Spouting "astute" and unwanted advise!

As a parent, there are always people who are offering their un-requested advise on how you should raise your children. This is becoming a pet-peeve with me. Some people seem to think that because one doesn't assertively broadcast their position, that they must be in need of one, and then they force their upon these silent mothers. Sometimes this "wisdom" comes from well-seasoned, well-meaning older women, who are sometimes even strangers. This can be irritating, but eventually they go away. But there is another source that is of particular frustration: the middle-aged, opinionated mother of several (normally 3+) children who feels the need to flood young mothers with all of their 'perfected' methods of child-rearing. They watch your kids a few times, of hear something you say and they just have to jump in and let you know that you just aren't doing things right. Really. Does it ever occur to them that if we really wanted their opinion, we would just ask?! Do they know my childrens every move, habit, hurt or epiphany? No, so just where do they get off?!!? And, they make a majorly false assumption that I prescribe to their way of thinking! I don't agree with half the things that they say!! AND just because I am too nice to say "Back off", they take it as a sign of encouragement. I don't even know their kids, so how could I possibly decide that I want to model her rearing methods? And, who is to say that she ever had a kid like mine?!?! All of us parents know that KIDS ARE DIFFERENT!! In fact, it was just a point that she felt the need to make for me the other day, and then she incorrectly stumbles into giving me advise, or rather a directive or warning on exactly what I am doing wrong. I give my child too much freedom. Really? that I why I had to tell her that I wanted her to give the kids more discipline, and not let them get away with things due to circumstantial context (because we know that Toddlers don't actually understand the context). Isn't it a parental choice to decide whether I want to confine (strap or somehow tie down) my daughter to her bed, or teach her the discipline of staying in bed and taking a nap? It may sound like an easier question, unless you've met my child, whose independence is quite natural, despite the beliefs of her daycare caretaker. According to her, I have fostered this independence, and it is a bad thing. I do want my child to be strong and independent, but she has a natural inclination for it as well. So, why should my daycare person have any say in whether or not I decide to confine my child to her bed for naps, or take the much more arduous path of teaching her that this is what is expected? Not to mention, if you've met Evelyn, you would most likely understand why confining wouldn't work. She would struggle till she found a way out, and if she couldn't get out, she would scream and cry until someone came to help. The LAST thing that she would do is SLEEP!! I'm not conpletely unfounded in feeling this way, am I?

Animals?

They sure are, sometimes! But anyone with kids knows that! They run around like crazy, they are a pain to house train, and it seems that they are safer on a leash! They don't always obey (that's an understatement!), IF they really heard you, that is. Just what are we to do with them?!

Sleep, birds, worms, and acrobatically aspiring toddlers!

As if I get any sleep as it is, my sweet, sweet toddler has learned that fine are of climbing out of her crib. It is rather sadistically amusing, actually: she gets to the top, and then falls over the edge and lands on the floor with a "thud". Oh, yes. I am so very proud of my young accomplished child, . But really, coupled with the fact that she is finally tall enough to reach the doornob, she has decided that she needs to be an early bird, to get some mythical worm, that seems to be in my bedroom, beneath the sheets. At least that is where she is looking for it, because that is the first place that she goes upon waking. She has startled me from sleep a myriad of times, at which point she proceeds to tell me, "All done sleep, mommy. All done.". Just who's sleep is she speaking of? Hers, I think, but there is an uncanny parallel to mine!! It's not as though I spent all night waking every couple hours to feed a screaming baby or anything. Ugh. Ever elusive sleep! I got more sleep a few months ago when Olivia was first born, before she got a cold and developed the irritating habit of waking every couple hours, and before Evelyn saw need to wake up at 5:30am, much more, before she discoved that she could climb out of her crimb to visit me!

Piece of Cake!

Not that I am any culinary genius or anything close, but, I enjoy playing around, and here is the cake I made for my husbands birthday, yes, my husband. He helped, but he could only do what I told him - he listened, for the most part. It was more fun making it together, than seeing everyone's reaction to it.

Breaking the Routine

Things are okay here, pretty monotonous, and to try to break the routine requires an ENORMOUS effort, and is usually pretty exhausting! We have spent the better part of this week trying to figure out what is in our garage. (We, meaning the girls and I -Evelyn is 20 months, and Olivia is 1 month). As you can imagine, OIivia naps on the job, and Evelyn normally counteracts what progress I DO make. But, the garage, with it's new milk and juice spills, and lollipop sticky marks, is still cleaner than we found it! Evelyn even decided to re-fragrance it today, yeah, "throw-up" wouldn't have been my scent of choice, but she was the one to decide. But, really, it's been fun! We go in white, and come out black, especially Evelyn, who manages to get the stuff permanently stuck to herself. She has been wearing the same clothes everytime we go in there, because I am so afraid she will do the same thing to the rest of her clothes, and I just can't afford that!!
Evelyn loves to follow in my footsteps, really, I turn around and knock her down constantly! Sometimes she just hangs on to my pantlegs so that she doesn't fall behind! She even climbs on the stool behind me. She has a great tendency to stand PRECISELY in the way! If I need to move something, she is standing where it goes. Anyway, I am drained after such an adventurous week.

Pumpkin patches & Corn mazes

We recently took Evelyn to the pumpkin patch and went through a rather extensive corn maze. It was quite alot of fun, and took about 40 minutes. Everytime we came to a dead end, Evelyn would just walk through the rows of corn, unhindered by the fact that there was no longer a path. It didn't seem to bother her that it wasn't nice and paved for her. She had quite alot of fun running down the path and rounding corners, nearly running into people, and decided which way to go at a fork. But my favorite part was when she took my husbands hand and simply started walking down the path alongside him.

The new one