother, but she will warm up to you if you give her the time. She is shy to begin with in social settings and will hide behind me. She has a little bit of a higher anxiety level and prefers to have a stuffed animal with her in new social settings. Once she knows you though, she will love you. Animals remain her absolute favorite and the only thing she has asked to have for her birthday is a hamster. She has been “studying” how to take care of one and has demonstrated to me that she knows the rules that will be in place regarding not removing the hamster from the cage without permission – so looks like we will be getting a hamster very soon. Riley loves to eat anything and everything – at this point she is about 10 pounds heavier than Landon. Her favorite food remains cheese and anything that involves cheese. She likes the independence of being able to get snacks on her own and has also mastered the art of cleaning up after herself after she spills while getting said snacks. She loves to sing and dance and has asked to do dance again next year. She felt so special getting dressed up for her recital and receiving flowers. She wants to help me all the time – sweeping floors, putting laundry in the washer, wiping the counter. She will follow me around all day long looking for a way to help. I should be super grateful, but honestly, it is sometimes challenging to add her “help” as it makes the task longer. Everyday when I have to leave for school, she tells me that she does not want me to go – and it breaks my heart a little. I only have a few more weeks of school left, but then I plan to join the full-time workforce again (first time in 4 years!) so it will be a transition for us all. Her favorite TV show is Puppy Dog Pals or Pink-a-licious. She names all of her animals and dolls. Her current doll of choice is named Froggy Chiffon, but she also loves her Jesse doll (and unfortunately that one is a bit creepy as the head has broken off). Riley is finally gaining comfort with her skills when it comes to writing and came a long way during the last school year. She loves to write and draw – no piece of paper is safe. I think she is ready for kindergarten as well and she was the one that requested that they be in separate classrooms next year. The Hubby and I have agreed to that one as I think it will be food for them to have some alone time and they have completely different learning styles. The challenge will be when it comes to friends and being invited to parties, but we will cross that bridge when we get there.

It has been forever since the last update, so there are a ton of pictures that I could include. We have been to museums, craft times, building at Home Depot, splash pads, swimming, movies, shopping, the aquarium, Carowinds, and about 1000 other things. We have traveled to Gatlinburg and back to Illinois for Easter to visit family and just went camping this past weekend. These kids lead a busy life –