How's your weekend looking so far? Post a picture...or two, or three...and share a glimpse...
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Saturday Snapshots: Guts Before Glory
How's your weekend looking so far? Post a picture...or two, or three...and share a glimpse...
Friday, October 30, 2009
A Bad Case of the Piles
No worries, this post isn't a diatribe on the after-effects of plural pregnancy, but more of a commentary on the status of our autumn beset backyard.
Double Daddy and I have long looked forward to the day wherein we could place our litter-born labor force into action beyond the simple retrieval of seed pods and sticks. This fall may be that blessed time.
Double Daddy and I have long looked forward to the day wherein we could place our litter-born labor force into action beyond the simple retrieval of seed pods and sticks. This fall may be that blessed time.
Of course the tricky part is convincing 8-year-olds the leaves should stay at least semi-piled!
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Bad Haiku Friday: Icing on the Cake
Artist's self portrait
Sarah tries new media
Behold, the cupcake
A scary costumeDoesn't scare little Batman
He is Handsome Van
Where the Wild Things AreDVDs from Scholastic
Contacting winners!
Separate classesMeans twice the party favors
Finished for Friday
Compose some bad haiku of your own and play along with Laura at Catholic Teacher Musings---and share your accomplishment(s) of the week gone by with ThreeUnder at Lit & Laundry!
Happy Halloween!
Happy Halloween!
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Way Back When-esday: Howlin' Wee Ones
Dateline: Halloween 2001Twins' Age: 7 Weeks
Taken at the notoriously fussy "witching hour" between 5:00ish and 7:00ish (actually, that's more like "witching hours"), Darren in his ghost hat and Sarah in her pumpkin hat seem less than excited by the prospect of greeting the treaters on their first Halloween. (They were too little to take out on a fallish night, so their impromptu hand-painted shirts and OldNavy seasonal caps were the extent of their costumes for that first year.)
Cries and screams were an appropriate behavior for the occasion, and they seemed to know it!
What memorable image(s) makes your mid-week wonderful? Dive into those digital photos or scan a scrapbook find and play along with Way Back When-esday. Be sure and link back to participate in the web-wide reverie...and leave a comment when you do!
Divided We Thrive
The great twin classroom placement debate.
Disclaimer: Our experience is ours – I dare not say ours alone, as other twin parents no doubt have experienced the same – but please don’t feel “judged” if your viewpoint for your family is different.
When our boy/girl twins matriculated into preschool at age 4 their incoming class had four sets of twins and one set of triplets. We had planned on asking to have our two placed in separate classes, but the vast majority of the multiples-blessed families also wished to have their same-day-born siblings separated---causing an insurmountable logistical challenge for the classroom coordinators. We were approached with a very kind “We normally try to give each multiple-birth child their own class; however, we’re stuck. Darren and Sarah seem such individuals already, and do not seem to be nervous about the school year. Would you mind if we placed them in the same preschool class?” We agreed with, and felt flattered by, their observed assessment of our twins’ personalities. We willingly and happily complied.
Flash forward to a few months later, and surprise! Sure, our twosome talked about “new friends” and the other kids in the class; yet every time we asked one child or the other, “Who did you play with today?” or “What did you do on the playground?” invariably, their sibling’s name was front and center in the mix. Come parent-teacher conference time (and yes, preschool has parent-teacher conferences), their teacher shared what we by then surmised: Sarah and Darren were bright and well-behaved. They got along well with others. They played well with others…when they bothered to depart their uterine circle. After 4 years of well-developed social shorthand between the two, it was far easier to simply play together than to initiate interaction with new kids---kids who might not respond as predictably as the playmate known since birth. Despite typical brother/sister confrontations and quibbles, clearly they figured the devil known was better than the one unknown.
September-born, squeaking it in under the deadline babies that they were, we initially believed we’d do a single preschool year and head straight for the Big K. However, after that first year of unexpected clique-y coupledom, as well as for the benefits of lengthier emotional, educational and social development before going to “The Show,” we elected to go for another year---aptly named Pre-K, the minor league of elementary school.
From that year to the present, we’ve had a pluperfectly positive experience in discrete classrooms. Yes, there are parental challenges…the most heart-wrenching of which to date was the kindergarten Mother’s Day Tea, held in two places, at the same time. [Found a way to make it work, you can/could, too.] Frequently, their homework is as different as their room numbers. While it requires double the supervision, they learn independently and any “cheating” due to simple in-house proximity is averted.
But what of the oft-extolled “positives” to having twins share a classroom? Without intended offense to any families who genuinely feel the same-room placement option is best for their situation, when we pondered those believed-to-be-benefits, the “pro” always travelled with an inescapable “con.”
For example:
“They just love being together!”
How wonderful that they do! I love being with my husband, too; that doesn’t mean I get to spend all day with him. Non-simultaneously born siblings frequently love being together, too. They aren’t offered the option to school together. For those who then reply with a “but non-twins aren’t at the same developmental/intellectual/social level,” chances are, neither are your twins. You may be surprised to discover how uniquely placed on all of those curves your twins truly are. Unique classrooms have proven very illuminating in discovering the strengths and challenges of each child that we as their parents didn’t see prior.
“Twin A needs the reassurance Twin B can provide.”
Is twin reassurance in the classroom truly Twin B’s responsibility? Should Twin A not develop some independence? What if Twin A was not a twin? He/She would still need to attend school and wouldn’t have a luck-of-the-draw birth mate to ease their transition. Don’t take advantage of twindom to your children’s detriment. Yes, parenting the less-comfortable twin will be tough, maybe even heartbreaking at times; but you are the one to help them through…not their sibling.
“The same class just makes it easier for me.”
For some families, this may be a very valid reason. For me, the obvious benefits of placing our children in their own class environments made the “difficulty” not so hard to bear.
“There are all sorts of recent study indicating twins flourish in the same classroom!”
For every study that indicates “X,” there’s another study that indicates the opposite. The crux cited in legal documents filed by advocates of the same-class argument is the decision should be the parents’. So do just that! Make your own decision…don’t feel obligated to do what the twin message boards trending…either way!
“We asked our twins if they want to be together and they said ‘Yes!’”
When I ask my kids what they want for dinner, they say, ‘Candy!’ You can take your young twins’ wishes under advisement, but you’re the parent(s). Some parentally-wise decisions may not make your twins happy.
Since our twins are now in the second grade, and have 3+ years of classroom separation under their backpack straps, thought I’d go ahead and ask our He-Twin (who happens to be home from school sick) for his input.
What is the best thing about being in your own class at school?
Darren: “Probably less homework.”
So there you have it. For all the projecting of assumed anxieties and affections between our twins, when it comes to school, for them it boils down to homework volume! In all seriousness, we all might benefit from easing our parental angst about this---and many other---perceived as psychologically high-impact decisions. Stay open. Stay flexible. Stay true to what you genuinely feel is best for your family….and don’t kowtow to popular parenting du jour.
I’d be very curious to hear your perspectives. Comment away!
Disclaimer: Our experience is ours – I dare not say ours alone, as other twin parents no doubt have experienced the same – but please don’t feel “judged” if your viewpoint for your family is different.
When our boy/girl twins matriculated into preschool at age 4 their incoming class had four sets of twins and one set of triplets. We had planned on asking to have our two placed in separate classes, but the vast majority of the multiples-blessed families also wished to have their same-day-born siblings separated---causing an insurmountable logistical challenge for the classroom coordinators. We were approached with a very kind “We normally try to give each multiple-birth child their own class; however, we’re stuck. Darren and Sarah seem such individuals already, and do not seem to be nervous about the school year. Would you mind if we placed them in the same preschool class?” We agreed with, and felt flattered by, their observed assessment of our twins’ personalities. We willingly and happily complied.
Flash forward to a few months later, and surprise! Sure, our twosome talked about “new friends” and the other kids in the class; yet every time we asked one child or the other, “Who did you play with today?” or “What did you do on the playground?” invariably, their sibling’s name was front and center in the mix. Come parent-teacher conference time (and yes, preschool has parent-teacher conferences), their teacher shared what we by then surmised: Sarah and Darren were bright and well-behaved. They got along well with others. They played well with others…when they bothered to depart their uterine circle. After 4 years of well-developed social shorthand between the two, it was far easier to simply play together than to initiate interaction with new kids---kids who might not respond as predictably as the playmate known since birth. Despite typical brother/sister confrontations and quibbles, clearly they figured the devil known was better than the one unknown.
September-born, squeaking it in under the deadline babies that they were, we initially believed we’d do a single preschool year and head straight for the Big K. However, after that first year of unexpected clique-y coupledom, as well as for the benefits of lengthier emotional, educational and social development before going to “The Show,” we elected to go for another year---aptly named Pre-K, the minor league of elementary school.
From that year to the present, we’ve had a pluperfectly positive experience in discrete classrooms. Yes, there are parental challenges…the most heart-wrenching of which to date was the kindergarten Mother’s Day Tea, held in two places, at the same time. [Found a way to make it work, you can/could, too.] Frequently, their homework is as different as their room numbers. While it requires double the supervision, they learn independently and any “cheating” due to simple in-house proximity is averted.
But what of the oft-extolled “positives” to having twins share a classroom? Without intended offense to any families who genuinely feel the same-room placement option is best for their situation, when we pondered those believed-to-be-benefits, the “pro” always travelled with an inescapable “con.”
For example:
“They just love being together!”
How wonderful that they do! I love being with my husband, too; that doesn’t mean I get to spend all day with him. Non-simultaneously born siblings frequently love being together, too. They aren’t offered the option to school together. For those who then reply with a “but non-twins aren’t at the same developmental/intellectual/social level,” chances are, neither are your twins. You may be surprised to discover how uniquely placed on all of those curves your twins truly are. Unique classrooms have proven very illuminating in discovering the strengths and challenges of each child that we as their parents didn’t see prior.
“Twin A needs the reassurance Twin B can provide.”
Is twin reassurance in the classroom truly Twin B’s responsibility? Should Twin A not develop some independence? What if Twin A was not a twin? He/She would still need to attend school and wouldn’t have a luck-of-the-draw birth mate to ease their transition. Don’t take advantage of twindom to your children’s detriment. Yes, parenting the less-comfortable twin will be tough, maybe even heartbreaking at times; but you are the one to help them through…not their sibling.
“The same class just makes it easier for me.”
For some families, this may be a very valid reason. For me, the obvious benefits of placing our children in their own class environments made the “difficulty” not so hard to bear.
“There are all sorts of recent study indicating twins flourish in the same classroom!”
For every study that indicates “X,” there’s another study that indicates the opposite. The crux cited in legal documents filed by advocates of the same-class argument is the decision should be the parents’. So do just that! Make your own decision…don’t feel obligated to do what the twin message boards trending…either way!
“We asked our twins if they want to be together and they said ‘Yes!’”
When I ask my kids what they want for dinner, they say, ‘Candy!’ You can take your young twins’ wishes under advisement, but you’re the parent(s). Some parentally-wise decisions may not make your twins happy.
Since our twins are now in the second grade, and have 3+ years of classroom separation under their backpack straps, thought I’d go ahead and ask our He-Twin (who happens to be home from school sick) for his input.
What is the best thing about being in your own class at school?
Darren: “Probably less homework.”
So there you have it. For all the projecting of assumed anxieties and affections between our twins, when it comes to school, for them it boils down to homework volume! In all seriousness, we all might benefit from easing our parental angst about this---and many other---perceived as psychologically high-impact decisions. Stay open. Stay flexible. Stay true to what you genuinely feel is best for your family….and don’t kowtow to popular parenting du jour.
I’d be very curious to hear your perspectives. Comment away!
Monday, October 26, 2009
Makes My Monday: Trick or Teeth
Continuing her trend of losing her baby chompers in the most unusual of locations (anyone remember the circus peanut?), while enjoying a Twizzlers at Sunday's "Trunk or Treat" party, out popped a cute little canine.
The fact my darling devil left a neon note for the tooth fairy Makes My Monday.
(Another Monday Maker: We're giving away FIVE DVDs in tandem with our new post on Tw-In Reviews...go check it out!)
New to Makes My Monday? Share on your blog what warms your week's beginning: Post a picture and tell the tale. Then be sure to link back here to share in the web-wide Monday fun. Don't forget to leave a comment for others...comments are always Monday makers!
The fact my darling devil left a neon note for the tooth fairy Makes My Monday.
(Another Monday Maker: We're giving away FIVE DVDs in tandem with our new post on Tw-In Reviews...go check it out!)New to Makes My Monday? Share on your blog what warms your week's beginning: Post a picture and tell the tale. Then be sure to link back here to share in the web-wide Monday fun. Don't forget to leave a comment for others...comments are always Monday makers!
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Saturday Snapshots: Staving Off the Swine Flu
Swaddled in a sleeping bag this Saturday morning, He-Twin was feverish and fatigued last night...with a fever replicating the arc the now-recuperated She-Twin's did.Taking it easy on the homefront today, hoping for the requisite fever-free window in time for Children's Sabbath and Trunk or Treat tomorrow.
How's your weekend looking so far?
Post a picture...or two, or three...and share a glimpse...
Friday, October 23, 2009
A Good Friday - A Bad Haiku
The weekend is hereSitting outside with the kids
Such gorgeous weather
Sweeping and raking
Fallen leaves into a pile
Swing, and then you leap!
Joint efforts at play
Arranging abandoned bricks
Bring me sidewalk chalk!
Only eight years old
To their eyes, just a Friday
I'll not soon forget.
For more poor poetry, be sure to visit Laura's weekly walk on the bad haiku side at Catholic Teacher Musings.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Dodging Total Drama Island
Sarah: "Teenagers sure do get upset easily."
Mommy: "Seems that way from those we see on TV, doesn't it?"
Sarah: "Seriously, Mom. They get so dramatic and irritated over such silly things."
Mommy: "So you're not going to be that way when you're a teenager?"
Sarah: "No, that's just dumb."
From her lips to God's ear...
FYI - The Cartoon Network's Total Drama Island is verboten in our home. Entirely, entirely worthless. Not worth the time to even review. Trust me. We're still undoing damage from a half-episode viewing. Ugh.
Mommy: "Seems that way from those we see on TV, doesn't it?"
Sarah: "Seriously, Mom. They get so dramatic and irritated over such silly things."
Mommy: "So you're not going to be that way when you're a teenager?"
Sarah: "No, that's just dumb."
From her lips to God's ear...
FYI - The Cartoon Network's Total Drama Island is verboten in our home. Entirely, entirely worthless. Not worth the time to even review. Trust me. We're still undoing damage from a half-episode viewing. Ugh.
Way Back When-esday: That Sinking Feeling
Dateline: 2003Twins' Age: 1
Never really knew why anyone would prefer a double kitchen sink...until we had twins.
What memorable image(s) makes your mid-week wonderful? Dive into those digital photos or scan a scrapbook find and play along with Way Back When-esday. Be sure and link back to participate in the web-wide reverie...and leave a comment when you do!
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
It's All Right Now
...in fact it's a gas.
Upon dismounting his loft ladder for a lights-out stalling drink of water---
Darren (excitedly): "Sarah! I'm going to toot! See what happens"
Sarah (laughing wildly): "Do it!"
Darren (turning and dropping his pajama britches to allow his twin sister a full booty view): [Insert gas expellation sound effect of your choosing here.]
Mommy (trying not to giggle): "Darren!"
Darren (ignoring me, with his pants back in place): "So, Sarah?!?"
Sarah (with chagrin): "Naaah. You can't see anything come out."
Visions of horrifying future science projects are dancing in my head.....
Upon dismounting his loft ladder for a lights-out stalling drink of water---
Darren (excitedly): "Sarah! I'm going to toot! See what happens"
Sarah (laughing wildly): "Do it!"
Darren (turning and dropping his pajama britches to allow his twin sister a full booty view): [Insert gas expellation sound effect of your choosing here.]
Mommy (trying not to giggle): "Darren!"
Darren (ignoring me, with his pants back in place): "So, Sarah?!?"
Sarah (with chagrin): "Naaah. You can't see anything come out."
Visions of horrifying future science projects are dancing in my head.....
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Makes My Monday: All That's Fit to Print
Delivered by the newspaper carrier...
Delivered by our former H1N1 carrier...
A son enjoying the Sunday paper and a daughter's thoughtful notepaper Make My Monday.
New to Makes My Monday? Share on your blog what warms your week's beginning: Post a picture and tell the tale. Then be sure to link back here to share in the web-wide Monday fun. Don't forget to leave a comment for others...comments are always Monday makers!
Delivered by our former H1N1 carrier...
A son enjoying the Sunday paper and a daughter's thoughtful notepaper Make My Monday.New to Makes My Monday? Share on your blog what warms your week's beginning: Post a picture and tell the tale. Then be sure to link back here to share in the web-wide Monday fun. Don't forget to leave a comment for others...comments are always Monday makers!
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Saturday Snapshots: Mmmm
Muffins
Meds
Model Magic Miniature (of Darren, by Darren)
How's your weekend looking so far? Snap a few shots and give us a glimpse!P.S. Congrats to Freckletree who won a signed copy of Twinspiration in this week's Way Back When-esday giveaway. If you haven't visited her beautiful blog yet, DO! If you'd also like to be listed on the Twinsights blog roll (like Freckletree) simply send an email with your twin-centric blog's URL via the "Contact" link above. Be sure to check out "Tw-In Reviews" in the next couple of days...great giveaway coming....
Friday, October 16, 2009
Haiku for Health
Flu test negativeAnd the one for strep was, too
Yet fever lingers
Five days since those tests
Sarah still seems weak, puny
The cough keeps hacking
Container at side
And a water bottle, too
Ped thinks tests were wrong
Flu? H1N1?
Time for another swab set
Attitude is good
If it is swine flu
She can dodge vaccination
Happy to be sick
Tonight at dinner
Rubbing his head with his hand
Darren has headache
So it often goes
In our loving, happy home
Twins---they tend to share.
Share your 5-7-5 syllable stories with the lovely Laura at Catholic Teacher Musings...it's Bad Haiku Friday!
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Glories Untold
Behold----the flame-fanning dissertation on objects overrated at long last has its similarly sensationalistic counterpart. Yin? Here's your yang.
Please peruse this panoply as my earnest endeavor to uplift the unsung, delight the downtrodden, and right the reputation of the wrongly ridiculed. (Alliteration? Underrated!)
Without hesitation or equivocation, I offer the following for your consideration---and validation.
(Rhyming? Underrated!)
Circus Peanuts
Pluto (the defrocked planet, not Mickey's dog)
Dansko closed-back clogs
Good penmanship
Hair Cuttery
Asti Spumante
The Walmart Shopping Experience
Christopher Hitchens (not his personal beliefs so much as his unparalleled eloquence)
TV with no TiVO or DVR
A post-sneeze "God Bless You!" (not "Gesundheit" or other alternate acknowledgment)
Agree? Disagree? Have personal penchants you've squirrelled away for fear of derision or worse, the pooh-pooh-ing of your peers?
Come out, come out wherever you are...
Please peruse this panoply as my earnest endeavor to uplift the unsung, delight the downtrodden, and right the reputation of the wrongly ridiculed. (Alliteration? Underrated!)
Without hesitation or equivocation, I offer the following for your consideration---and validation.
(Rhyming? Underrated!)
Circus Peanuts
Pluto (the defrocked planet, not Mickey's dog)
Dansko closed-back clogs
Good penmanship
Hair Cuttery
Asti Spumante
The Walmart Shopping Experience
Christopher Hitchens (not his personal beliefs so much as his unparalleled eloquence)
TV with no TiVO or DVR
A post-sneeze "God Bless You!" (not "Gesundheit" or other alternate acknowledgment)
Agree? Disagree? Have personal penchants you've squirrelled away for fear of derision or worse, the pooh-pooh-ing of your peers?
Come out, come out wherever you are...
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Way Back When-esday: All's Fair
Dateline: October 2004Twins' Age: 3 Years Old
Hit me as I saw the tall shadows of our 8-year-old twins on Monday's post, it's been five years since our first foray to the state fair as a family of four. No more strollers needed, but we still experience the same excitement and fun factor.
Knowing these two smiling then first-timers have since traded their DuoGlider seats for Ferris Wheel seats---for kids measuring 48" or taller, thank you---warms my Wednesday.
What motivates you to look Way Back this When-esday?
Dive into those digital photos or scan a scrapbook find and play along with Way Back When-esday. Be sure and link back to participate in the web-wide reverie...and leave a comment when you do!
PS - Play along this week and be entered to win a signed copy of Twinspiration--- or comment this week and be entered to win...or do both and be entered twice! Good Luck!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
