Butterfly kisses are a classic, but have you tried...

Butterfly kisses, Eskimo kisses, Fishy kisses…yeah, yeah, we got those. We’ve also got Bunny Rabbit kisses, Earthquake hugs, Butterfly hugs, Baby hugs, Pac-Man kisses, Peek-a-Boo kisses, and Handle Bar kisses…
It all started with giving the boys choices at bedtime to get them to bed without a fuss. I would ask Barrett, “Do you want a Butterfly kiss or an Eskimo kiss?” He would always say “Bubbafwy.” So then I would ask him if he wanted it on his cheek or his forehead…And it has progressed to this fun assortment of kisses and hugs.
The Bunny Rabbit kiss was Kyle’s idea after he saw some bunnies playing outside just before bed. Cody perfected it. And I think it goes without saying that Cody is the creator of the Pac-Man kiss. Barrett invented the Handle Bar kiss when he got a hold of my ears one night and pulled me in for a kiss calling my ears “handle bars.” Ears have a history of being handle bars with him. He’s used them to hold onto for piggy-back rides since he was a baby.
The boys have this time with us to talk about their day and sometimes a little unrushed silliness reminds us and them that the sound of their laughter is the most beautiful noise in the world. And their stories are so original and funny that just telling you what they did today can be hilarious. Oh! You just can’t help but to smother them with Bunny Rabbit kisses and Earthquake hugs!
By the way, if you’re ever putting the boys to bed and they ask you for a Bubbafwy hug, (or if you want to do this with your kids) just put your fists under your chin and squeeze your elbows toward your hug target (the kid). He’ll most likely be doing the same. *Earthquake hugs are done gently and just twist and slightly shake- no brain damage please!
Bear and Cody going in for a Bunny Rabbit kiss

The Naked Chef

Last night after I gave the boys a bath, Kyle's slippery little wet body escaped my grasp and disappeared with a fading sound of slapping feet on the wood floor. I knew he couldn't go far, so I got Barrett dried off and dressed before following the trail of wet footprints through the house. This is what I found:

(Cropped b/c this is the internet)

Gigi had been cooking and without a word, he just pulled up a chair next to her, got a spatula and announced he was making his favorite food, pancakes! Both boys love to cook. They squeeze their little bums on the chair and stir away. Sometimes the bowl has food in it, sometimes it contains pretend food that resembles matchbox cars, and other times the bowl is completely empty like this time, but they are aways happy to "tuk"(cook). I have concerns about them falling off the chair with all of his cooking which is why I have had my eye on this . I saw it on another blog holding twins about Barrett's age.

A big bed for a big little boy

Barrett is in his big bed now, just in time for his third birthday! He seemed to be a little crowded in the toddler bed with himself, his 5 blankets, and all his "friends." I think most of his friends (real, not stuffed) just skipped the toddler bed altogether and went straight for the big bed. I took Barrett with me to the mattress store. Big mistake- Do not do this! He started freaking out when I told him we were picking out his new bed. He wouldn't lay on it. He was crying. He was clinging. He just was not being himself. I couldn't figure out why he wasn't excited about his big boy bed. Turns out he thought he was going to have to sleep there in the mattress store every night! Oh, I wish I could get inside their brains!
He loves his "big boy bed" and is looking forward to getting the car sheets that I ordered but are on backorder. Try explaining backorder to a 3 year old.

Happy Father's Day

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For Father's day today the boys made pancakes (Daddy had a bite, they were sorghum and flax seed meal--mmm). We ate breakfast on the porch and played with the ducks. The big events happened in the afternoon, when we went to the Frisco Roughriders game-fun and exhausting for all of us except maybe Barrett. On the way home, we went for the coasting record (inspired by the pickup truck song) on the hilly, curvy country road leading to ours. After about a mile, we were still moving with the odometer reading zero mph. As we were all leaning forward trying to get the car to make it over a hill (it did) and squeaking, "Go, go, go" I was thinking that Barrett and Kyle are so lucky to have Cody for a daddy. We all love the times like this. so simple. so wonderful.

a little berry pickin'

The whole fam went to the berry patch yesterday to stock up on blueberries and blackberries! We got 3 heaping gallons of blackberries and 1 gallon of blueberries. I think that may last the boys thru the night. Please refer to the post titled "blueberries are the new black" for more details. Gigi already made a blackberry cobbler. yum.

Barrett did such a good job of picking only the black blackberries and showed such restraint. He only ate a couple of handfulls while picking blackberries. Kyle showed restraint too. He was only putting the blackberries in his mouth at a rate of about 20 per minute...Until he figured out he didn't have to pull them off with his hands and he could just bite them right off the vine.

ETA:I had more to say, but it was time for a date with my husband. We went to Bailey's Berry Patch in Sadler. They don't use pesticides (in case you were wondering about the kids eating them unwashed.) And they don't mind you eating as you pick either. It was so great to let the boys do something they think they shouldn't be doing. I love not having to say no. Taking Barrett to the grocery store is insane. He tries to eat the fruit through the bag! I cannot let him sit in the cart because he tries to eat everything I put in there, and I cannot let him walk around the produce section because he just grabs stuff and bites into it and I end up buying fruit with little teeth marks. So the berry patch was a refreshing and relaxing change of pace.

Wonder Mommy Power, ACTIVATE!

I said, "Activate!" My Mommy Superpowers…I know I put them around here somewhere. They’re probably at the bottom of Mount Laundry…ah yes, here they are…

>Doing everything with one arm while carrying 20 lbs of squirmy-worm on the other side of my body.

>Checking email while 2 toddlers play giddy-up horsey around my office chair.

>Remembering anything at all.

>Understanding toddlerese, a language I haven't used in about 30 years.

>Healing major boo-boos with a kiss.

>Turning ingredients that nobody has ever heard of, like quinoa and sorghum, into food that nobody would ever want to eat (except for my 2 boys).

>Being able to have a conversation with my toddler while reading a book and never losing my place.

>Staying on the road - either side - while driving and fishing behind the passenger seat for “MY TUP!”

>Knowing from across the room, without looking, whether or not that last sneeze requires a tissue.

>Apparently in my family, being able to clip fingernails is a superpower!

What are your superpowers?