Tuesday, July 17, 2007

copycat copycat




reagan the raccoon...
reagan is our little copycat. he mimics all sorts of things that thomas and i do. a short list:
1. applying mascara
2. saying "nuts!" or "oh crap!"(we're going to have to eliminate that from our vocabulary.
3.putting his contact lenses in.)
4. shaving his face.
5. stirring his drinks.
6. dipping all his different foodstuffs in ketchup.
7. drinking crystal light.
8. berating meatball.
9. making the bed.
10. brushing my hair or his hair.
11. applying deodorant and lotion.
12. saying "oooh, close!" when shooting a basket.
13. breakdancing on the floor while watching the doodlebops, or the "bops" as he calls it.
14. holding the baby.
15. opening the dishwasher putting the (often still dirty)silverware away.

as far as being the mother of two children, it is going pretty well. i was quite nervous about being able to manage this feat. scarlett is a very very good baby so that helps quite a lot. she is almost a complete opposite of reagan. i was so overwhelmed and exhausted with reagan that i thought we would be a one child family. thankfully i was blessed with a baby that REALLY likes to eat so breastfeeding has been no problem, except with keeping up with her pace. i affectionately call her piglet. she is a great sleeper too. she only wakes up twice a night to eat and immediately goes back to sleep. i did attempt a short trip to the mall that included a ride on the carousel. of course i completely overestimated my maternal abilities and i wanted to cry all through lunch at the food court, especially after the spilling of a large bottle of chocolate milk on reagan's pants and scarlett spitting up most of her bottle on me. but we survived and eventually they will both grow up and become productive citizens. hopefully.

one thing i have discovered since becoming a mother is that perfect strangers love to give advice. so i have learned to lie. about most anything. i find it is perfectly acceptable for me to tell people that don't matter that my child is fine, he/she never throws tantrums, eats everything on his/her plate, crawled at 3 months and walked at 6, has shown a propensity for speaking in full sentences at one year and has never EVER needed a perfect stranger in the line at sam's club to scold them for bad behavior. that is my job thank you very much!

list of things i would like to say to people who needlessly give me advice:

1. yes, i know she is only two weeks old, but i have too much to do to stay at home and cloister her from all the germs in the world.
2. he doesn't want to be held by you because you are a stranger, that doesn't mean there is something wrong with him.
3. yes, i am aware he is yelling my name over and over again. if i could stop it i would.
4. no, pacifiers do not give you orthodontic problems. but you might have some after i punch you in the mouth.
5. she's a girl for crying in the night! she's wearing PINK!
6. just because we have a boy and a girl does not mean we are "done". i don't see how that is your business anyway, mrs. walmart checker!
7. yes, all of our clothes have stains on them. we are not blind. we are just busy.
8. you're kidding, my son is running down the aisles of the grocery store? goodness, your children must have always walked in straight silent lines. please teach me how to do that!
9. yes, i know that she has no shoes on. it is freaking july in alabama!

12 comments:

Will and Natalie Giddens said...

Man! I think Reagan looks so much like a mini-Thomas. What a cutie. I especially liked the applying mascara picture.

Can't wait to see more Scarlett pictures!!

Jessica said...

amen to everything you said about nosy people trying to tell you how to parent your children. the advice comes even faster when you're hauling 3 children around a walmart or target type store. my especial favorites are the very well-meaninged "it gets better/easier. don't worry." thanks. but you know what? it sucks right now so please just don't say anything to me. just ignore my children who are all screaming/throwing fits/running away from me while i'm trying to check out! haha.

those pictures are so cute. reagan is looking so grown up. and i love that he puts on mascara. ethan is obsessed with my makeup which is funny because i hardly ever have the time to put it on myself, and grace ALWAYS has to put in "her" contacts, too, when she sees me doing it in the morning.

i am so glad for your sake that scarlett is an angel for you. i feel like grace was my little blessing like that as well. unfortunately she spoiled me for future babies who have tons of issues (e.g. sophie -- but even she is getting a little bit better/easier. i guess those check-out people were right. haha).

whew, this is a novel! can't wait for more updates!

Sarah Beck said...

I LOVE stranger advice! My favourite was when they found out Joshua has a speech delay, they said, "have you tried reading books to him?" or when Joshua had a tantrum the other day the lady had her mouth gaping open. I wanted to say, "haven't you ever seen a kid cry before!"

Paula said...

awesome. I can't wait until it is my turn. Since becoming pregnant I am now amazed at some things that people say to you, a complete stranger (a lady checking me out told me I was going to explode). I am sure you are doing a great job. Your children are beautiful and entertaining so don't worry too much:) Congrats on your anniversary as well!

JTA said...

SO TRUE! The big one I get is when we are out for walks, "The sun is in your baby's eyes. You need to put a hat on him." Yeah, so he can rip it off and throw it on the ground like he did the last 5 times I put it on him before you came along. Anyway. Im happy for your little family of four. So cute.

Emily C said...

Reagen looks in heaven to have sweet little Scarlett with him. He is a proud big brother. They look so cute together.

lrbodine said...

My favorite is she shoe comment. I get it all the time. My answer that always shuts people up - "when was the last time you saw a 5 month old that walked and needed shoes?"

Sarah Beck said...

Hey Heidi I picked up some cute things at Old Navy for Scarlett the other day. I can't wait to send them! By the way. Laura updated her blog (finally) check out the mansion she's been renting in Denver

Anonymous said...

How cute are your kids!! I can't believe how big Reagan is. How nice for you that Scarlett is such a good baby, that will make life much easier. By the way,as much as you would like it, you may never get away from people telling you how and what to do with your kids, at least it seems that way. -Meghan

Emily C said...

i gotta say it again, Reagan looks so cute in those pictures. He looks so happy - makes me in a good modd seeing those. (work sucks!)

Anonymous said...

Scarlett looks adorable! Can't wait to see more pictures. Hope your doing well. I miss our workouts.

Debbie said...

I hope you don't mind, but I'm going to share your "unnecessary stranger advice" on my blog because I think it's hilarious and so true!

From the pictures, Scarlett still looks pretty skinny to be such a "piglet." Taylor was very skinny, then she went through a little bit of a chubby phase, but now she is a skinny minnie again, which luckily for me, means she is light as a feather!