Too much cuteness.

I feel like I need to "write these things down" that my kids have been doing/saying or I'm going to forget them. Who should I start with? Eli, I guess, since I don't have as many things on him...yet. I have the feeling he's going to be a ham. The other day I heard him call for me and, lo and behold, I turned the corner in my room and he was laying down on the floor with a diaper in one hand and the Desitin in the other. He did need both, smart little fella. My best friend Julie visited today and has a little boy that is 8 months old. Eli waved at him and immediately brought him a ball. It's like an unspoken code, I think. He is getting more interested in books lately, too, which is exciting to me. One of his favorites is a very cute little Sandra Boynton book called "Moo, Baa, La La La" in which the "cow says moo, the sheep says baa, three singing pigs say la la la." I was reading a different book to him today and pointed to a pig, asking him what a pig says. He answered immediately "la la la". And finally, his most (in?)famous moment these last couple weeks, is the following....A picture is worth a thousand words.

 Now for Sadie. As I'm sure I have mentioned in the past, Sadie is our little night owl. If she takes a nap, or even sometimes if she doesn't, that girl can easily see 10, 11pm at night. The other night she was really wired but was obediently staying in her room. I went up around 10:30 and she had cleaned her entire room (it had been quite messy). I was very impressed, and will no longer take the excuse that she can't pick up. I gave her 30 more minutes to wind down then was ready for bed myself. I went in and laid down with her, thinking surely that would get her to go to sleep. She kept wiggling and I told her she needed to stay quiet if she wanted me to stay in there. Her reply "I just can't keep my eyes and my mouth shut." The story of her life! She was in the nursery at another church just last night and there was a little bitty baby there. The nursery worker was asking her very kindly to not get too close to the baby. Sadie was a little confused so she said "is she allergic to people?". I apoligize if these are not new stories (they usually make it briefly to facebook before I get around to blogging). As I mentioned earlier we had some great company today. Sadie loves Anna and Abbey Hylton but at times the two 3 year olds are a little too strong-willed and forget how much they like each other. We worked through it though and I think in time these 3 little girls will be best buddies - if they're not already. Here is a picture of a good moment.

Until next time.....Goodnight!

The difference between boys and girls...

My cousin told me this summer about a book she read, talking about gender differences. The author of the book had a little girl and determined to raise her gender neutral (she didn't buy her "girl toys"). She thought she had proved her point that culture creates the feminism of little girl's interest, until she came into the room finding her daughter putting the fire truck to bed. It was tucked under a blanket and the little girl was telling it goodnight in a completely motherly way. If I had any doubts that we are born girls or born boys, from the inside out, they have been erased since having Sadie and Eli. She is so maternal, almost always carrying some sort of "baby" around with her. I have realized this week that the only toy necessary for Eli is a ball. He was throwing apples around today in the kitchen. That and beating things with his golf clubs (usually Sadie). Here are some pictures to prove my point:



You can see the buggy behind Eli, filled with balls (lemons and oranges, actually)


Meanwhile, Sadie's buggy is filled with a good assortment of grains, veggies, and fruit.


 Eli's choice of profession, I guess, includes wearing a hat and yelling.


 Sadie's profession, as suspected, involves babies.


 They did work quite well together at the pizza shop (part time job in a few years??)



And putting on a wild animal show.


 Just a hunch, but I'm pretty sure Papa is the favorite in Charlotte.


 And clearly the admiraion is quite mutual with these two.

I am thankful for my girl and my boy, and that the Lord made them just as they should be!
p.s. Isn't Sadie's new haircut cute? :)

Preschool!!

I can't believe it, but Sadie started preschool today! She usually embraces life, anything new, so she surprised me this morning by saying she didn't want to go. I woke her up a little after 8 and she tried to go back to bed. So Steven started talking to her and said that she at least needed to go to get his money back, since he'd already paid for a month of preschool. She thought about that a little, then told me that she'd get some other money for Daddy. I was making pancakes, not making a big deal about it, when Sadie spotted her new lunchbox. I told her she wouldn't need that if she didn't want to go to school....so she said "maybe I'll go for just a little while". Carrying her backpack and lunchbox was very exciting, and she did great with the drop off. Eli, on the other hand, had a very concerned look on his face the whole time, and when we got back into the car he looked at her car seat with a sad face and said "dadie" Again at home he seemed to be looking for her, so I think he took it the hardest. He was very happy to have her home this afternoon. She bounded into the car, very excited, and seemed a little more grown up. She was very proud of her sticker, and told me she got it because "I beed good and sat still". I'm hoping this extra authority and structure will be good for her because her behavior has been unusually good today. Even in the bed tonight she told me, when I tucked her in, that she was being still (all except for her feet).
I am guilty of living a little in the future, always looking forward to the next thing. Too much so, and I am doing better lately of enjoying the present. Especially when it seems like just yesterday that we found out we were pregnant with Sadie (but it's been almost 4 years!) and today I packed her up and sent her to preschool. I (finally) weaned Eli just last week. My babies are growing up right before my eyes! And I'm loving every minute of it.