Beautiful Baby bee

Baby bee is smack dab in the midst of her "narcissistic" stage. I am not sure of this stage's real name but all I know is that Baby bee thinks she is beautiful!! She will spend many uninterrupted minutes looking at herself in the mirror. Often I will hear her giggling with delight at what she sees looking back at her. She also enjoys making faces and noises in front of the mirror...an actress already, if you ask me. And to top it all off, her adoring public (aka herself) loves to kiss her mirrored image...because honestly, who could be cuter?!?

Super Glue

Busy bee recently turned two years old. Hubbee and I decided to throw a small family birthday party for the occasion. A few weeks before the "big day" I started to explain to Busy bee that he would be turning two. We worked on holding up two fingers instead of one, practiced singing "Happy Birthday," and even worked on puffing our cheeks full of air and blowing. To say that Busy bee had been prepped would not do all of my hard (not to mention repetitive) work justice.
Finally, the big day rolled around and Busy bee was excited. He still wasn't completely sure what was happening but he knew that there was a cake (aka "cookie" in Busy bee's vocabulary) and presents. Throughout the day I would sing "Happy Birthday" to him and he would promptly point his cubby finger in the direction of his cake and ask, "Cookie?" A few times I even found him trying to sneak peak under the wrapping paper.

Despite all this, I think it was harder on me than Busy bee to wait for Hubbee to get home and for the festivities to start. Have I mentioned that I love birthdays?!? (Actually I am a sucker for almost any holiday...I love traditions) Needless to say, Hubbee finally made it home and Busy bee showed off his past few weeks of training. He accurately blew out both birthday candles and even mastered the art of unwrapping!

His gifts turned out to be a big hit. Surprise, surprise!! He was almost in a state of reverent awe with all his new goodies. Hubbee showed him how to do strafing runs with his new airplane which he now does with an alarming closeness to Baby bee's head. And his two new motorcycles (or "guycycles") can regularly been seen in each of his chubby hands.

I searched long and hard to find airplanes and motorcycles acceptable for a two year old...let me tell you, they aren't out on the market. But it was all Busy bee had been talking about for months...airplanes and guycycles. In an act of desperation, I finally opted on models that seemed to have the fewest amount of removable/breakable pieces. I kept picturing a horrific, not to mention, embarrassing trip to the emergency room where I would have to describe to some state social services employee how my 10 month old had managed to swallow a model airplane's propeller. Luckily, that hasn't been the case...yet.

I will say that even if I had found age suitable airplanes and guycycles, my newly turned two year old ball of mischief would have found a way to destroy them. His third year on this planet has prompted a desire in him to climb everything, get into everything, and brake everything. I have a feeling this might be a long and trying year. 8 days down...357 to go.

By the way, I am typing this with fingers crusted in dried super glue...yup, you guessed it, the guycycle broke!!

Quite Time

My little bees seem to have an inner radar that detects when the other is awake. They can be sound asleep and then..."RING, RING, RING" the radar that is hidden somewhere on their little bodies from parental eyes, goes off and they feel the need to be up too. Its like they are afraid they are going to miss out on something.

We actually had to separate them, giving each their own bedroom. Because if their radar by some rare chance malfunctions, the awake child then feels a compelling magnetic urge to wake the slumbering one up. This was a much easier task when they shared rooms because they could walk right up to the sleeping one and touch them, prod them, or throw things on them. Now they just have to walk up and down the hall hollering in a futile attempt to rouse them.

It is rare, but I love the few times when the radar and magnetic urge are both malfunctioning and I get the opportunity to spend quite time with one of them. It is one of the few times I get to hug, kiss, and praise my little individual without any interruptions. I get to look at them and appreciate them for their unique personalities. I get to see the progress that each day brings to their little minds and bodies. These rare minutes often feel stolen but nonetheless do not cheapen their value.

These are the times when I remember that I am not simply a mom to messy, whining, frustrating little ones but the mother to two real people...little people, but real people.

Booger

As much as I would like to say it isn't true, its true. My little son is smitten with boogers and booger-picking.

All day long he walks around with his finger (or fingers) up his nose. On the rare occasion that his fingers are not up his nose, he is busy searching for his next booger sighting. Every unidentifiable tidbit and morsel in our house has now been falsely accused of being a booger. Bits of groundbeef in his casserole = boogers, dust bunnies on my not always swept kitchen floor = boogers, anything on his little sister's shirt = boogers.

But I do have to admit there are a few times the little man has gotten it right and pointed out that either my Hubbee or myself, a family member, or heaven-forbid a friend has the unfortunate experience of not only having a "booger" but also the uncomfortable knowledge that an almost two year old pointed it out (and not so quietly) to you and whoever else might be within a good 50 yard distance.

So if by chance you are feeling the slightest bit nasally, stay away from Busy bee because he is on the hunt and I would hate to have anymore unsuspecting visitors fall prey to his booger attacks!

Well Intentioned Advice

My next door neighbors recently (four day ago) had their first little bee. It has been neat to witness these past few days of "firsts" with them. It is even nicer because I am not the one who is going through these "firsts," I am just merely witnessing them.

However, I do find it interesting to note all the friendly pieces of advice they are given, from in-laws, friends, and neighbors as to how to care for their new little one. I hope they remember that almost all the tips people have shared and will share with them as their little one grows are well intentioned. Most people are only trying to help. But, there will be the occasional few who just want to tell you how they did it because they think their way is the only right way.

I remember those first days of my first little bee's life with my roller coaster hormones, lack of sleep, and sore body. If my eyes had superhuman powers to incinerate everyone and their advice there might have been a few crispy deaths. It is hard as a new mom to not take advice as an insult to your parenting skills. Even the well intentioned ones can feel like a direct attack. But, if I could offer one more piece of advice to my dear neighbors and to any new mom for that matter, it would be this...

You have a bond with your child that no one else currently has. You know them better than anyone else and soon you will know their habits, likes/dislikes, and schedule like the back of your own hand. So, use your maternal instinct in all matters concerning your baby's health and well-being. If your baby is sleeping but you feel she needs to eat - feed her. If your baby is acting out of the normal and it has you worried - call the doctor or go to the emergency room. If your baby has been crying in her crib for the last twenty minutes and you want to hold her - hold her.

At this point in your little one's life you will be their voice, later you will not only be her advocate but also her champion and biggest fan. And as a wise mom once told me, "If you don't stand up for your children, who else will?"

So to wrap it up new moms, do what FEELS right. Books don't account for every circumstance and advice, even well intentioned advice, isn't always right.