My House is A Zoo!!

If you have been to my house in the last 2 years, or at least the last year, you know things are pretty wild around here! My daughters are VERY active and pretty much don't stop going unless they are asleep. Because there are 2 of them, I think they tend to feed off each other and it's just non-stop action. We have been having some trouble with their behavior and they have been really testing our patience, to say the least! Luckily though, they are starting to learn that there are consequences for actions and I know they can mind me, if they choose to;) So the other day we were playing and they kept asking about the zoo. Something made them think of it and they were determined that they needed to go to the zoo right then. I told them we couldn't go to the zoo but maybe we could "play zoo". We got out their big tub of plastic animals and started putting them in different areas around the house. Then we got their babies and strolled them in the baby strollers to "see" the animals. It was the first time for us to truly do imaginative play. We were pretending like their were different animals upstairs and in the laundry room. It was so cute to see them getting into it and pointing out the window, look Mommy, elephants! Here is the alligator under the recliner...

And here are the lions on the below the side table....

It was so nice to play with them and have them be a part of it, not just me leading them or telling them what to say or do. It's amazing how much they have changed since their birthday! 2-year-olds really are so smart and soak up every bit of information from their world! I think it's just hard for them because they don't understand limits and they don't have much self-control yet. Which makes being a mom to two 2 year-olds pretty rough too! I know it's a season and it will be over soon. They start Mother's Day Out in less than 2 weeks! I have been waiting for the day when they can go to "school" and now it's almost here. I'm very excited for them but nervous too. I pray they can be sweet to their classmates and love their teachers. I pray they have so much fun that they don't miss me too much;) Before I go, I've been wanting to update about a few things they are saying and doing individually. Stella is our clown! She makes us laugh doing the littlest things, it's just how she does it. We took them to the pet store the other day and when she was looking at the rats, one of them stood up on his back legs and started making a funny little face. She immediately started copying him and we just laughed and laughed. She has still been doing it this week to make us laugh. Another day, she got yogurt in her hair at breakfast and she started making these faces and Sloane and I just cracked up! I couldn't even be mad at her for making a mess because it was so funny! She likes to be held and says "mommy hold you". I've been telling her that she is a big girl now and mommy can't hold her all the time, but she's so cute I have to give in sometimes. She loves to play with her babies and almost always has one in her arms or very close by. My friend Lindsey had a baby this summer and her name is Hadley. Now the baby doll who used to just be "baby" is now "baby Hadley". She will come to me and say waa waa baby cryin mommy. hold baby. So I have to hold and pat baby or maybe give her a bottle. The other day I let them take the babies outside. Stella took her baby over to the slide and let her slide down. Of course the doll flew down the slide and landed face down in the grass. She quickly got herself situated and slid down to get her baby, all while saying waa waa baby cryin! I had to laugh because she was just so cute and concerned that her baby was hurt. She has been quite the biter these days and we just don't know what to do. We have tried ignoring her and paying more attention to the victim (when it's Sloane) time-outs, even spanking a couple times, even though I don't like spanking her for that. I feel like it's a negative for a negative but at this point, it's almost like defiance because we've told her SO many times not to do it. It's so weird because sometimes she will play with kids just fine and sometimes she is terrible and can't keep from trying to hurt someone. It's very frustrating but I am hoping she will outgrow it soon. Maybe school will help. Either way, she's ours and we'll keep her;) Sloane is our sensitive one. She gets her feelings hurt so much easier and I don't usually have to say as much to her to get her to mind. If I say she will get time-out or a spanking, she can turn her behavior around. It breaks my heart when she gets this little sad face like she is trying not to cry. Lately it has been if she is scared of something. All the sudden she is afraid of public restrooms because of the blowers (hand-dryers). When she was a baby she would cry if I was in there changing her and someone turned it on, but she had been fine for a long time till just a week or so ago. Hopefully it won't last long. She loves her Stella and calls her StellaReese all the time! She says it fast, like all one word. She likes to hold her hand and help take care of her. She got mad because I was looking at a scratch on Stella's leg and SHE wanted to take care of her. She says "me do it" or "my turn please" all the time. It's so cute but also frustrating because she can't do all that things she thinks she can and it's hard on both of us! I try to let her do as much as I can, but some things she just isn't ready to help with. Like opening the front door! She loves to watch Calliou and will actually sit there in the chair and watch for several minutes. She has a little burp cloth that she somehow got attached to as a baby that we call her lovie. She has gotten more attached to it lately and likes to bring it downstairs now sometimes. I used to only let her have it in her crib but I do give in occasionally. Stella has her babies and Sloane has her lovie. She gets so excited when she has left it somewhere and then spot its again. She will say "LOVIE" and run to hug and squeeze it. It has a brown polka dot border that she likes to rub and I guess it soothes her. The other night Nick and I went out to dinner for a date and the girls stayed with Nick's mom (Mamaw). When we got ready to say bye she got upset and that little lip started to pout. It's really the saddest face ever and I felt so bad. She cried when we left for the first time in forever! I feel bad because now is not a good time to start getting sad when mommy and daddy leave since we are about to start leaving you at pre-school for 5 hours! YIKES! I have been praying and praying for them, their teachers and us to all get through this transition phase. It's a fact of life. They have to learn how to play with other kids and be in the care of another responsible adult. I know what happens to kids who have never been away from their parents till Kindergarten and it's not pretty. Pray for us over the next couple weeks if you think of it, and espescially on Sept. 4th! *Sorry this was so long!! Lots to catch up on!