Double the Fun

I love the latest phase of the girls’ development. They’ve become a lot more talkative and I can now enjoy entertaining conversations with them. In fact, we had an interesting conversation the other day over dinner:

Giggles: Mommy, I love you really big because you are big.

Me: And how big is that?

Giggles: Like that big, big chair over there!

Me: So tell me, girls, why do you love Mommy?

Cuddles: Because we do nice things together, you help me, you play with me, we draw together, we do puzzles, and you buy me gifts.

Me: And how about you, Giggles?

Giggles: Because you make me waffles and pancakes!

I laughed my heart out at Giggles and was moved beyond words at how cute she and Cuddles were. That conversation also made me realize a few important things and was a wakeup call in some way. I was reminded yet again that what we see as small things are sometimes huge from their perspective, like that “big, big” chair. We know how children cherish the time they spend with their parents, but hearing it from my own daughters in such detail and so well articulated just blew me away completely.

I do spend time with my children; we do a lot of different activities together but I have always juggled that with all the other responsibilities like cooking, doing the laundry and organizing things around the house. Now I try to prioritize and whenever possible involve them by asking them to help me out with a few things like preparing the food for cooking, setting the table for dinner or doing the beds. Whenever I hold my phone to read an article I’ve been wanting to read, reply to a message or forward an email, I pause and remind myself that this can certainly wait.

I’m constantly thinking of different activities we can do together. We have a great time role-playing, which is lots of fun at this age. Last week I was Cinderella, Giggles was the Prince, and Cuddles was the fairy. We had a good laugh as I was dancing with Giggles and then had to run and my slipper slipped as the clock struck midnight. I also sometimes use role-playing to show them how certain behaviours can be unpleasant or annoying. We play that they are my parents and I am the child and start behaving like they would sometimes. We laugh and hopefully learn something out of it as well. We also play “I spy with my little eye” using colours, which they love.

Now that we are starting to see warmer, sunnier days I am really looking forward to summertime, the sun, the beach, spending time with family back home, and the girls playing with their cousins and friends. Regardless of the weather or where we are, I now know that we will have a great summer together whether we are doing indoor activities like making waffles or painting or enjoying the sun outdoors and building sand castles.

By Didi in Zurich

Didi is an Egyptian mother of twin girls living in Zurich. Before having the twins she worked in the field of economic development. She is currently a stay-at-home mom focused on the growth and development of her daughters.

Illustration by Laura Munteanu

Laura has studied Journalism and Advertising, and has been working as a journalist and an illustrator. She has been illustrating for magazines, websites, charity and diverse campaigns. She lives in Zurich with her husband and eight-year-old daughter.