Being a mom is hard.  Being a mom of two kids is really hard.  I have been on call around the clock since Madison was born almost four months ago and I am wondering if that will ever change.  Madison seems to be on a two-and-a-half to three-hour sleep/eat schedule that I just can't break her of.  Olivia thinks 6:00 a.m. is a great time to start the day and if I don't get her out of her room right away she has Madi convinced that it's a great time to start her day too.  So by the time I get the two girls to bed at night, clean up our apartment, and say hi to Daniel in between his crazy work hours, it's time to go to bed only to get woken up multiple times throughout the night and then start the next day at the crack of dawn with a toddler at my side.  Yeah, it's rough...

With life seeming a little overwhelming at times, I am trying to stay focused on the positive.  I have decided that no matter how chaotic my day (or night) can get, as long as there is one thing every day that I can smile about I'll be okay. 

So here are some things that have made me smile:

Madison is completely fascinated with Olivia.  And Olivia is completely oblivious that she has an audience.  The other day I put Madi in her Bumbo seat so she could sit up for a few minutes.  She started getting fussy until Olivia brought her seat over and sat right next to Madi to read her book.  Madi was just as interested in staring at Olivia as Olivia was at reading her book.  It's so cute that Olivia has an admirer.  And it's awesome that Madison has her own personal entertainment that's not mom. :)

Olivia is getting so big.  I can't believe she is two years old.  She constantly talks and sings all day long.  It is so fun for me to finally get a glimpse at what is going on inside her head.  At random times throughout the day I will realize that sounds coming out of Olivia's mouth that I thought were random are actually words to songs she is singing.  I think my favorite one is The Itsy Bitsy Spider.  She doesn't remember how to end the song so instead of singing "went up the spout again," she keeps singing "went up the water spout" so the song never ends.

Madison is turning into a little goon.  If she knows I am looking at her, she will smile a big cheesy smile that lights up her whole face.  I have gotten her to laugh a few times now and that honestly makes my day.  Her two favorite games to play are peek-a-boo and having mommy kiss her cheeks back and forth really fast.  She is so sweet and so happy and just seeing her face makes me laugh.

In the past two days Olivia has discovered that it's fun to bring Madi toys.  One of her favorite toys to bring Madi is a little pink dog that barks and walks back and forth.  That always gets a smile out of Madi, especially around bath time.  Madi is definitely happiest around bath time.  She will fuss all through dinner time and she won't stop until she hears the water running in the bathtub.  Then she's content to wait her turn for a bath, even if it's fifteen minutes, because she knows it's coming.  

Another toy that Olivia loves entertaining Madi with is her Tinker Bell toy that spins around and lights up.  After putting Madi down to sleep tonight, I came out to find Olivia holding the toy up for her doll Gracie to see.  She had even pulled her quilt off of her bed for Gracie to lay on.  So cute.

Life may be crazy right now, but I have two little girls that give me a reason to smile every day.  And for me that makes all the chaos worth it.