Parenting Forums

I have visited a few parenting forums in the past.
I have replied to a few questions that have been posted.
But I have never posted a question.
I have always either muddled through or have seen a similar sort of question asked by someone else. I am not very good at asking for help, I never have been. It not that I am too proud, its more that I don't like to bother people with my problems or admit I could do with a little help or advice.
At the moment I do not need help but a little bit of advice would be nice. Also a bit of understanding would also be good.
I have posted before about the twins climbing. It feels like we are constantly saying:
"no"
"get down"
"stop climbing"
But how do we stop this?
We have been telling them no and putting them onto the floor, but it is becoming a game for them. They giggle then go and do it again! Isabella is developing a defiant streak, we shouldn't be surprised, both me and hubby are stubborn, but as we are telling her no, she is staring straight at us with a look as if to say
"what are you going to do?"
I really cannot remember Joseph climbing as much as they do but of course there was only one Joseph. Now we have two climbing toddlers!
I feel as a mum of twins it is often hard to get advice. The majority of sites that I have been on do not cater for twins and multiples. Also the majority of health visitors do not have the knowledge to help with "multiple" problems.
So I am considering posting on a parenting forum.
It would be nice to hear how other "multiple" families have coped. New parents of multiples always ask "does it get easier?" in some ways yes it does but in other ways no it doesn't. It just changes and you have new challenges!
I have recently joined a new parent forum that has been set up by the people that brought`us the fantastic Gumigem (which I am a huge fan of) called Kiddieclinic  ( http://www.kiddieclinic.co.uk/ )
I feel quite different about this forum as it is new and it feels more personal. To my delight and surprise there is a section for "multiples" as well as forums specifically for different age groups all the way from anti-natal through to terrible teens, special needs and multiples. If the multiples section wasn't included this probably would have been a forum that I'd look at and then forget. For me, it has it all covered, I can look at forums that are relevant for Joseph's age and on the same site, read posts that may relate to the twins! It will be good to "chat" to other mums of twins who will no doubt understand how life is when you are running around after two curious toddlers but also be there to offer support to new mums of twins. Believe me it is a daunting experience and just speaking to someone who knows what it is like makes all the difference.
I know that it will get easier as the twins get older and have more of an understanding but I am not under the misconception that it will ever be stress free, with any children 1, 2, 3 or even 8 there is going to be stresses and worries. As they come, as parents, we learn to adapt and we cope. At the end of the day all of the changes are just our children developing and growing as people.

Disclaimer: Kiddieclinic have had no influence on my post and I have not received any payment for this post. This is just my honest opinion and thoughts.

Exhausting Day

The only way that I can describe how I felt at the end of yesterday is exhausted!
I spent the day catching up on house jobs. First thing in the morning i even got chance to potter around outside. I basked in the tranquillity of the our garden. Looking back, this was the calm before the storm!
The next lot of potatoes have been planted and I started to clear space for the broccoli, cauliflower and leeks. Even though summer isn't over we are thinking about what winter and spring vegetables we are going to have. I even managed to tackle the green house vegetables. The twins were getting tired tired so they sat really well, but their big brother was entertaining them! After snipping away at the abundance of excess leaves I found that we had a few tomatoes ripening and a huge cucumber that was hiding. Hubby was giving up on the peppers, however, after having a clear up I discovered some tiny peppers that are starting to grow.
Over the last few weeks, I hate to say, that I have neglected the beautiful sweet peas so that will be my garden job today.
After my relaxing start to the day I rapidly evolved into a manic mum, rushing to get jobs done before the twins sleep so that I wouldn't wake them. Then when they were asleep I was rushing to get as much ironing done as possible before they woke up. Rushing was my day! Once the twins woke we had to rush lunch so we could get Joseph to the tennis session he had booked.
The whole day was just manic.
I lost track of how many times I had to tell the twins to get down. Anything that they can climb onto, they are on. If it's not the settees, it's the chairs, if it's not the chairs, it's their toy table, if it's not their toy table it's the futon! They are all over the place! Gone are the days when I could calmly leave the room. After a couple of bad nights I was feeling well and truly frazzled!
Thankfully I was only up once with Taylor in the night but if I put him in bed with us, he snuggles up and goes back to sleep so I get more sleep too. I am feeling ready for the madness that the twins and Joseph bring to life. Whether I'll be feeling like this in an hour or so is a completely different matter so for now I'll just enjoy hearing my 3 beautiful children squeal and giggle as they play together!

A Horribly Expensive Day

I knew I'd be spending money today. But I didn't realise how much.
After going through all of the routine checks at the opticians I was told that my eye sight, particularly my left eye, had deteriorated. I knew that it had got worse but I was not aware of the extent. I was told to cover my right eye and just use my left to read the letters and I was shocked to see, or should I say, to not see, that I could not read a single letter! Thanks to the extent of the muscle deterioration I need a completely different prism in my lens. As he is telling me all of this all I could think was
"Oh no, this is going to be expensive!"
I ridiculously asked him,
"What causes this, what can I do to help it?"
He asked me if I get tired a lot. I could not help but laugh at this question! I nearly replied
"Errrmm of course I get tired, I have twins!!!!!"
But settled with
"Yes, quite a bit"
So basically I need to be less tired, if only it was that simple.
I chose my new frames, ordered my lenses and left feeling quite depressed. So much for leaving with a bargain!
This afternoon we continued with the check ups and visited the dentist. Today was the twins first visit. We really were not sure how they would react to someone who they have never met before trying to look at their lovely little teeth. But they did really well. We were told that they are both a bit behind with their teeth but with them being 5 weeks premature its to be expected but they'll catch up. As per usual Joseph had a clean bill of health. I just wish I had!
My check up resulted in a £50 bill for work that needs doing! I couldn't believe how much it was going to cost. If it had been on a different day I may have reacted differently but after this mornings sting on the credit card for my glasses I was not expecting any more. There I am stressing and my hubby, who is the calming element in our relationship, just tells me to not worry he has it sorted! He just knows how to calm me down and takes the weight off my shoulders. I'd be a wreck without him and feel truly blessed to have him by my side.
Here's hoping we have a good night tonight as hubby is back to work and I have got lots of baking to do in the morning!

Tired Eyes

Well our little tag team were at it again last night.
It has been a few days since we have been up and down in the night. It all started at about 1:30am, from then on, if it wasn't one in bed with us, it was the other. Then little man was ready for up at 5:30!
So here I am. My first coffee is all gone, Taylor's milk is all gone and its not even 6:30 yet!
Having tired eyes is not a great start to the day as I am having an optical eye test this morning. I have worn glasses for a few years now. When I was at work I wore them as I should but since becoming a stay at home mum they have become more of a fashion accessory than anything else! However the last few weeks I have noticed that I am putting them on more and more because I feel that I need them on. So we will see what the damage is today.
In the past I have chosen expensive, designer glasses. I love the frames I have got at the moment and would love to keep them. But this time I am going to have to look for not just a stylish pair that suit me but also a pair that we can afford. Now that I am not working I know to stay clear of my usual section.
Todays challenge is to walk out of the opticians, for the first time ever, feeling like I have got a bargain and happy with what I have got.
Fingers crossed....

Yummy Post

Apart from my family my other love in life is cooking and baking. For me there is no greater compliment than seeing people enjoy what I have cooked and baked for them.
The last couple of days, with hubby being home, I have enjoyed some quality kitchen time.
This year I have started to bake all of our bread. At first it started out as a challenge as it was something that I had never tried to bake before. However, after the first loaf, I became enthralled with how the dough changes and transforms and becomes one of the most staple elements of our diets. I get such satisfaction from putting all the different, individual ingredients together, mixing with my hands, kneading and feeling the change within the dough and creating a food that everyone will love. I do like to get creative with my cooking and baking and I often take a basic recipe and add what I think will go well and create my own twist.
This weekend I was making some bread and decided to make a wholemeal loaf for the children but I also made an olive and seeded bloomer which was delicious served with some tangy chives and onion cheese and blue Stilton.
Every weekend my parents come down and I always bake a cake. Both my dad and hubby are huge cake fans so it is unthinkable to not serve a cake. This week I tried a twist on a lemon drizzle cake. This week I made a St. Clements drizzle cake. I love to make a moist orange sponge but my lemon drizzle cakes have been going down a storm. So what better way to add a twist, I mixed the two! This created such a light, moist cake and one that I definitely will be baking again. Needless to say by the time my parents left there was only one piece left!
It certainly does sound like all I have done during these last couple of days is bake cakes!
Today we went to have lunch with my father in law for his birthday. Now, it really would be rude to go cakeless. So I baked his favorite. Carrot cake. This too is my absolute favorite cake. But, believe it or not, this is a cake that I have never dared bake until yesterday. It is extremely laborious preparing all of the ingredients and I think that this is one of the reasons that I have shied away from it. But I am always up for a culinary challenge and it was for my father in law. Yes it took me forever to grate the carrots and I felt like a work out had been done on my arm once the were done, but it was so worth it. I was over the moon with the results and this will not be the last one that I bake!
I do have one challenge that I have not conquered but I will not give up. My nanna used to make the most amazingly, scrummy, fruit scones and I have her trusted recipe. However mine never turn out like hers did. Sadly she is no longer with us. We lost her 3 days after the twins were born so I cannot ask for her advice. One thing is for sure, I will keep practicing until I have got them perfect! That is going to be my next bake this week, we'll see how I get on this time.

Ha Ha Rain!! You Can't Stop Us!!

We woke up this morning to rain. It was not just a bit of rain, it was chucking it down.
This week hubby is not at work until Thursday so we have been looking forward to spending some quality time together.
Today we had planned a picnic and a walk around the local house and gardens. But looking at the weather this morning we very much doubted that we would be going anywhere!
However, after we had our carpet picnic, as opposed to our planned outdoor picnic in the sun, the rain eased and eventually stopped. We saw our opportunity and made a dash to the car and went out.
We went to the house and gardens as we had planned. We have got so many happy memories from the house. I have been taking Joseph there since he was toddling about. I have many pictures and videos of him having fun and I look forward to having more as he grows and of the twins as they become more aware of the natural world around them. I too have many happy childhood memories of being taken through the gardens by my nanna and grandad.
I love walking through the wooded area, smelling the fresh earthly smells and listening to the wind rustling through the trees. We enjoyed a peaceful walk through the gardens and woods. We strolled within the walled gardens stealing ideas and inspiration for our garden and took the children through a bamboo tunnel.
I thrive on moments like todays outing, being with hubby and giving our undivided attention to our family.
After we had explored the gardens we let the children explore the play ground.
Joseph climbed, zoomed down slides, swung like he was trying to reach the clouds and spun like a spinning top on the roundabout. No piece of apparatus was untouched my Joseph!
The twins, on the other hand, we're thrilled to just be on the swings. With every push they squealed "weee, weee" with excitement.
The rain had dampened our hopes of a day out when we woke up but it did not stop us getting out and having a fantastic afternoon together.