Spontaneous.

Had a great impromptu play session with the neighbor boys.  They are twins, 10 months younger than Charlotte, or thereabouts.  She has been really interested in them lately, and they think she has good toys (she does) so they get along great.  I also really like their mom, who is easy to talk to and very mellow.  I think if you have toddler twin boys living in a small apartment, you are kind of forced into mellowness, at least when it comes to things like Charlotte feeding them snacks from their snack traps (WTF?) or the grabbiness & mess that comes from 3 toddlers, 3 containers of bubble solution, 1 tray, and 25+ bubble wands.  Charlotte had a blast, and did a relatively good job sharing.  There was some grabbing, but no pushing or hitting, which was a big relief to me.  Granted, Charlotte has never hit another kid, but then, she doesn't really play with other kids, either, so who knows what could happen with repeated exposure?

Anyway, it was really nice to spend an hour chilling with the mom & kids, and her mom came by later ("Meemaw!!") and then Matt came home, and it was just a nice neighborhood moment.  The other mom (I do know her name, I'm just being discreet) confessed that she was really glad that we were outside and had an activity - she was having one of those days where she couldn't tell whether she was making a big deal out of nothing, or if the kids were being particularly badly behaved.  God, I know that feeling well.  It's the end of the day and you feel exhausted and worn out, and all sense of perspective is gone.  I'm so glad we could all have a break for an hour or so while our kids were well-behaved, cute, and friendly.

Meanwhile, in other mom-of-twins news (horribly segue, I know), Jane is going to be writing a memoir!  I'm excited because I've been reading her blog for a LONG time (probably around the time Charlotte was born), and I like her writing style and her stories.  Plus, her kids are cute and she lives in Massachusetts.  (I'm what you call a "homer."  I am vastly interested in anything from my home area, and that especially includes writers.)  Way to go, Jane!

Frustrated.

I am deciding that I'm tired of all the negativity and scare tactics surrounding parenting media. I love Babble.com more than any other "parenting" site out there, but I am getting frustrated with the tone in the Strollerderby blog section. Everything is kind of tossed off casually and carelessly, with an eye to the most controversial story and thing to say. Luckily people are starting to come down on the bloggers in the comments, but I'm a little irritated. I have more specific things to say on this, but I'll get to it later.

Same thing with the attachment parenting group on LiveJournal. Super-strict definitions about what it means to be AP, with all these weird sub-sets that have nothing to do with actual attachment parenting. Panicky posts on vaccination campaigns and hysterical posts about how to talk to a friend who formula feeds. Here's a hint people - everyone friggin' knows that breast is best. What do you think a mom is going to say if you say to her, "You know, breastfeeding really is the best way to feed your child..." Do you think she's going to say, "Wow, no one has ever told me that before!" I can't believe that there is so little critical thought out there.

I don't know, I'm just tired and lonely.

And why can't I find any more summer shoes for my kid? I just want a pair of sandals in size 4! There's still a full month of summer left, not to mention that September in Massachusetts is really hot.

I just found these baby boots on Old Navy - cute or hooker? I can't decide.