So, on to my favorite subject, the centers of my universe.....my boys.
As mentioned in my last post......the love of Cows and the need to chase me with snakes is still the most popular of passtimes. Although, we don't only have to watch those Barnyard cows anymore. Now I get to ask through each of their videos to see what the boys want to watch. Very rarely do they agree, but, at least we are back to some variety. They have also taken up liking the Noggin shows as well as the Disney Channel so that gives some more variety as well. But, cows in general are still all the rage. I found myself glaring at a cow on the side of the road yesterday.....just because it was a cow. I have even hidden the Gingerbread Man book because, yes, you guessed it....there is a cow that wants to eat the Gingerbread Man. We could be stuck on that page for a half hour at a time. Seb sees the cow and won't turn the page. And with that book or his puzzle or his plastic cows, there are two things that fascinate him. The utters and the tail. He has to point to every cows utters and say,"Boob!!". He will talk about the "boobs" for what seems like hours. At least with the tails, he will go to all animals and point them out. But, it always comes back to the cow. Even with a picture of a barn with no animal in sight, he will point at the doors and say, "Mmmm (his cow sound) ---inside---Mmmm."
Now, Ben, he is less prone to a one track mind. He plays with just about anything. He is quite the block stacker. He gives rides to his little men on cars. His favorite toy at the moment is a small remote control car. He says,"Push buttons," he pushes the buttons and says,"Go, Go, Go!" as the car goes forward or backwards until crashing. This can keep him busy for a very long time.
Ben is very much into tongues though. He uses his tongue as a taster tongue when he sees a food he is not too familiar with. He touches said food to the tip of his tongue to see if it is worth eating. He sticks out his tongue and points and says a version of tongue. He always wants me to stick out my tongue so he can point and identify it. Well, I finally took out the Mr. Potato head's that they had gotten for Christmas. They have taken to watching Toy Story and Mr. Potato head rates second to "Buzz" only. They even love him more than Woody. So, while I am making dinner, I put the boys in their seats and they pass the time with Noggin on and either color, do puzzles, play blocks or legos, or play with the Potato heads. To Ben's extreme delight, one of the potato heads has a tongue piece. He attached it and before I knew it, with a big smile, stuck his tongue out......they touched tongues and that is the story of how Ben and Mr. Potato head started their almost daily love affair.
Who knew that plastic potatos could keep kids so busy. Ben is one to build more realistically. He likes the pieces to be generally as they are intended to be. Although check out how my smarty flipped the mustache to make bushy eyebrows. Seb is an artist with his potato head, he puts parts wherever he gets the whim or will take pieces to build multiple faces on the sides of the potato.
My boys are a bunch of hams too. They love to be tickled and to tickle. They have taken up the art of fake snoring. Of course, they close their eyes and snore with the biggest smile on their face. Most of the time they remember to lay down before doing so. They love playing hockey and golf and when the clubs or sticks are put away will use anything to hit the balls. Seb is even known to try to putt the ball with his snake.....which he is able to do even with the snake waggling in curls. Until it broke, his plastic hoe also made a good hockey stick. Ben continues to have a good arm, both throwing the baseball and football. This is not a good attribute when he throws books, or crates or toys though. The boys have also taken to learning different modes to escape. They know dump toys out of their crates and stack them to climb over the baby gate. Once I confiscate the crates, they have been known to stack their potty chairs just as effectively. Too smart and brave and agile for their own good I say.
Speaking of potty training. We are still moving at a snails pace. I actually had a very bad week a while ago where one of the boys took up poo finger painting. Within minutes it was on the bed, the walls, the floor, the toys. Three days in a row, I had to figure out how to clean the offender, clean the room and keep the other twin out of said mess at the same time. I needed a twin or clone.....or maid. By that Friday, I was a mental mess. Although, who knows......if you consider it modern art, maybe I should get a canvas and make a fortune for future college funds. It was a crack up, albeit a little nasty when the next day, Seb dumps out his crate of toys. He starts looking through them one by one, putting most in the crate and a couple to the side. When he is done he points to the small pile of toys and says,"Poo". Whether this is him on a scavenger hunt in the backyard or pointing to his diaper and patting his butt, I know what this means. And, yes, the toys have poop from yesterday- dried on them. Poor Eyeore has a snout full of poop in fact. This did not make me happy that I had missed it from the day before, but I was very delighted that Seb could both sort toys and was able to bring my attention to the infraction. The following week, I am happy to report that Sebastian made progress in trying to use the potty. On the first day, he took off his pants and diaper, peed next to them and then sat on the potty chair. I encouraged him and tried to explain that the pee pee belonged in the potty. Steps out of order and what not. The next day, he took off his pants and diaper and pooped next to them and then sat on the potty. This I was a little less encouraging about, but I try to look on the bright side. At least, it wasn't on the walls, even if it did take some cleaning.
Our nighttime ritual has changed a little as after the reading of a couple of stories, the boys now want me to sing to them. Of course, this usually is about a half hour singing the same two songs over and over. Yes, I do know more songs than two.....I taught Kindergarten after all. But, Take Me Out to the Ballgame and Grand Old Flag are the two that I am made to sing until my voice is gone. They enjoy the hand motions and will sometimes join in with them. Then, after my singing it is time to kiss them goodnight. Although, this too goes on for a good 15 minutes......they have a little thing where they tell me to kiss the feet, kiss the belly, kiss the lips. over and over again-- times two silly boys. Just when i think i am done.......i get a foot in the face and can't resist their giggley request. FinallyI end with the usual,"Goodnight, sleep tight, don't let the bed bugs bite!" This I also follow with a zombie like gobbling on their bellies. But, this means game over and I finally make my exit to their laughing and then a last contented sigh. They do have me rapped around their little fingers. I love though, that I am their favorite person on this earth. They smile upon seeing me enter a room. That never gets old. I get up in the morning, go straight to their room and am met with the most amazing welcome. Sebastian covers me in hugs and kisses and Ben gives a warm smiley wave with his "ello". No matter what is wrong in the world, this is guaranteed to cure it. This is why I don't mind not being anything more interesting than Ben and Seb's mom.
