I think Jimmy has figured out how to open cupboards.
At least, that’s the only explanation I could come up with for the sudden presence of Cheerios all over the floor.
Just call me Sherlock.
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Me: “Susie, what are you doing over in the corner?” Susie: “I’m bamshed.” Me: “You’re what?” Susie: “I’m BAMSHED.” Me: “What?” Becky runs over and says to Susie: “I hereby banish you!” Susie covers her head with a blanket. Me: “Oh. You’re banished.” Maybe I should try that line the next time the girls need a time-out! During our visit today with Jim’s Nana, I couldn’t help but be struck by the bittersweet nature of her condition. Nana cannot walk, talk, or feed herself, and continues to decline cognitively. But I wonder if somewhere, deep inside her mind, she knows that she is nearly with her Lord. Most of us, no matter how hard we try, do not fully live each day as if it were our last. We plan, we look forward, we prepare for the future, even though none of us are guaranteed tomorrow. Nana cannot do any of that. For her, there is no anxiety, no worries about the days ahead. I like to think that she knows that she is in the Father’s Hands, and that He is slowly leading to Himself. It is sometimes hard for us to understand why the Lord allows her to linger on this earth, when she doesn’t seem to be living. But perhaps she is savoring these last moments before she is brought to her Heavenly resting place. Perhaps her silent smiles, her worn Bible, are testifying to her caregivers of her upcoming home. Perhaps, when she looks into the eyes of her great-grandchildren, she knows that her life has served to bring life to others. Perhaps the simple feel of a tiny hand on hers reminds her that Heaven is near.
When in heaven I see Thy glory Jimmy has now officially been in this world as long as he was within me! My little nine-month-old is a crawling, babbling, grinning monkey who has very kissable cheeks. He eats everything I eat, just cut up into Jimmy-sized bites. He also happily eats things I would rather not eat, like creamed spinach, peas, paper, rubber bands and lint. He’s a speedy crawler and is starting to balance on his feet momentarily, although I haven’t seen any “cruising” behavior yet. He babbles “Da Da” indiscriminately, sucks his left thumb constantly, and squeals with delight whenever he is near his sisters (well, he actually creaks, like he’s mimicking a squeaky door). He’s sleeping great all night, settles down to sleep at all times like a champ, takes a morning and afternoon nap, and drinks exclusively formula (nursing wasn’t working anymore after he realized he had six teeth at his disposal). He’s not partial to any particular toys, except he does like to chew on socks. He will finally sit in my lap to let me read him one or two short books if he’s too tired to crawl away from me. He doesn’t like sitting in his high chair unless there is a constant stream of food, and he doesn’t like to play by himself. He also doesn’t like to get buckled into his car seat, but once he’s in and can hear his sisters chatting away in the back seat, he is generally content for the duration of the ride. He loves to be tickled, tossed, squished, rolled, and swung. The faster the better. That’s my little nut in a nutshell. Boy, do I love him!
We finally had our first snowstorm of the winter this weekend (I’m not counting the crazy October storm!). While I was personally content to go the entire winter snow-free, Jim and the girls were very excited to see the white stuff again. And I have to admit I loved seeing them play in it, as long as I could do that from the comfort of my own warm house!
Becky has made great strides this past week in the potty-training department. With only one or two exceptions, she has successfully done her business (#2) on the potty every day. I am SO proud of her. And so are her siblings. They like to join her in the bathroom and cheer her on.
How could you NOT succeed with a cheering section that includes Cinderella and a sock-eating dwarf? The girls’ favorite fairy tale is currently Rapunzel (thanks to the Disney version, “Tangled”). A few days ago, they decided to re-enact the story first thing in the morning. Becky called out for Susie to let down her long hair, and so Susie dangled her blanket down the side of the crib.
Becky began her labored ascent.
Susie held on tight to that blanket and did her best to drag Becky up.
Becky was actually getting close to throwing her weight into Susie’s crib, when I realized that I was going to have to cut short the fairy tale for the sake of my sanity. See, the girls still don’t realize they are physically capable of climbing in and out of their cribs, which makes naptimes and bedtimes SO much easier (for me, anyway). I didn’t want their re-enactment to spiral into other escape attempts, so I plucked Becky from the edge and told them it was time for both my Rapunzels to eat breakfast. Thankfully, their hungry stomachs were stronger than their imaginations, so we headed downstairs without any further crib-scaling! Susie is getting more skilled at drawing people. Here is her latest self-portrait:
And here is another face that she drew recently (on the right):
I asked her what the circles underneath the mouth are, and she said she didn’t know. It’s a good thing she said it wasn’t a picture of me, otherwise I’d be worried I need to buy some acne cream!
Jimmy’s a big help with the laundry, can’t you tell? You know you’re a “girly girl” when you insist on wearing a tutu on TOP of a princess dress on TOP of another dress!
(Many thanks to my friend Maria K. for the beautiful hand-made tutus for the girls!) |
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