Slugs and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails

What makes a boy do 'boy things'?

I'm currently reading a book about boys (James Dobson, Bringing Up Boys) and although I'm only in the second chapter it's already made me think about, well, boys.

In particular, it made me think about all the boy things that my boys do, or have done. Of course I'm a very generous person so let me share the things that my boys do or seem to think that make them *boys*:

• every moveable object is a projectile


• chooks 'enjoy' going down the slide


• playdough is edible


• dirty is a better state to be in then clean


• playing with cars always ends up as 'demolition derby'


• playing with dirt is good, lying in dirt while playing is better


• 'clothes' should be an option rather then a necessity


• every stick is a gun, or a club
  
• every item above knee height is a platform to leap from
• Daddy knows everything, especially more then Mummy


• Daddy is Superman


• Quiet? what's that?


• Sleep? what?


• any physical boundary, such as a fence, is a climbing frame


• anyone lying on the floor wants to wrestle


• any body of water is fair game, including puddles, dog bowls and guinea pig water droppers


• skin is better then paper for drawing


• brothers make soft landings

What are little boys made of?

I'm so glad I have boys.

Thanks to my boys, I now know the life cycle of a snail.

Of course, I realise now that my life was never complete without this information. Did you know that snails are neither male nor female? Each snail possesses both male and female reproductive organs, but they still need to find another snail to mate with, to exchange bodily fluids.

Try explaining that to a 3 year old.

Jeremy:

I've decided however that collecting snails is a very worthwhile activity. Not only do my boys learn about snails, but they are happily occupied for hours on end. Pull up a patch of ground, especially in Sydney after it's been raining, hand them a bucket, and leave them to it.

Your mother-in-law may however return at regular intervals to see your oldest boy allowing the snails to crawl up his arm. Your MIL may also have to allow your oldest boy to ring up daddy to cry over the phone about his brother stepping on his snail, and to ask if the shell will grow back.

I think whoever coined the rhyme that little boys are made of slugs and snails and puppy dog tails knew what they were talking about.

Isaac

As the mother of four small boys I often get comments when I'm out and about with them. These range from the 'you're crazy' type to the 'wow, i had four boys too' type. The comment that pops up the most however is 'what good little angels' "how do you do it?". By 'it' I assume people mean how do I look after 4 small boys and stay sane. Well, let me share my secret here - i'm really not sane at all. Totally insane infact. Just ask my husband (who's currently standing behind me nodding). Just ask my 4 small boys.

Okay, really, I'm going to share a few of my tips here of how I look after 4 small boys and keep my sanity. There's nothing super about any of these tips, it's just what works for us, and no doubt these will change and evolve in the future anyway. Here we go:

Tip #1 I stay home. DH and I agreed from day one that when we had kids, i'd stay home to look after them. For me this means I can just enjoy being with my kids. I see everything they do, love to watch them grow, and so this of course means that most of their bad habits are learnt from me. It also helps to have the best DH in the whole world who is a great father and supportive husband.

Tip #2 I keep a sense of humour. I love the saying 'don't sweat the petty things'. Spilt poo milk? It's easily fixed, or teach them to wipe it up. They're fighting? Make them sit holding hands for 5 minutes. Be creative in dealing with issues. These things happen, teach yourself to not stress about the little things.

Tip #3 I don't under-estimate the ability of my kids. Kids LOVE to help around the house when they are young, so let them, and teach them. A 2 year old can help mummy dust, match socks together, help load the washing machine, set the table etc. It doesn't have to be perfect!

Tip #4 If you have to go somewhere, getting them out of the house is the first step. Mothers with a few small children will totally understand this one. If you have to go out, the time it takes to put on 4 pairs of shoes, clean 4 faces, ensure 4 small bodies are adequately dressed, get your nappy bag/water bottles/snacks/car keys/wallet, etc, together and get them all INTO the car (before #3 wets his pants) makes you wonder if you really need to go out. I learnt after boy#3 that if I just get them out the door into the back yard 5 or 10 minutes before we have to leave, it makes the actual leaving much easier, and means I can spend that 5 or 10 minutes getting myself organised. BUT don't forget to give them strict instructions to NOT go into the sandpit or near any water!!

Tip #5 Keep it simple. I'm not into complicated. In fact, i'm into simple. VERY simple. Forget designer sneakers or boots with tie up laces. Forget overalls that they can't undo themselves. Think gum boots, think thongs (as in shoes), think velcro. Snaps are better then buttons. Elastic waist shorts with no buttons or snaps are better. A 2 year old can learn quite quickly to put on gum boots. But it doesn't match his outfit I hear you say? He's 2. I don't think he cares.

Tip #6 To save on dressing time, I usually lay my kids' clothes out for them to put on. I often make 'undie' men. Stay with me on this one - lay out their pants, then shirt above the pants like a person, then put their undies as the 'head'. The leg holes look like eyes if you lay them flat. Trust me, it makes a dull job interesting. The boys dress themselves from the pile of clothes, or from the undie men, and then come to me for any help they need (#3 can't quite pull his shirt over his head). #3 may have also attended church a few times with his shorts backwards, but hey, I don't think God cares. *Warning* Undie men may frighten very small boys, and then you'll have to show them that it's not real, it's just their undies pretending to be a head.

Tip#7 If you keep their hair pretty short you can just about get away without brushing it until they are old enough to do it themselves. (Did I just admit to that?!) It also makes washing hair a very easy job.

Tip #8 Learn to read the signs. If you send the kids outside to play before they start jumping on the furniture and running up and down the hallway, your house will stay cleaner and you will stay saner.

Tip #9 Spend time playing with them. What's more important - a clean kitchen or content kids? Well I guess it depends on who's coming over! But seriously, if you spend time doing things with your kids, they'll play much better by themselves which will allow you time to clean that kitchen. Besides, it's fun. What would you rather be doing, building a Lego Air Traffic Control Tower or washing dishes??

Tip #10 Don't underestimate the power of the playpen. Playpen means sanity. Playpen means baby is safe while you shower/clean or play lego. Playpen means that baby/toddler learns to play by themselves, instead of always being entertained by older siblings. Playpen breeds concentration and focusing skills. All my kids love/ed the playpen. It didn't stifle their creativity. Repeat after me "the playpen is my friend". When they outgrow the playpen, move to 'room time'. Individual play, time to themselves, is important for kids. They'll play a lot better with their siblings if they have time to play by themselves.

Tip #11 Rest time is a good time. Don't feel guilty about feeling happy when you put all your small boys to bed and you have some 'me' time. I love putting my baby to bed, but I also love it when he wakes up - and he's so happy when he's well rested. All my boys have a rest time - older kids can read quietly on their beds. Rest time is good.

Tip #12 Finally, my last tip for tonight (I need my rest time too) is probably the most important. To stay sane whilst looking after my four boys, I love their dad. Work on your marriage relationship. Honour, respect and love your husband like the Bible calls us to, and it's much more likely that he'll love you and support you as you need him to. The benefits are endless for this one, for every member of the family.

That's it for tonight. No doubt I'll think of more, better tips later. But for now, it's good night from me, and good night from them...

(yep, that's A. BREAD. ROLL. they're having for lunch. Hey, they're wholemeal. And they had an apple afterwards. Repeat after me: Keep It Simple.)

Updates

We have 'officially' begun homeschooling. Although we've been teaching JP and JA for a while, JP is now officially registered as he turns 6 this year. I'll update with various snippets as we go, but so far so good.

Things are slowly getting back to normal, with PVT back at work now. We are hoping to move in about a month or so, but knowing us it'll be two months!!

We've been having a few late afternoon/evening thunderstorms lately, although it hasn't made a dint in the temperature which just keeps rising. We're thankful for air conditioning :). I took a couple of photo's of one of the storms the other week, the cloud formations were amazing. The photo's weren't too bad, here's a couple...

And some updates of the boys: