Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow

This is a format for a post that has been circulating around the blogging world so I thought it might be fun to jump on the bandwagon and try.

Yesterday I:

• Enjoyed pancakes and eggs for breakfast that my husband made at my son's request
• Went for a walk with the whole family since it was sunny, gorgeous and the temperature was above freezing. As we walked my husband went door to door collecting signatures so he can run for our local school board.
• My in-laws took the kids for a couple hours which was fantastic.
• We went to some friends' house for dinner. The kids had their own little kids table, it was adorable and such a treat to focus on a grown up conversation.
• Worked on some VT Citizens Climate Lobby stuff in the evening.

Today I:

• Got to sleep in a bit courtesy of my husband because my daughter kept me up a lot last night
• Came downstairs to fresh made scones, my husband's specialty
• Made pizza with my son using the fresh mozarella and whey I made earlier in the week
• Wrote a BVT Moms Blog post with the pizza making as part of the inspiration
• Had free time while husband took the kids to his parents to watch the football game. I did laundry and vegged. 
• Had pizza again for dinner at my in-laws. Whoops. It was a decadent weekend food-wise, and me-time-wise.

 Tomorrow I will:

• Take Big Bro with us to Lil Sis' music class since it is the Martin Luther King, Jr holiday and preschool is closed.
• Maybe do a little grocery shopping if the kids are up for it after music class.
• The usual playing, reading children's stories, washing dishes, more laundry, cooking meals, etc.

When Moms Tire of Play

"Play with me, Mommy!" is a constant refrain in my house. And play I do. But sometimes I admit, I get really bored of playing. How many ways are there to play "Doggie" and what fun is playing when you, the mom, say "Let's make up a story, you start." and your child responds, "No, I want you to do it. I want you to do the whole thing." This isn't play. This is purely wanting to be entertained.

Don't get me wrong, I play with my kids a lot. But it's a long day between 8am when Daddy leaves for work, and 6:00pm when he returns. My kids no longer nap either (not reliably) so it's hard to get a break. Sometimes I clean the kitchen because it's always a mess, and because I know it will give me a little space and time to myself. At least for a short time. Even when I say, "I can't play now, I'm doing dishes." it can quickly devolve into Lil Sis pulling all the dirty dishes out of the washer and Big Bro still saying, "Mommy, let's play!"

This is something that adults and kids have dealt with forever. The episode of Sesame Street that we watched yesterday was all about Big Bird feeling sad because Gordon, Maria, and Alan (the adults on Sesame Street) couldn't play with him. Another episode featured Ernie feeling sad that he has no one to play with. It's a ubiquitous theme in children's shows, and in my life lately. I met a lady in a chiropractor's waiting room recently who told me her 9 year old just started being willing to entertain himself for 30 minutes. 9 years old??? 30 minutes??? Say it's not true!

So sometimes, when this mom is tired of play, and the kids won't do anything by themselves or with each other I started coming up with jobs for Big Bro to do. It's harder to incorporate Lil Sis, but she's easier to please these days anyway. Big Bro feeds our dog Pepper every day, and recently he sorted the clean silverware into the drawer for the first time. Sometimes I give him a spray bottle and cloth to clean the windows on some doors, or he sweeps the floor. The funny thing is he seems to think it's fun! For him it's doing something new while being with Mommy. For me it's doing something a little more adult (not that cleaning is super fun for adults) while still making space for my kids to be near me and participating. I think it's a good compromise, and my son is learning important skills/responsibilities in an age-appropriate way. The house gets cleaner too.

8 Christmas Inspired Kid Activities

What a week it's been! We have had a Christmas filled week and it's been great.

It started on Sunday, First Advent. The kids got their chocolate Advent calendars, we got our Christmas Tree up and had a special dinner to light the first candle on the Advent wreath.

Monday we painted salt dough ornaments to hang on our tree. The undecorated salt dough ornaments were leftover from last year when I went salt dough crazy so that our playgroup friends could do it too.

Tuesday we went to story time and made gingerbread puppets after reading gingerbread themed stories. Then later, back at home, we made popcorn and cranberry strings to add to the tree. Well, ok, just one short strand because I overestimated my 3 year old's ability to thread food with a needle. It was a team effort for me and both kids that ended with jumbled bowls of popcorn intermingled with cranberries and giggles.

Wednesday we made Christmas cookies with Nini (my mom), called Santa's whiskers, a recipe that my mom has been making since I was little. Yum!

Thursday we colored pictures of Saint Nicholas and talked briefly about his story. Before bed the kids put out their shoes for St. Nicholas to fill. It's a tradition I learned from my German mother and we celebrated it growing up. To read more about Saint Nicholas visit stnicholascenter.org

This morning, Friday, the kids awoke to chocolate filled shoes. Saint Nicholas came! Tonight we will have an early Advent dinner with Nini and the cousins. We will have pizza, cookies, and light the second Advent candle.

Saturday will be a Christmas craft show and a gingerbread house making party in the evening.

This coming Sunday, second Advent, we will go to our town's Christmas Tree Lighting if the kids aren't too tired.

We shall see if I can come up with something for every day until Christmas....as long as it's still fun for everyone. Any suggestions?