Self-Doubt

As is probably true of a lot of working wives and moms, I am sometimes so frustrated by the "mommy guilt"...the constant feeling of being stretched so thin, doing so many things, that I'm not doing good enough at anything. I have a constant feeling of guilt...that I'm a working Mom with a stressful job...I hope and pray that I don't bring home the stressors of my career to my family, but I know that I do.

My guilt has subsided somewhat now that the boys are in all-day school and I know I am VERY lucky that I have the ability to take our boys to school every day at 8:30, work only while they are in school (with only a few exceptions), and be there to pick them up every day when they get out of school at 3:00. I know not all moms are that lucky. I also, however, am sooooooo incredibly jealous of moms that have the ability to stay home with their kids. Due to financial constraints and the fluctuations with the economy and construction industry (which majorly impact Jason's job opportunities) I just have never had the option of staying home.

I just want to be the best wife and mother possible but always feel like I need to do better. Why do we (as women) put so much stress and guilt on ourselves? I know that nobody is harder on me than myself.

I just hope and pray that we're doing the best by our children and can make quality time for our marriage at the same time...it's hard to do. I thank god for the blessings in my life...I have a husband who adores me and who is the love of my life (but who also can make me crazy at times :)) and the two best sons in the whole wide world. Have to force myself to focus on that in my times of self doubt.

1st Month of School

As I've posted before, the boys started all-day Montessori school in September. Overall, it's gone very, very well. They love their teacher (Mrs. Renggli) and teacher's aide (Mrs. Joyce) and have been learning so many new things. They are learnings about personal space, writing their letters, taking turns, sharing, show and tell with different letters of the alphabet each week, doing lots of art projects, some age-appropriate general teachings about God and Faith, etc.

We had one minor issue this week of the boys "coloring on other childrens' papers". They, along with another boy, were put in the "think about it chair" for a time out. We talked about it at home and they apologized to their teachers and classmates. Ethan also had a minor incident when another boy was "mean to him"....he pinched his arm. Ethan was put in the "think about it chair" (same day as the coloring incident). We made him color the boy a special picture and we helped him write an "I'm sorry" note to him....hopefully by addressing these issues right away and making them follow-through with apologies, it will nip it in the bud.

Other than the minor behavior issues, their teachers tell us they are bright, kind, loving children that are attentive, anxious to learn and are well-mannered. We are looking forward to parent/teacher conferences on October 21st to hear more about each of their strengths. Below are photos of the boys' first ASB cards....too cute! Love Saint Patricks School!

A Good "Mommy" Laugh

A friend of mine on facebook posted the comment below explaining how she potty trained her son. I thought it was so funny, I had to post it to my blog...kids are so funny sometimes!

"I used Hershey Kisses to bribe Spencer (referring to potty training) although I hear you're not supposed to do that. He negotiated with me... 3 for #2 (poop), 2 for a #1 (pee), and 1 for farting".

I about died laughing. Kids say the darndest things!

Mother of Twins - A Poem

There's two to wash, there's two to dry.
There's two who argue, there's two who cry.
One's in the mud having a ball,
The other one's holding a crayon...another marked wall.
Some days seem endless, my patience grows thin.
Why was I chosen to be the mother of twins?

The answer comes clear at the end of each day,
as I tuck them into bed and to myself I say...
There's two to kiss, there's two to hug,
And best of all, there's two to love!

Montessori School

Our boys started Montessori school at St. Patrick's School in Tacoma on September 7th. Their school is wonderful....their teachers, Mrs. Renggli and Mrs. Joyce are just wonderful and they've loved school from day 1. Even though they love their school, it has been an adjustment to all-day school (8:30 - 3:00 every day, Monday through Friday)....there have been a few tears shed in the morning, but overall, it's been a pretty smooth adjustment.

Ethan is very social and is the first to comfort another child when he/she is upset, gets hurt, etc. He pays attention well and follows instructions, is kind and patient. He had his first time of being the "leader" on Wednesday...it was his day to bring snack for the whole class, be the line-leader and have a special day.

John is excelling in all things academic. They are being introduced to computers and John is learning quickly and craving more challenging projects. The teachers are developing more challenging projects for him because they said he appears to be bored at times with the pace of the rest of the class...our little smarty-pants. John's day to be leader is Monday, so he's very excited for his turn.

We can't believe we're already at the point where are boys are in all-day school....our babies are growing up so fast. They are growing up into such sweet boys!

Movin', Movin', Movin'

Well....to make a long story short, we're moving. We're moving into a beautiful home (much larger...from about 1400 square feel to 2400 square feet) on Tapps Island. It's a beautiful, safe, kid-friendly community. We were renting our house in Puyallup and have decided to make this move...and we hope to be in this house for a very long time. It has a lovely fenced backyard (great for BBQ'ing, housewarming parties :), kids playing and our dog). We are excited and a little sad all at the same time. This new house will be a great new beginning for us (Jason's also starting a new job this week and the kids are starting full-time Montessori school starting next week).

I included a picture of the front of the house below. Our house is not on the lake, but it's accross the street, has a great view of the lake and of Mount Rainier. Once we get settled, we'd love to have our friends and family over to see our new home and celebrate with us. We'll be moving in officially on October 1, so there will be a lot of work to be done between now and then.

We've had a wonderful summer! Jason and I are both working on exercising more and eating more healthy. In about the past 5 months, Jason's lost 93 pounds (those of you who haven't seen him in a while won't even believe how wonderful he looks) and I've lost 23...it's a start. Trying to be better examples for our children so maybe, just maybe, they won't struggle with their weight like we have our whole lives. We've also been working on staying active...we go swimming at the YMCA at least 4 times per week, go for walks, take the kids to the park, etc.

Big things are happening for the Drury family. Keep us in your thoughts and prayers that this move goes smoothly, that Jason's new job works out well and that the kids thrive in their new school. As for me, I'm happy when my family's happy and I'm excited about this next chapter in our lives!

XOXO,

The Drurys

Mickey Mouse Rooms

Last week I was home with the boys after their Tonsillectomies and Adnoidectomies. Overall, they've done really well. This surgery, however, is no joke. It's general anesthesia, a lot of pain and a minimum full 10 days of recovery before they're back to eating more solid foods. As far as handling the pain, our boys, true to form, have been complete opposites. John has been lovey, clingy...generally attached to us at the hip. Ethan has just been mad....he's made many "mean doctor", "stupid medicine" type statements, which he gets in trouble for (not using nice words), but apparently the consequences have been worth the outbursts of anger.

We have had a lot of family fun though staying at home spending time together. We've read TONS of books, worked on our numbers and letters flashcards and watched lots of movies (doctor's orders were to keep them "down" and mostly indoors for the first week after the surgery).

We also decided this week to redecorate the boys' room in a Mickey Mouse theme. They LOVE Mickey Mouse...they watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse every morning, had a Mickey themed birthday party, etc. For their birthday, our very good family friends Chaney and Logan Klespitz and Jim and Vicki Morgan, brought them back all kinds of wonderful things from their recent trip to Disneyland including Mickey figurines, picture frames, t-shirts, sweatshirts, etc. We have used these items to decorate their new room along with the blankets I made them (Mickey tie blankets) and the wall hangings below that I painted myself.

They love their new room...I think they're like their Momma and enjoy a change of scenery once in a while.

We are all getting very excited for the start of Montessori school on August 31. They will be going 5 days per week from 8:30 until 3:00...they'll even get to wear adorable school uniforms.

We're trying to fit in a little visit to the ocean before school starts....maybe a weekend trip to Ocean Shores....trying to work out the details.

Hope everyone's having a great summer!