Teeth

Alex lost his second tooth on top and the whole thing has me feeling sentimental!  I don't remember feeling this way when Ethan and Emma lost their top teeth.  I think it's because he's the last one to lose them and I had the realization this is the last time I will experience this childhood right of passage with them (that was a long sentence but I don't feel like rewriting it).  Then, of course, those big teeth grow in and it takes a while for their heads to grow enough to match the teeth.  Alex was feeling shy so I had to bribe him with a dollar so I could videotape him talking without the teeth.  He looks so cute and I realize that the little boy will not stay little much longer!  I want him to look back and be able to remember the excitement.  His first grade class has a boys vs. girls contest to see who loses the most teeth by the end of the year.  So far the girls are winning.  I love his sweet smile.

Countdown

Only four more days 'til Alex gets his cast off and trust me, he is counting! He has taken it all in stride but is super excited that he'll get to play the last two soccer games of the season. Guitar lessons will also resume (he acts shy about it, but I think he's pretty excited about that too).

Happy Birthday, Little Monkeys!

Alex and Emma turned six years old on December 16th. Time is flying by! These days, Emma is very cooperative with pictures and Alex is not. He does not want to stand next to his sister.

It has been a busy, exciting year. Kindergarten--yahoo! Lots of soccer, swimming, dance, reading, playing, bike riding, scooting and a million other things. Happy, happy birthday to my little monkeys!

Catching My Breath

The past few weeks have been kind of a blur! There were many moments I will never forget but it helps that I captured some memories with pictures:

Ethan's first day of third grade . . .

One arch of a double rainbow after a fast and furious rainstorm . . .

Emma lost her second tooth (one week after losing the first) . . .

My littlest munchkins started Kindergarten!

Alex and Emma's first day of school will always be remembered by the wild weather. An intense hailstorm woke us all up, then it continued to rain all morning. Last December they begged for umbrellas for their birthday. They had never really used them until that morning. That was almost as exciting as riding the bus and going to school with Ethan!

On Tuesday night (second night of school) the kids were dressed in their pjs and heading to bed when Alex announced that he wanted to write a story. He found some index cards and a marker and started to work on it. He was tired so I suggested he wait until the next day. Oh no, his mind was made up. He would start to write, then make a mistake and since he was tired he would get upset, crumble up the card and want to start over. Oh my goodness, it was like a flashback of Ethan at that age! I knew he wouldn't rest until his story was complete. So here it is, with a little help from me, when he was just too tired to write anymore.

Ethan lost tooth #9. It was kind of a bloody mess. Gross, I know. Ethan's teeth have never come out very easily and he has only pulled one out by himself. Since Emma pulled out her first two teeth without me even knowing it, Ethan's competitive side kicked in. He worked on this tooth for two days and finally pulled it out. With all these teeth coming out I think I should invite the tooth fairy to stay in our guest room.

Speaking of competitive or maybe just strong-willed and determined, here is Emma who can now tie her own shoes. We went shoe shopping a few days ago and she LOVED the Nike sneakers with the purple swoosh. They have laces and I told her I wouldn't buy them unless she could tie her own shoes. She said, "Okay, show me. RIGHT NOW." So I did and she did it. Just. Like. That. I'm pretty sure that girl will do whatever she sets her mind to!

Among all these fun milestones, we were saddened by the loss of David's grandmother, Elvira McWilliams, who passed away on August 25, 2010. She was 99 years old! We were fortunate to visit and spend time with her this past spring in Los Angeles. We have said many prayers for her to rest in peace and for Grandpa Stan, his siblings and the rest of the McWilliams family to feel comforted by their memories of her. It is always hard to say goodbye. We love you, Grandma.

A Penelope

Alex and Emma were playing outside as I was making dinner and I heard Emma yell, "Alex! I found a penelope! Get the bug container!" Then Alex yelled back, "Hurry, Emma! Get the thing to pick it up [plastic tweezers]!"

When Ethan got home Alex excitedly told him about their find/capture. He said, "Emma found a penelope and we put it in that thing that bugs go in! Then Emma threw it in the grass so the penelope isn't in there anymore!"

Ethan smiled and looked at me with his "they are so young, aren't they funny" look.

Just Something New

I'm not feeling any creative juices about a name for this post but I like the way Emma is snuggled up to Ethan in this picture while Alex is trying to pull one of his silly poses. That's harder to do while sitting down since he usually squats down a little and sticks his butt out, while pulling a silly face.

Funny Boy

After getting dressed yesterday morning I walked into the living room and here was Alex, sitting quietly watching cartoons . . .

Considering Myself Lucky

My babies turned five today!

We have been celebrating Alex and Emma's birthday for a few days now, starting with their birthday party on Saturday. It was held at a gymnastics gym where the kids got to play on all the equipment, including a 35-foot trampoline, a bounce house and a foam pit for jumping. One mom called it the "Pink Eye Pit." I agree--it gave me the heebie jeebies but the kids loved it so I endured and had the hand sanitizer ready to go.

They loved playing with their friends and received many fun gifts, including backpacks from us. On Monday they proudly wore their backpacks to school.

I visited their class on Monday for their birthday spotlight and they were proudly wearing their birthday crowns. Turning five is very exciting!

Happy Birthday, Alex & Emma! Lots of love from Dad, Mom and Ethan

Happy Fall

Today was a beautiful day . . . I hope this nice weather lasts a little longer. Here is Alex, hiding in the bushes.

Young Minds at Work

A few days ago Alex got dressed in the clothes I had set out for him--blue patterned shorts and a light blue polo shirt. Then he put on brown socks and pulled them up above his calves. Our conversation went as follows:

Me: "Alex, let's go pick some different socks that will match."
Alex: "No, I want to wear these!"
Me: "Let's pick some white ones. The brown ones don't match."
I was kneeling down in front of him so we were eye level; he looked at me, very seriously (and a little worried) with his soft brown eyes and said, "Is it against the law?" I said, "Only according to the fashion police." I was fine with the brown socks.

Here's a conversation with my feisty little Emma:
Emma: "How many days do we have left at KinderCare?"
Me: "Two--Thursday and Friday."
Emma: "Oh! I'll have to tell Ms. Ashley that Friday will be my last day! And Elijah."
Me: "Why Elijah?"
Emma: "Because he said he doesn't want me to go to that school anymore because he doesn't like me."
Me: "That wasn't very nice of him to say. It makes me mad that he said that to you."
Emma: "Why do you care? He's not your kid."
Me: "Well, I'm glad."
Emma: "Why are you glad? Because you don't want four kids? (No) How about five? (No) How about ten? No, not ten because then our house would be WAY TOO NOISY! Mommy, is three the perfect number?"
Me: "Yes, perfect."