Drue amazes me with the things she remembers. She remembers people, places, situations, and word for word what people say, just to name a few examples.
Today on our way out the door to pick Reese up from school, I grabbed Drue a sweatshirt to put on. (By the way, I'm loving that it's the end of November and we are able to go outside in sweatshirts!)
I grabbed a rainbow striped fleece sweatshirt that hardly ever gets worn anymore but just happened to be the first thing I spotted on the closet shelf. She eyed it skeptically, as she does any article of clothing she isn't very familiar. Giving it the once over to ascertain if there is any part of it which will cause her discomfort.
But suddenly she smiled and her eyes filled with recognition.
"Ohhhhhh yeah....I remember that. That's what I was wearing that one day when I fell down and got blue stuff all over me."
I was at a loss about what she was talking about so I probed her further. And she elaborated.
"Yeah, I was wearing that sweatshirt and I fell in there (she pointed to our laundry room) in the blue stuff that was all over the floor and it got all over me. And you were in the basement working on the computer and so I went down there to tell you about it. Because you didn't have a computer up here yet so you had to go the basement."
W-O-W!
Then it dawned on me what she was referring to. I had to search quite a ways back in my blog to find it. Do you remember? She was remembering the laundry detergent fiasco from March 2008!
Un. Be. Lieveable.
Monday, November 23, 2009
Giving Thanks
This is, and forever will be, one of my all time favorite holiday pictures. I can't believe it's from 2005! How could 4years have gone by so quickly?
Reese had just turned 3. Drue had just turned 1. And Tate was a mere 6 months from making his appearance in the world.
I miss these years.
I miss these little girls.
But I love the ones who have grown in their place.
And their brother too.
We are so blessed.
Friday, November 20, 2009
That's my Boy
The kids LOVE pointing out to me new things they can do by themselves.
"Mom! I can reach the sink without the step stool!".
"Look! I put my shoes on the right feet! All by myself!".
Reese washes her own apples and makes microwave popcorn all on her own.
Some time ago I teasingly started saying, "Awwww....you don't need your Mommy anymore" after yet another revelation of something they could do for themselves.
The girls are both quick to assure me that they do still need me. It's become a little game between us.
"But Mommy, I can't drive," one will say encouragingly.
"Mommy, I can't straighten my own hair" has also been used.
Tate, however, is a different story altogether.
Tonight he was excited to show me that he could unscrew his water bottle lid.
"I can do it all by myself!" he squealed with a big smile on his face.
Of course I responded, "Awwwww, Tate, you don't need your Mommy anymore."
To which he simply replied, "Nope".
And went on his merry way.
"Mom! I can reach the sink without the step stool!".
"Look! I put my shoes on the right feet! All by myself!".
Reese washes her own apples and makes microwave popcorn all on her own.
Some time ago I teasingly started saying, "Awwww....you don't need your Mommy anymore" after yet another revelation of something they could do for themselves.
The girls are both quick to assure me that they do still need me. It's become a little game between us.
"But Mommy, I can't drive," one will say encouragingly.
"Mommy, I can't straighten my own hair" has also been used.
Tate, however, is a different story altogether.
Tonight he was excited to show me that he could unscrew his water bottle lid.
"I can do it all by myself!" he squealed with a big smile on his face.
Of course I responded, "Awwwww, Tate, you don't need your Mommy anymore."
To which he simply replied, "Nope".
And went on his merry way.
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Sugar Daddy
That man I married. *Sigh*
He riles the kids up right before bedtime when he should be evoking calm and relaxation.
He thinks Kool-aid is an approved breakfast drink. And never washes off their subsequent colored mustache before church.
And he pulls a stunt like the one he pulled this evening...
I was sitting on the fireplace when Drue came and plopped down beside me. She asked me a question and the unmistakable fruity smell of sugary something or other wafted out of her mouth.
"Drue, what did you just eat?" I asked accusingly.
Smart girl that she is, she didn't simply say "Candy".
She said, "Well, Daddy gave me some candy to eat."
The clock read 7:42pm. Ugh.
Rather than hoot and holler and try and pry the remaining bits of the offending substance from her mouth, I just sat there trying to decide how to respond.
"Daddy gave me some candy too," Reese added.
So I said teasingly, "But you reminded Daddy that you aren't supposed to be eating candy this close to bedtime right? And you know that the correct response to Daddy's offer would have been to say 'No thank you' right?".
Reese thought for a second before saying, "Ummmm...I'll have to get back to you on that one."
He riles the kids up right before bedtime when he should be evoking calm and relaxation.
He thinks Kool-aid is an approved breakfast drink. And never washes off their subsequent colored mustache before church.
And he pulls a stunt like the one he pulled this evening...
I was sitting on the fireplace when Drue came and plopped down beside me. She asked me a question and the unmistakable fruity smell of sugary something or other wafted out of her mouth.
"Drue, what did you just eat?" I asked accusingly.
Smart girl that she is, she didn't simply say "Candy".
She said, "Well, Daddy gave me some candy to eat."
The clock read 7:42pm. Ugh.
Rather than hoot and holler and try and pry the remaining bits of the offending substance from her mouth, I just sat there trying to decide how to respond.
"Daddy gave me some candy too," Reese added.
So I said teasingly, "But you reminded Daddy that you aren't supposed to be eating candy this close to bedtime right? And you know that the correct response to Daddy's offer would have been to say 'No thank you' right?".
Reese thought for a second before saying, "Ummmm...I'll have to get back to you on that one."
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Character
I try to instill in my children how important it is to have character.
And I've explained to them that means: doing the right thing even when no one is looking. I go a bit further and remind them that God is always watching, even when other people aren't.
Reese is figuring that out. The other two still try and sneak around just trying not to get caught at times.
Another one of Tate's lovely table manners (besides noodle stuffing)is dipping/putting his food in his drink. Just one more reason no one in the family will share a drink with him. Ever.
For some reason that container of liquid is a huge temptation for him and in goes his noodles, hot dogs, salad, etc. And out comes milky, watery, kool-aidy fingers.
Tonight was a quick hodge podge supper before I had to dash the girls off to choir practice. Drue chose PB&J, Reese chose turkey cheese dogs, and Tate chose grilled cheese.
He wolfed down his sandwich and was still hungry. So I relented to him having a few cinnamon graham crackers as well.
I was standing by the sink and happened to look over at him just in time to see his little hand holding a graham cracker poised above his cup of milk. A graham cracker dipped in milk doesn't sound so bad. But he would probably saturate it and pull it back out so quickly that the soggy mess would fling all over the walls.
I simply said (in my motherly warning tone): "Tate....".
He looked like a deer caught in the headlights, then gave me a little grin and pointed behind me and said, "Face your head that way."
Actually, he thinks the word your has an "s" on the end, so what he actually said was, "Face yours head that way."
Back to the character lessons.
And I've explained to them that means: doing the right thing even when no one is looking. I go a bit further and remind them that God is always watching, even when other people aren't.
Reese is figuring that out. The other two still try and sneak around just trying not to get caught at times.
Another one of Tate's lovely table manners (besides noodle stuffing)is dipping/putting his food in his drink. Just one more reason no one in the family will share a drink with him. Ever.
For some reason that container of liquid is a huge temptation for him and in goes his noodles, hot dogs, salad, etc. And out comes milky, watery, kool-aidy fingers.
Tonight was a quick hodge podge supper before I had to dash the girls off to choir practice. Drue chose PB&J, Reese chose turkey cheese dogs, and Tate chose grilled cheese.
He wolfed down his sandwich and was still hungry. So I relented to him having a few cinnamon graham crackers as well.
I was standing by the sink and happened to look over at him just in time to see his little hand holding a graham cracker poised above his cup of milk. A graham cracker dipped in milk doesn't sound so bad. But he would probably saturate it and pull it back out so quickly that the soggy mess would fling all over the walls.
I simply said (in my motherly warning tone): "Tate....".
He looked like a deer caught in the headlights, then gave me a little grin and pointed behind me and said, "Face your head that way."
Actually, he thinks the word your has an "s" on the end, so what he actually said was, "Face yours head that way."
Back to the character lessons.
Doggone It
Reese's class has an "Estimation Jar".
It's a small plastic container with a lid that each child gets a turn to take home and fill with small items for the class to estimate. Whoever guesses correctly, or the closest, gets to bring it home next.
This week they were guessing the number of miniature marshmallows. Reese was so excited that she guessed correctly and got to bring it home.
"Mom! I guessed 70 marshmallows and know what?! There were 70 in there!".
So we started brainstorming about what she could put in the container. She suggested none other than Reese's Pieces! So cute.
We picked a few small bags up at the checkout counter when we went to Target last night. After we got home, I walked into the living room and saw pieces of blue and clear plastic in the middle of the floor. Upon closer inspection, I discovered a big plastic piece that had "Estimation Jar" written on it in marker. The beagles must have picked up the scent of the marshmallows!
Oops.
The child is only in 1st grade and already has to tell her teacher that her dog ate her homework!
It's a small plastic container with a lid that each child gets a turn to take home and fill with small items for the class to estimate. Whoever guesses correctly, or the closest, gets to bring it home next.
This week they were guessing the number of miniature marshmallows. Reese was so excited that she guessed correctly and got to bring it home.
"Mom! I guessed 70 marshmallows and know what?! There were 70 in there!".
So we started brainstorming about what she could put in the container. She suggested none other than Reese's Pieces! So cute.
We picked a few small bags up at the checkout counter when we went to Target last night. After we got home, I walked into the living room and saw pieces of blue and clear plastic in the middle of the floor. Upon closer inspection, I discovered a big plastic piece that had "Estimation Jar" written on it in marker. The beagles must have picked up the scent of the marshmallows!
Oops.
The child is only in 1st grade and already has to tell her teacher that her dog ate her homework!
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Dinner Conversations from this Evening
Tonight we all sat down to a lovely dinner of steak, noodles with cheese sauce, and salad. Around the dining room table and everything. Which is where our family has graduated to. We outgrew the kitchen table, but sometimes, if we're in a hurry, or just too lazy to clear off the day to day junk that tends to accumulate on the dining room table, the kids will eat at the kitchen table, I will hop up onto the counter and eat, and David will just stand. An endearing family picture, I know. But it happens.
Anyway, back to this evening's tale. I think I will be one of those mothers who cuts up her children's food into teensy bite sized pieces until they're in junior high. Probably out of habit from all those years of having to be so careful about what they put in their mouth.
Tonight I cut up the steak but just sort of slopped the noodles on everyone's plate. Reese isn't a big noodle eater anyway. Drue eats them just a few at a time and very carefully. But I forgot about Tate's tendency to shove all his food into his mouth at once like he has just returned from a refugee camp, and is eating his first good meal in months.
He shoved in a large helping of noodles and gagged a tiny bit, then promptly started pulling them back out of his mouth. Long, full sized, noodles.
Once his mouth was clear of noodles, he commented, "These noodles are good...but they choke me!".
Before you call child protective services, I did promptly get up and cut his noodles into inch sized pieces.
Meanwhile, Drue was making her way through her little meal. Halfway through her second helping she said that her foot had fallen asleep. (Probably from kicking mine 32 times under the table).
A few seconds later she said, "Oooooh, it feels all krinkly!".
Anyway, back to this evening's tale. I think I will be one of those mothers who cuts up her children's food into teensy bite sized pieces until they're in junior high. Probably out of habit from all those years of having to be so careful about what they put in their mouth.
Tonight I cut up the steak but just sort of slopped the noodles on everyone's plate. Reese isn't a big noodle eater anyway. Drue eats them just a few at a time and very carefully. But I forgot about Tate's tendency to shove all his food into his mouth at once like he has just returned from a refugee camp, and is eating his first good meal in months.
He shoved in a large helping of noodles and gagged a tiny bit, then promptly started pulling them back out of his mouth. Long, full sized, noodles.
Once his mouth was clear of noodles, he commented, "These noodles are good...but they choke me!".
Before you call child protective services, I did promptly get up and cut his noodles into inch sized pieces.
Meanwhile, Drue was making her way through her little meal. Halfway through her second helping she said that her foot had fallen asleep. (Probably from kicking mine 32 times under the table).
A few seconds later she said, "Oooooh, it feels all krinkly!".
Wednesday, November 04, 2009
Birthdays
Whew.
We have officially made it through the birthday hullabaloo that surrounds the girls' celebrations each Fall. With their birthdays being just 3 weeks apart, it gets kind of busy. Buying gifts for each of them, planning friend parties, planning family parties, cleaning, and decorating for each gathering. And this year, canceling friends/family parties for Reese due to illness and then trying to reschedule them back into our already seemingly packed Fall weekend agenda.
Don't misread this. I love, love, love everything that goes along with celebrating their special days but having that behind us now, and with having Halloween thrown in there also, we are sitting back and catching our breath for a moment.
The kids have fun figuring out who has the next birthday within our household and beginning to plan it. Knowing full well that his birthday is next in line in February, David asked the kids excitedly the other day, "Who has the next birthday coming up?".
Drue deflated his birthday balloon a bit when she answered, "Jesus!".
We have officially made it through the birthday hullabaloo that surrounds the girls' celebrations each Fall. With their birthdays being just 3 weeks apart, it gets kind of busy. Buying gifts for each of them, planning friend parties, planning family parties, cleaning, and decorating for each gathering. And this year, canceling friends/family parties for Reese due to illness and then trying to reschedule them back into our already seemingly packed Fall weekend agenda.
Don't misread this. I love, love, love everything that goes along with celebrating their special days but having that behind us now, and with having Halloween thrown in there also, we are sitting back and catching our breath for a moment.
The kids have fun figuring out who has the next birthday within our household and beginning to plan it. Knowing full well that his birthday is next in line in February, David asked the kids excitedly the other day, "Who has the next birthday coming up?".
Drue deflated his birthday balloon a bit when she answered, "Jesus!".
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