No Pumpkins Here!

Yesterday after dinner...
Me to Drew: "Time to go take a bath, pumpkin."
Drew to me: "Mama, I no pumpkin. I a BOY. I a brother. Libby a sister."

Tonight he came home telling us we was a son, too!

I'm Lovin' It (well, not really)

Yesterday, when I got home in the van, Drew went up to the grill, pointed to the Honda logo and said, "Mama, Old MacDonald's!" Darrell and I looked at one another wondering how in THE WORLD he knew what the golden arches looked like and what they stood for since we've only been there a few times. Plus, each time we went through the drive thru. So I decided to ask him to clarify hoping that he meant that the "H" looked like a fence on Old McDonald's farm (wishful thinking). I asked, "What is Old MacDonald's?" Then he replied, "Chicken nuggets, mama. Old MacDonald's chicken nuggets!" We laughed but are still wondering what power those execs at McDonald's have to be able to target two-year-olds with their brand. Guess they should be paid a lot since it worked so well! Or maybe my Drew is just a little genius with the memory of an elephant and remembered us saying the name or something. ;)

I See the Moon

We had a nice evening tonight. Dinner was hectic as usual, but we decided to show Libby and Drew some home movies on our TV from when they were 3-6 months old. It made me a little sad to see that my babies are growing up, but I thought it was adorable how tickled they both got by seeing themselves as babies. They loved watching themselves eat cereal for the 1st time, only to spit it out all over and make a mess! And Cleo, our cat we had to put to sleep last year, was there, too, which was also a little sad.

After bath, we got on PJ's, read The Very Hungry Caterpillar and How Dinosaurs Learn Their Colors, and picked out "morrow"'s clothes. Through the blinds in their room, I could see the moon and it was so gorgeous tonight. It is a "waxing gibbous", but seemed really close to us and I think there was a planet (or satellite) nearby b/c it, too, was also really bright. But Libby and Drew loved looking at it and said, "Hi, Mr. Moon," over and over. I could only think of one moon song to sing- "I see the moon, the moon sees me, God bless the moon and God bless me." That's it. So, we sang it over and over until Drew said, "NO, Mama. No more." Anyone know of any other good moon songs?

Funny Translations

I love this age! Libby and Drew are talking up a storm, learning things every day, including new words. I love how they pronounce things right now. It's so cute, but also interesting and quite funny how they make connections sometimes. Well, I told you that Libby says "Toilet" for "Tardiff", but heard another cute one today. We put out our Halloween decorations this weekend and learned some new vocabulary: witch, Frankenstein, candy corn, mummy, Jack-o-Lantern, and skeleton. They seemed to get a lot of them. But after we put our skeleton outside and Drew finally stopped calling him a robot, he told us that it was a "pelican". SO close, baby! ;)

Peace and Quiet

I'm home alone today and it's eerie that the house is so quiet. I've already checked my Facebook and email and now it's just trashy TV and lying around for the rest of the day. This sounds great if only I weren't sick! Yes, that's right- I seem to have some sort of bug. I feel like I have literally been run over, am hot then cold, congested, and just achy. I was relieved to find I did not have fever this morning, but with these temperature flashes, I wonder if I should check again. I'm guessing Libby and Drew passed along their little bug. I thought I had really good immunity since being a teacher since I very rarely get sick. But, guess this one's proved me wrong. It feels a little like when I was on bedrest where I'm a bit bored, but don't feel like doing anything. Even this typing on the laptop is tiring, so I'm gonna stop for now. Here's hoping this is a short-term thing and has no pigs involved whatsoever! ;)

The Toilet Family

Last night at bathtime, I decided to tell Libby and Drew that we have a last name, too.

Me: Your name is Drew TARDIFF. And you are Libby TARDIFF. You have 2 names- Drew and Tardiff... Drew TARDIFF. And Libby has 2 names, too- Libby and Tardiff. Libby TARDIFF.

Drew: Yeah?

Me: Yeah, that's right. I am Katie TARDIFF (they already know our first names as they call us by them often) and this is Darrell TARDIFF. We go together because we are all TARDIFF.

Drew: Taw-hih?

Me: Yes, that's right- TARDIFF. Drew TARDIFF.

Libby: Yibby. Doo (Drew).

Me: Yes, Libby TARDIFF, Drew TARDIFF. Those are your names.

Libby: Yibby Toilet, Do Toilet, Mama Toilet, Daddy Toilet

Me: {chuckle} That's right, baby. {grin}

The Power of Prayer

We started going to church again several months ago and ever since, I have been feeling the power of prayer and just God's presence overall. So many little things have gone our way- with Darrell's new job with the amazing commute to me keeping my job after drastic cuts to the school system, etc.

Recently, my stepsister, Katy, was injured after being thrown from a horse in Germany, where she and her husband, Brad, live. She suffered 2 skull fractures with a contracoup injury, 2 contusions on the brain, and an extremely worrisome blood clot. Things weren't looking so good and we were braced for the worst. My dad and stepmom flew over instantly, but information was scarce due to the time difference, language barrier, and cell phone situation of calling overseas. Every update we got was crucial and to make a very very long story short, Katy is now back in the US, the clot has basically dissipated, the contusions healed, the fractures did not cause displacement of the bone (which is fantastic), and she has basically most of her memory- she can even give details of the accident itself!

Katy has to go to a little bit of rehab for speech and occupational therapy-- mostly for higher-level thinking and problem solving. But other than that, she is doing great. I am so happy and amazed at her level of progress and can only attribute it to some answered prayers. When her accident first happened, I posted that I needed prayers on Facebook and asked our church's facebook group to pray as well. I just have to say thank you to the dozens and dozens of you who replied and helped Katy pull through!

Katy with Drew in the hospital:

I am amazed at her recovery, especially since I worked in a brain injury unit in a rehab hospital (as a speech pathologist) and saw first-hand how devastating brain injuries can be. Plus, my cousin, Jennifer, lost her life several years ago after going through a very long and hard recovery for a brain injury due to a car accident. She was basically a new person afterward with memory loss and a new personality. She went through hell and back to recover with therapists and hard work. She worked to get her G.E.D. and we were so proud of her. Shortly after, she suffered from ARDS (Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome) brought on by pneumonia that took her life. We were devastated, to say the least. She went through all of the difficulties of a brain injury only to be taken years later? It just wasn't fair. So, I'd like to think that Jennifer had something to do with Katy's recovery as I know she has a very special place in Heaven. :)

Question of the Week

I just joined the "Multiples and More" blog community and am enjoying reading posts there. They have a question of the week that you answer on your blog and link back to them so other members can read it. Here's this week's question:
Do you remember the time before you had kids and you would hear someone yell something across, let's say a store, at their child and you would think to yourself "I will NEVER say that to my kids! I will NOT be that person!" Fast forward a few years and here you are in that same store saying that same thing and thinking to yourself "Oh my gosh, did I really just say that?!" What are the top 5 things you never thought you would hear yourself say?

Here are my answers:
1) Let's go to McDonalds for dinner!
2) I'm sure fruit snacks have at least 1 serving of fruit in them, right?
3) Wanna watch Yo Gabba Gabba AGAIN?
4) Having a pacifier after age 2 never hurt anybody- I mean, it's her security item so why take it away?
5) Fruit Loops aren't all that sugary, are they? If so, why would parents buy it?

Yucky Colds

Drew started with a cold last week and seems to be in the clear now. But yesterday, Libby started with it. And she actually felt a little warm and tossed and turned last night. This morning, they were both so crabby, so I decided to go to church alone plus we didn't want to bring Libby to infect everybody with whatever she may or may not have. Luckily my friend Leslie found me and we were able to sit together. I stopped at the store on the way home for some Zyrtec in case it may be allergies?? Well, she went down at 10AM (2 hours early) and at 1:00 now she is in bed, but lying there quietly while Drew tries to fall asleep.

Luckily, Darrell is off work tomorrow in case 1 or both need to stay home, but let's hope it's just a short-term thing so everyone can be back to their old selves soon (oh, and pray we don't get it either)!

MoM Consignment Sale

Today was my local Mothers of Multiples Club's consignment sale. It is held twice per year and is a really big one with tons of people selling and buying. I decided to sell a few things- mostly big toys that take up too much space in our basement along with my maternity clothes. I didn't sell many baby clothes. I say it's because I didn't have the time to go through it all, but really it's because I'm not ready yet! I know we don't plan to have any more children, but every single piece I look at reminds me of certain things and I just cannot believe my babies aren't babies any more. :( Plus, we have soo many clothes that I am honestly holding on to most of them to hand down to my brothers or stepsister or any other family member planning to have kids. Luckily, my sister Gretchen gave me all of her baby clothes and my friends Shannon and Saleena also gave us a bunch, too. So, I'm waiting to "pay it forward" with someone else. And that gives me a little more time to be emotionally ready- ha ha!

I went and hauled all the stuff yesterday to the sale and luckily all the toys and baby gate sold! Just came home with most of the maternity clothes (probably need to be donated anyway) and a pretty velvet holiday dress. I was able to sell Libby's monster Halloween costume from last year, but came home with Drew's.

Speaking of costumes... we've been looking through costume catalogs and Libby and Drew have opinions about every one! But Libby has been focused on being a tiger while Drew said he wanted to be a giraffe. Sort of random choices. Wouldn't you know I found both at the sale? And for $7 each, it was a bargain- SOLD!

I tend to buy name-brand clothing at these sales since you can get them for good prices. So, I found a black Polo sweater looking brand new for Drew for $3! Also got some PJ's since I hate paying $10+ for them new. What a waste when they wear them to sleep. We love the Carter's fleece ones, so I was able to find a few in excellent condition for $3 each. I just love a bargain. I got some VHS movies (yes, we actually DO have a VCR still hooked up) and already watched Maisy's Counting and Sing-Along Disney with Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah on it. That brought back memories and makes us want to go to Disney World tomorrow! I found a cute Thomas the Tank Engine little remote control train that Drew loves and an attachment for the Little People village with a ferris wheel with music. He spent most of the day playing with that, too. My happiest find was a complete snow suit (Libby's was Gymboree brand with a coat with removable fleece jacket and snow bib for $15; Drew's was an LL Bean coat, bib, hat, and mittens for $21). I got Libby a hat and mittens for $2 more and now we're all set for winter!

I waited in one of seven lines for about an hour! It really was THAT crowded. I got to shop 30 mins. before the general public since being a member and had eyed a cute baby doll high chair, crib, and carrier for Libby. Each piece was $2! By the time I got there, only the crib was left. So, I picked that up for her and she loves putting her boy/girl twin baby dolls with a blanket in there. She wanted them to sleep in her room with her during nap time, too. But she still favors that tiger as she was putting him in her booster seat today and was feeding him. It's so cute watching her. Anyway, while in line, I met the nicest 2 ladies behind me. One had a precious baby boy in her Bjorn carrier. He looked to be about 4 months old or so and was full of smiles. She told me that he was actually a twin (dad was with him somewhere at the sale) and was 8 months old. They were born 3 months premature and spent a lot of time in the NICU. But the doctors are so pleased with their progress and think they are doing great now. This poor mom told me that she had miscarried triplet girls before that pregnancy. I'm figuring since she knew they were girls, it was a bit far into the pregnancy. But I didn't ask. Right then and there, I just said a prayer thanking God for the 2 miracles we have and how even though I spent months in bed while pregnant, they were 2 healthy little babies with no problems whatsoever.

I saw lots of moms and dads with babies from just a few months old to a little older. Part of me was a little jealous wanting a baby again, but then most of me remembered what the colic/reflux, sleepless nights, and tons of bottles per day were like. So, I decided I'm happy with what I have! If I get the "baby bug", I'll make sure to volunteer in our church's nursery so that I can hand them back to their proud owners in just 1 hour or so!

Libby and Drew wanted to try on the costumes and snow suits as soon as I walked in the door. They loved looking at themselves in the mirror in their costumes. And they are SO cute in them. Libby has been growling like a tiger and so Drew asked us what sound a giraffe made. Darrell and I decided that it was something like a horse clippety-clopping since it has hooves, too! Guess I have to Google that one. But he started making that sound all day and was having so much fun. We had to wrestle them to take them off, even after they were so red-faced from being hot in those non-breathable polyester outfits.

Let's just hope that Libby doesn't keep up her very picky outfit phase and change her mind about her costume at the last minute. Oh, the drama...

The fruit of our labor

This year I planted some vegetables in my little garden in the back. I planted "Early Girl" tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, eggplant, strawberries, blueberries, and tons of herbs. Well, the strawberries and cucumbers died and all the rest have nice plants, but not many veggies. I had bought the Early Girl variety of tomatoes b/c they supposedly produce tomatoes quicker than most varieties. Not the case here. We have a measly little plant with 2 stalks and have had THREE-- that's right-- THREE tomatoes from it. And these are small ones. But I heard from my neighbors that their tomatoes didn't do well at all either this year. I also think that my garden doesn't get quite enough sun either, which makes for few tomatoes. I'll have to rethink this next year. Libby and Drew have been waiting and waiting and we were so excited when some green tomatoes started growing. We talked over and over how we DON'T pick them until they are red. So when the first one turned red- we were all ecstatic. We had almost a little ceremony to cut and eat it!! We were so happy we took photos, too. ;) It had a really nice flavor-there really is nothing like fresh fruits and vegetables. But we're not making salads or salsa over here with our 3 little ones!

Little Tiger Fans

We're gearing up for football season over here! I had my seamstress who makes adorable clothing for my website, Cayenne Paper, make me a cheerleader pillowcase dress in purple and gold for Libby (I also have boys' shortalls and longalls, too). I love how it turned out and she wants to wear it all the time, which says a lot since we are going through some tough I-wanna-pick-out-my-clothes-and-usually-choose-only-the-unseasonable-or-ones-that-don't-fit-anymore-ones times right now. What a diva we have in the house!

Summer is over-- OH MY GOODNESS!

We had one last hurrah in the pool on Labor Day weekend before the pool was put away (well, it's not exactly put away YET) for the season. L&D had a lot of fun dumping water on their own heads over and over. It was adorable because Libby started saying, "Oh my goodness!" and it made me realize that I must say this to her a lot!

Washington DC photos- FINALLY

Darrell's Aunt Sue, Cousin Rebecca, and Uncle Vernon came up for a visit in early August. We had so much fun as we joined them for a tour of the District one day. We hadn't brought the kids down there yet, so I was glad to be able to go, especially since it was such great weather that day. We took a tour on one of the busses, walked around a lot, went to the Air & Space and Natural History Museums, and then hung around for the night tour. That was really cool seeing the monuments all lit up- a beautiful sight. L&D were such troopers- they didn't complain at all, especially for missing a nap, sitting in the stroller all day, and going from place to place. It was really a great day. Here are some photos:

The Hope Diamond

We're still here!

I have been AWFUL with blogging this summer. It went by in such a blur and I cannot believe we are in September already! I'm back to work and the kids are back to their sitter having a great time. They are at a great age where they can sort of talk about experiences they have had at daycare. The other day they kept talking about birthday cake and candles and all and I found out that they had cupcakes for one of the kids' birthday. It was hard bringing them back to daycare this year because they are at this age of talking and really expressing themself more and more. I gave them lots of warnings starting a few days before and then finally Drew said to me, "Mama, no go to work- Mama stay here. Drew stay here. Libby stay here." When I told him that I had to go back to work, he added, "Drew go work with Mama." I told him that work was for mommies and daddies and not for kids. So they both walked around for a few days saying, "Work not for kids." It was so sweet but also really tugged at my heartstrings! :( Luckily, the transition back was fine and they are having so much fun with their friends and all the new toys.