Atonement Gingerbread men

So if you read my last post about keeping my sanity you'll see I had a bit of an emotional, roller coaster ride which taught me about how I needed to reconnect with my kids.

Hence, what better way to show your kids you love them by staying up till 3 in the morning baking gingerbread cookies while they were asleep and waiting for the cookies to cool so you could hide them?

Try this great recipe out and if you like you can switch out the golden syrup for raw honey and the light brown sugar for dark sugar.  (like I did)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/gingerbread_men_99096

1 teaspoon of ground ginger is about right for kids to tolerate but if I made another batch for me I'd put in 2 teaspoons.

Great texture,  short bake time.  Make whatever shapes you like...  I actually made some star shaped cookies from this dough too for my teenage girls to enjoy.

Nothing says love like mama's baking.

Happy Friday y'all.  Xoxo xoxo

Saving my sanity

4 year olds are a force to be reckoned with. Lately, I'd been on the losing end of a twin terror tag team - getting ready for preschool was a vein busting shouting match. Getting them to eat breakfast was like asking them to put dirt in their mouths (not like I ever did, but you know, it was a jam sandwich and girl twin had to cry a river just to have 3 bites so we could head out the door?). Commuting on the train was me versus them versus the staring fellow commuters. *groan* You get the picture...

Then one evening I just about had enough and went kinda ballistic shouting,  "That's it! I'm going straight to the shops and buying a cane!!"  Did I get the terrified response and pleas I hoped for? No. They giggled like I said the funniest thing on earth. Diabolical I tell you.

I was still fuming when I picked up the slender 2 foot long smoothened bamboo. As I held it in my hands walking up and down the aisle buying random things - a measuring tape ( cos I couldn't find the one I had at home the last I wanted to use it) and a plastic converted toilet roll dispenser (wow I've finally found it!), I was tapping myself oaths calves worth that tool of discipline trying to walk off my fury.  I must've been a sight because the store staff were watching me as I paced holding this strange array of provisions.

I go back upstairs and aren't the twins just happy as clams.  Impervious to how mad they made me all the way home after work and school. I soften. Why do they have to look so cute?

I whip the cane about in the air and lay down the law,  "The next time you do this that and the other you guys are gonna get it!" Boy twin smiles like I've made a promise to bring him to the candy store of he's good. I give up.

Then I think,  "Do I really want my kids terrified of me because I can inflict bodily hurt on them as punishment?" 

I hide the cane in the store room or of sight. Out of my sight.  I never want to use that on them.

They finish up dinner , I go have a shower and some thinking time on the loo ... Then I find these Facebook pages called Tru parenting &  Joyful courage.

I realized I had been totally disconnected from my kids for a while because of work and my own distractions. I forgot what joyful children they were when we used to play together... When was the last time I really played with them? I couldn't remember. (Cue emotional mum in the shower now)

So I sorted myself out. I was going to go back out there and just live them. Then followed a peaceful night. Bath time and tooth brushing done without years and without a fight. All I was doing was holding their hand in mine, looking them in the eyes and smiling, kissing them... And letting our hearts connect again with gentle words and forgiveness of myself
and them... Though they were just being 4 year olds.

I was the one that needed that cane. Just to remind me of what I didn't want parenting to be like.

Putting up a Christmas tree with three year olds ... Fun & Frantic

So my Christmas tree was given a three year hiatus with the arrival of my twins, who are now three and a half years old.

This Christmas I decided they ought to be old enough to help with decorating it and that they'd appreciate what a fun activity I had allowed them to partake in.

It was fun... For about 15 minutes. Then the living room was a garlanded, bauble booby trapped land of terror.

Girl twin stayed on task for about 5 minutes into opening up the branches before deciding that she was going to be the photographer for this momentus event.

She decided that taking a picture of the nail plug and the hole in the wall was more interesting than Christmas tree decorating...  

Boy twin surprised me with how much longer he stayed interested and how much more perseverance he had in doing the repetitive, boring and prickly chore before the fun stuff came out of the boxes. 

Somehow it went very quickly from this...

To this...

Every bauble was crash tested. Dare I say, plastic is the only choice when it comes to decorating with toddlers and young kids. Maybe wood and even some metals? But glass decorations won't be seen in this house for at least another decade I'm predicting.

Nonetheless, boy twin was sweet and endured pretty much till the end and was interested enough to choose a tree topper amongst what we had. He was even willing to give the star that he'd initially chosen, a little wipe before I helped put it up.

Girl twin was squishing the bejeebees out of Rudolph's pom pom nose, which soon was no where to be found.

Farewell brave friend...you have fought the good fight.

Anyways, though it quickly went from, "Would you like to help me hang this here  sweety?" to "I SAID DON'T THROW THAT / BOUNCE THAT / STEP ON THAT / PUT THAT IN YOUR MOUTH!!!!" it was still a fun 2 hours spent on a Saturday morning. 

And since the tree was going in the corner... We only decorated two thirds of the tree. ;) why waste time decorating the part no one can see?? 

My quick tips for putting up a Christmas tree with your kids:

1. Take only the tree out first and then 1 small amount of decorations out. When the first lot is on the tree, take the 2nd lot out. It's all about regulating otherwise kids can kinda get over stimulated seeing all the baubles, glittery garlands and cutesy ornaments out all at once.

2. Test your strings of light before putting them on the tree. I strung 2 strings on, just to find out after, that only 1 string worked. Also this part I recommend doing before the baubles or garlands go on... Without too much help from the munchkins.

3. Don't be surprised if your child hasn't the focus or perseverance to get through the whole process. Let him do what he can then thank him for helping. Secretly reposition the 10 baubles he hung on the same branch without him around.

4. Designate sections to different kids and allot batches of decorations so that they don't rush to snatch up that only pink bauble in the sea of blue baubles and crash the tree inadvertently.

Girl twin's photo of the decorations

5. Speaking of decorations, I can't emphasize enough - plastic, plastic plastic. Reuse if you can or else arrange a bauble swap with some friends to freshen up the Christmas tree deco theme.

6. The tree topping & light up is the most special part... Invite your child to sit back and admire their "work" after everyone has also chipped in on cleaning up.

First he wanted this star, but then chose the cherub when he realized there was one in the box

Have a fun Christmas everyone! Happy holidays!!