Handwriting Hullabaloo

Back around Christmas, Norah started getting the hang of writing individual letters, so Jason and I made a deal with her that when she could consistently write her name, unaided, we would take her for ice cream.

Exhibit A and B both bear witness to the fact that she has it down. (She's especially proud of that lower case "r", which was the last letter for her to master) After a lot of practicing, she's been consistently writing her name for about a month , so we figured it was high time for Mommy and Daddy to pay the piper.

Since she had worked so hard at accomplishing this feat, we wanted it to be a special memory for her when she reaped her reward. We dropped Eli off with Mimi and Papaw so that we could have a "big girl" night. Jason and I took her to one of our favorite spots....the "Fountain Plaza" (at least that's what we call it). She LOVED it! It was a beautiful, cool night. There was a light breeze that would intermittently send the spray of the fountain our way, but not enough to be offensive. And to cap it all off, a rainbow formed right through the middle of the fountain! (Thank you, God, for such a beautiful, special night)




The little lady got her ice cream... which she received with a smile.









And she spent some (much needed) private time with Mommy and Daddy.




She loved watching the fountain. Honestly, I think she would have been happy with just that as her reward! She kept leaving the ice cream with us while she walked along the railing. (Which gave Jason and I a few, quiet minutes to enjoy together)














Another accomplishment that I'm even more proud of her for is her continued scripture memorization. (Which, unlike her penmanship development has required absolutely no bribery) At 3 years, 4 months old, she also has learned a total of eight Bible verses and the scripture references for each one.

Proverbs 17:17 ("A friend loves at all times and a brother is always there to help you.")

Psalm 118:24 ("This is the day that the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in in."

Zephaniah 3:17 ("The Lord your God is with you, He is mighty to save. The Lord will take great delight in you, He will quiet you with his love and He will rejoice over you with singing."

1 Thessalonians 5:17 ("All scripture is God-breathed.")

2 Timothy 3: 16 ("Pray at all times.")

Genesis 1:1 ("In the beginning God created the heavens and earth."

Matthew 6:9-15 (The Lord's Prayer, "Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.")

Ephesians 3:20-21 ( "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus, throughout all generations, forever and ever.")

I have never been exceptionally good at memorizing scripture, and Norah has been such a blessing to me in this regard. Each time she learns a verse, she teaches it to me (as it requires a lot of repetition for her to retain what she is learning, so I get to hear her recite it over, and over). I pray that this bond of sharing scripture is one that we are able to share throughout the rest of both our lives. (And of course, I pray the same for Eli, too)

She is growing up before our eyes, so rather than fight it, worry ourselves sick, or cry over it, we choose to celebrate it...at least for today!

From the Mouthes of Babes...

One morning, after a well-check visit to our doctor, I reprimanded Norah for being too rowdy. One of the consequences for her behavior was to have to ride home from the doctor's office with no music and no toys. She was pretty bewildered. I, on the other hand, had to muffle my laughter as the following verbal exchange took place in the backseat:

N: [Pointing outside] "Look! A little bird. Maybe that will cheer me up! Little Bird, would you mind cheering me up, please? Oh, you will. Thank you so very much!"

This morning Daddy scolded Norah for using her outside voice inside (at the crack of dawn). It was interesting to see what she took away from his rebuke.

J: Norah, I have asked you several times not to yell indoors. You may play, and have a good time, but I do not want you to be loud. Do you understand?
N: Yes sir.
J: What did I tell you?
N: I can't have any fun. (She said this completely sincerely, as if it really were the correct answer to his question--she wasn't pouting or complaining, just stating a fact. Incidentally, Jason explained to her again what he said, and we think she got it the second time.)

After playing with a friend from church/Daddy's work...
N: Mommy, when Nathan and I were playing swords, he started towards me and he yelled, "SHARKS!"
A: Norah, are you sure he didn't say, "Charge!"
N: No, Mommy. He said sharks.

Favorite Norah-isms of late:
"Hoolie Loop" (hula hoop)

"I fell in the heart with __________" (N's take on "falling in love"...thankfully no boys outside of her family have been inserted into the blank just yet)

At 17 months, Eli's vocabulary is growing by leaps and bounds! He has recently attained the ability to repeat nearly any word he hears. For memory book purposes (because I'm an even worse book keeper than I am a blogger, lately), here are a list of some of his favorite words lately:
"Key Cat" (kitty cat)
"Mahk" (milk)
"Cup"
"Druhk" (drink)
"Jooos" (juice)
"Dah-bah" (diaper)
"Taah Taah" (tractor)
"Buck" (book)
"Bird"
"Ahh Duh" (all done)
Back-back (backpack)
"Truck"
"Ockapuh" (octopus...courtesy of one of his favorite picture books)
"Nana" (Banana)
"Nah Nah" (Norah, actually very distinguishable from "banana")

Favorite Animal Sounds:
Elephant ("Buureee!"--he makes a trunk with his arm when his does this one, so cute!), Dog ("fuh fuh"), Owl ("hoo hoo"), Sheep ("baaaa"), Rooster ("err err err!"), Cat ("meow"), Chicken ("cluh cluh"), Cow ("mmmmmmm!")

A Comb,and a Brush, and a Bowl Full of Mush...

This morning, Norah afforded me an opportunity to say a phrase that I never in my wildest dreams anticipated coming out of my mouth as a mother. It tickled me so much when I said it (one of those times you say something and then realize how it sounds, and just laugh at yourself), I decided to blog so I wouldn't forget.

"Good Night Moon" has been a favorite in our house ever since Norah was (literally) three weeks old. It has recently become one of Eli's favorite bedtime books, so Norah has had a renewed interest in it. Both kids have always loved the pages with "a comb and a brush and a bowl full of mush, and a quiet old lady who is whispering 'Hush!'" So, last week, Norah asked me mid-book, "Mommy, what's mush?" I told her if she reminded me, I would get some mush at the grocery store the next time we went, and she could try it for herself.

As a side note, am I the only one out there who finds it odd that the bunny in "Goodnight Moon" is going to bed with a bowl full of mush in his room? Whatever happened to the typical bedside glass of water? And it isn't just a "forgotten" dish, because he goes to the trouble of telling it "goodnight". He clearly knows it's there. So, instead of talking to it, why not do his mother a favor and just take it to the sink before it gets hard? On the other hand, if there were no mush, there could be no old lady whispering "Hush", and I would have missed the pleasure of watching both of my sweet babies learn to hold their index fingers to their lips and say "Shhh!" every time we read the story...so I'll digress...

My three year old daughter, with the memory of a pachyderm, made sure to dutifully remind me about "the mush" on our next grocery trip, so I picked up a box of instant oatmeal. (Technically, not "mush", but still mushy, and nearly identical to the bowl pictured in "Goodnight Moon") And yes, in case you're shocked, in Norah's three years, this was to be her first-ever experience with oatmeal. It's just not something I tend to keep on-hand. (I figure, when your kids like something as easy as frozen waffles, why rock the boat?)

So, this morning I prepared the promised "mush", which Norah immediately deemed "too hot" in true, Goldilocks fashion. Even after hearing me reason that it tasted better warm, N decided to let it cool off. After a few minutes, she tried it again, exclaiming, "Mmmmmm! I LOVE cold mush!" Of course, it was Saturday morning, so Daddy was home, and there was a lot going on around the house. N quickly lost interest in her breakfast (she is a grazer by nature), and I had to call her back to the table. "Norah, come finish your cold mush!" Mother of the year, here I come. Maybe next week we'll try gruel.

Night at the (Wax) Museum

On Tuesday, Norah and I were treated to a "Night as the Wax Museum", courtesy of my cousin, Donna (who helped organize the event which was held at my and Jason's junior high Alma mater ).


I prepped Norah before going, explaining that we'd be going to a "big kids' school", and the "big kids" would be pretending to be statues. She was stoked. Her first attraction was to the "cowgirls" (AKA "Annie Oakley).


I personally think the big draw was their affinity for cowboy boots and skirts; a combination N has been loving of late.














Then, it was on to the ballerinas, of course. (I know it looks like she's not paying attention, but she's actually trying very hard to get her feet into the same position as the dancer's)




















Two words: "Tutu Envy"

















"Michelle Kwan"...I wish I could have gotten all of Norah in this frame...she was mimicking the skater's stance, too. So cute!










My personal favorite was "Vincent Van Gogh". He never moved...Seriously, I don't think he blinked the whole time we were there. Norah wouldn't have anything to do with him. Probably a combination of the facts that 1) he was a male, 2) he had facial hair, and 3)he was not wearing a dress.


















I could tell when she met "Carrie Underwood" that the wheels in her head started turning.











Within moments, she had located the stage and was singing a solo, completely unprompted. I'm telling you, this child has stage radar. It was all I could do to convince her to leave the microphone alone.














Donna located an abandoned backboard, so we thought it would be the perfect opportunity for Norah's wax museum debut. She proved to be quite the quick study.











After the students packed up, Norah found her favorite character and asked her for a private dance session (back on the stage, of course). The ballerina was a sweetheart and obliged, much to Norah's delight.

Jason and I were participants in Rayburn's first annual Wax Museum once upon a time (I was Greta Garbo and he was Ray Charles, in case you were curious), and it was fun to see the tradition carried on by the next generation (even if it was at the expense of making me feel OLD).

Just a-Swingin'

A couple of weeks ago we took the plunge and invested in our first backyard swing set. If you've yet to experience this All-American rite of parenting passage, I'll let you in on a little secret: they don't come pre-assembled! Jason and I spent two evenings just labeling and sorting wood (a strategy that I think really worked to our advantage) before he finished it up with the help of Uncle Grant, over the weekend.




One of the things I love about my husband is, his willingness to read directions. Before he even picked up his drill, he consulted the instruction manual.

Eli saw Daddy sitting in the box and decided it was the place to be. (After we shooed him away from the sorted wood about three thousand times, we were thankful for his taking up residence there!)






Norah was thrilled to help carry "the swing set" into the back yard. She's always happy to be a helper.












The finished product! Interesting side note: my childhood swing set was also green and yellow.






Eli's inaugural slide...










Norah rockin' the swings...















E never tires of the slide!
















No rules prohibiting "train sliding" in our backyard! We're all about sharing in Robinson County!

Both kids' favorite (as well as mine!) is the two-man swing. They sit back to back, and Norah is able to build up momentum an swing all by herself (which means I don't have to push), and Eli just holds on for dear life, grinning to beat the band.

Obviously, the kids are loving the backyard right now. The only downside was the week-long rain that kept them from their new favorite pastime (but that is NOT a complaint...I'm happy to have a green yard and especially for the cool front that the rain resulted in!)...but rest assured, they have made up for lost time! We've been picnicking and swinging every dry day since. I foresee hot summer afternoons and a fat lot of sunscreen in our future!

Word to the wise...if you don't want to come over to swing, you might start working on an alibi. Norah has invited everyone (including complete strangers) she's encountered since the swing set's construction over to swing with her. (Including our preacher, who agreed to schedule a play date with her!). The conversation generally goes something like this:
N: Guess what! I have a swing set in my backyard!
Unsuspecting Bystander: That's neat.
N: You wanna come over to my house and swing sometime?
UB: Ummm...I'll have to get back to you.

Succumbing to Bluebonnet Peer Pressure

Monday night, N&E partook in the traditional, Texan, obligatory rite of passage known as the "Bluebonnet Photo Shoot."

We were lucky to have a field of bluebonnets very close to our house, so we avoided the lure of pulling over on the side of the highway and taking photos of two toddlers amid crazy, high speed traffic.


This photo made me laugh. I can think of so many of my sister and me from our childhood where one of us was laughing and the other crying. Here, Norah is just oozing sisterly sweetness, and all Eli can think is, "Get off me!"


This was my favorite shot of Eli by himself (read: he wasn't crying)














Truth be told, he didn't care much for the bluebonnets. (After a good month of pointing out the window, excitedly saying "Flah! Flah!" (Flower! Flower!) each time we drove down the waving sea of blue that is the bypass.) He found them to be prickly, itchy, and uncomfortable up close. I'm sure his affection for them will grow with time. I think all Texans, at some point, feel a sort of blissful contentment and peace at seeing the showy bluebonnets of spring. It smacks of "going home". One of those few, sacred things that, in spite of progress, politics, and time, still remains unchanged.

She looks so grown up to me in this picture!
















































This is one of my favorites...I'm not really sure why . Maybe because Eli just started walking and he's trying to hard to catch up with his big sister.




































This one made me laugh, too. Eli's expression cracks me up. Probably just wishing he was ANYWHERE else.













Next time, I think we'll go a little later in the evening. The sun was still a little bright, even at 7pm. I guess those 9pm summer sunsets are just around the corner!













Happy Spring!

Here, Kid. Don't Say I Never Gave You Anything

Norah and Eli's favorite "together" activity for the past couple of weeks has been tooling around the house on Norah's tricycle. They seriously have clocked in HOURS worth of cycling...always with Eli in the rear, "pushing" Norah, who, incidentally would pedal as fast as she could. At first, I thought it was a little insensitive on her part. I mean, the kid can't walk, so cut him some slack, right?

Wrong. Aparently, my 3-year-old genius was serving up a pint size helping of "Tough Love", trike style.


Notice any similarities between this photo and the previous one? Two days after the first one was taken, Eli figured out how to stand up, mid-room. Note the big grin on his face. It's pretty much a permanant fixture anytime he's on two feet...which is pretty regular these days. Literally, from the first time Eli stood up, he started walking like he'd been at it for weeks. Up and down the hall...all around the house. It was as we had suspected for so long. He knew how to do it, he just wanted to perfect it before showing it to us.
















I got a little camera-happy during their training sessions...


However, after seeing how the scenario played out...I'm glad I did. I really do believe that Norah played a big role in helping her little brother get up the confidence to finally "let go" and take off.





And I think she'll be proud of these photos when she's older. (Honestly, she's pretty proud of them now)













Well...except maybe this one...






In just one week's time, Eli has gone from crawling to dancing with wild abandon!



And Norah's loving it. (After all, even Sleeping Beauty needed a dance partner) I think these two are gonna be thick as thieves! (And that will be such an answer to prayer!)

Lately, I've been putting E down for his nap about 30-45 minutes before N because he just can't wait any longer. She finally put her foot down about it today.

N:Is Eli gonna take his nap now?
A: Yes, sweetie, he's really tired.
N: But I don't want him to take a nap until I do. I want him to play with me!

Two weeks ago, she was begging me to put him down for a nap so that she could have some peace and quiet, and all of her toys to herself.

Eli seems to share her sentiment. He has woken her up from her nap 3 times this week-- and that doesn't count the times I've busted him mid-operation! (he usually wakes up 30 minutes to an hour before she does) He goes into her room, walks right up to her bed, and repeatedly shouts her name ("Nah-Nah!") until she gets up. Guess it's time to go back to synchronized naps!