Family | The TaterTwins

More Please!

2 Feb posted by Jayme

Yesterday, the speech therapist taught the boys how to sign ‘more’ and ‘please’ while she was here. Ryan picked them right up and has been using them ever since, but Dylan is a bit more resistant. And of course, he’s the one doing the most pointing, grunting and whining.

The past week or so, Ryan’s vocabulary has really increased- he still doesn’t string words together really, but he’s very happy to mimic us. Neither would repeat after us before, so this is a good thing! Sometimes he will do the sign for more while saying please.

I tried to get a video of them signing during lunch, but they wouldn’t perform on camera. However, this afternoon they wanted some marshmallows and were willing to use their signs and their words- though more so Ryan than Dylan.

If you’ll disregard the undressed kids and mess in the background (and the creeper big sister at the end on the right side, I’ll share a video with you!

Now I have to go look up some more signs to teach them! Won’t it be cool if they can pick up a couple before they see the speech therapist again?

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Filed Under: dylan, Ryan, video

At the park.

21 Jan posted by Jayme

Yesterday it was 60 degrees out so I took the boys to the park for awhile. We stopped at the commissary on the way for snacks and had a little picnic too. I love when it’s nice enough out for them to play, they sleep so much better, and it really cuts down on the winter stir crazy.

I wanted to back today with the whole family but of course it was all rainy and gross.

There were a few other toddlers and their moms at the park, so I ended up talking to them and didn’t take nearly as many pics as I wanted. Next time! It’s always nice to have adult conversation.

Ryan had a wee little case of bedhead. I don’t think it detracts from his cuteness at all though.

They were doing construction on the other side of the park, and the boys were just enthralled with the trucks and machinery. They are such boys!

I was watching Ryan do one thing, and I look over at Dylan and he’d climbed to the top of this ladder thing that was SO high. I had to run over and help him down- it totally made me glad that we don’t have the bunk beds together anymore.

Ryan had his MRI this past week. He does them every 6 months, to make sure that no tumors are growing back. We generally don’t get the results until he visits his oncologist in Philly, which is not until February. It’s always fine- and I assume if there was an issue they would call.

Did I mention that both boys qualify for speech help? The evaluations came back. We’re still working out just how much help they will get- be it weekly, monthly, whatever. It also means that they qualify for preschool at the elementary school that the girls go to next fall. Again, we don’t know if it will be daily, a couple times a week, or once a week for an hour- there are several different programs.

I’ll have kid-free time! Whatever will I do with myself?

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Filed Under: 1featured, twins

Bedtime with twins.

20 Jan posted by Jayme

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Filed Under: 1featured, Aaron, pics, sleep or lack thereof, twins

Letting Go.

18 Jan posted by Jayme

Aaron tried to drive the girls to school today, because of the rain- but they insisted on riding their bikes. I’m sure they arrived all soaked. If I had been the one getting them to school, would have made them go in the car. I probably would have stepped in and had Aaron drive them a few years ago too… but I think I’ve gotten better about letting go and not being in charge of every little aspect of parenting.

I know I have lightened up about other things as well- I used to be really uptight about what the kids wore when they left the house. I would find myself having them change if they or Aaron dressed them in something that didn’t match. And when the girls were younger, I always had their hair done up neatly with bows. But the girls are older now with their own opinions of fashion. And mismatched clothing isn’t going to hurt anything, except maybe my tongue from me biting it.

It’s so hard to let someone else be in control sometimes. Aaron is an amazing father, and I needed to let him parent our kids without me parenting on top of him. I think it’s pretty common though, for mothers to do that with their husbands. I’m pretty sure most of us don’t even realize we’re doing it. The only reason I made the conscious decision to step back was because of a book I read a few years back. I wish I could remember the name… but basically it was from the husband’s point of view and I totally saw myself in his obnoxiously annoying nagging wife. I didn’t want Aaron to become resentful of me like the guy in the book had become towards his wife.

The biggest area where I’ve relinquished control is Ryan’s medical care. Aaron has brought Ryan to the vast majority of his appointments and procedures since his cancer diagnosis. I realized that by letting go and letting him be in charge, I’ve eliminated a lot of my stress. Aaron handles stuff like that way better than I do as well.

Recently friends and I were talking about how our spouses would do if something happened to us and they had to be in charge of the kids and the house. Almost every single one of my friends said that their husbands couldn’t do it- that they don’t know enough about the kids schedules and routines to be left on their own. Some even said that they would not be able to leave their kids with their dads for a week as I did when I went to NY to be with my mom when she needed me. They said that even if they had the week off of work, they would still have to get extra help.

Do you notice this among you and your friends too- the mom taking control in the parenting and kind of overruling the dad?

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Filed Under: 1featured, Aaron, about me, parenting