Nature vs. Nurture

Having three boys and one girl is a very good lesson in nature vs. nurture.  In newborns and infants the differences between the two genders is negligible.  But once they hit about a year old the differences become apparent.  And by the time they're 18 months old?  It's amazing.

Tess is ALL GIRL.  She is a girly girl.  She likes to choose her clothes and hugs them and preens and admires herself in the mirror every morning.  She loves accessories.  Necklaces, earrings, bangles and sparkles - she's all over it.  If something looks like it could be an accessory then it becomes one.  She loves baby dolls, getting them dressed and undressed, tucking them in with her at nap and bed times, talking to them, feeding them, playing with them.  Tess likes shoes - oh, the shoes!  "Shoooooooos!"  And she likes dresses.  And bows and flowers.  She hasn't been introduced to fairies and princesses, yet, but it's only a matter of time and I am sure she will lurrrve them, too.  She loves to cook and if I'm in the kitchen, she's there as well, ready and willing to "hep".

My boys, on the other hand, couldn't care less about any of these things.

Tess has come about this all on her own.  We haven't forced anything on her and it's not like I go around saying "No!  That's only for boys/girls."  Tess just really likes traditionally girl things.  It's in her nature.

This was reinforced yesterday.  I was doing laundry - all day - and I kept missing laundry baskets.  I would discover them in random rooms with random baby dolls and blankies in them.  Heaven forbid I take the babies out and move the baskets.  Tess threw fit after fit.  It took me a while, but I finally figured out what she was saying during these tantrums: "No!  NO!  Bebe nigh-nigh!  Bebe beh!"  (Translation: Baby night night.  Baby bed.)

She was tucking her babies in and putting them to bed.

Not in a million years would any of my boys have ever done this.  Which is why it took me so long to figure things out.  (Sorry, Tess - I'm a girl, but our house has been so testosterony for so long that I sometimes forget little girl basics.)

So I decided Tess's babies needed their own cradle.  An empty diaper box and a baby blanket did the trick.  No soon did I put the two together than Tessie rushed over with her doll, laid her gently down, and then proceeded to rock the baby night night.

This really took be back because we don't have a cradle and I really don't think Tess has ever seen one, unless it was on some random cartoon or something.   It just seemed so natural and second nature to her.  

I love my boys - they're great fun.  But I also really like having a little girl around the house!

Pinewood Derby Time

Time once again for that rite of passage for both parents and boys: the Cub Scout Pinewood Derby.  Lance helped Spencer design, cut, and sand the car.  Spencer chose the colors and design and then I helped Spencer paint it.  Then Lance helped Spencer put weights into the body to make it go faster, slipping up once and drilling all the way through, thus ruining the awesome paint job.  Yeargh.

My flames on the side kinda look like seaweed.  Oh well, I never claimed to be an artist.

Maybe we'll do decoupage next year.

You could feel the excitement in the air.  Those scouts were ready to race!

Good buddies Spencer, Ethan, Logan, and Dalton.  I love watching these boys together, and can't help wondering what they'll be like in 5-10 years.  Probably just as goofy and cute. :)

Spencer heading up to place his car.  He came in 5th place this year, which is a very considerable improvement over last year.  It's hard to beat kids with dads who are getting graduate degrees in mechanical engineering.  That's why I think next year we should do something cool like put a camera in the car and then watch the race from the car's point of view.  On our Smartphones.  In real time.  We might not win, but the coolness factor would be awesome.

Miss Tess and her daddy.  Miss Tess was grouchy and tired, but did pretty well considering she was up past her bedtime and she had only had a 30 minute nap today and she was teething.  Again.

This is pretty much all Cole did during the races.  The was also a very considerable improvement over last year.  Rotgut kid.

Tess liked watching the cars but demanded to be held.  A lot.

Spencer's last race was against his good friend Logan.  It was very exciting!

Logan won, but I think Spencer was okay with it once Logan gave him a consolation hug.

Some of the cars from the evening.  We have some very talented boys!

Ethan and Spencer.  Ethan had a cool Scooby Doo car.

"Just one more picture, Spencer!"

"Okay, really, last one!"

This seemed the sort of occasion that warranted pictures with the parents.  But Spencer was not so interested.

He didn't even stick around for a picture with me, but Lance was willing.  Then again, it looks like he's about to say a naughty word, so hmmm...

The evening ended with the majority of our children crying as we got into the car, only to discover the windshield had iced over.  We turned the radio to the 90's station and rocked out the classic "Wonderwall" by Oasis, which was something of my Senior year anthem.  Lance and I sang all the way home while Cole yelled at us to stop, Tess danced in her seat, Josh whined about the lack of refreshments, and Spencer complained about having to go to bed.  So, you know, a pretty typical drive home.

Tessie's First Happy Meal

A truly momentous occasion, no?  She's not really big enough to eat her own Happy Meal, but I just knew that if all of her brothers got their own and she didn't there would be Big Problems.  Sometimes a little peace at home is worth an extra $3, right?

 

She was quite pleased with the situation.  So much so that an impromptu game of peek-a-boo was in order.

 

McDonald's has converted another happy customer!

p.s.  Won't it be a happy day when McDonald's isn't the only place demanded when we want to go out to eat?

How Tessie Eats Bread

Does anyone remember that Seinfeld episode where they eat Snicker's bars with a fork and knife?  That's what this made me think of.

So refined and polite!

Sand!

Winter here in Indiana this year has been schizophrenic at best - one day it's 58 degrees and the next only 18.  I just looked at the forecast for this week, which I think gets my point across quite nicely.  Please keep in mind that this is the last week in JANUARY.  In INDIANA.  We expect weather fluctuations like this in the spring, but not in the winter. 

Today - 35/34 - chance of freezing rain
Monday - 51/50 - chance of showers
Tuesday - 64/34 - chance of thunderstorms
Wednesday - 37/19 - rain/snow showers/wind
Thursday - 26/7 - partly cloudy
Friday - 17/17 - partly cloudy
Saturday - 35/19 - partly cloudy

I mean, what the what Mother Nature?!

Anyway, a few weeks ago it was something crazy like 60 degrees out.  It was amazing.  We finally took down the Christmas lights, which had previously been frozen stuck to the house.  While Lance and I were doing this, in true Madsen fashion Tess escaped from the house and decided to tromp around the front yard a bit.  She was like a bird freed from a cage - she just couldn't get enough of being out!

She eventually made her way to the backyard and made a beeline for the sand box.  That girl sure loves playing in sand.

And by playing I mean throwing and eating.  Yum.

She just stood there for a good while, squishing the wet sand in her toes and grinding the sand in her teeth.

 

 De plane!  De plane!

I was trying to capture how dirty her face was, but it looks more like she got in a fist fight.

Then it was time to play on the slide for a while. I love her little sandy bottom.  Notice the sled in the background.  Yeah, that had been in full use just days earlier.

The temps soon dropped again, and poor miss Tess was stuck back in the house, much to her dismay.

Gratitude

Last night was a barrel of fun.  Josh got up thirty-seventy-million times because he was having nightmares from the movie we watched in the evening.  (Who knew "ParaNorman" would have been so terrifying to a 6 year old?  Not I.) 

Spencer also decided to get in on the action by throwing up all over his bedroom floor.  It took me well over an hour to clean it all up and get rid of the smell.  Erlack.  Seriously, in the 9+ years of being a mom, that was one of the grosser throw-up messes I've ever come across.  (Not as gross as the time Spencer threw up on Josh from the top bunk - that one will always win any grossness award.)  One would think a nine year old would have the wherewithal to throw up in the toilet that is right across from his bedroom.  But one would be wrong.

It took me quite a while to calm down and fall asleep last night.  Needless to say, I'm a bit worn out this morning.  Lance has to be in nursery and I don't have to teach YW today, so I'm the obvious choice to stay home with Typhoid Spencer.  But I almost let him to his own devices after the conversation we had this morning.

Spencer: Do I need to get dressed for church?

Me: What?!  No - you're sick.

Spencer (relieved): Oh, good.  Who's going to stay home with me?

Me: I am.

Spencer:  Hooray!  I'm glad!  That will be fun!

Me (feeling loved and appreciated): That's nice of you.

Spencer: That's fun!  But that's sad for nursery because one of their workers will be gone.

Me (not feeling the love anymore): Spencer.  You didn't listen to me.  I am staying home with you, not Daddy.

Spencer (obnoxious, whiny voice): Awwwwwwwwwww....!

Me: Go away.

Punk kid.

Lunch Boxes

For quite a while now Cole has been very interested in Spencer and Josh's lunch boxes.  At lunch he would ask where his lunch box was and act very sad when I told him he didn't have one.  So guess what Cole got for Christmas?  He was tre tre excited.

Now, every night I make lunches for all my boys (Lance included, in case you're wondering).  Well, a few days ago Tess started putting up a fuss at lunch.  It took me a day or two to figure out why, mainly because she still speaks English as a second language.  (Baby Babble being her native tongue.)  Tess wanted her own lunchbox!  Luckily, we have them in great supply around our house, and lunch times are (relatively) peaceful again.

Now each evening I make lunches for everyone but me.  You'd think I would mind, but I don't.  I've always hated making lunches for kids during the day - I'm either right in the middle of something or I just don't know what to make them and they're super grouchy.  And now that chore is out of the way.  Sure, I have to do it the night before, but for some reason it's just not as bad.  Win-win.

Snacky-snack

When it's so dang cold outside that you can't send anyone out to play for even 5 minutes, things get a little crazy around the house.  This sometimes leads to unusual ways to entertain your children.  Last week I found myself out of ideas, surrounded by two cranky and hungry toddlers who were - quite literally - crawling up my legs.

They didn't want their usual snacks.  They didn't want to play.  They. Were. BORED!

And then... inspiration!  Snacky-snacks were born.

 

I have no idea where the name came from, but the kiddos love it.  I just take my mini muffin tins and put 2-3 little snacks in each cup.  Then each child gets two small bowls and a spoon.

They like to move things around and sort them and unsort them and eat them and throw them on the floor and throw them at each other. But I don't care about that last part because they can entertain themselves with snacky-snacks for a good 30 minutes. 

Favorite snacky-snacks include: fish crackers, raisins, graham crackers, yogurt raisins, mini marshmallows, grapes, and cut up apples.

Classy

The boys' new favorite song to sing in the morning: "Oh, the Tessie Peed On the Rug".

As sung to the tune of "The Bear Went Over the Mountain".

You can probably figure out the inspiration for that piece of work.

Now try to get it out of your head.

Nothin' but high class entertainment around the Madsen home!

What's That Wall Doing?

A little conversation Cole and I had while getting Tess dressed this morning.

Cole: Hey!  What's that wall doing?

Me: Er, what?

Cole: What is that wall doing?

Me: *confused silence*

Cole: Hey wall!  What you doing?  What is he doing?

Me: Um, the wall is holding up the house?

Cole: Oh.  He's holding up the house.  Yeah, he's purpleably holding up the house.

Me: Purpleably?  You mean probably?

Tess: Woof woof!  Doggie!

Cole: Yeah, purpleably.

Me: Of course... purpleably.

Tess: Doggy!  Woof!  Woof!

Cole: Hey!  What's that door doing?

Me: Good heavens...

Tess (running around the room and then out the door): Woof woof!  Woof woof!

Cole: The door is letting Tessie doggy out!

Me: Who let the Tessie dog out?

Cole: The door.  He let the doggie out.

My awesome sense of humor is often wasted on toddlers.  Which is one of the main reasons why I blog, now that I think about it.

Who's House?

Today I was running a few errands with Cole.  (I know - it sounds crazy that I would willingly take Cole anywhere when I could easily leave him home with Lance.  But for some reason he really behaves himself on errands when it's just him!)

We were in the car chatting, when he started talking about Tess.

Cole: Tess is a guurl.

Me: Yes, Tess is a little girl.

Cole: Tess is a guurl.  She is at my house.

Me: Yep, Tess is at home.  She's at our house.

Cole: No, she lives at MY house.

Me: Our house.

Cole: MY house.  She lives in MY house.

Apparently Cole owns the house.  Well, I will gladly let him start making the mortgage payments.

Peeing It

Cole: I'm peeing it!!

Me: What?!  Hurry!  Go to the bathroom!

Cole: No.  No potty.

I look at him.  He's not "peeing it".  Then I realize that he had just stolen a sip from my cup of water and spilled a bit on his shirt.

Me: Oh - you're "spilling" it.

Cole: Yeah - peeing it.

Me: Same difference, I guess.

Cole: Yes.  But no.

Grandpa's January Visit

Lance decided he would rather spend the second week of January in Florida instead of Indiana.  I can't fault him for this, but I will fault him for not taking me.  Punk.

However, my dad came out for a bug/pest conference at Purdue, so I didn't have to spend the entire week without any help or adult interaction.

It wasn't the most exciting or fun trip he's ever had out here - Cole kept pooping in his pants (we're STILL working on that!) and was a bit of a pill (as per usual), Tess was getting some rather mean-looking molars and kept FREAKING OUT about little things, Josh and Spencer were both a bit out of sorts because it was the first week back at school after winter break, and I was a bit out of sorts because I didn't have my thyroid medication.  Wow - don't you all wish you could come visit us?  Sheesh.

But I really appreciate that he was willing to come and help with the kids, even if they weren't their usual picture-perfect selves. (HA.)

I only snapped a few pictures that week.  On Thursday night Grandpa was brave and took us all out to Tepanyaki Grill and Buffet, which the kids absolutely LOVE.  You'll understand why this was an act of bravery if you've ever been to a buffet with 4 youngish children, one of whom was very recently potty trained and the other who FREAKS OUT because her teeth hurt and you have to sneak ibuprofen into her drinks because she won't take it orally.  Sheesh.

Despite the picture, Tess loved dinner.  She gobbled lots of food up, especially the nice and soft and cool Jell-o.  She also enjoyed the chocolate ice cream so much that she slathered some in her hair, I can only assume so she could taste it again later.

She also loved having her own drink.  However, she's not so clear on the concept and likes to hold cups sideways so everything spills out.  So I ate most of my meal left-handed because my right hand was busy holding a cup for Tess.

Despite Cole's look, he also had a lovely meal and gobbled lots and lots of food.  Cole eats a bit fast and needed to be entertained while the rest of us ate, hence the phone entertainment.

Spencer ate and ate and I was impressed.  He loves that he can choose whatever he wants to eat and I don't get after him about it.  Hey, we only go to the buffet on very special occasions - no need to fight with the kids.

I tried to get a good picture of all three gentlemen, but no dice.  Sorry, Dad, not the best shot of you.

That's a little better.  Go Giants!

Grandpa spent a bit of time reading to kids on this trip.  This is good, because Tess loves - nay, DEMANDS - to be read to.  Constantly.  Seriously, lately I am always tripping over her because she'll stand right next to me while holding out a book she wants me to read.  I'll admit, I read only about 50% of the time she wants me to.  But dang things like paying the bills, making food, and cleaning up Cole's poop get in the way. ... ... What a glamorous life I lead...

And if Tess gets a story on Grandpa's lap, of course Cole does, too.  Spencer and Josh weren't too keen on the idea.  Spoiled sports.

My dad and I spent most evenings chatting and catching up.  On the last night we spent it watching the BYU/Pepperdine basketball game.  And by watching I mean I was on the computer doin' stuff and Dad was yelling at the game and the players.  No worries - come yell at our TV any time, Grandpa!  (But next time bring Susie so she can sit on the couch and do computer stuff with me. :)

Momma's Helper

Guess who thinks she has to be RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF ALL THE ACTION whenever and whatever I cook?

This little girl already likes to help measure, pour, and taste any and all ingredients. (Big fan of sugar, not so much of flour.)

Cole is a Sunbeam!

The first Sunday of the year was exciting because Cole is now in Sunbeams!

I wasn't exactly sure how he would do.  Cole has never been very good with any sort of change, especially change that includes structure or having to behave for any length of time. *cough*preschool*cough*cough*

To make things more interesting he has a newlywed couple as his teachers.  They don't have any children and they've never taught Sunbeams before. The primary had a great "Eat Breakfast with your Teachers" activity the day before, and I could tell they hadn't worked much with little kids and might have been a little intimidated.  (And who wouldn't be?!!?  I'd be scared to be a Sunbeam teacher now and Cole is my third!)

I walked Cole into Primary.  Actually, I carried him in; he was having a tantrum because he wanted to be in nursery with Daddy.  I hugged him, gave him a kiss, and plopped him onto a little chair right next to one of his teachers.  Brother Kensinger gave me a bewildered/worried look.

"Don't worry", I said, sounding waaay more confident than I felt.  "He'll do much better if I just leave."

And that's what I did.

And you know what?  He was fine!  Well, according to Josh, he cried until another little boy in his class started crying.  Hey, whatever distraction works, right?  He came out of Primary happy as a little boy can be.

I talked to the Primary president after church that day and she said he even participated and sat in his seat and everything.  You can't imagine how happy this made me, since all during Young Women's I kept worrying and imagining all the naughty things he might be doing.

He cried again the second week but apparently stopped sooner and on his own.  Hopefully he'll soon get used to the routine and because a cheerful, cute Sunbeam all of the time.

Now if we could just get Tess to stop freaking out and crying whenever I drop her off or pick her up from nursery!