Happy Halloween!

It was an adventure today. The day went by so fast! We started the morning off with lots of play, and a trip to the park after lunch. Nana and Papa came to our house for dinner and trick-or-treating.

It was a night filled with drama! We got a pumpkin carved at the last minute, I caught Sofie's finger in the door that scared us so much we were ready to take her to the ER, the cuteness of our girls trick-or-treating since this was the first time we've gotten off our street, (Sofia yelling, "Happy Halloween!" is a memory I'll treasure forever.) and finally Samantha being sick most of the night just as I'm sure many kids get on Halloween night.

Yet another highlight of the evening... Papa's hats.

Sam wonders where the time goes

We started the bedtime routine later than usual tonight. Samantha noticed the clock and said, "It's after 8:00 already!". Once she was in her pajamas and ready for bed she noticed the time and exclaimed, "Jeez, where did the day go?". That's an excellent question sweetheart...

I recently heard a quote that seems to explain the time paradox of parenting. "The days are long, but the years are short.". In the short span of time I've been a mom, I find that to be astonishingly true.

Sofie's first haircut

Sofia and I got haircuts tonight, it was her first one! She was awesome, sitting still for "Crazy Katie the Haircut Lady" (as our stylist is affectionately known) and waiting patiently during my turn. Sofia made everyone in the salon smile at her cuteness and I could not have been more proud of her!

Here are some pictures to commemorate the event:

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The empathy of Samantha

I usually have one day (at least) where the stress of the “Sometime Single Parenting” takes over. Daddy is gone this week. Activities/extra commitments add to the list of things that must be done ON TIME. Last night was one of those days where I was just gritting my teeth trying to get through the list. At the very end of the night both girls were firing requests/questions like machine-guns at me. “Can I have some milk?”, “Can we play Uno?”, “We should dance!”, “I don’t want to take a bath!”, and “Can we watch something?” are some, but not all examples. I finally cracked and yelled, “AHHH”! The girls stopped and looked at me uncertainly. I then explained I’m not perfect and I’m doing the best I can do. It was comical from one standpoint, but I was overwhelmed and I didn’t hide it. I told them that I was sorry. Here’s what happened next:

Sam: Mom, I think you need a big hug.
Mom: That would be really nice sweetie, thank you.
Sam: I love you so much Mommy!
Mom: I love you too, I can’t tell you what a honor it is to be your mom. I’m really lucky to have you as my daughter.

We then discussed how no one is perfect… not her or her sister, not me or Daddy, not Nana or Papa or Grammy, etc. (She listed approximately 25 people in total.) It was a fun conversation with the focus on trying to be good and accepting that we’ll never be perfect.

Samantha and Sofia see my flaws, but they see me pick myself up after a stumble. They see me apologize or talk about why I chose something over a different option. I love that they see it even if they don’t always understand it. It’s important to me to give them a realistic view of the world. Both girls are extraordinarily smart and observant and hiding my humanity (for lack of a better term) is not an option. In all, I really am honored to be their mom and grateful they accept me for me. I hope I succeed in reciprocating that.

I love my mom

My mom (a.k.a. Grammy) is the reason I'm alive. She has been saving me in one form or another for my entire life. Grammy helps me with just about everything from housework to walking the dog to yardwork. She is also a fantastic grandmother to the girls and any other kid in need of a Grammy. We keep our sense of humor and laugh at the silly situations we get into, especially now that the girls are usually in those situations with us. I'm very blessed to have my mom and we all love her dearly. Our lives are enriched by her and the view she has of the world. Thanks mom!

Yesterday at Sever's

We continued our annual tradition to Severs with our friends this fall. There was an incident with Daddy taking Sofie to the potty, but we don't talk about that. (I will say that Daddy was the last person I suspected to do that.) As usual, the biggest highlight was the corn pit and the kids all had pony rides and took a turn on the carpet slide. It is a fun annual tradition!

Circus

Today we went to the Circus! It was the first time for me as well as the girls and we all had an adventure! There were tigers, elephants, acrobats, horses and various acts. I especially enjoyed the trained sheepdogs in the car! (C'mon, how often do you get to say that in life?). I think they were the equivalent of the clowns. The girls each got a pony ride during intermission and plenty of snacks too.

There was an act where motorcycles rode along the high wire. As soon as Samantha saw it her mouth dropped open and stayed open until I asked her what she was thinking. It was comical and I wish I could share a picture of it!

As we were walking out, Sofie looked at me beaming and said, "I loved watching the elephants!". Her face was pure joy and that was one reason we went. The other reason was Samantha. I love these adventures with them!

You can see the excitement building in the pictures we took before heading out!

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