Week one for the boys is in the books!

Cary and Dean finished up their first week at their new school, with nary a complaint to register.

No tears, no mishaps, no nothin'...It's amazing.

Here they are when I picked them up on their first day. See something missing on Cary? Yes. My child broke his glasses. Again. But look how happy he is. Dean was happy too. But he was too busy asking me if we were going to the playground to be bothered to smile.

We also had two-plus days of the new sitter, Miss Arlene. And although Clair is still not really feeling her AT ALL, when I get home from work, she is usually happily ignoring the sitter and playing boisterously with her brothers. As long as she isn't sitting in a corner sobbing or shaking in fear, it is all good with me.

I did come home early the first day of her working and was surprised that no one was there. I called through the house, peeked out the back door, checked upstairs. No kids. No Arlene. Her car was outside and her purse was in the living room. She must be here, I thought. The last place I had left to check was the basement. I put my hand on the door knob to go down there and in a split second, my brain conjured up an image of my children with their throats slit and Miss Arlene dead.

That is how crazy I am, y'all. I just knew this new babysitter had murdered my children and committed suicide. My heart was beating out of my chest. I was freaking out.
When I finally gathered the courage (and the common sense: "Get it together, Tanika!") of course, she wasn't downstairs. And neither were my murdered children.

In fact, she had just taken my very happy and safe children for a walk, because Dean had written a "letter" - literally, he wrote the letter "D" on a piece of paper, folded it up and put it in an envelope - to no one in particular and wanted to mail it. So Arlene drew a stamp on his little envelope and walked with them in search of a mailbox. She didn't kill them. She was actually being VERY sweet to them.

I felt like a heel. And a nut.

But I'll get better. We'll all get better. We're all getting adjusted to the new, much more hectic schedule, and by the end of the day every single one of us is pooped. The kids crash at bedtime like they were working in the salt mines all day. Last night I was asleep by 8:50 p.m. 

But I can tell things are going to get easier. Today, Clair still clung to me for far too long, but didn't cry at all when I dropped her off. In fact, when her teacher took her hand, she simply said in a small voice, "Bye, Mommy," and I closed the pre-K 2 door, and walked away.

Of course, I felt a mixture of pride and happiness and sadness.

Our babies are in school. All three of them. They leave us in the morning and we don't see them again all day long. They are learning things that we don't teach them. They are experiencing things that have absolutely nothing to do with us. In fact, most of the things that happen in their day, we won't even know they've seen or heard or done or felt.

This is the natural course of life, I know. And it is good. And sad. And crazy.
And normal.

Agreement isn't necessary. Understanding is.

I don't know why, but I always feel like I need/want to explain myself about why it's important to us to send our kids to private school.

Maybe it's because we're friends with such liberal, pro-public-school people, so we don't want to be seen as "those people" -- the pretentious private school people who think they're better and whose kids are preppy assholes. Also, we're going to be flat broke for the next 20 years, so we know people think we're crazy and wonder why the hell we would do that to ourselves. :-)

It also might have something to do with the fact that, even within our own families, there's still a tension between "bettering oneself or one's own family" and so-called "acting" or "wanting to be" white. (And yes, this is a real thing, despite people who want to believe it's not.)

Navigating both dynamics -- friends who don't understand your choices and family members who fear you're judging and abandoning them -- is trying, to say the least.

I always seem to become very inarticulate when I try to make our reasons known.

But this article, even though it's old, really gets to the large and small of it. 

Here's the link: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=114327591

Most of you know my family background, and Lester's. So perhaps you can see how it is that we see ourselves in some of the imagery here.

No reason to read or listen to this right now, of course, but if we're close (you know who you are), I do want you to give it your attention, if you have the time and the inclination.

We know that private school is not "the answer." We know there are pitfalls and peer pressures wherever they go. In fact, there's a whole slew of new worries we're taking on by sending our children to a school where they'll be surrounded by privilege, potentially isolated, and exposed to vices we likely can't even imagine. And who knows how we'll feel once they actually get there. We could be singing an entirely different tune in a year or five.

But for us, right now, moving out of our neighborhood and sending the kids to private school seems like the best choice for our family.

I know we don't have to explain ourselves to anyone. And maybe you still won't agree with us, even after reading/listening to this. That's really OK. We don't have to agree.

But it would mean a lot for the people I like and love to at least understand.

Can twin closeness be a bad thing?

This week, I was getting Lester's laptop out of his work bag and discovered two little progress reports from C and D's last day of school.

Putting aside for a moment the fact that my dear husband forgot to even mention these to me -- the last day of school was MAY 28th -- I was a little sad when I read them over.

There were no real surprises; the boys are doing well in almost all areas. But under "interacts with one or more children," Dean and Cary both got an "N" for "not consistently demonstrating;" they both got "Ps" --  progressing -- in "participates in the group life of the class" -- and Cary got a string of flashing neon Ps in "interacts with familiar adults," "shows empathy and caring for others," "follows simple classroom rules and routines," and pretty much the whole section called "Personal and Social Development."

Beth posted a lovely piece today on Facebook called  "My Kids Aren't Perfect and That's OK." The gist was that it was OK if kids weren't acing every single subject in school, or if they weren't remembering to do all their chores without being nagged. Kids "stumble and fall and make lots of mistakes and messes," the post says, but what matters is that they are "good, kind and caring [people.]"

eing a good, kind, caring person.

being a good, kind, caring person.

Well, ahem, judging from the progress reports, being good, kind and caring -- the things that are the hallmark of a socially normal person -- are pretty much the only things my children are lacking!

Cary is a special case, because he is a little aloof, in general, and not very consistent about behaving in a socially appropriate way, especially around new people. It's his personality. Dean is more extroverted and a people-person, so he's a little bit better in this area.

But mostly, I blame this OBVIOUS social stuntedness on my boys being twins.

Check out what the teachers had to say about Cary and Dean (after they went through the obligatory "Child is bright, enjoys the sand table..." BS).

About Cary:
Cary sometimes needs assistance expressing himself and depends on his brother Dean to speak for him.

About Dean:
Dean needs daily reminders to remember to let Cary speak for himself. He only does this because he loves Cary so much and is very concerned about his well-being.

Hmmm. #co-dependent much?

I have noticed that my boys never seem to really play with other children when we're out -- even with familiar children. They don't have friends, really, other than the ones we adults call their friends, either because we like to hang with their parents (Antony, Abby, Maya, Hugo, Naomi, Spirit), or because we see them so much everywhere (Marcus).

I always thought it was a good thing that the boys had each other. It certainly made the entry into school a lot easier than it has been for poor Clair (God help that child to stop being so fearful and tearful every day!) But now I look around and notice that other kids their age are starting to form adorable little friendships, or at the very least, they have a semblance of what it means to be the kind of person people would want to be friends with.

But when I mention to Cary, for instance, that he shouldn't SCREAM in people's faces when he's just met them because people won't want to be friends with people who aren't kind, he simply shrugs. After all, why does he need other people to be his friends? He has Dean.

And when I ask them about other kids, they honestly don't know what to say about them, because they don't pay other kids any attention! They live in their own little twin-world and they're just fine there.

I think Dean will eventually find himself some buddies. For Cary -- well, it might take a while for that to happen.

But I do wonder how long it will take them to want outside friendships -- and if a delay in developing that desire will mean an accompanying delay in knowing how to make friends.

In other words, will my twin boys be socially awkward? I know I shouldn't worry about this kind of thing, but as a social person who has always found making friends to be easy, and intimate friendships with people truly rewarding, I DO WORRY.

I know how hard childhood and adolescence can be for those who find friend-making difficult. I don't want that for my boys. 

Parents of twins, what have you found in this area? Is this more because they're 4, or is this a real twins-thing throughout childhood? Am I just being neurotic (as usual).

Former womb-mates. Forever friends.

P.S. I think it is kinda funny that the boys' only other "Ns" were in "participates in group music experiences" and "participates in creative movement, dance and drama." Guess I won't be seeing them on Broadway. Hahahaa!

Throwback Thursday to my Baltimore Sun days

I spent nine years at The Baltimore Sun - the longest I've ever done any one thing in my whole life.

I was in elementary school for seven years (counting kindergarten), middle school for two years, high school for four, college for four, The Kansas City Star for four. I've been a Mom for four years; I've been married for almost seven.

So although I was really ready to go when I left in 2008, and haven't regretted the move away from The Sun or from journalism, it's not surprising, I suppose, that sometimes I get a little nostalgic about my days as a Baltimore Sun reporter. I spent a long time there.

Me at my desk (to the right) during my last summer at The Sun.

I'm very happy where I am now. The work is interesting and important, I think, and the culture fits my life much better than daily reporting ever would've. The pay is better too, and with three children to feed and clothe, that means more to me than I would have imagined when I was in my 20s, fighting the good fight, "comforting the afflicted and afflicting the comfortable," for pennies and a byline.

But there is really nothing like being a reporter -- going out meeting new people, learning new things all the time, getting the story, crashing on deadline, writing for a living, and sometimes, occasionally, bringing about change.

Some of my best friends in this world were made during my time as a reporter. My friend Su in Portland,Oregon I met while interning at the News & Observer in Raleigh. My friend Candice I met when we both worked at the KC Star. And I can barely count the number of people I know and love now because we met at The Sun: Laurie, Jill, Kelly, Andrea, Rashod, Lisa, Erin, Erika, Monica, Jennifer, Sumathi, Doug, Stephanie S., Stephanie D., Liz, Brent (and now his wife Monique), Tima, Andre Chung...honestly, I could be here all day counting the people I count as Sun-made friends.

And if it weren't for The Baltimore Sun, I never would have met Lester, who interned there the summer of 2004 -- dapper in freshly-pressed button-up shirts -- and impressed me with his work ethic, laid-back attitude, maturity and sense of responsibility.

It wasn't until 2006 that we started dating, but the groundwork was laid at 501 N. Calvert St.. Journalism brought us together and sparked a love that created three amazing, beautiful children.

For that, and so many other things, I'm immensely and eternally grateful.

Those lapels SO should have been off the record.

So much awesome happened this weekend!

Where, where, where to begin?

I think I'll start with the MOST awesome.

Some of you might recall that I was inspired to start this blog because I stumbled across Laura Case's blog when I was pregnant with Cary and Dean. I Googled something like, "pregnant, twins, ambivalence" because I was going back and forth between being super-excited about having two much-prayed-for babies and being terrified out of my mind about having TWO babies at the same time.

Somehow Google found Laura's blog and I read an entry or two about her life with twin boys and found I couldn't stop reading. Over the course of a few days, I read every single blog post this hilarious, honest woman wrote, starting at the very beginning of her journey. And I got inspired by her to start a blog of my own. It took me until the boys were about 9 months old to actually get around to blogging, but I did, finally, and I'm so, so glad.

I love that I'm getting down the details of my babies' lives (all three of them now) which I'm sure would all grow fuzzy over time if I didn't. I'm recording my thoughts and perspectives, which I hope one day my children will find interesting or useful; I know I would absolutely love to read what my parents were thinking and doing when I was a kid. And I'm enjoying the process of (semi) regular writing, which helps me sort through complicated feelings sometimes and make sense of the chaotic (but happy) life I'm living as wife, mother, career woman, sister, friend and child of God.

All those things are invaluable, priceless even. But I had no idea that starting a blog would also bring to my life this wonderful and necessary thing: the support of other like-minded women who are also moms and wives and slightly crazed by it all. Women I'd never met - who found my blog because Laura once posted an entire blog post about ME! (you cannot imagine the screaming I did that day) -- started commenting on my blog posts, with advice, affirmation, encouragement and funny stories. And then one day, one of the women and I agreed to meet. Beth was so awesome, we hit it off immediately and we've hung out over food or drinks a few more times since then, each time topping the last one in terms of being super-fun and restorative!  And last month, when I was in Maine, I met up with Maria, another of Laura's friends, who was also amazing! I felt immediately comfortable in her house and we talked about real life things maybe 10 seconds after I walked in the door -- no time for small talk, just straight to the real deal. It was great.

So when Maria came to DC this weekend for her birthday and Beth emailed saying that the two of them wanted to meet me for dinner, I didn't hesitate. Beth AND Maria? I was in!

At the restaurant bar, I waited for the two of them to arrive and I waved happily when I saw Beth's smiling face and Maria behind her. And then...I noticed...someone else....

Could it be? Noooo?! Are my eyes deceiving me?

Wait...it is! It is! It's LAURA CASE!!

I seriously screamed like Prince just walked in the room.

Look - my eyes are still screaming in this picture we took outside the restaurant just moments after they got there.  

See? I screamed like a banshee!

I was too shocked and giddy to remember to hold my head up straight and not squint my eyes all up like a crazy person! But who cares? It's me, standing next to a woman I've admired from afar for years! Sure we've emailed and texted, but there's nothing like sitting next to a woman in a lively restaurant, ordering tapas and drinks and laughing your head off for FOUR HOURS, watching as the restaurant slowly empties and you're not even close to being ready to leave, because the women you're with are all so much better in person than they even seemed on screen and life is pretty freaking great to still be blessed to meet people who move you, inspire you, encourage you, LIKE you, and want to see you be the best person you can be.

I thank God for that. Truly. I always say that picking awesome women to be friends with is my super-power. And this weekend was just more proof.

SO glad I started blogging. If you're on the fence about it, DO IT. It's so worth it.

###

Also this weekend, all five of us had a collective playdate with a new couple, Ashley and Desira Stewart, and their two little girls, who I think they're pretty private about Internet-wise, so I won't say their names. It was really, really nice. They were so welcoming and fun, and they FED US, so they are my new favorite people! (I joke. Sorta.)  It's always just a little bit weird meeting up for the first time with people you only sorta know, but it is so rewarding when the meet-up turns out just perfect!

I imagine more outings with this family in our future!

And then, I took Clair with me to a baby shower, and she was a great partner to have. No craziness or meltdowns; she was super cute at the party and gabbed, gabbed, gabbed the whole way there and back, and it was really cool to have my little buddy with me -- just the girls on a sunny Sunday afternoon. I imagine more of that too in my future -- and it makes my heart so glad.

While I was there, Lester took the boys to a little kid yoga date with their friend Spirit and a few other kids. Afterward, the boys painted a picture frame and ate pizza and played. And it was a lovely, lovely day all around.

Lester met with a handyman at the house in DC to get an estimate on doing some final small things to it before putting it on the market this summer -- so that ball is actually, finally moving. (One tiny, but necessary step closer to us getting out of our house and into a better one!)

And we also planted Black-eyed Susan seeds in the little flower pots that were once home to my miserable failure of a porch garden, so we're all eagerly watching to see if anything comes of our efforts! Hoping to have Maryland's state flower blossoming on our porch any day now!

Keep your fingers crossed!

Tanika's Diamonique Jubilee (the recap in photos)

I capped off a month-long celebration of my 40th birthday this weekend at a local bar/restaurant.
I called it my "Diamonique Jubilee." (Kinda like the Queen's Diamond Jubilee, but without the flotilla.)

I'm going to share a gazillion photos of the night (which was SOOO much fun), but really, there's only one photo you really need to see to know what kind of shindig this was.

And here it is:

Holla!

Yes, future teenaged Davis children who will likely be embarrassed by my every move, no matter how mundane: That is your mother at 40 years old, in a bar with her shades on, holding a bottle of premium tequila - LIKE A BOSS!

(I can't be sure if this was before or after the shots that your grandmother made me do. But who cares? Right? )

Now those of you who were unable to make it, seeing that photo right there, aren't you sad you missed my Jubilee?It's OK. I'll do it again in 10 years.

For posterity's sake, here's a photo album of my Diamonique Jubilee - at Wit & Wisdom, a bar at The Four Seasons.

Wes and his beautiful lady friend, Danielle. I met Wes when I was working at the KC Star. He came to visit a fellow Star reporter. We very much disliked one another at first. But I won him over with my charm and awesomeness. Although we talk infrequently these days (thank God for gchat!), he is still one of my very best friends.

Andre, me and Jill! How stylish and gorgeous are my former Sun friends? Andre is a photographer who took my favorite photo at my wedding of me and Lester jumping the broom and whooping for joy! And Jill is basically the love of my life.

Me and my Mom, selfie. Who looks like twins? Us? Nooo.

David and his wife Stephanie. I met David when at the KC Star, too. He was working at Hallmark at the time and we went to church together. He also threw the best house parties! We became instant friends and he remains my boy even today. Trivia point: I had just come back from David's wedding in Aruba (to Stephanie) the day (or two) before my first date with Lester!

Mari, Rashod and Stacey. (Mari is married to Antwyne, Lester's good college buddy, and she is now in my bookclub and my Unbalanced Mommies group and has become a very good friend. Rashod is "Uncle Dusty" to my boys and is also a very, very good friend. And everybody knows who Stacey is. She's my boo. And Hugo's mom!)

We had just been with Antwyne and Mari earlier that day at a toddler festival, with our kids. It was all turtles and pony rides and humidity, but somehow they still looked equally as stylish and cool as they do in this picture. I hate them! I love them!

My two best guys ever, Lester and Dad. Dad's drinking Coca-Cola. He is such a lightweight.

Juanita and her husband Ron. I've known Juanita since middle school. She's wonderful and hysterical and the organized person I turn to when I need to find out someone's contact information, or figure out the tip on a restaurant bill.

Liz Bowie and her husband Dan Fesperman. Liz still works at The Sun, but Dan left to write super-successful spy novels. Liz is my inspiration. Great writer, great mom, looks way younger than she is! I need her secrets. As one of the best education writers in the country, she also is the person who I can most honestly talk to about all my "how-will-I-properly-educate-my-kids" woes.

Callie and Stephanie. Callie is the woman who I met when the boys were babies at Mother Goose on the Loose at our local library. Then we met again at a festival in our neighborhood. Her daughter, Spirit, and the boys love each other, so Callie and I knew we just had to be friends!

Zac and Andrea. Andrea still works at The Sun, where we met. She's one of my most loyal and dependable friends. Also, she has great clothes. And we share a love of food (especially chocolate).

Callie and her husband Gary. At the boys' birthday party last month, Stephanie and Callie got to talking. Turns out they're in the same sorority. Also turns out that Gary and David are in the same fraternity! And that Callie's brother went to the same small HBCU that David did. Now Gary, David, Stephanie and Callie are becoming friends. I feel like a matchmaker!

Jill, Laurie and John-John. Jill and Laurie are two of my very closest friends and both used to work at The Sun. John-John is the fashion writer at The Sun, following in my footsteps. Except he's waaay more fashionable. Check out the brooch!

At one point during my time at The Sun, I sat in a "pod" with these two amazing people, Rashod and Stephanie. Rashod "Uncle Dusty" Ollison is now an award-winning pop music critic at the Virginian Pilot. Stephanie is someone I admire greatly. She's a writer, an artist, a loyal and wonderful friend and is going to India on a Fulbright this fall! She's also one of the reasons I'm at The Hatcher Group. She's married to my boss, Tom, and recommended me to him. Now Tom's my friend, too!

David, Ron and Gary - three cool-looking black dudes. And, as proof that I have the most "equity among friends" of anyone you know, see the next photo...

Alec, Dan and Tom (my boss and friend) -- three cool-looking white dudes.

Mom and Dad, the greatest parents ever. How many people wanna party with their parents? Seriously. I am blessed!

Lester, Zac and Antwyne. Hotness!

Brent and Monique. Brent used to be a sports writer at The Sun. Then he left to get a degree in psychology, got married to Monique who was working at the Boston Globe at the time, and moved her to Baltimore, where she is now a top sports editor at The Sun. Full circle! Also, Brent and Monique's wedding is where Lester and I got our groove back two Memorial Days ago -- causing us to make Clair a week later. (Is that TMI?) Whatever...Brent and I also are very good friends. For a dude, he gives surprisingly good advice.

Renee and her boo Jordan. I met Renee because she was the one who started our bookclub (of which I'm hosting this weekend!) She now, coincidentally, works at City Hall, in the Mayor's office, and keeps tabs on Lester for me. (Just kidding. Sorta.) She is an amazing seamstress (she made that dress!!!) and a very good friend. She hung window coverings in my house when I first moved in. Came with her own drill and everything. I hate her! I love her!

Andre and Kelly. (Andre is married to Kat, not pictured, and Kelly is married to Mark, home with their pre-schooler and infant.) Can you believe that hot girl had a baby like 10 seconds ago? I hate her! No, I love her! She's one of my very, very best friends. She also has the best hair! Check out that Dominican blowout. I hate her!

My mother forced me to do tequila shots out of wine glasses. No kidding. This is why I couldn't drive myself home (thanks Monique and Brent for saving me!) I was fine until my MOTHER peer-pressured me into doing shots. Only in my life does this happen.

Group shot! Skinny-arm pose!

Monique, Laurie (who drove from North Carolina to come to the Jubilee) and me and my thigh.

The Four Seasons (where the restaurant/bar was) sent me this cake! I took two bites and my Dad came and commandeered the plate and scarfed the rest. Like he always does.

Just for laughs -- and to mortify my future teenaged children even more -- here is what happens after many drinks and two shots of tequila: Yes, Cary, Dean and Clair -- that is your Nana, your Auntie Kelly and your mother doing a drunk version of the Instagram bathroom selfie!

You can be appalled if you want to, kids. This night was FUN!

LOL! ROFL. LMAO. Etc...

Platinum Jubilee in 10 years, y'all! Be there or be square!

Friend-filled weekend

I know I said a few posts ago that as I approach 40, I wanted to make sure I got to see friends and loved ones -- both old and new -- more often.

I just didn't except to do that all in one weekend.

Friday night, my friend Andrea invited me to a party/fundraiser. I was tired (of course) and had nothing to wear, but Andrea is always supportive of what I do, so I wanted to support her. The shindig was at a fancy rented-out space in Harbor East, and there were drinks and music and VIP lounges and things I haven't seen in years! The thing I enjoyed the most was getting to laugh and talk and hang out with my journalist friends -- who put to bed the myth that journalists are frumpy, fashionless people.

Check out these hot girls! I stole this photo from Jeneba's Facebook page. So I can't explain what's going on here. But here we are, doing our best super model "make your upper arm look thinner" pose.

On Saturday, I was invited to the surprise 40th birthday cookout for a good friend of mine from high school. Juanita and I actually went to middle school together, can you believe that? But we solidified our friendship at Eleanor Roosevelt High School, where we joined a band of gals who were all in the science and technology program (Hahahaa! Me and science and tech. What was I thinking?)
I neglected to take even one photo of this mini high school reunion, so instead, I will have to post this horrible throwback of the six of us from some ERHS Homecoming dance. Please note the horrendous hair.

Nicole, April, Juanita, Carla B., Carla J, and me. I also stole this picture from someone's Facebook page. Someone who is not a friend of mine. Because obviously no friend of mine would EVER post this picture on Facebook.

Now that we've all stopped laughing, I need to point out that I really love the fact that I've stayed in touch (not as much as I'd like, but still in touch) with my best girls from high school, who have all grown into amazing women with great careers, beautiful families and fun and supportive personalities. It just points out to me that one of my absolute undeniable talents is picking friends. I am mediocre at a lot of things, but I kick ass at that.

Happy birthday, Juanita!

And then, right after leaving a cookout with some of my oldest friends, I hurried up the road to meet up and have drinks with some of my newest friends: Beth and Angel!

I really tried to fix the crazy eyes! But you get the picture - it's Beth, me and Angel, out having a ball. And apparently being possessed by the devil...

We met up at a fancy, fancy restaurant (Don Pablo's - ahem) and ate bad Mexican food, drank a couple dranky-dranks, got free sopapilla because our server and the service was so terrible, and laughed, dished and had the most frank and encouraging conversation I've had in months. Something about being Mom-bloggers connects us in a way I would never have predicted. And these two smart and funny women are a big reason I'm so glad I started blogging.

Angel and Beth hit it off famously and I would like to point out here again that this speaks to my ability to spot fabulous women from a mile away. Not only do I know who I'll get along with, but I can bring other awesome people together!

It just hit me! Knowing amazing women is my super power!

Anyway, it was a great friend-filled weekend, which ended on Sunday morning with a brunch date with my four best friends in the world: Lester, Clair, Dean and Cary.

(P.S. Shout-out to Lester for holding it down with all the kiddos while I was gallivanting the whole weekend with friends, old and new.)

Watching the kids grow and get along

One of the most fun things about having children is watching the dynamics between them.

Especially when they start off as twins, not even aware of the other's existence, it is quite fascinating to watch them grow, figure out that "hey, I like this kid," and slowly, slowly become best friends.

The boys went to a birthday party this weekend.  It was Thomas-the-Train-themed and it was a little bit off-the-hook. There were trains everywhere. Train-shaped sandwiches, trains on the floor, trains on the cake, a train movie. Even an ACTUAL TRAIN. (I was like, whoa! These people take birthday parties seriously.) All the kids were apoplectic over the train, and there were tears and tantrums when it was time to share. So it was really cool to see how my two boys looked out for one another, each taking pains to make sure his brother got a turn, and then another turn, and -- when everyone else went back into the living room to play with the hand-held trains on the tracks on the floor -- still more turns.

They thought this train was the best. thing. ever.

At home, they fight like the dickens. But out in the world, they are very protective of one another. It is very sweet, and I hope it is also indicative of how they'll be later in life, when it really counts.

The boys also have a hilarious ritual at night, after we say prayers and close their door for bedtime. They talk and talk and talk and talk, and sometimes sing, and also act out scenes from Sesame Street or Yo Gabba Gabba or from books we have, like Elephant and Piggie.

Lately, they're obsessed (especially Cary) with a Cookie Monster DVD Aunt Tootie gave them for Christmas, where "Cookie Hood" steals cookies to give to the cookie-less and everyone blames Cookie Monster, which hurts his feelings. They cannot get enough of play-acting this all day, and half the night. Take this hilarious exchange from last night:

Cary, in his bed, talking unintelligibly about something having to do with Cookie Monster, really, really loudly. 
Cary: Ohhhhh! (Mumble mumble) Cookie Monster!! Nom nom nom! (Gibberish) NOOOO! Cookie hood! (Nonsense) Don't! Ohhhh! Nom nom nom nom nom!
Dean (yelling at the top of his lungs): Cary! You have to get ahold of yourself!

Hahahaa! That CRACKED me up. I realized later that Lightning McQueen says to Mater Truck in one of their zillion books: "You have to get ahold of yourself! You're making a scene!" But at first, before I remembered that book, I seriously stood outside their bedroom door like, "Whuh?"

They are too funny.

It'll be very, very interesting to see how Miss Clair fits herself into this dynamic. It's clear already that she intends NOT to be overlooked. She crawls or cruises right over to where they are, and tries to play whatever they're playing. And when she doesn't get her way, she gets a serious 'tude. She is loud and gregarious and in-your-face, and I do believe those two Davis boys are gonna be in for it, as soon as she's able to walk and talk.

You can catch a small glimpse of her getting the best of them in this video:

A little background: We had been stacking tall Lego buildings in different color patterns, and trying to hypothesize which one would be bigger when we were done. The buildings kept falling, and it took us several frustrating times to finally get them both upright, so we could judge. And then...enter Clair!

Again I say, they are tooo funny.

Labor Day re-cap

We had a really great Labor Day weekend.

We decided not to travel, even as far as my Mom's house, and instead hung around our neck of the woods, seeing friends and eating lots of delicious end-of-summer food.

We saw Mark and Kelly and Naomi!

At one point, Cary and Dean both tried to kiss Naomi. She was not happy about this.

You can't tell in this picture (or in real life even because Kelly's so danged skinny) but she's making a little boyfriend for Clair -- right at this very moment! He's due to arrive on Valentine's Day. Clair's birthday is Feb. 16th. They might very well share a birthday! Awwww!

At various cookouts, we saw Jen and Kevin, and Monique and Brent, and Andrea and Zac!

Jen and Kevin's daughter Molly had an iPad! This was a huge hit. I meant to take pictures of their 6-month old daughter Keegan, who is destined to be Clair's BFF, but I was really slacking with the photos this weekend.

And we had a playdate with Stacey and Hugo...but no photographic evidence. Sorry. We even took the boys to a restaurant, and survived unscathed! Check us out!

And Lester and I watched a movie, ran errands, hung out, took naps and just enjoyed some quality down-time, family-time and couple-time.

Thanks to the Labor Unions of America for fighting so hard and sacrificing so much to give us working joes a much-needed day off at the end of summer! We appreciate you!

Now, back to our regularly scheduled lives. School, whining, schedules, whining, rushing, whining and more whining. Sweeet.

Blogfriends are a blessing

When I decided to start a blog, I had no idea what the outcome would be.

I wasn't sure if it would end up being more of a chore to do, or so boring that I'd have to drag myself to do it. I really wasn't sure if I'd have the sticktuitveness to keep it up, keeping in mind my hectic schedule (and Gemini-personality).

And I didn't share the blog with anyone close to me for quite awhile, because I didn't know how much I wanted folks so closely involved in all of my thoughts and activities; I didn't want to be judged; and I was pretty sure no one would give a good gosh darn about any boring thing I had to say. How many frikkin' Mommy blogs are there out there anyway? Compared to some of the really popular ones, mine is mundane to the nth degree.

Let me just say, many months later, I am SO glad I started this blog!

Many things are gratifying about blogging, including the ability to sort out my own muddled thoughts about things when confronted with a blank screen and a keyboard. And I am extremely excited about having a real record of Dean and Cary's early months on Earth -- for their sake, later on in life.

But one very unexpected treasure about having a blog is the tremendous support and encouragement I have gotten from people I barely know or don't know at all!

Commenters -- mostly from LauraC's fanclub -- have chimed in when I was anxious, unsure, sick-and-tired or just plain tired. Each comment has bouyed me, lifted me up, informed me or, at the very least, made me laugh. (I can't tell you how nice it is to laugh when you've been up all night with two irrational babies who think 2 a.m. is a great time to wake up and scream for two hours).

Yesterday, I was about as down as I've been in a long time. I was scared, depressed, sad, guilt-ridden and bitter.

My newfound blogfriends (and some of my friends IRL) jumped in with practical advice, encouragement galore and real sympathy, all of which I SO needed. I'm so grateful for these ladies who share their wisdom and kindness with me, without even really knowing me. I feel truly blessed.

I still feel many of the things I felt yesterday, but with support, encouragement and love from (near) strangers, I somehow feel more capable of tackling this problem. With grace.

I know not everyone is a Christian, and I don't try to push my religion on others. But I do have to say that I know for a fact that God works and speaks through people. And so, through something as simple as commenting on a worried-woman's blog, I can see and feel God's love.

And no one could have ever told me that starting a blog would have resulted in something as beautiful and phenomenal as that.