Teenage years

I get a lot of "how do you do it with four kids age 3 and under?"  And then when they realize that also means I will have FOUR teenagers at once, people usually laugh.  It is pretty amusing to think about.  I cannot even imagine what that will be like.  And I will be an OLD mom by that point with even less energy and patience.  Oh no.

Here are the top 10 reasons, in no particular order, why I have good cause to be scared of the teenage years:

10. The smarty pants/talking back has already begun.  Annabel was refusing to do something I asked her to do, so I said, "Annabel, you do not tell me no."  She said "I didn't, I said uh-uh."  AND when she was doing something she was not supposed to be doing, I told her to stop and said daddy also already told her to stop.  She said "no, he told me to quit."  Oh my.

9.  They say "BUT" after everything!  "Annabel, sit down."  "But ... I was just ... "  OR "Madeline, stop talking and eat."  "But ... I want to ... "  It does not matter what I ask or what they are doing.  One day I kept shushing Madeline everything she would say "but."  It got to be comical, and we were both laughing because she could NOT figure out how to respond to me without saying "but."  Scary.

8. The girls play their little game where they say "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"  Yep, I'm outnumbered.

7. Madeline changes outfits/costumes multiple times a day, and often prefers to run around with no clothes on.  Yikes.

6. They will be in the backseat arguing like "no, it's not" ... "yes, it is" ... "no, it's not" ... etc.  About anything.  The color of the car beside us.  What movie they want to watch.  Anything.  And then I tell them to stop, so they get quiet for a minute.  And then Madeline says "hey, Annabel, let's fight again!"  Really?!?!

5. If I am walking down the hall, they say "hurry, hide, the mean witch is coming."  I'll show you a mean witch.

4. Annabel has already learned how to be sneaky.  I heard something in the kitchen about 4 a.m. one morning while I was feeding Elliot.  I thought I was imagining it.  I finally got up to check it out and found Annabel IN the pantry (it is not a walk in pantry so she was wedged in the few inches between the shelves and door trying to hide) unwrapping and eating chocolate (Dove dark chocolate squares) as fast and quietly as she could.  She was not happy when she got busted and screamed all the way back to her room.  Yep, she's got a chocolate problem.  Halloween candy created a monster.

3. We were at a stoplight beside a car apparently full of men because from the back seat, Madeline proudly announced, "Mommy, those men smiled at me."  And followed up with "when I look at men, they always smile at me."  Daddy, are you ready for that one?

2.  They boss everyone, including their brothers, daddy and me, around.  Oh so bossy. I cannot imagine where they got that?

And last but certainly not least,

1. They already slam their door and lock it!  Yes, they love to lock us out of their room.  We have had to use the key to pick the lock countless times already.  They are THREE years old.  Maybe their room in our next house just does not need to have a lock.  Or a door.

Can't you just tell from these faces how entertaining and mischievous they can be?

That was school picture day 2012.  Madeline refused to wear the orange shirt that goes under the dress, and insisted on pink ... her favorite color.  I pick my battles.  I just hope the photographer got more cooperation than I did.  Have not seen the final product yet.  Silly girls.