Say What Sunday....

Could it be true? Dare I say it aloud? Nope, don't want to ginx myself...well...um...ok. Little Brownie is potty training! Not because I'd like to be diaper free for the first time in 3 years, not because I spent 30 minutes cleaning a blowout down the carpeted staircase last week and certainly not because I think they are soooo cute. My Little Brownie is growing up and I'm not sure I'm ready. The past few mornings, Little Brownie has risen up from his nighttime slumber with a dry diaper. I've rushed him to the potty and Presto...we have pee-pee in the potty. He has been running around bare bottom for the last couple of days. He has made many deposits in the potty, however, I am smart enough to have picked up on how his little mind works...THE REWARD SYSTEM.

For every deposit into the potty no matter how big or small, you get a small treat. I had stockpiled last Valentine's day on candy heart treats. We have gone through almost my whole stash. So thankfully last night I found a bag of butterscotch morsels. This is our new potty treat. Big Brownie has decided that he is also potty training and each time he sprinkles a little tinkle, he asks, "May I please have a potty treat?" I am certain that this is not the end all and be all of potty training. I have no illusion that Little Brownie will be fully potty trained in a few weeks. But he is showing initiative and that initiative will be rewarded, each and every time it is used. Thank you heavenly father for giving me these blessings?

Speaking of blessings, I watched my Big Brownie sleep today and it was good. He slipped his hand underneath mine as I was singing songs to him at nap-time. He burrows his little feet between my legs and smiles so big, his dimples are the biggest indentations I've ever seen. I said, "I love you baby." He replied, "I love you baby Mama." As he drifted off to sleep, I watched his little smile softly fade and his clasp of my hand grow still. What a true blessing he is to me.

Big Brownie started mother's day out and is LOVING it! He loves his teacher and he loves his snacks. He busts in without much of a goodbye to me each morning, which I'm so grateful. No tears, no crying, no..."Mama will you stay with me?" It is the best feeling to know he is secure enough in knowing I will be back to get him. He loves going to "Bible School". Any day we pass the church, he points and says, "That is my favorite place to go play and have LOTS AND LOTS of fun".

And speaking of Mother's Day out...today, Big Brownie was telling me about his best friend Jack. I assumed he was speaking about a friend at school. He told me that he loves to play with him and that they share all the time. I was encouraging him to be a good friend and to be kind to one another. He looked up at me and said, "Mama, can Jack come over to play with me at my house." I replied, "Sure, if Jack's mother says it's ok for Jack to visit, then he can come play here at your house." He said, "Yay! and can Jack's Little Brother come too?" I said, "Absolutely, the more the merrier." He started dancing in the kitchen and I asked him this, "What is Jack's Little Brother's name?" He said, "Rabbit". I looked at him puzzled and said, "Jack's brother is named Rabbit?" He said, "Yes Mama, Jack and Rabbit want to come play. Can we call them on the phone to come now?" I said, "How do you know Jack?" He replied, "From school". So, tomorrow I will be scoping out to see if Big Brownie has a classmate named Jack or are we venturing into the world of make believe. I welcome all friends and I encourage his imagination to blossom. I just really need to know if Jack really has a brother named Rabbit.

Little Brownie is loving his Mama time whilst Big Brownie is at school. We read book after book after book. Did I mention we read books? We do...all the time. He asked, "Where's Bubba?" I've replied, "Bubba is at school." He just looks at me and smiles. He says, "You read it? Dis wone, dis wone right here!" I think he even enjoys being able to watch whatever DVD he wants, and he also enjoys sitting in Big Brownie's car seat. The other day, he laid down in Big Brownies bed and fell asleep for a little bit. I think he just relishes the idea of being all over Big Brownies stuff, without Big Brownie even knowing. It will be a secret that I will keep for sure. Coloring in all the coloring books and using markers and glue. Things that he normally doesn't get to touch without Big Brownie constantly instructing him how to use them correctly. And then there are the moments of shear bliss. The long hugs, sweet kisses, precious smiles and the "I wub you Mommy" that happens on a hourly basis. Undivided attention that he has never felt in his 20 months of life. I have a few projects lined up for this coming week, thanks to a dear friend that dropped off a basket of fun activities. He absolutely will not know what to do with himself, when he doesn't have to share or wait his turn. These are the days that I will cherish for a lifetime.

How about a "SAY WHAT WEDNESDAY"?

Man have I ever missed posting my weekly "Say What?". It has been a super busy summer that seemingly is leading to a even busier Fall season fast approaching. Just to get everyone up to speed, Big Brownie is now 3 years and 2 months and Little Brownie is now 22 months old. They are becoming REAL brothers. You know, the kind that have combats and camaraderie all at the same time.

Thanks to Tutu Nani, the boys were given a treat of "Super hero" capes a couple of weeks ago. You know I could have tied a towel to their necks and told them they were capers and that would have been sufficient. However, with Big Brownies new found interest in Batman, Superman and Spiderman (learned from nephews)...as well as SUPER WHY from PBS, he loves to be my little super hero. This is all captured and carefully observed by Little Brownie. Sometimes in the morning when we rise, the first thing Big Brownie asks is, "Can I be your super hero today?" I grant his wish and before long, he is saving the day with his amazing leaps off the couch to save me from a toy bug on the floor or zooming through the kitchen to put a cup in the sink, saving the carpet from a spill. Little Brownie is in awe of Big Brownies super powers. He has decided he also wants to be my little "Super Hero" as well. His language has become a lot more clear over the last few weeks and he runs to me and says, "Mommy, Mommy...I suppa-tero too?" I grab his cape and within minutes he is also looking to save the day with his "Suppa-tero" powers. What would the caper duo be without a super dog, so Andy has been added to the super line-up as our very own, Super hero dog. It is quite funny to see them running around as a trio of super hero's, jumping from couch to pillow then pillow to chair...saving the day with their powers to put clothes in the baskets and blankets on beds. To pick up toys that need saving from the floor and snacks from the table. Yeah, they may think they are super-hero's, but I'm taking full advantage of the situation and making them little caped helpers. However, as quickly as we clean up, we destroy the territory so that there is another episode of "Saving the day" tomorrow.

As I said, Little Brownie is becoming more clear in his communication. My favorites are..."Mommy, Mommy, I stuck!" As I round the corner, he has pushed his foot into the cushion to pretend that he is stuck. Or, the "Mommy, Mommy, watch dis!" as he leaps in the air from the couch and lands on both feet. But my all time favorite is, "Mommy, Mommy, up...hold me, hud (hug) me and kips (kiss) me!" He has a smile and laugh that truly melts my heart and he can work his little magic to make you all warm and fuzzy inside.

Warm and fuzzes is exactly what you need to feel to counterbalance the shear mean streak that child has tucked away. Little Brownie can be mean as snot and boy can he take it out on his brother. I have so far been able to contain myself and hold back from spanking that child, however, I have never had to be more creative with my discipline style than with that child. He will make a drive by "Hit and Run" at a whim. Big Brownie is his best target and to that, I have encouraged Big Brownie to hit back. I know that many of you probably have to pick your jaw up from the ground when I say that I have told Big Brownie to hit him back, but I did not want Big Brownie to feel helpless to Little Brownie's aggressiveness. I don't want Big Brownie to feel like he can be bullied. I need him to feel a sense of worth and power over his person and that sometimes, you have to teach a lesson yourself as opposed to allowing me, Mommy, to handle every offense.

So, with that, no fewer than 2-3 times a day, when the Brownies are at each others throats, there will be an outburst of fury. I will usually be out of the room when it happens, but within earshot distance. It usually plays out something like this...(Crying in the background) Me: "What happened?" Big Brownie, "Brother hit me and I hit him back." Me: "Where did he hit you?" B.B.: "Here on my head!" Me: "Where did you hit him?" B.B. "I just hit him on his head and he fell down and got another boo-boo on his leg." Me: "Maybe you hit him a little too hard?" B.B. "No, he hit me on my head so I just pushed him." Me: "Did you hit him on the head or did you push him?" B.B. "I hit him in the head and pushed him with my fists and then he fell down."

OR...(Crying in the background) Me: "What happened?" B.B.: "He hit me!" L.B.: "I hip Bubba!" Me: "Don't hit brother!" L.B.: "OK Mommy (smiling)" Me: "Sit here in time out for 1 minute." L.B.: scoots to pick up a toy and runs back to his timeout spot "Mommy, Mommy...train!" B.B.: "Did you put him in timeout?" Me: "Yes, he is in timeout" B.B.: "Will you leave him there forever and just come hold me?" Me: "You can't play with your train while in timeout (I take the train and massive crying ensues)" B.B.: "I'm so sad, Brother hit me and I need you to hold me." Me to B.B.: "I'm on my way to hold you." Me to L.B.: "You can't have toys in timeout...give me that car!" B.B.: "No toys in timeout!" L.B. "I sooorry! I sooorry!" B.B. "I forgive him." Me: "Go give Brother a hug and tell him you are sorry." L.B. "I sorry bubba." B.B.: "I forgive you!" So...are you tired yet? It is truly exhausting figuring out do you discipline or console.

We have decided to cut back on some of our household expenses. I turned off the gas because we only have a gas fireplace and we NEVER turn it on...$15 bucks a month saved. I'm leaving my debit card at home and trying to be mindful of the things I spend money on and use cash only....no telling how much I am saving from not nickel and dime-ing our account to death. I cut back our cable services and turned in 2 of our digital cable boxes...$40 bucks a month saved. In doing the latter, I had a "Say What?" from Daddy Brown. With our current cable plan we get 1 digital box and with that, there are certain channels that are only accessible through the digital box. The most watched channel...Nick Jr. channel 113. Since we have a few movie channels and the only time we really ever use the On Demand function is to rent a non-kid movie, I left the digital box in our room. On the first day I turned the boxes in, Daddy Brown came home and I began to fix dinner. I needed a bit of a break and I asked Daddy Brown to handle the boys. He looks down and realizes we no longer have Nick Jr. on the living room television. He looks at me and says, "WHERE IS NICK JR!" I smiled and said, "We only get Nick Jr., through the cable box...remember?" He stood there for a minute and said, "Well, what about PBS or Disney?" I explained, "They only have preschool shows during the morning and daytime?" His response..."I guess we can just turn the television off since there is nothing good on T.V. to watch." In that moment, I grinned and thought, was there ever a time in my previous non-kid life that not have Nick Jr. available would be a "Nothing good on" television moment?

Okay...one more then I'm off to bed. Some of the most wonderful moments of my day are when my boys desire to have some Mommy time. I stay up late at night because that is the only time I have "Me" time these days. Big Brownie will start Mother's Day Out in 1 week and I'm excited about the time I will get to spend with Little Brownie solo. We have never had that one on one time. I think they both will truly flourish with this next chapter that will unfold. As I'm preparing Big Brownie that he will go to school soon, he asks, "Am I going to my new Bible School tomorrow?" Me: "No, you will go in one week." B.B.: "Oh, will they have a Ferris Wheel there?" Me: "No, they won't have a Ferris Wheel there, but they will have a playground for you to play on." B.B.: "Yay, with Zebra's and Flamingo's?" Me: "No, there won't be any animals, but you will be able to play with new friends." B.B.: "Awesome, can they go to the Childrens Museum with me to see the dragon in the castle?" Me: "Well, maybe, but your school is not going to go to the Childrens Museum, but you will be able to draw and cut with scissors." B.B. "Oh no, I can't cut with big scissors." Me: "They will have kid scissors for your to use." B.B. "Wow, and can I cut apples and oranges with them?" Me: "Well, no, you will cut paper, but they will have a kitchen for you to play with." B.B.: "And can I cook pancakes and bacon for my new friends?" Me: "Yes, you can pretend to cook anything you want." B.B. "I don't think Bible School is going to be fun. I don't want to go to Bible School." Me: "Why not?" B.B., "Because they don't have Ferris Wheels, Zoo Animals...no Childrens Museum and I can't cook real food in the kitchen. I don't want to go, I want to stay here with you." Me: "You know what else you are going to get to do at Bible School?" B.B. (eyes light up and mouth opens wide with anticipation) "What is it, what is it?" Me: "You are going to get to make new friends and learn about Jesus." B.B.: "JESUS? YAY! I want to learn about Jesus, can I go to Bible School tomorrow?" I hope the excitement and anticipation of learning about Jesus continues to grow. I hope and pray that the transition to Mother's Day Out for Big Brownie is successful and innovative for him. I hope and pray he never loses his ability to reason each side of the coin and that he continues to find joy in his life through each and every new door he walks through...I hope and I pray!

Say What Wednesday...

I have terrible arachnophobia. Spiders are my Achilles heel. Before having the Brownies, if I saw a spider, I would either close off that room until Daddy Brown came home to "deal" with the situation, or I'd just leave the house. However, having two Brownies now, I don't want them to be afraid of bugs...especially since they are boys. So, I've had to buck up and not show any fear when it comes to insects. I pick up worms and caterpillars in the yard. I catch bugs for the Brownies to look at and admire. Sometimes, a bug is out of reach and I just have to move on with my day as if it doesn't exist. This was the scenario yesterday. Big Brownie and I were in the kitchen. He looked up and saw a HUGE black spider on the ceiling. It was one of those that was a little fuzzy with a white dot. I think pretty harmless, except for the fact that it was a SPIDER! Big Brownies said, "Look Mommy, a spider. You need to get it!" I told him, "We will leave it for Daddy to get when he gets home. Mommy can't reach him all the way up there." He said, "Oh, okay" and he disappeared from the kitchen. A few minutes later, he comes running into the kitchen and says, "Mama, I'll get the spider!" I turned around to see him and he had an M&M's holiday fan from his Easter basket. He jumped onto a stepping stool, reached his hands high in the air and turned the fan on. His plan was to blow the spider down the wall so we could get it. It just so happen that the spider started to crawl on the ceiling and he exclaimed, "IT'S WORKING MAMA...GET HIM!" But, as the spider wasn't really affected by the M&M wind, he stopped and camped out in the same position for the rest of the day. Nonetheless, I was happy to see him try to come up with a solution.

Big Brownie has officially graduated to underwear. It took some time, but I finally put my foot down and told Big Brownie he had to wear underwear. And just like that, he wears it everyday. We enjoys sprinkling his "yellow water" about any chance he gets. He pee-pee'd in Andy's water bowl in the kitchen. I have caught him several times with pants down and squatting to hit the bowl since. I tell him, "Andy's water bowl is not the toilet. You have to use the potty!" He reluctantly say, "Okay Mama." A few days ago, we were in the kitchen and I was putting away the dishes. I heard an unfamiliar noise behind me. I turned around and Big Brownie was peeing in Andy's food cup while standing on a stepping stool. I said, "Why did you pee-pee in Andy's food cup?" He said, "Well, I had to pee-pee real bad and I just looked down and I saw Andy's yellow food cup, so I just pee-pee'd in his cup and it was FUN!"

So, do you find yourself telling your kids, "Eat 2 more bites and then you can be done?" I do. Big Brownie is very familiar with this and Little Brownie is getting the knack. And it is funny how little ones take your words so literal. I told Little Brownie last week he had to eat 1 more bite and then he could have some grapes. He complied and as he was chewing his last bite, I said, "Chew it all up". He started chewing his food while looking "UP"! It was hilarious. Big Brownie has been doing that forever and I never caught on. When I say, "Chew it UP", they think I am telling them to chew their food while they are looking UP! See, I totally would have missed that one if I didn't have a second Brownie!

Last year, Daddy Brownie finally decided I was old enough to have a garden. I have wanted a garden for years. He felt that I was working so much that he would be the one tending, weeding and such as opposed to the one "ME" who really wanted it. So, now that I'm a stay at home mama, he agreed that with dual work, we could venture into the gardening world. We had a great harvest for our first year. We had corn, beans, (TONS) of cucumbers, carrots, lettuce, potatoes, cantaloupe and watermelons. This year, I planted tomatoes, corn, lettuce, bush beans and black beans, cantaloupe and cucumbers. I even talked Daddy Brown into having my own pumpkin patch. Whoo-hoo! Not sure with the rain and flooding we had this weekend what will actually come up since some of our seed were washed away at the bottom of the garden. However to my surprise, upon further inspection yesterday, I have some sprouts. The Brownies love to check on the garden with me. Unfortunately, they really don't understand that when we see a sprout, we leave it in the ground. To them, it's harvest time! Ugh...I have tried to keep my cool when a bean plant gets pulled, or my tomato plant gets a good yank. Big Brownie told me yesterday, "Good job mom, our garden looks SO de-wicious!" Little Brownie bends down and looks at the sprouts closely and say, "Look Mama, Mommy, Mommy...a BEAN!" We will see if we get anything out of our garden this year with the help of our new farmers!

Say What Wednesday...

Do you ever hear a statement and immediately know something is going on? Mine from Big Brownie is..."Oh no!" and for Little Brownie it is, "Uh oh!"

Big Brownie has graduated to pee-pee in the potty like a big boy. He stands on his tippy-toes, points and shoots. He is so proud of himself and we are so proud of him. Well, until I heard, "Oh no!" last night. He had ran into the bathroom...at the last minute mind you. He barely got his pants and underwear down. I could hear pee-pee, but it wasn't a splash in the potty. OH NO is right! It was on the wall, the floor, on the toilet and on the carpet outside of the bathroom. He said, "I'm sorry Mama, I'm just trying to use the bathroom like a BIG BOY!" And then he said, "I'm sorry Mama, it was an accident and accidents happen!" His sweet little face could have melted an ice cap.

Little Brownie is a talking machine. Somethings you can understand him clearly and other things I just nod my head. He came into the kitchen, while I had the fridge open and said, "JUICE!" I told him to say "Please, may I have some juice". He said, "PWWWWEASE I some JUICE!" That was good enough in my book, so I handed him his juice and told him to sit in his chair to drink it. I closed the fridge, and began preparing a snack for them. I hear, "UH OH MAMA, UH OH!" I came around the corner and he is squeezing the juice box onto our new puppy Andy, and the floor and the couch and the carpet! The memory of my mom's voice ran through my head with this statement...you know the one, "I can't have anything NICE!" I find myself having more patience than I ever thought I would. Surprisingly, I didn't get upset. I just told Little Brownie that was unacceptable and that he had to sit on the couch for a time out.

Now, time outs are a whole-nother subject altogether. My boys actually enjoy taking a little break to think about what they have done. If you remember a post back several months ago, I introduced the "Green Square" as a tool of discipline. When Big Brownie is being disciplined, he will ask me, "Do I need to sit on the green square?" We also have a brown square, yellow square and orange square too. Because we now have Andy, who loves to jump, lick and play with the Brownies every chance he gets, a kid sitting on the floor just isn't going to happy most days. So, we have reverted to using the couch or the chair in the living room as time out spaces. Still proud to say, we haven't spanked our Brownies. There are days that I will threaten for inappropriate behavior. The words, "If you don't stop, I'll...." come out of my mouth and I usually hesitate because "I'll spank you" would have NO MEANING to them. So, for now, timeouts work well for us.

We have had 2 deaths in our family this past week. Sadly, Daddy Brown's Uncle T past away last Wednesday afternoon after losing his battle with cancer. I also had a great Uncle in North Carolina that also lost his battle with cancer on Tuesday. When explaining a death to Big Brownie, such as Bubba and Sissy, we tell him that they have gone to heaven with Baby Jesus and we will see them again one day. So, as we were getting ready to say our nighttime prayer last week, we got to the part that we usually pray for Uncle T. I told Big Brownie that Uncle T had gone to heaven with Bubba and Sissy and Jesus. He said, "Awww, but I want to see him and he wants to see me. Mama, please tell him you are sorry so he can come see me. I know he wants me!" How sweet is that? I explained, "Uncle T is in heaven now and although I know he wants to see you, he can't. He is no longer with us. But he is playing in heaven with Bubba and Sissy. And he is no longer sick and he is talking to Jesus everyday." He looked at me and said, "Well, ok! Did you tell him you are sorry? It will make him feel all better." What a sweet precious spirit he has. They make me smile and laugh and cry almost everyday.

Say What Wednesday...

Please tell me it hasn't already started...what? Big Brownie is my backseat driver. He asked me if he could drive on Monday. I told him he could drive in 14 years. He said that was awesome!

A couple of weeks ago, we came home from Tutu Nani's house and it was dark. Big Brownie usually sits behind me and Little Brownie behind the passengers seat. On this particular night, for whatever reason, I put Big Brownie behind the passenger seat and Little Brownie behind me. Because Big Brownie wasn't used to riding on that side of the car, every mailbox, tree or sign we approached he yelled..."WATCH OUT YOU ARE GOING TO HIT IT MAMA!" This was not funny in the least at the time to me because I was driving at night. I finally had to tell him that he had to be quiet. He complied and we when got home he said, "Whew, we made it home safe."

He has also began to understand the "Rules of the Road". We stop at a stop light and he says, "Mama, why are we stopping?" I explain the stop light...red means stop, green means go. When we approach a stop light or a stop sign now, he helps me by YELLING, "Mama, make sure you stop at the stop sign so we can be safe!" I haven't even ventured to explain the yellow light. I am afraid he'll yell at me..."SLOW DOWN!" Anyway, he keeps me in check for sure of all railroad crossing and school zones.

Okay, I don't know about you, but I think the TLC series "Hoarding, buried alive" is the best show on network television today. If you have a touch of hoarding in your body, like me, you should watch this show. I have began de-cluttering my house in hope of keeping an intervention from being in my future. This is difficult for me though. Every item has a sentiment and/or emotion. I pulled out all the Brownies baby clothes and I look at this shirt or that sweater and it takes me back to the time they wore it. Parting with some of my "stuff" has been difficult, but certainly watching Hoarding has helped. I think de-cluttering is rubbing off on the Brownies. Big Brownie came into the playroom yesterday and said, "Mama, what are you doing?" I said, "Well, I'm going through your toys so we can have a yard sale." He said, "Oh, what is a yard sale?" I said, "Well, we will put our stuff out in the driveway and let others come to see if they can use it and then they will buy it." He looked at me funny and said, "We need to clean up this big mess and then we can have a BIG YARD sale. I want my friends to come and see me and buy all my messy stuff and give me 1 whole dollar."

Little Brownie is getting so big in his britches. He imitates so much of Big Brownies words and actions. I have started trying to give him 2 and 3 action commands for example..."pick up your shoes and take them to the shoe basket" or "take your binkie out of your mouth, go upstairs and put it in your bed". He follows direction surprising well, when he wants too. It amazes me how much he understands and how it clicks. He has been extra cranky with these new teeth as they are cutting through. Lord have mercy, it seems like that child has a tooth ALWAYS cutting. The other day I was having one of those days that I could have crawled into the fetal position and cried. I will frequently make statement like, "You are killin' me" or "Lord have mercy". On this particular day I said, "Help me Jesus" as he was struggling with me to put his diaper on. Later in the day, he and Big Brownie were outside playing and I was doing the dishes. I had the back door and the back window open and was watching them play. All of a sudden, I heard, "HELLLLPPPPP!" I came running as they were fighting over a toy. I made it down the steps to referee the situation. As I approached, I heard Little Brownie exclaim, "HESSUS, HEP ME, HEP ME, HESSUS!" Translation..."Jesus help me, help me Jesus!" At least my mini-prayers to Jesus throughout the day are better for them to exclaim than the occasional curse word that rolls through my head.

Can it be a "Say What Thursday"?

We have been so busy with Springtime that it would make your tail spin. Last week, we ventured to see donkey's, mule's and "horseeeee's" (as Little Brownie calls them) at the local annual festival. The boys had a great time. Tutu Nani and Aunt Apple went with us to join in the fun. One mule in particular was very vocal. He let out a huge "HEEE-HAWWW" and the boys jumped up into mine and Tutu Nani's arms. Big Brownie said, "Mama, he is going to get me!" I assured him that he was not. We walked around touched the animals. They had a blast. Before we left, we had the traditional foods of the festival...funnel cake, lemonade and PORK RINDS! Lord have mercy the arteries are clogging up again just thinking about the yummy-ness.

The following day, on a whim, I called Tutu Nani and asked if she wanted to go to the city Zoo. Oh what fun we had. The boys saw two blue Macaw's, giraffes, elephants, red pandas and more. The boys LOVED the merry-go-round and dippin' dots. What fun we had! I'll post some pictures soon!

So...here are a few "Say What" moments from the last couple of weeks...

I decided after Big Brownie was just full of himself this past Monday night that I was DONE with the binkie. Makes me wonder...do most Mom and Dad's have a moment where they are so done with the attitude and whining that they do something drastic to get their attention? Is that how most children lose the "binkie" privilege? So, right before bed and after having one of those days, I pulled the Binkie from Big Brownies mouth and I proceeded to tell him he was a big boy. He looked at me and said, "Mama, I'm not big, I'm little like brother and I need my binkie!" I told him he was a big boy and that big boys don't use binkies. The night didn't proceed well from that point. We read books, we prayed and then we sang songs. As I left the room, I think Big Brownie still thought this was a joke. He asked one more time, "May I have my binkie?" Holding firm, I said, "No, you are a big boy and big boys don't use binkies." Well, let the crying begin. Now, if Big Brownie knew cuss words, he certainly would have exclaimed them in his disagreement. He came out of his room crying and I told him to get back in bed. He went back into his room and sat against his door. As he was crying he yelled, "Mama, doesn't want me! Mama doesn't want to hold me! She doesn't want me to have a binkie! I'll just go up into heaven with Baby Jesus and Bubba and Sissy! They will give me a binkie" After a few more giggles, Daddy Brown went in, sang to him and held him. Fast to sleep they both fell. It has been a struggle, but with exception of 1 weak moment in the car, and another moment that Little Brownie decided to share his binkie with Big Brownie, we have been binkie-free.

Big Brownie loves to leave the house for our outings. If there is somewhere he wants to go, i.e., Tutu Nani or Gran Gran's house, he will tell me this..."Mama, where are we going today?" I usually say something like, "We are not going anywhere today" or "We are going to the store." He will say, "Oh, did you know that Tutu Nani wants me?" or "I haven't seen Gran Gran in a LONG time and I know she wants me." He cracks me up with the things he comes up.

Last week I was making cupcakes for dessert. I asked Daddy Brown to keep everyone out of the kitchen because I'm always worried someone is going to get hurt or burned while I'm cooking supper. Little Brownie was sitting on the couch with Daddy Brown and they were watching one of their new VHS movies from Easter. I started the mixer and it made a really loud sound. Little Brownie jumped up into Daddy Brown's lap, got within an inch of his nose and said, "WHAT DAT SOOOOUUUNNNDDDD?" It was so funny! Daddy Brown couldn't contain himself. Every time I turned it on, "WHAT DAT SOUND!"

Yesterday we ended up having our naps in the car. This presents a certain level or crumpyness when the Brownies wake up. Most of the time I can convince them that playing in the backyard is awesome and they get excited and the crumpyness melts away. Well, this was not really the case yesterday. Once they got out of the car, I tried working my magic. My magic wand was a running low on fairy dust, so I got out the lawn mower. I cranked it up and Little Brownie wasn't sure this was okay. Big Brownie came running and jumped on the floor board. Little Brownie jumped up into my arms and with fists clinched tightly to my shirt, we started slowly down the yard. Little Brownie looked up at me and said, "WHEEEEE!"

So, if you keep up with our family, you know we lost our Sissy girl this past Saturday. Tutu Nani watched the boys for us for the day so we could take Sissy to the vet, bring her home and then have a little bit of grieving time before the boys came home. The boys came home and Tutu had already fed them and it was about bedtime. Of course...NO ONE WANTED TO GO TO BED! Big Brownie wanted to watch a video, Little Brownie wanted to play. Because we are a mostly, "roll-with-it" kinda family, we let them stay up and play. Big Brownie looked around and asked about Sissy. We told him that she was in heaven with Bubba and Baby Jesus. Little Brownie still asks about Sissy every morning when he comes downstairs from bed. He says, "Sissy, where are you?" It's adorable...but i digress. So, as we are trying to round up the troops for bed, Little Brownie is wound up tighter than an ant on a hot tin roof. We told him to head upstairs. We have this riding horse setup in the living room. He has a current infatuation with horses and all things related to a farm. He jumps on the horse and starts bucking like a bronco. Twirling around, bouncing up and down and then begins to yell, "YEE-HAW! YEE-HAW!" Daddy Brown and I couldn't contain the laughter. It was priceless and a good giggle for the end of a tough day.

Say What Wednesday...

And yet, another Wednesday rolls around and I am having a hard time of picking just a few of the "Say What?" moments from the previous week.

As you may remember from a few posts ago, Little Brownie has been getting "heart treats" on occasion. This after observing Big Brownie using the potty successfully and then receiving this reward. As Valentine's Day came and went, so did the actual conversation hearts. I found a deal at Food Lion right after the holiday as they were clearing out their inventory. I bought several bags at $.12 a bag. The luster of the actual conversation heart treat has waned a bit as time has passed. To continue the reward system, we have moved to jelly bean treats for #2 potty. Little Brownie has been very curious about the potty. He has began sitting on the potty, waiting for a minute and then running to me saying, "Pee-Pee Potty" and then immediately yelling "HEART TREAT". It is so funny to me in fact that it has worked a couple of times and he has received a treat. Last week, he came to me and said, "Mama...PEE-PEE!" I asked him, "Do you want to pee-pee in the potty?" He says, "Uh-huh". I took his diaper off and started to pick him up to take him to the potty. In that split second it took for me to stand up, something happened. He stood in front of me in the living room floor and I bet you can't guess what? Well, out came a "baby ruth" or #2 onto the floor behind him. You ever have a moment when intellectually you know something just happened, but you are so confused by the action, you are kinda paralyzed...that was me. I just looked at him and finally said, "Daddy, I got poo-poo on the floor!" And just at that moment, Little Brown sat down on my foot and with cheeks spread, I started yelling for Daddy Brown even louder. Daddy Brown to the rescue. In he swooped Little Brownie up and to the bathroom along with a wipee for the floor and, of course, for my foot. After everyone was clean, diapered and after Daddy Brown and I were finally calm from laughing so hard, Little Brownie came in and asked, "Bean"? You know, a jelly bean for #2 poo!

So, you may or may not know that I am no longer coloring my hair. This past September when I turned 33 years old, I decided that I didn't want to be one of those women. You know, the one that either colors their hair every 2-3 weeks FOREVER because they have so much grey hair or the one that decides at 60 years old or older that they don't want to color their hair any longer and they let it grow...and when it does, you see a distinct line of hair color to grey hair. Well, I've got a lot of grey hair, much more than I remember since I started coloring my hair in my mid-twenties. Big Brownie and I were outside this week and I was sitting on the steps. The sun was out and beaming down on us. He came down the steps behind me and said, "Wow, Mom...you have sparkles in your hair!" I said, "What?" He said, "See Mama, your hair is all sparkly in the sun." Hummmm, I may be re-thinking my grey sparkley hair...nahhhh!

I tell you, Big Brownie would prefer to be naked on any given day of the week and all day on Saturday. That boy looks for any reason to take his clothes off. My favorites are...
"I need to take my clothes off to pee-pee (or poo-poo)".
"Mama, I'm still dirty"
"I spilled something on them"
"The bubbles made me sticky"
And my all time favorite..."I sneezed on my sleeve and I pooted in my pants"

Daddy Brown pruned our Bradford Pear tree this year. He was loading up the branches to take out to Pops and Gran Gran house. He decided he would take Big Brownie with him for the ride. Big Brownie was so excited. As they left, Daddy Brown explained to Big Brownie that Gran Gran and Pops may not be home. Big Brownie thought for a moment and said, "But why Dad?" Daddy Brown explained that they may be out running errands or working. Big Brownie thought for another minute and said, "Oh, Okay Dad...I might need to get a new Gran Gran and Pops!"

Ok...one more. If you watch Nick Jr., previously Noggin, you know that in between the 22-26 minutes shows, like Olivia, they run little 3-4 minute mini-episodes. One of the Brownie's favorite mini-episode is Peppa Pig. If they hear the theme song play, they stop, drop and run to the television. Last week after watching an episode, Big Brownie comes to me and says, "Mama, Peppa Pig has a Mommy Pig and a Daddy Pig and a Brother Pig". I said, "Yes baby, I saw Peppa Pigs family too." He said, "And Olivia has a Mama Pig too." I said, "Yes, I saw the Mama Pig on Olivia too". He laughed and said, "Oh Mama, You are just like Mama Pig and I love you my Mama Pig!" It was endearing. I just hope he assimilates me to being a Mama, not a pig.

Say What Wednesday...

Just barely getting this in on Wednesday. We have had a busy week and we have absolutely had some great zingers.

While shopping this week, Big Brownie has noticed other patrons entering and exiting the store at the same time as us. Yesterday, we went to Publix. We passed a lady as we were power walking into the store. Big Brownie noticed her right away and his eyes kept darting over to her. As we went down the deli aisle, so did she. We went through the produce section, so did she. Big Brownie was completely aware of his surroundings. He finally grabbed my arm as we went down the dairy aisle. He pulled me close to him as if he were going to tell me a secret. He yells in my ear, "Mama, that woman is following us, please tell her to go away!" Of course, I had noticed the woman, but definitely knew her actions were not of a stalking nature. I told Big Brownie not to worry, she was shopping too, and that he was doing a great job observing others. From that point on, every time we enter or exit a store, he yells, "Mama, is the man (or woman) following us?" I get a lot of snickers when he says it!

Speaking of Publix, while we were there, Big Brownie needed to go to the bathroom. He informed, "I need to pee-pee and I'll be going by myself." I turned to him and said, "Excuse me, since when do you get to go to the bathroom by yourself?" He said, "Oh don't worry Mama, I know exactly where it is and I will definitely wash my hands when I'm done!" Seriously, myself and 3 other lady's that heard our conversation couldn't stop laughing. And as if you didn't already know, he DID NOT go to the bathroom by himself.

This week, Little Brownie upgraded from his high chair to an official place at the table with a booster chair. He thinks he is such a big boy. He comes down in the morning, yells at me, "CHEERIOS" and then runs to his chair at the table. I, of course, can't get the cereal and to him fast enough so he continues to yell, "CHEERIOS, CHEERIOS...HUNGRY MAMA, HUNGRY!"

We went to my Grandmother's "Mammy" house to visit today. My Dad's sister, Aunt Basil, lives with her. As soon as we hit the door, Big Brownie ran inside and started jumping around yelling, "POPSICLE, POPSICLE!" Little Brownie imitated every action and word that Big Brownie spoke. As Aunt Basil went to the get them a Popsicle, Big Brownie turned to Mammy and said, "Mammy, did you know I was coming today?" She said, "Yes, we did know you were coming." He asked, "Did you go to the store today?" She said, "Well, no, we went to the store last week." He looked at her for a second and said, "Oh, did you know I LOVE to eat Popscicles and Animal Crackers and Chips and Cheese and Coke?" She said, "Yes, I do know that you like all of those things and we have all those things in the kitchen." Both of the Brownies eyes got really big and in the background Little Brownie is nodding his head and intently listening to this conversation. As Big Brownie says, "Yum, can I have some please?", Little Brownie yells, "Yes, PWEASE!!!!" It was so cute.

Daddy Brown was in the backyard with the Brownies this past weekend. We have a sweet couple that leaves next door. They are a semi-retired couple and they like to come over and chit-chat at the fence when we are outside. Big Brownie is just like his dad, he can talk to most anybody and for a really long time. Little Brownie said "Hi", but was more interested in digging in the garden and running around. I was inside making supper but was looking out the kitchen window as they we visiting with the neighbors. As they were coming back to the house to come inside to eat, this was the conversation between Big Brownie and Daddy Brown...

He said, "Daddy, thank you for helping me see my Grandpoppy today." Daddy Brown said, "No that wasn't your Grandpoppy, that was our neighbor, Mr. XXX." Big Brownie looked puzzled for a minute and then said, "Oh right, what was the Grandmommy's name?" Daddy Brown almost busted out into giggles as they came on inside and he answered that question for Big Brownie too.

Say What Wednesday...

Yes, a lot of our smiles and giggles surround potty training and yes, we have a new one for you this week...

Big Brownie has broken through his anxiety about using the outdoors as his latrine. Last week, I had a little bit of work to complete. It was one of those days that it wasn't too cold or too wet to go outside to play. I opened the back door and let Big Brownie run and explore, while I watched from the kitchen table. He finally realized that he could pee-pee on the grass...and that it was fun. He managed to successfully do his business a few times. Daddy Brown and I were standing at the backdoor talking and we noticed Big Brownie was kinda in a funny position, pants down around his knees, kinda squaty but kinda not. All of a sudden, Big Brownie pulls his pants up and runs to the step all the while screaming, "I poo-poo'd in the grass, I poo-poo'd in the grass!" Sure enough after further inspection, there indeed was #2 in the grass. You can imagine the conversations we have had over the next couple of days.

I frequently feel like I have a "peanut gallery" of sorts. I'll make something to eat for meal time and I get the usual, "I'm not hungry" or the "I'm not going to eat this", from Big Brownie. A couple of days ago, Daddy Brown came downstairs to an average breakfast of eggs and jelly toast. Little Brownie usually doesn't have a problem with pounding his food. Big Brownie looked up at Daddy Brown and said, "This is the best breakfast EVER!"

Sometimes I will indulge in the guilty pleasure of eating a candy bar while no one is around. Otherwise, I really don't get to eat it. I referee the dispensing of equal parts to Big Brownie and Little Brownie while barely getting a bite. I had tucked away a Snickers candy bar in the cupboard from prying little eyes and a few days ago, I had a chocolate craving. I remembered my little Snickers bar. During nap time, I enjoyed the whole bar to myself. My mistake was leaving the wrapper in the center of the table as opposed to discarding it. Big Brownie woke up from his nap and scanned the table. Once he saw the wrapper, he grabbed it and realized it was empty. He held it in the air with a serious look on his face and turned to me and said, "No Mom, you share the chocolate, don't eat the chocolate!"

The Brownies have recently discovered popcorn. It is a treat we don't get everyday, but most of the time, at least once a week. If it were up to the Brownies, it could be added to the food pyramid as its own food group. Last week, we had popcorn and juice as our afternoon snack. The boys were sitting on the back porch on their over-sized pillow with popcorn and juice. The bubble machine was spitting out thousands of bubbles per minute and they were watching the birds and the clouds pass by. Daddy Brown came in from work and asked the boys about their snack. He said, "Wow, are ya'll eating popcorn?" Little Brownie yells, "POTcorn!" and Big Brownie says, "Yeah Dad, we are eating our popcorn and juice...and my mom is the best!"

One of The Brownies favorite places in the world to visit, is the pet store. Having a new puppy, over the last couple of days, we have made a couple of trips to our local Petsmart. We usually visit the fish first, then kittens, birds, mice, hamsters, snakes, etc. Little Brownie has to ride in the buggy because I don't trust that he will keep his hands out of the fish tank and I don't think he could resist the urge to touch and throw every dog toy he could get his hands around. As we go through the store, he yells..."FISH!" and"Bird!"and "CAT!" As we walked over to the cats, Big Brownie was so excited to see they had so many. He looked at me and said, "Mama, I want to sing them a song". I said, "Ok baby, go ahead. What song are you going to sing?" He crossed his arms around his own chest and said, "Hawaiian like me". I agreed that would be a nice song to sing to the cats. As we stood in front of the cat counter, he swayed back and forth, with his little arms crossed and sang the entire song to the cats. He didn't care that people were around and that they stopped to listen. He wanted the cats to find comfort and to him, Hawaiian like me is one song that comforts him. After he was done, an older lady came up to him and said, "That was a beautiful song and you sang it so well." As he backed into my legs and looked at her with a shy and sweet face, he said, "Do you want to hear me sing, Jesus loves me?" It was so precious.

Say What Wednesday...

Ok...it's Wednesday and of course, my Brownies do not disappoint in their words to entertain.

This past week Big Brownie has decided not only does he not want to wear underwear, but he also wants to hold his pee in for as long as he can. We played outside and I even tried to entice him with permission to pee-pee outside. I think he thought it sounded more fun then it actually turned out to be. Anticipating that this would be awkward, since Daddy Brown was at work, I tried to describe the action of pee-peeing on one of our trees in the backyard close to the house. We walked over to the tree and I said, "Ok, all you have to do is point and pee-pee." He said, "Oh, will that make pee-pee come out of my finger?" I was baffled for a minute and finally said, "Oh no, point your pee-pee to the tree and then you can pee-pee on the tree." He said, "Oh, I'm not going to pee-pee on the tree." I said, "Why not? It really is okay to pee-pee on Mommy's tree." He said, "No mama, I'm not going to pee-pee on the tree...it needs water to drink, not pee-pee".

He also had playtime at Aunt Apples this week. He told her when she asked him if he wanted to go pee-pee in the potty..."No thanks, I don't want to be troubled with that right now."

We still fight with what beverage is going to be in the bed with Big Brownie each night. Some nights, he wants juice, some nights he wants water and some nights he wants juice and water. Last night, Daddy Brown had prepared a minimal amount of juice to water ratio. After taking a few sips he said, "Mom, I need sleepy time water, this is daytime water".

Is it just me or is it hard to answer some questions of a toddler? When they watch a movie and a preview comes on and it begins with "Coming Soon". Then I'm asked, "Mom, what does 'coming soon' mean?" It seems to be that my answer is something like..."Well, it means that show is going to come on REAL SOON." I've also found that it helps if you say it slow and drawn out.

Little Brownie this week decided that he has observed Big Brownie getting heart treats for pee-pee in the potty long enough. He ran over to the counter yesterday and scream..."HEART TREAT!" He kept exclaiming this message to me until finally I caved and gave him a heart treat. He was so pleased. He gummed it around in his mouth over and over again. Finally, he looked at me and smiled. He said, "Oh...heart treat...ummmm, good!"

Little Brownie and I found a big bouncy ball this week and have played with it outside. He will bring me the ball, and waits for you to say, "Ready?". He repeats and YELLS, "READY". He will not move until you say, "Go get it!" When he brings it back he is yelling all the way back..."I did it, I did it!" I think that is his favorite phrase, along with "Awesome", and the one we have been hearing a lot lately..."I sorry".

Wow...I really could go on, but I think I will give you one more of the week. Big Brownie seems to be paying more attention and his vocabulary is expanding everyday. I get a question from, "What makes toast?...to "What makes pee-pee?" To get his attention, I will frequently say, "Listen, I have a question for you." Last week he said, "Mom, I have a question for you and I need you to really listen." I said, "Ok, what is your question?" He said, "Mama, don't say, 'what is your question', say, 'what'." I said, "Ok, what?" He said, "No Mom, don't say 'Ok what'...say 'what'?" I said, "What?" He said, "What does what mean?" Ahhhh...really! Keeps us in stitches to say the very least!

Say What Wednesday...

I had a lot of fun with the "Say What?" post from last week. So, I decided to make it a weekly post of the funny lines from the Brownies. Quick update on the potty training...I hate to almost ginx myself, but I think it has been a success. With the exception of nighttime sleeping, we are diaper free, even through nap-time. What a blessing and an added bonus to our monthly finances to have only 1 baby in diapers. Whoo-hoo!

So along the lines of potty training, I have been trying to talk Big Brownie into wearing underwear. We potty trained "Commando-style" so this has been a bit of a challenge. Like any crazy parent would do, I went to Target and bought exciting, fun character undies to try and bribe him into wearing some "cool draws" as we like to call them around here. Yesterday, I laid out 5 different character undies and asked him to pick one to put on. Here was the conversation..."Do you want to choose what underwear you'd like to wear today?" Big Brownie said, "No thanks". I said, "Well, here are your choices...you have Mr. Incredible, Cars, Buzz Lightyear/Woody, Go, Diego, Go and Spongebob". "No thanks Mom", was his reply again. I said, "Why don't you want to wear your underwear?" He looked at the undies and pointed to each one and said, "This one (Mr. Incredible) is too scary, this one (Cars) is too dangerous, this one (Buzz Lightyear/Woody) is too silly, this one (Go Diego Go) is bad and this one (Spongebob) is too funny". So, what did I do with that...Commando we go!

If you have toddlers under a certain age, you might be victim to your words sometimes. For instance, if you say any sentence that has the word "outside" in it, your kids will automatically expect that they are going outside. So, like all other parents in this boat, we have began to spell words that could trigger this kind of response. This past weekend Daddy Brown and I were talking about what we would like to do this spring...plant a garden, etc. I said, "I can't wait until the weather is warm enough to go to the Z-O-O". Big Brownie jumped down off the couch and started clapping and cheering. I said, "What are you so happy about?" He said, "I want to, I want to!" I said, "You want to what?" He said, "I want to see the animals!" I said, "Where are you going to see animals?" He said, "At the ZOO!" So, what the kid can spell too? He NEVER ceases to amaze me.

Big Brownie has belly issues. We make a really unsavory concoction of prune juice and milk, a.k.a. "Milk-Juice" for Big Brownie every morning to help keep things moving in the right direction. Here lately, he has requested this beverage throughout the day. We were at Publix this week and I told Big Brownie to help me remember to get prune juice. Later in the evening, he came to me and said, "Mama, can I have some balloon juice?" I said, "What is balloon juice?" He said, "Not balloon juice, I want BALLOON Juice" It took me a minute and finally Daddy Brown said, "Do you want prune juice?" He said, "Yes Dad, I want balloon juice".

Lastly, I'll write a little bit about Little Brownie. He is getting so much better with his words. Yesterday, Big Brownie climbed into Little Brownies bed to jump and play. I was folding laundry in my room and he came running in and said, "Brother...bed", all the while pointing and fussing his little head off. I asked, "Do you mean brother is in your bed?" He said, "Uh-huh". I asked him, "Do you want me to get brother out of your bed?" He said, "Uh-huh". As I walked down the hall towards Little Brownies room, he was clipping my heals trying to get past me. He grabbed my pant legs and ran past me, as he knew the enforcer, a.k.a. Mama, was behind him. As we entered the room, he looked at me, pointed at Big Brownie and said, "OUT!"

Oh me...what are we going to do these my boys? I'll tell you what we're going to do. We are going to laugh and enjoy every minute of it, for as many days as the Good Lord blesses us to be with them.

Say What?

So yesterday, I posted some quotes that always make me smile. However, there is nothing more funny than having my own little comedians right here in my own home. Daddy Brown and I laugh all the time at some of the odd-ball things that come out of the mouths of our babes. Here's some of the more recent.

The other night, we were having supper and Big Brownie decided he was finished. He turned to me and said, "Mama, I'm not eating...I'm done. I'm not a good eater, please let me down."

I try to do at least 2 loads of laundry each day in an attempt to keep it under control. The Brownies LOVE helping load and unload the washer and dryer. Afterwards, I take the clothes to my bed and we begin to fold the clothes and proceed to put them away. This week, this was my conversation with Big Brownie, "Mama, are these clothes clean?" I said, "Yes baby, all of these clothes are clean." He asks, "How do you know they are clean?" I told him, "Because I washed them, dried them, folded them and now we are putting them away." He says, "Ohhhh, I wiped my nose on this one and it has a BIG booger on it. Is it still clean?"

Potty training is going pretty well at the moment. With the exception of one "on the floor sprinkling", Big Brownie has managed to do a really great job, for which we are VERY proud. That being said, he absolutely HATES wearing underwear. I've been putting sweatpants that are one size larger on him so he can easily pull his pants up and down to go to the potty. When we leave the house, I have been using a pull-up because I haven't been brave enough to go out without one. Yesterday, we were getting ready to run to Target. This was my conversation with Big Brownie..."Come here and let me put your pull-up on so we can go to the store", I said. He said, "No Mom, I'm not wearing my pull-up." I asked, "You don't want to wear your underwear?" He said, "No!" I said, "Ok, if you don't wear your pull-up then you absolutely have to tell me if you need to go to the potty while we are at the store or in the car. That way, I can take you to the potty at the store." He paused and looked at me a moment and said, "Ohhhh, do they have a potty at the store for me?" I said, "Yes, you know the one that Mommy and Daddy use when we need to potty and that is where you will go to potty if you need to pee-pee." He said, "Wow...that's awesome, let's go to Target to pee-pee in the potty!" I did allow him to go commando, and we did in fact visit the special potty at Target to make our deposit.

While we were at Target, we always visit the "holiday" section of the store. This week, Target is changing out the Valentine's Day decorations to Easter Holiday decorations, toys and candy. There was a pleasant older employee putting out the Easter displays as Big Brownie was exploring all the new items. Every time he would take something out to play with it, he would bring one to Little Brownie to play as well. I have been teaching him that he can only play with one item at a time and when he is done, he has to put them back on the shelf where it was originally found. As the employee was stocking the shelves, this is the conversation that I heard. Employee: "Hello young man, how are you today?" Big Brownie, "I'm good, how are you?" Employee, "Do you like playing with all the eggs and bunnies?" Big Brownie, "Yes and so does my little brother. What are you doing?" Employee, "I'm putting new stuff on the shelves for people like you to buy for Easter." Big Brownie looked at him a minute, looked at me and then looked back at the employee and said, "Will you tell my Mama I need this one RIGHT here?"

It is wonderful for Daddy Brown to sit back and watch the interactions with the Brownies. Little Brownie wants to talk clearly so bad, you can just see it on his face when he says something and you don't know exactly what he said. Fortunately, Big Brownie seems to understand him and feels the need to translate or correct him. Today, I made pizza rolls, mixed vegetables and applesauce for lunch. They ate the pizza rolls and some of the applesauce, but they both kinda frowned at the vegetables. Little Brownie picked up a carrot and yelled "Bean!". Big Brownie said, "No, it's a carrot and it's yummy." Little Brownie picked up a potato and said, "Bean!". Big Brownie said, "No, it's not at bean, it's a potato". There was a lima bean in the pile and Little Brownie picked it up and said, "Bean". Big Brownie looked at it, fished through his own plate and found one. He picked it up and looked at me. He said, "Mama, it's a booger and it's yummy." I guess as long as they are eating, booger or not, it's a good thing...right?

This week, I tried doing my workout during nap time so I can go to bed around the same time as the Brownies to get some extra zzz's. Today, Big Brownie came down while I was working out and said, "Mama, what are you doing?" I said, "I'm working out." He said, "What is working out?" I said, "Well, it's kinda like dancing so I can be healthy." I asked him to sit on the couch while I finished up. I asked him if he wanted to join me and he declined. As I'm finishing up, he asks, "Mama, you done?" I said, "Yes baby, I'm done." He said, "Oh good...that's not good dancing!"

A little laughter...

Ok...some really sad days have come to our house over the last week or so. However, in this house...there is always laughter, even when we mourn. Big Brownie can pull out some real zingers. We have had them on a slightly earlier schedule for the last couple of days. Both Brownies have been up and at 'em by 7a. This is a stretch from the normal of 9a sometimes 10a. With 7a wake-up calls, comes 11:30a nap times. Again...a stretch from the 2p normal. And finally bedtime, which can range literally from 8:45p to 11:30p depending on our day.

Tonight, early bedtimes. Little Brownie was so tired at 6:30p, I thought he was just gonna lay down on my chest and close his eyes. I rushed to "tickles and giggles" to bring him back to an aroused state for another hour. He was out like a light at 7:45p. Since we have had so much going on this weekend, Big Brownie has been requesting me to rock him in the chair and sing to him as opposed to our normal nighttime routine. A request I welcomed and obliged. By 8:15p, completely asleep, with binkie falling out of his mouth and snoring. I laid him down in his bed, kissed his head and tiptoed out of his room. At 8:20p, a creak in the floor and out pops Big Brownie..."Mommy, I can't find my blue binkie!" I hustled him back to his bed, found his binkie and kissed him again. That child did not go back to sleep until 9:30p! He creeped out of his room once...BUCK NAKED! I asked him where his pajamas were. He crouched down on the floor and looked under my bed, then stood up and threw his hands in the air. He said, "I don't know, they fell off and now I can't find them." So off to bed he finally went, with pajamas ON, at least for now.

Little Brownie is certainly entertaining all by himself. He is a book worm to say the least. His new thing is to read only books that have "Hippos" in them. This absolutely narrows our book selection. Big Brownie will bring a book that he wants us to read and Little Brownie will throw it across the floor. His vocabulary seems to be expanding over night. He can shake his head "no" and actually does mean "no". Instead of nodding his head "yes", he'll say, "uh-huh" when something is acceptable. We watch Noggin on television and when Moose and Zee sings a song, he will stop everything, clap his hands in a pretty steady rhythm and stomp his feet. If I'm not in the room, he'll run to me, grab my hand and lead me to the television to sing and dance with him. He has the cutest smile. Currently 4 front top teeth, 3 bottom lower teeth (which looks quite funny) and a SLUE of molars coming in.

We enjoyed an all out crafty, sugar high, awesome birthday party with a friend this weekend. A much needed distraction for everyone and a chance to get out of the house and enjoy some good friends and fellowship. I say, the host, maybe one of the most creative individuals I know. An outdoor craft party was planned and when it rained, she adjusted and made such fun alternative indoor crafts. When my outdoor parties have been rained on, we simply rescheduled the party. She inspires me to be more creative and we had a BLAST. Water-gun painting in the bathroom shower, fruit loop bracelet making and icing a cake (more like eating all the icing, sprinkles and candy to be used for decorating, then maybe, just maybe the cake). The Brownies were so tired after we left the party, we were afraid to come straight home thinking they would crash. So, we went to the store and bought a new coffee maker for me and Daddy Brown. We brought everyone home, made and fed supper, quick bath time and off to bed the Brownies went without so much as a peep.

With early bedtimes, a welcomed surprise...Daddy Brown and I have some quiet time to ourselves. I asked him yesterday, "So do you think this is why other parents put their kids to bed so early?" This extra quiet time with Daddy Brown was so needed with what has been going. It gave Daddy Brown and I a chance to talk, comfort and love on each other this weekend. I can't say it enough, I love my husband. He knows me inside and out. He can tell when my mood changes and he adjusts accordingly. This morning, I let him sleep in so he could catch up on his rest. When naptime commenced, we laid down for a nap ourselves and he let me sleep in a little to catch up on mine. The best feeling this weekend...his touch. He rubbed my face, wiped my tears, held me close and with that, each day has been better then the day before. I love my family, even one member shy, we made it through this very difficult weekend through tears, heartache and most importantly...a little laughter.