Terrific Quote

Wow! Two blog entries in one day - CRAZY!!

I found this quote on a MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) email and it made me laugh. I have to admit, though, that I don't blame my in-laws for my children's "quirks" because I have the best in-laws ever!! However, I'm sure there are some of you that can relate!! :) Here it is:

"All good qualities in a child are the result of environment, while all the bad ones are the result of poor heredity on the side of the other parent." (Elinor Goulding Smith)

Happy Halloween!!!

Another Smarty Pants!

If you read the comments left on my previous blog entry, you'll find that Lorinda thinks it is Allie who is the smarty pants - after all, the behavior chart went missing... Aaah, I think that is entirely correct and I have further evidence to prove it. When Morgan and Allie are sent to bed, they are supposed to stay in their room (otherwise Mommy gets quite annoyed!!). So, when Allie wants something, she usually just yells & yells until I respond. Sometimes, though, Morgan will come out of their room to tell me that Allie wants me. Okay. Well, the other night, Morgan comes out of bed to tell me that Allie wants me and that she sent Morgan to tell me so that Allie wouldn't get in trouble for being out of bed!! Terry & I got a huge laugh out of that one. AND! It is proof that Allie is a thinker - though possibly a bit devious... :)

The Problem Solver

As I've mentioned before, Allie whines & cries a bit too often - apparently my singing "Don't Cry for Me, Argentina!" didn't work as well as I had hoped. However, big sister Morgan may have just cured the problem (okay, not entirely - but any improvement is better than none at all, right?!)! One day, Morgan informs Allie that she has made a behavior chart with 7 flowers on it (one for each day of the week). If Allie cries during the day, Morgan will "X" out the flower. And if Allie doesn't cry, Morgan will circle the flower. Talk about instant success!! Allie was VERY concerned about whether her flower would get an "X" or a circle! If she started crying during the day, I'd mention Morgan's behavior chart & she'd stop crying immediately. Unfortunately, the chart went missing so I'll have to see if Morgan can make another one for me. Obviously, the chart only works when Allie can see it! :)

Is my Morgan a smarty pants or what?!

My little reader...

I just have to take a minute to brag on my wonderful, little student - Morgan!! I'm so proud of how she's doing in school and she just loves to read! Every day, as part of her homework, she brings home a book filled with stories. Technically, she only has to read one each night, but she ends up reading 4 or 5! Her teacher told her that she only needs to read one, but Morgan says, "but I want to read more!" She reads to me, Terry, Allie, Alexis - anyone who will listen. And if there's noone to listen, she reads out loud to herself.

I love to read! So much, in fact, that I often have to avoid reading because I can get so into a book that I can't put it down (& then get nothing else done...) - and have always felt bad for people who don't like to read - like there is an entire piece of life they're missing out on. I guess that's what makes me so happy about Morgan's early love of reading - I know the fun & wonder she's going to discover through books and I'm excited for her.

Happy Birthday, Alexis!

Today is my sweet baby's 2nd birthday! One minute, it seems like time is flying by - the next, it seems like it was eons ago when Terry delivered Alexis Grace on our bathroom floor, not just two years ago. I'm feeling a bit melancholy today - the realization that I don't have a "baby" anymore has hit me. Alexis seems so grown up to me lately! Now that she has been walking for quite a while, she has lost her baby fat & is very lean (& very tall!). I get asked multiple times a day if she and Allie are twins because they are the same size. They wear the same sized clothes & shoes - although Alexis' hands and feet are both bigger. It is truly amazing to me how my preemie has grown so unbelievably fast!

Since I'm talking about Alexis today, I have to add that she is one of the sweetest children I've ever known! When she smiles, her entire face brightens up and you can't help but smile back. And she makes some of the most comical facial expressions - and when I drop her off at the nursery, her lower lip promptly comes out (& sometimes tears, too) because she would rather stay with me. Alexis just loves her sisters, too - all Morgan & Allie have to do is ask Alexis for whatever is in her hands and Alexis happily hands it over - smiling because she made her sister happy. She's just a sweet, sweet spirit and our family is so blessed that God sent her to us.

Murphy's Law

Today, I finally made an appointment for the girls to have their picture taken. And, wouldn't you know it, a couple of hours after I made the appointment (for tomorrow afternoon), Allie falls face first on our tile floor. Her poor, sweet, little face!! She's fine, but has two little cuts on her chin from two tile edges - perfectly parallel lines that are grout-width apart. Guess I'll have to reschedule...

And speaking of having pictures taken, I'm ashamed to admit that I have not once had Alexis' picture taken professionally! And her 2nd birthday is on Thursday. When Morgan was a baby, I had her pictures taken faithfully at 3, 6, 9, 12, 18 & 24 months. I had Allie's pictures taken only twice, I think, at 3 & 6 months. I took 1-year pictures of Allie myself, but with poor Alexis, I'm not even sure I did that! In fact, I didn't even think about it until my Mom asked for 5x7's of Allie & Alexis at 1 year. Hopefully I'll find some of Alexis when I explore my back-up CD's. But if I can't, is there any way to go back in time and recapture it?

Is she 6? Or 16?

Just when I thought I have three little girls, it turns out I only have two! It turns out, Morgan is a teenager in disguise!! For the past week, she has been begging me to allow her to call her friend from school. Phone calls in 1st grade are something I definitely didn't want to get started. However, I finally gave in (softie!!). And it was so cute - Morgan would hide in my bathroom so that I couldn't hear what she was talking about (she actually does this when she talks to anyone on the phone). I finally told her she had to get off the phone (who knows how long they'd talk!!) and asked her what she and her friend had talked about. And get this - they discussed the cleanliness of each other's houses!! Very funny (or not...)! Morgan also told me that her friend also has a little sister who is a menace (like Alexis!) - I laughed at that one. Perhaps this will be the beginning of a beautiful friendship...

As a side note, I had prayed that Morgan would make a best friend this year, so maybe this is also an answer to prayer...