Halloween on a budget

So this year we had Halloween on a budget. The girls loved their costumes and I've spent under $10. I bought KP's last year on clearance for a few dollars. So this year it was still brand new in the package and she didn't know different. KT ended up wearing a bride dressup outfit we had at home and I painted her face. So this year all I spent was money on the face paint!

A little fun in the water

So since KT was crabby and enjoyed a nap, me and KP enjoyed some fun in the sprinkler.

There's nothing better than summertime and water. 

4th Birthday Party - Under the big tent.

I love being able to do themes for birthday parties.

This year I chose to do a Circus theme since the girls loved the circus so much this year. 

I had a lot easier time finding things than I thought I would. Hobby Lobby is where I found most of my supplies and the sunday paper always has coupons for there in it so I had friends save some for me.

 Every year I make a posterboard for everyone to sign.

The girls had a blast. Pin the nose on the clown was a big hit. We got a few guests, including myself to wear the clown noses. I made the cupcakes myself and saved money. Decorations were easy since we stuck to the primary colors. We served hot dogs as the main dish, with some pasta salad, beans, chips and dip/salsa and of course can't forget the circus peanuts. 

Belated 4th of July recap

 KT being red, white and sweet.

 KP and her daddy doing sparklers.

 KT hiding her eyes...then her mouth from all the smoke.

4th Birthday Celebration

Yesterday my twin tornadoes turned 4 yesterday and it was absolutley bittersweet.

I remember the day I had them like it just happened. It was so exciting, a little more scary and definetly an experience I won't forget. Even though I didn't have a c-section I had to deliver in the operating room. I think the scariest part was seeing how many people were in there. I had a team of nurses and each baby had a team of nurses just waiting on them. Only my mom was allowed in the OR with me and I'm so thankful she was there for me. KP was born first and was rushed off to the team waiting for her. KT was born 20 minutes later which only seemed like a few minutes to me. Once again,KT was rushed over to the other side of the room and KP was already on her way to the NICU. The reality of what was happening was still hitting me.
The NICU doctor that was in the OR ordered the nurses to let me see KT. I only held her for a few seconds before they informed me they needed to get her down to the NICU quickly. My mom realized something wasn't right then with the way KT was breathing.

I was sent to recovery and to wait until the girls were stabilized. In the mean time my blood pressure was sky high and I was not allowed to do anything especially get out of bed, not that the epidural would have let me anyways haha. By the time anyone was able to see them 6 hours had already passed. I had to sign permission for my mom and sister to go to the NICU first. The first time I ever seen KP was through the view finder on a camera. I was absolutely devastated to see such a tiny little thing all hooked up to wires. It broke my heart to think something could be wrong with them even though I thought I had prepared myself for this. There is no way to prepare yourself for a baby(babies) in the NICU. I finally got to see them in person that evening and touch them. It amazed and shocked me that those two beautiful babies were a part of me. KT had other medical problems but continues to show us all true strength. Both girls were supposed to stay in the NICU for 6 weeks, KP came home in 2 weeks and KT camed home in 4 weeks.

The girls once struggled to survive and now I struggle to keep up with them ;). It makes me so happy to see them progress daily and watch all the things they learn each day. 

People ask me all the time how I do it with twins. I just shrug and say "you just do it." I don't think I could have made it this far without all the support of my family and friends. Now that they are older I am kinda glad I had twins first. They always have a best friend to entertain them...and yes fight with too! I think if I ever have another I will be shocked with how easier it will seem to only feed one.

The past 4 years have been a long journey but one that was definetly worth it. The girls have shown me true strength, unconditional love and have always been my rock and motivation.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABY LOVES.

XOXO MOM :)

Girls Day :)

So this past weekend we got to enjoy a day down on the Branson landing with our Nanny. We shopped, had some delicious mexican cousine, watched the water show and ended the day with old time photos.

KP enjoying endless chips and salsa. 

Watching the water show with Nanny.

Both slept the whole way back home.

DIY Autism awareness t-shirts

Saw this idea on pinterest and knew I had to make them! With my job we see a lot of autistic and special needs patients. I also have a few friends with autistic children and I just have a soft spot in my heart for them all.

So I seen this idea on pinterest originally but it was a pin to buy these shirts. I love anything DIY so immediately set out to complete this project. After finding fabric spray paint was not on the cheap end I turned to google and found an easy solution....make my own.

Materials:
4 small travel size spray bottles (I got mine at Wal-Mart for under $1)
4 colors of fabric paint in colors of your choice
Water
Small puzzle pieces
White T-shirts
Newspaper or other item to cover up the floor

-Pour a small amount of the paint in a spray bottle slowly add water and shake it up. Spray a small amount on the newspaper to see if it is too thick or too thin. Add more materials until you get the consistency you want.

-Place puzzle pieces all down the shirt or in a pattern you like

-Start spraying! I let it dry about 3-4 minutes between each different color. I then let it sit for about 15-20 minutes before removing puzzle pieces.

Craft time.

Everyone is sleeping in my house so that means its craft time! I have some pictures on my camera so I think I will make a tutorial about this craft.
It includes Modge podge, pictures, ceramic, scissors, sandpaper and paint. Since it is a gift I will refrain from posting it until they receive it.

DIY laundry soap

So my sister actually introduced me to this and I've seen numerous pinterest pins and blog posts using the same recipe. You can make liquid or powder. I have never tried the liquid but love the powder and the best part is that it lasts me over 6 months!

I bought all my ingredients at Walmart in the laundry soap isle. I wish I could say I was an all natural earthy mom. I LOVED Tide and Gain but grew tired of spending so much money on it just weekly. I spend under $10 on all the products and easily have enough to last me over 6 months.

1 box of Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda
1 box of Borax
1 Fels-Naptha Bar of soap.

I added equal amounts of the super washing soda and borax into a little plastic tub with a lid. I then grated my soap bar and mixed it into the tub as well. I've notice it does wonders on the girls clothes from daycare and I only need to use 1-2 Tablespoons per load (I was skeptical of this small amount at first). The first time I made this I added the downy unstoppables into the tub as well but noticed that the color and smell seemed to fade away from them. So I still buy my liquid downy softener but the small bottle still can last me a month.

Not the perfect parent. Just the right one for my kids.

Here's a link to a blog post that I most recently read. My sister shared this on Facebook and I also shared it. I think it is a very good read for any parent with small children.

http://www.stevewiens.com/2013/03/12/to-parents-of-small-children-let-me-be-the-one-who-says-it-out-loud/

I work full time monday through friday and so many nights I am just mentally and physically exhausted from work. It feels like it takes all I have just to even make dinner and I just can't wait for 8:00 p.m. Lately there have been numerous nights that I have sent the girls to their room just so I can sit on the couch and unwind and enjoy the silence before I start dinner. I feel guilty some nights because I hate having kids attached to my legs while I'm trying to cook dinner. I sneak off to the bathroom and lock the door for a few minutes before I see little fingers sticking under the door and little voices saying, "mom what are you doing? OPEN THE DOOR!!"

Just like every parent I know, we are taught to enjoy the moments we have because they grow up fast and pretty soon want nothing to do with us. I often feel guilty and like a bad mom because I also enjoy the quiet time and the time I have to myself. After reading the blog post I know I'm not a bad mom. I would rather enjoy those precious times with my kids while I'm rested and happy.

Duh, I can clearly see they grow up to fast and don't need constant reminders. I remember the days we brought the girls home like it was yesterday. I remember when KP came home and how we went and had sushi that night against the NICU nurses wishes of wanting me to stay home with her until her sister came home. I remember visiting KT in the NICU while KP was in her carseat at the front desk and as soon as I heard her cry (yes, as moms we can hear OUR kids cry a mile away even with others crying or in a room full of noises) I knew my time with KT was up. Sneaking time with both girls was my favorite since they were separated from both and not allowed in the same cribs. I remember what it was like trying to split my day up between two babies that were in two different places. I remember each surgery and thinking to myself how is KT going to bounce back from THIS and each time she showed me true strength. Now both girls are my twin tornadoes that sometimes I just want to run and hide from.

With society I feel there is always a drive to be the "perfect parent" and strive above and beyond. I am not a perfect parent and know that I never will be. But I know that I will always be there for my kids no matter what. I know that I try. I try to use Love and Logic especially for consequences but there's times when my patience is at it's lowest and I just don't want to think of an approriate response to things. There's times where I don't want to explain everything and the girls get a mom look with "go to your room right now and I'll see you again in 5 minutes." I beat myself up over that maybe I'm too harsh or that maybe I should just suck it up and enjoy the time that I do have with them.

Then I have nights like last night that are just perfect and remind me that not every day is a struggle or not every day needs to be one. I am pretty good about picking my battles but some mornings it is just to hard getting both girls and myself ready. Last night we got home, KP asked to watch "annie" and both girls sat so quietly while I was able to clean up the mess from the night before and enjoy some time just sitting at the kitchen table...alone. I started dinner and of course Kaleah came in to help. Usually she gets kicked right back out of the kitchen but since I had time to unwind I told her to pull up a chair and watch. She asked what everything was and even "helped" by carrying empty containers to the trash. We made tuna casserole and she loved smashing up the chips to put on top. I think it helped that not only did the girls decide to have their own to unwind from the day but I did too.

While dinner was cooking we decorated the front of our fridge. I felt so guilty that I don't spend my limited time with them in the proper ways so I came up with an idea to work on pre-school type things. Our "learning wall" aka the fridge door is decorated with a weekly theme. Everything will be changed each Sunday. The theme for the upcoming week is cows and each week includes a theme, vocab word, letter, number, shape or color, and a nursery rhyme. I found a 26 week program to follow and will make a more in depth post about that.

So after my ridiciously long post I've concluded it's ok to not be that perfect parent. It's ok to enjoy a night out with my love...without two kids asking why every 5 minutes. I don't have to out do anyone or feel bad about decisions I make. I know that I am still the best parent to my children.