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She’s two for a couple more months and is MILKING IT.
Seriously.
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With Avelyn at school every day, these two get plenty of time together.
That means there’s also plenty of screaming and fighting, but amidst the chaos there is a sweet connection these two share. My Liddle and my Middle.
This makes me want to have a third just so I can say “liddle” and “middle.” If I get accidentally pregnant, I’m blaming you! :) I love them. And you. HOW ARE THEY SO BIG ALREADY?! I never had a sister. But these girls of ours will always have two. I flounder at times, uncertain about what’s normal for their sibling connections to look like. They fight. A LOT. They kick and hit each other. And yell at each other. And do annoying things just to tick each other off. And call each other names. Is that OK? Is that how it’s supposed to be? There are moments when they get along. They might come on a bi-annual basis, but still. I cherish them. When they play together for more then three minutes without someone screaming. Those are good times. I have heard all the stories, of girls who were at each others’ throats as kids but then once they grew up their closest friends became their sisters. I’d love to see that happen. But it might not. They might always know just to how to push the other’s buttons to make them go mad.
(Photo by Megs, my soon-to-be sister-in-law. That’s a lot of hyphens.) I am trying to get them to USE THEIR WORDS in dealing with each other instead of making hitting, screaming and clawing-at-her-eyeballs the first stop on the bumpy path to conflict resolution. They are all just so strong-willed that it’s kind of like putting a lightning bolt, a tornado and a rabid tiger in a room and locking the door. My bets are on the tiger. (Karenna is the tiger.) Oh, I am SO WITH YOU with my two girls. Their fighting drives me completely insane and I just want to bash their stubborn heads together. My brothers and I didn’t get along growing up, either. Especially me and my 18-months-younger brother. You know him. We get along well NOW, though. (I almost always got along with my sister, but there were eight years and two brothers between us.) I hope my girls get along when they’re older. Right now the moments they get along are so precious, but also so RARE. So so so normal. I think Kristin and I fought with words and with fists until we were in our twenties and then smooth sailing from there. Mel and I fought tooth and nail growing up. We’re still North and South, and not close, but we have each others’ back when needed. I was the middle sister of 3. We fought so badly growing up and would take turns being each others favourite sister. It was always 2 against 1 but the make up would change. Once we all moved out we became great friends and allies…but before that it was war. I even remember physical injuries ;) tee hee It took moving out for Becky and I to start realizing we loved each other. Now we live on the same island! And it’s amazing!! My sister and I rarely got along as children. I can’t imagine life without her now. We still push each others buttons and fight, but she is, without a doubt, my best friend. There is hope. You know how sometimes the camera clicks and you know you got a shot that captures her perfectly, in this moment?
RIGHT THERE. That’s Brin. Yep. That’s totally her.
That being said, I look at the sun much differently now. I take the skin cancer risk seriously and we live in the Okanagan Valley where the summer months stretch on and on and the UV index is often high. Every summer I make the trek to the store to replenish our stock of sunscreen. I look for sunscreens that are safe for my kids, which have gentle and natural ingredients, have a high SPF, and are waterproof since we’re in and out of the lake all day long.
I reach for Aveeno Sun products for all the above reasons and will be stocking my beach bag with an arsenal again soon!
I always love your product reviews. It’s not just HERE! TRY THIS! There’s always a story. And? Uh, yea, I’m living that three days of summer. :) (One day we’ll make it to the Okanagan, where summer is longer than winter.) :) |
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Andrea @Mama in the City - Bah! Total cutie. Love the personality she shows in her photos.
Danica - This is so awesome.
Jen Wilson - Well, one thing is for sure. Your kids are not boring!
(This coming from someone who also has very un-boring kids, and a screamy two-year-old.)
melanie - Fionnuala while I was driving today: Help Daddy, help! Let me out! I want out of the car! Daddy’s going to come home and unroll my window all the way and I’ll say Hi Daddy (in a sweet voice) and then I will SHOOT MUMMY!
(This was b/c I wouldn’t roll her window down all the way.)
I will so not miss the twos – even though I have to go through it all one more time. At least I’m down to only one kid being in diapers – savour the little things, right?