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| We thought we had it bad then! |
And then this morning: four inches predicted overnight. That total has since been reduced, but the wind taken out of everyone's sails was just palpable. Oh. Snow.
The logistics of five kids under seven in this climate are pretty overwhelming. There are a few factors.
1. With every single baby I had, after the first few months there was an upward trajectory toward "easier." The next month was easier than the last; the second year was easier than the first. With twins (and having asked around, this seems to be with twins regardless of birth order or number of children total), the line goes back DOWN on that "easier" graph. This is what my friends with twins looked like when I asked if their second winter with twins was basically as hard as their first:
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| Soooo...that's a yes, then? |
2. Bridget is a toddler. A potty-training, temperamental almost-three-year-old with a penchant for mind games, to be specific. She's also so cute that I've become one of those moms who laughs when her kid does something mischievous. No! I swore to never be one of those moms! But sometimes I can't help it. Like when she was playing instead of napping and she ambled over to her closet and donned two dresses--a long-sleeved dress over her play clothes, and a short-sleeved wool jumper on top of that. When I came in to sternly reset her nap clock, she shot me a dazzling smile and said, "Mama, I put these dresses on all by myself! Yaaaaaay, Bridgie! I'm so proud of Bridgie! I hadda put this on, Mommy, because I'm so warm and cozy!" She will do one thing in the potty, 100% of the time as of a week or two ago, but the other thing--while she has complete control over its timing--still happens in Pull-Ups. I know we will get past this and I won't even remember stressing about this, but right now I just want winter to give me a break and have my kid magically and perfectly potty-trained in every aspect. So that I can level up to only changing two children's diapers. Wow, my bar is set low these days.
3. Past the logistics, twin emergent toddlers is tough. I'm so lucky to have these small fries, trust me that I feel this every minute of every day. But. These are two very different babies who happened to share special womb time for nine months. Hadley will probably want to nap twice a day until she is six. Bags appear under her eyes an hour after she wakes up--no joke. Anders is like my other boys and could power through with maybe a catnap in the car all day.
Okay, I can't even complain about them anymore because they are so intensely adorable. They've started making each other laugh, which is the most shockingly awesome thing I've ever seen. Anders gives Hadley hugs and kisses, which she mostly tolerates (although it's a little scary to have your significantly taller twin brother swiping at you with his still-developing motor skills on full display). He throws everything he can get his hands on, mostly while emitting a giant bellow that is what I imagine testosterone sounds like when it gets fired up for the big game. And Hadley is a people person. She looks expectantly at everyone she sees as if to ask "What will you do to make me laugh? I'm so ready to laugh, always. Give me a reason!"
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