Charlotte at Six

Charlotte Grace celebrates her 7th birthday this week which means it's time to share about life as a six year old at the Nest.  Contrary to popular belief, this child did not have a post on her 5th birthday!!! I guess it is alright for the eldest of the bunch to experience what is more common for the caboose. That being said, let's get down to business & capture our girlie in the here & now!

and since I never did that five year old post, here she is...

What must it be like to be the oldest of five kiddos? She takes the craziness in stride much like we do & has gotten to the point where she finds the humor in Owen or Anson mispronouncing something. She gives us the most adorable look saying "oh my goodness, he is so cute when he says that!" For example this afternoon Owen was talking about how we need to go to Home "Beepo." There are not too many things that she pronounces incorrectly these days but Robby & I give each other the same look when she does. One example is that she & Eloise both say "I'm so dizzy of it!" when they are tired of something like a certain episode of Mighty Machines.

 

Charlotte is naturally the most responsible little one in our home. She delights in helping fold towels, rinse dishes & other various tasks....most of the time. Her favorite "assignment" is to take care of her littlest brother & she does a fantastic job. He laughs so very much at her antics & I laugh from the next room listening to the giggles. She loves the rest too & shows it by the hours of entertainment offered by way of Legos, reading books, fixing a snack or playing all sorts of made up games....even ones by three year olds. She's incredible.

 

Char is quite the picky dinner eater preferring pizza every night of the week but settles for a few other things like her Daddy's pulled pork or my spaghetti sauce which is pretty much pizza in a different form. She loves peanut butter crackers, applesauce, any kind of fruit, bell peppers, cucumbers & some others. She is willing to try a bite of anything & found out last night that she likes frog legs! Tonight we had walnuts in our salad, Robby asked if anyone wanted to try a squirrel brain. She immediately popped one in her mouth & said it was pretty good! Then we told her it was a walnut which she always says she dislikes. She can't pass up a good smoothie that's for sure!

She often takes initiative & starts lunches for the crew while I am getting Arlo fed or down for a nap. It is SOOOOO helpful & I love her cute little "I'm a big girl & proud of it" smile.

Bella holds a special place in Charlotte's heart.  One chore Charlotte is responsible for nearly everyday is to feed that hungry pup. If it happens to be an inconvenient time she says "I don't want to feed her" & we say "well, what if I don't want to feed you?" That usually does the trick ; )

Around her sixth birthday she really took an interest in planting & growing flowers when GGran bought her the supplies & helped get her started. She enjoyed taking care of them while they were alive but eventually their relationship didn't work out. You could say it did not end well for the flowers.

Charlotte enjoys the great outdoors & prefers to be there whenever possible. She loves to run, jump & play any kind of a game with a ball so the new backyard with lots of grass has been wonderful. The old house offered a scrawny tree that resembled a bush that was deemed.....

She gathered a few necessary items such as a notepad & pencil, a snack, her math flashcards & a sharpie marker to write "no brothers aloud" on leaves & tape them on a branch. In the photo above you can see how flimsy the "tree" looks. That branch looked like it might snap every time she would swing out of it like Tarzan & eventually was closer to the ground than the top of the tree. We would watch from inside & say "what a sad sad treehouse.....next house we need a real one!" Yet now, we don't have a great tree for a treehouse but maybe some sort of fort will provide what she's looking for. One great thing about children is how their imagination can take them somewhere exciting even in a 4 ft bush-like treehouse.

She loves to spend time outside at Grammy & Grandpa's house too.  The first picture was one I took without much thought but when I went back to look at it I could not believe how old she looked. Then it was a catapult into the future when she tried on Grammy's wedding dress!

Her wardrobe is simple. She still prefers to wear comfy shorts, jeans & a t-shirt at all times. She has some really cute items that makes her collapse on the bed in disbelief when I recommend she wear them. On a trip to Target she saw something so "Charlotte-style" I had to get it for her. I waited till I was shopping alone & surprised her with it. She couldn't believe her eyes & I couldn't believe mine when I watched her wear it for about 30 days straight.

This little lady loves to go on a date with her Daddy. On this particular night they enjoyed dinner at Urban Crust followed by a mini shopping trip at World Market followed by a Pizookie at BJs Brewhouse. Her smile was so big when they left but the smile turned upside down when she got home. Picture first, story next...

Charlotte picked out a little bitty snow globe for herself & one for Eloise. She could not have been any more excited when she burst through the front door telling her sister that she got her a gift. She handed the World Market bag to Eloise, she reached in, picked up a snow globe in each hand & with an elated look on her face smashed them together. Robby & I were at a loss for words amidst the awkward 30 second silence. We decided to wait & see how they attempted to figure it out. Long story short, Eloise felt really bad, Charlotte felt really sad so Robby took her back to buy another one just before closing. While packing, I found them & thought it fell into the category of passing along....to the trash can since it is full of glitter but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. After all, there's a great sisterly story to be told while watching the glitter swirl around.

They are best buds through & through...

She is not only responsible but also very understanding. Between October & May she lost three teeth. The first was one that Robby pulled out & she found a dollar under her pillow the next morning. The second one she lost when Owen head butted her during an extreme tickle fight on the couch. She got a dollar on the second try since we forgot the first night. Tooth number three was lost when she had the seat belt in her mouth & let it slide quickly across that wiggly little thing. All three of us forgot to even get it under the pillow for two nights so Charlotte & I taped it to the wall & we still forgot so we paid her at breakfast. It's not looking good for younger siblings ; ) The top two teeth are the wiggly ones right now....can't wait to see that toothless grin!

The latest development has been the removal of training wheels. She has been adamant about keeping them on for the rest of her life & out of nowhere asked that they be taken off! We jumped on that & while there is a lot of practice to come we are so excited to see her excited & adventurous. One afternoon I thought I would give the "run alongside" business a try. I laughed out loud when she said "Mommy, you are not a very good driver!" True statement indeed.

A few funny moments & memorable conversations-

• She was out on a drive with Robby & she asked when she can get a cat. He responded with "when you move out of our house & live on your own." They talked about how old she would be when that would happen, the potential of college, the potential of meeting a boy & getting married. They talked about what being married means & all of the sudden she exclaimed  "Dad! I just want a cat!" I'm sure that's not the last time she is annoyed with the rabbit trail we run quickly down.
• She has also asked all sorts of questions about what her college schedule could be like & how it would allow her to spend more time with her pack of animals. She informed us that she would be off school on Fridays & would be bringing her cat home to see us.  She calls light haired dogs blonde & calls out breeds we see as we walk to the park.
• Conversations between siblings in the backseat are the best! One went like this...Eloise- Do some people go to jail & never come out? Charlotte-Yes, it's true & one thing I know about jail is that they don't have cozy beds like we do!" Eloise-"well if we ever have to go live there let's take our own beds!" now that's a good plan although I hope it will never need to be used!
• My Uncle Joe is a high school basketball coach & kidnapped Charlotte to spend a day at basketball camp with other 1st-5th graders. She was SO excited to go & talked about it for weeks saying she was going to play basketball & then go camping....tricky to explain ; )  Her confidence has increased one hundred fold in the past year but she was caught off guard with how many people were there. Uncle Joe said she was ready to head home immediately. They spent about an hour there then headed to McDonalds for breakfast. When she got home she said that she didn't try out for the team & showed me an autographed picture of Ronald McDonald who was there in the (clown painted) flesh. She couldn't believe I knew who he was. Anyway, the following two mornings all she could talk about is how she wished she were at basketball camp. Maybe next year! She looked awesome rockin' my Texas Tech shirt from college which is a little concerning. Either I was the size of a first grader or I wore some pretty small shirts, ha!
•                       
• At some point over the past year she went through a stage where she wrote all of our names in a list outside her bedroom door. Whoever got on her bad side had their name crossed off. One by one we were all outta there.
• I heard her "dealing" with the insanity one room away & she quietly said to herself "well this is going from bad to worse!" HAHAHA!
• She has an extreme sweet tooth just like me & on occasion when I say she can have a cookie she responds with "how 'bout we have two cookies & call it a night!"
• There is a song we listened to a LOT last summer called "My Anchor" by Christy Nockels.  Charlotte still knows just about every word. It starts with "You're the Lord Almighty, your every word is sure & in your love unfailing, I'm safe when oceans roar." then moves into the chorus "My anchor forever, my shelter within the storm, you're my deliverer, you never falter, 'cause you're the rock I stand on." Somewhere in the million times this song played I asked the kids if they knew what an anchor was. We talked all about it's purpose in relation to a boat & so easily connected it to how if we love & follow Jesus, he is the anchor of our soul (Hebrews 6:19). A few days later all were napping but my big girl that was snuggled on the couch with me. She laid her head in my lap & sighed. She went on to say "Mommy, it's hard to live in a house full of people that just sin all the time (totally feel ya' girl!) Without any response from me she continued with "I just can't wait until we live in heaven where we won't sin anymore! I sighed & even now as I write these words, I am grateful that through reading, listening, talking & praying with her the foundation continues to be laid. What a joy it is to see God's goodness revealed to her little by little.

SEVEN years with this bright & beautiful young lady in the making! A favorite picture of these two from this year with Charlotte looking quite old : )

 



 

 

Charlotte at Four

We here at the Valentine Nest have a FOUR year old in our midst! How this happened I do not know but she is a precious gift to our family & we love her more than words can express.  She has been four just over a week now & I have had ample amount of time to think about this lovely little lady since she has been visiting her grandparents in Houston. We miss her dearly & are looking forward to her return on Wednesday evening. Our little nest is just is not the same when we are down one talkative, hilarious, snuggly, sensitive, entertaining, helpful little birdie. 

Her Daddy took her to her four year old check up last week & she was so proud of her bravery as she received her shots. Prior to her visit, she told Eloise, Owen & Anson about 10 times each that she was going to be brave & according to Rob's report, she was.  He said she was chatty with her favorite doctor & answered all sorts of questions. I'm not sure if she was asked what her favorite breakfast food is or not but she would surely say a cinnamon roll from Panera....

possibly due to a cinnamon roll or two plus all that other good eating she does....

FOUR year old STATS:

40 3/4 inches- 75th percentile

37.6 pounds- 75th percentile

The thing I notice most about this sweet girl is that she is a loving little mommy to her sister & brothers. Three younger siblings by age four is quite the transition for any child & she has taken it in stride.  She has been excited & helpful about 99% of the time & I am so thankful for that. She loves to spend time with Eloise. Eloise thinks Charlotte is amazing & Charlotte makes us laugh with the glance & smirk she gives us when Eloise does something cute. They are best buddies that can be so kind one minute & feisty the next. We do a LOT of correcting during the day to help these girls interact in a loving manner.  Charlotte has really caught onto the advice "think before you speak" although a more accurate statement would be "think after you speak unkindly & then try again." That, she is good at. You can hear her from the other room attempt to chase down her sister & take something from her yelling "Eloise!!" then she stops & says "let me try that again." That does not happen all the time but progress is being made : ) She loves to help Eloise do anything except for going potty....she says that she takes too long. I know the feeling Charlotte. Here they are outside in some fresh rain puddles....

While she & Eloise are wild & crazy together, she calms down in an instant when around the boys. Her voice is precious as she talks to them & asks them questions. When we first got home from the hospital my mom & I would say when a baby would fuss "Oh, poor Anson, he says 'I want my mommy'." Charlotte would correct us & say babies can't talk. We explained how we like to pretend that we know what they are saying. It took about an hour before Charlotte was on board & now interprets for the little guys all the time. According to her, they are usually saying things like "We want to watch sissies favorite show" or "Please, can Charlotte hold me?" or "Owen says I can have a cookie." Interpreting baby language is completely subjective so many times I can't argue ; )

I am sure others might think we are crazy for the amount of holding & maneuvering of the babies that we allow Charlotte to do but she has proven herself quite capable.  I really am impressed with how she can switch them from a cradle hold to up against her chest in a split second all while supporting their neck. One afternoon she even held a baby with one arm while playing a game with the other. She likes to pick them up from the floor & set them in the bouncer (right next to her).  I did discover the #1 thing you don't want to hear when you turn your back to grab a burp cloth from the changing table...Char was in the chair with one of the boys sitting quietly. I turned around for about 20 seconds & heard her say "Whoa! That was close!" I flew back around to see a baby sliding feet first off the chair headed towards the floor with Char pulling him up under his arms. Haha! True statement, it was a close call! Eloise watches everything Charlotte does & wants to do the same so we have to be extra careful ; ) Here she is getting some double snuggles...

We are still working on helping her understand personal space. We stole exclaiming "Bubble!" from some old neighbors Chad & Sara when everyone needs to back off. It works well for the most part unless the girls are in super silly moods & like to get ultra close then scream "bubble" & run away before returning again seconds later. They also like for us to "pop their bubble" so they can get close again.  Most of the time though, Owen & Anson are happy to see Charlotte & respond with lots of grins & little giggles.  This makes her one happy big sis.

Busy Body:

• Charlotte loves to hop & has just mastered skipping in the recent weeks although she only does three "skips" in a row before a quick run & then three more "skips."
• She likes to show us how she balances on one foot & lifts her other leg up in the air.
• She likes for me to draw dots & let her trace shapes or letters.
• Charlotte has lots of letters in her name & has not mastered writing it yet but likes to practice writing some of the letters individually without assistance. She also draws lots of shapes & people who still look blob like.
• She is getting better at cutting & loves any project that involves cutting shapes to glue on paper. She also likes when I cut shapes that when put together make a house or an owl or something of the sort. 
• Miss outdoors is still a scooter riding maniac & perfects her turning skills & speediness by practicing coming down the neighbors driveway & making a nearly 90 degree turn onto the sidewalk headed towards our driveway. She also speeds around the cul de sac while I watch from our driveway. She thinks it is cool to be that independent. 
• Char loves playing with her soccer ball & can kick/dribble very well & makes it into the goal often. 
• We have not done any official swim lessons to date but she is really excited to put her head under water & kick if you are holding her. She is quite timid if you start to let go with one hand. As you can imagine we don't get to the pool very often these days ; ) 
• She is quite the show off to her sister climbing onto furniture & jumping off. Unfortunately Eloise has just started being overly brave & repeating all jumps thank you Charlotte.  Good thing she is a tough little cookie.

Here is Charlotte practicing writing her name on her map.

Busy Mind:

• She is figuring out time & frequently asks what time it is or how many minutes it will take to get somewhere. If you say more than 15 minutes she says "that is too long, I don't like when it takes that long." Oh I can't wait to tell her how long our drive will be to Texas on our next visit! She also measures time between now & something in the future in the number of sleeps it takes to get there. The countdown for her birthday started at about 14 sleeps. 
• She has used the words yesterday, today & tomorrow for awhile & I thought she understood their use until a couple weeks ago when she revealed in the cutest way that her "tomorrow" was not the same as my "tomorrow." She was snuggled close to Anson & having a sweet little sibling conversation. She asked him "Buddy, were you so happy you came home from the hospital tomorrow? It was such a happy day when you & Owen came home tomorrow!" I said "Char, did you know that tomorrow means after one more sleep?" She looked at me like I had three eyes & said "No mommy! Don't you remember when we were at the hospital with the baby brothers & Dr. Alexander came to see us? He said 'Charlotte, would you like for your brothers to come home from the hospital tomorrow?' I told him 'yes, please' & then they came home tomorrow." I could not help but smile at her cuteness. I did tell her that I understood why she may think that but restated the definition of "tomorrow." She stared at me blankly for a moment then leaned over Anson & asked him in a sweet baby voice "Were you so happy you came home from the hospital tomorrow?" Haha! She is pretty sure she is right...and not only about this issue ; ) 
• Charlotte's new obsession is her map. It came with a puzzle from Grammy & Papa she got last summer & she has not paid much attention to it until the past couple months. She carries it in her backpack wherever she goes & if you put her down for a nap without it, she requests to go get it. She knows Texas, Florida, Michigan, Kentucky, North Carolina, New York & Illinois.  She has learned each of these states in relation to who lives there or who is from there. Such as Kentucky with the "horsie races" is where her friend Hannah is from or Illinois is where my friend Sadee's dad lives. Below you can see she is pointing at New York where her beloved Sunday morning teachers & our friends Ryan & Leah just moved last week to share the Gospel with Muslim people. 

• She loves story telling or hearing the same stories over & over. This started back when my mom was here prior to the birth of the twins. One story that my mom had to tell over & over & OVER was about how they went to "Dinosaur land" which is really Downtown Disney. They ate at a Chicken place & sat at an outside table. My mom warned the girls about the ravenous squirrels that were begging for food & Charlotte climbed on top of the table & over to my mom. I had to retell the story about her choking on the gummy worm on our special date about a million times.  When the boys were in the NICU & I was away often, Charlotte wanted to curl up in my lap & hear the story about the day before the boys were born & how she had the stomach bug.  So interesting that her insecurities came out that way. It was like she needed to hear over & over that mommy was so sad when she was sick, that I missed her when I was in the hospital after the babies were born & that Gaga took care of her when she was throwing up. So, I told her story after story at her request making sure I included plenty of statements affirming my love for her. Once we were all under one roof, she stopped requesting those specific stories & got hung up on the story below.
• This story needs a tab of its own. This is the story about Crab Hi. It's origination is of the imagination of Charlotte. One day we were riding in the car & she asked me to tell her the story about Crab Hi. I asked her what story that was & she said, "you don't remember?" So, I requested that she tell it to me again. It was quite the story & when I asked her if she made it up she said "No mommy, I saw it on my phone." The phone she is speaking of is an old play cell phone with no battery. Back to the story, I only got to hear it once before I was put to the repeat test. I then became a professional story teller of Crab Hi. I won't tell every detail so as not to ruin the surprise if she decides to publish it someday but the gist of the story is our family went to the Crab Hi store prior to our hike up a small mountain. While on the hike, Charlotte was bit by a crab, her Daddy said it would feel better if we put sand on it, we took her to see Dr. Nielsen(our pediatrician) who was mad about the crab biting Charlotte so Dr. Nielsen went up the mountain, gave the crab a lecture & then bit it. Ha! We had many a good laugh about her story she saw on her phone. 
• This will get much more explanation in the coming months but we are beginning our home school journey with preschool this year & are really excited about it. I have a few things picked out for teaching phonics, writing & various other things but have been lacking something in the math field. I was wondering how you even teach something you hate so much ; ) Anyway, out of nowhere the other day we were riding in the car on our way over to Hannah, Lawson & Lilah's house when I asked Charlotte how many kids were in our car. She said all the kids names & said "4!" then I asked her how many were at Hannah's house so she said their names & shouted "3!"Then I asked her how many kids will that be when we are all together. She named all the names again with no numbers & shouted "7!" I was impressed since I really had not tried anything like that before. She also did it on her own with the how many more sleeps till Uncle Kyle came into town by adding 2 sleeps plus 3 sleeps. Check! I think we will be okay in the math realm & I am praying she is a billion times smarter than me once we hit pre calculus ; ) 
• She loves to pretend about anything & loves even more that she ropes her sister into all of her imaginary games.  As of lately, they have been pirates going on a treasure hunt with a treasure map from Jake & the Neverland Pirates or as Charlotte says "the Everland pirates."
• She is a talker & still has some really cute ways of saying things. One that I have always enjoyed is her pronunciation of Chick Fil A which has been for the longest time "ChickAYea." That's a good name for it : ) She has not been able to say "L's" until the past few weeks when we were driving down the road & she looked out her window & said "Look mommy, it's Chick A Lay!" She looked at me & said "Mommy! I said "lay" not "yea!" I can say L right!" So cute. Another hilarious thing about mispronouncing words is that however she says it is how Eloise believes it to be pronounced so I have a feeling we will be doing the same corrections with little sis. 

A few other random things about our four year old:

• She is a fairly good eater with her favorites being PB&J, cheese, smoothies, carrots, chicken parmesan, broccoli, peas & most fruits.
• Charlotte is still a great sleeper although she is an early EARLY riser. The girls are in their room around 7pm & usually fall asleep around 8 or 8:30. They both wake by 6am cheerful & ready to start the day.  She is happy to nap from about 1-2:30 about 6 days a week. 
• She has a sensitive heart & is easily offended. I have found myself telling her I am sorry for the way I have spoken to her & asked for her forgiveness on more than one occasion since we have had four children stretching us. She responds so very well in those moments where she sees that I fail too & need to seek forgiveness. It brings up yet another opportunity to talk about our need for Jesus. In a book we just read to Eloise the other day called "Our Home is like a Little Church" one of the pages reads "At home my daddy says to me each time I disobey, 'that's why we all need Jesus' love to take our sins away." I love rhymes & think they are easy for kids to remember so as we read that yesterday I was thinking about incorporating it into our chats following disobedience & into my own mind when I struggle to obey God. She loves reading her bible with Rob & Eloise in the mornings & is usually ready to read before Robby is. She is a little chatterbox asking what story is next as she sits down to find her bookmark. 
• She was given the book Charlotte's Web by my mom when she was first born & it has mostly sat up on a shelf in her room until the past month. It is now stuffed full of random pictures & she sits & looks through it shouting out letters that she finds. She also likes for you to sit next to her so she can show you all the pictures. 
• Charlotte is a collector of things so much so that I have considered letting her watch an episode of Hoarders to let her know where she might be headed. She mostly collects papers, pictures & small books. She puts them all in the gift bag pictured below until it is full. She then piles more onto her nightstand. At nap time she hauls it all to my room & loads it into my nightstand drawer. She likes to make "lists" on small pieces of paper. She sits by me & asks what we need at the store then she does really small scribbles all the way across the page. When you ask her what is on the list she can usually recall what she "wrote." She also says that she writes recipes for things. I help her go through her piles weekly & we throw away things that we don't need anymore....that is one way I can help us not be taken over by papers ; ) 

Added clutter & all, this girl brings great joy to our home. Four years of being her mommy & I am feeling thankful that God saw fit to place her in our nest. Here she is just before leaving with Uncle Kyle on her trip to Texas last Friday....

All the reports from Gaga & PawPaw show that this independent young lady is having a blast & is not homesick at all. She is counting down how many sleeps until she & Gaga fly back but is basking in all the attention from her grandparents & uncles. We cannot WAIT to see her & hear about her visit. This nest is way too quiet without her....I know that is strange to say when only one of four kids is gone but she contributes so much to the noise level ; ) One more sleep & she will be in my arms again!

Charlotte at 3 1/2 years

Three & a half with a whole lot of change going on in her life! Charlotte Grace has been full of surprises lately which include sweet snuggly moments, the craziest melt-downs I never thought possible & everything in between. She is a fast learner, loves to be read to, has a fabulous memory (very jealous of this in my third trimester of pregnancy), loves her sister & my growing belly.  Her laugh is contagious & we just love her. 

Char & Bella Blue have bonded well in the recent weeks.
Charlotte has even let me know when Bella would like to watch a TV show with her : )  

What this 3 & a half year old is up to:

• has letter & number identification down 95% of the time
• likes to ask "but why?"
• loves to trace letters in her preschool learning book or when I put dots on the page for her
• works really hard on her artwork with her favorite things to draw being our family & the dogs

One evening about a month ago I was sewing while Char was drawing on her easel.  She said "hey mommy, look I drew a picture of our family!" I turned around and my jaw dropped! This was the first ever picture she had drawn of actual people.  Rob is the biggest person, he said he thinks he looks a little like a penguin.  Charlotte is the next biggest then I am pretty small at her feet. I hope that is not a representation of how she sees me ; ) I do have two very small babies in my belly.  Eloise is the little person off to the left, Bennett & Bella are near the bottom.  There are a sun & moon in the top corner.  We were impressed! 

• prefers messy markers or colored pencils over crayons
• is quick to pull up a chair to help at the kitchen counter no matter what I am doing
• can sit & listen to books for longer than I can sit & read aloud ; ) Current favorites: Mrs. Spider's Tea Party & Pinkalicious 
• takes excellent care of her new baby (doll) brother- cutest thing she does with him is read books while he sits in her lap

• still likes that thumb
• loves to make her bed & can do it perfectly
• loves to fold towels, blankets & pants, also perfectly
• she is always very proud of how she cleaned her room & wants everyone to come check it out
• can hardly wait to be a big sister to her baby brothers. She lays next to me with her head on my belly until they kick her. Then she says "They sayin' 'who's squishing me?'" She then answers the question by saying "It's just Charlotte, your big sista!" 
• wants three of anything exclaiming "Three, because I'm three"
• thinks it is hilarious to say "I'm a boy! See, I talk like this" making her voice as low as it can go
• loves to be outside whether at the park or just on the sidewalk riding her scooter like a maniac

in a super speedy crouched position ....hahaha!

• sings a song she calls "Candy Song" where the only words are candy song. The tune is always the same & she almost died of excitement when Rob sang it to her at bedtime one night. Ha!
• is quite the fashion queen & accessorizes with bracelets, necklaces & socks, she also likes to include others....

• works on her dance moves at least once every day
• makes us laugh when she does random things like holding grapes up in front of her eyes & says "Look, I'm a snowman!"
• loves her sissy & loves to "help" her obey mommy

Two cutie pies getting some sun on a warm "winter" day

Little Stinker:

• When we put her to bed at night she comes out within 30 seconds claiming that Eloise is keeping her awake. We send her back in & then watch her on the monitor as she hangs on the side of the crib talking Elo's ear off. Sometimes it can take over an hour for them to fall asleep.
• She is up for napping without a fight about once every three days right now.  On the 2 days in between the naps it is quite noisy as she tells me how she feels about being told to take a nap. This can include screaming, kicking the door & taking a swing at mommy. More on being her mommy later. 
• She got some little tubes of Lip Smackers for Christmas. During one nap Rob heard her yelling "help, help!" He went in her room to find her laying on her back, hanging off the bed with her head on the floor & her arms out stretched with a tube (no cap) in each hand trying not to let them touch the carpet. 
• I am about to lose my mind with this one: She wants to wear layers upon layers of clothing every day. She can hardly wait to get dressed & refuses help 99% of the time. If left to herself, she will come out of her room with at least 5 shirts on, her winter coat, leggings & a skirt.  Her most likely future career would be based out of Antarctica. I had to confiscate all socks because she would wear every single pair making her feet look like they were broken with casts on. Her room looks like she invited all her friends over for a fashion show with clothing strewn about. I am about to lock the closet & dresser drawers.....more prison like might be helpful ; ) So, on December 31st, Rob & I were eating our dinner when I noticed I hadn't seen Char for awhile. Rob went into her room to see what kind of trouble she was getting into. He saw her donning layers upon layers of clothing & when he caught her eye she said "Oh hi Dad" in a play it cool kinda way.  He left her alone & when she walked into the kitchen all dressed for sleeping in an igloo Rob asked her to come to him so he could count how many shirts she was wearing. She immediately said "NOOOOOO!" because that usually means we are going to take them away. This time we said that she could wear as many things as she wanted to for bedtime but starting in the new year she could only wear 2 shirts at a time + a jacket on a cold day. This has gone okay but most of the time I think she would rather wear more layers than get her reward. If she can obey the new ruling, she gets three coins to put in her piggy bank. Why three you ask? Because she's three!

• She has gone without eating dinner multiple times saying that she doesn't like whatever we are serving. One night we told her that if she didn't eat any of it that it would be waiting for her for breakfast the next morning.  I was gone but apparently she decided to eat some before she went to bed.  Usually if she gives it a try she says "I yike it now!" She manages to put down a decent breakfast following skipping dinner!

Little Thinker:

• She has recently become obsessed with watching the videos set to music that include pictures & video clips of when she, Eloise & Isaac my nephew were born.  The one of Isaac is her favorite & happens to have Jenny looking not so comfortable during her natural labor, go figure. She is always so concerned with why Jenny looks sad.                                                                                                  This is how our conversation usually goes:  Char: Why is Jenny so sad Mommy? Me: Well honey, it is hard work & it hurts to have a baby. Char: (when we get to the 10 seconds of Jenny's face while she is pushing) Can we watch that part again? Me: Sure (I rewind & play again at least 5 times at her request. Char: WHAT IS SHE DOING???? Me: She is pushing really hard so baby Isaac will come out of her belly. Char: (sitting quietly for a bit): Did you have to push really hard for me to come out of your belly? Me: (trying to refrain from saying "oh my, you have no idea how hard I had to push for THREE HOURS for you to come out & it hurt SO bad!") Yes honey, I did have to push really hard.  Since then when we see new babies she asks me later "Did that baby's mommy have to push really hard?" She has not asked where the baby comes out & I have not filled her in on the details that her twin brothers will be cut out of my belly....might be a little much ; ) 
• One afternoon we were sitting outside & she was crying. I asked her to come sit next to me so we could chat.  I reminded her about how since she is a big girl, she can use her words to tell me why she is sad or upset. She looked up at me with tears streaming down her face & said "I don't know why I am crying, I just feel sad!" Oh my, 3 years old & it is already started ; ) Honestly I can remember saying that a few times during this pregnancy.
• She was pretending to be a doctor & was "listening" to the babies heartbeats. First she was Dr. Edison which I am not sure where that came from & then she introduced herself as Dr. Seuss.  I was laughing & she said very seriously "Hey Daddy, do you know how to put babies in Mommy's belly?" He quickly replied, "yes, yes I do Charlotte." I was holding my breath & she happily continued playing without asking anymore questions. Phew! Safe for at least one more day ; ) 
• We were really unsure of how she would respond to the news about Bennett.  She was crushed. It might have been the saddest moment of the entire week of his getting sicker & dying.  She talks about him frequently saying how she misses him. For the first week or so she would say "We need to go get Bennett right now!" It is a little difficult to start with her only exposure to dying being talking about Jesus dying since he came back to life unlike any one or any pet : ) Kind of tricky for her little mind to grasp.  She & Eloise get on a roll with saying the word "die" over & over.  We remind them that we don't need to say that over & over.  One afternoon we had a guest & Charlotte said immediately "Do you know what happened to Bennett? He got old & his belly hurt & he had to die. But my Daddy tells me & Elo that we can't say "DIE DIE DIE DIE!" Haha!

Here she is thinking about the garbage man as he did an 8 point turn in the cul-de-sac

At three & a half we are seeing more & more of her personality each day. We are seeing a bit of stubbornness & a lot of independence which I know can be great characteristics to have when channeled appropriately. We are seeing her being delightful & then having a melt down in the same minute. I have struggled greatly in the past two months with parenting in a kind, loving & patient way as I so strongly desire to do. This is partially due to my "status" meaning the excessive weight gain & lack of energy that really slows me down on acting quickly & partially due to my own sin of not overflowing with kindness & patience as we tackle each day's difficult moments.

I didn't know it could feel this hard although I know that each age has it's new level of difficulty : ) I feel like I am constantly questioning if we are doing things the right way especially when things seem to be going great one minute & we all crash the next.  So there is no happy ending here like "I have it all figured out" or "There is nothing to fear, Supermom is here!" or "God is guiding me each step of the way as I pursue Him throughout each interaction." Most days I am left feeling like I am doing a crummy job  & seem to neglect praying for the Lord to change my heart & hers.  Sin is just showing it's ugliness on a regular basis right now & we desperately need God to intervene.

Happy ending or not on the parenting front, I love my little Charlotte Grace.  We are grateful for the opportunity to grow with her in every way possible.  We look forward to seeing her become the big sister of 3 younger siblings all before turning four! We are thankful for her silliness, her giggle, her being so particular about certain things, her love for her sister & her growing independence.

Charlotte Grace is God's grace extended to us.  One way that looks right now is that it is His grace to us to refine us as we struggle through what it means to be a godly mother & father to her.  His provision is perfect....looking back it is easy to see.  She is a precious gift that little Charlotte!

Charlotte at 3 years

Here she is, our THREE year old little ballerina!  It is crazy to think that I have spent some portion of every 24 hour period with this girl minus about 5 days over the course of roughly 1,095 days. That's a lot of time together which is why I feel like I can describe her pretty well ; )  She is still a delight to be around even on the roughest of days. On these difficult days, I experience this delight when I continually remind myself that God chose me, not anyone else to be her mommy. He is providing direction for us in how to best love & care for her as she grows & I am SO thankful for that.  There are multiple times during any given day when I look at her and cannot help but smile thinking about who she is & is growing to be. Just for the record, Charlotte needed next to no direction in posing for these pictures...she was just being herself : ) 

Stats:

37 3/4 inches - 65th percentile

33 pounds - 65th percentile

Size 3T-4T clothing

Size 9.5 shoes

Silly goose!

Born to be WILD:

• loves watching worms & froggies outside
• enjoys dancing of any form & to any music
• sings to all sorts of random tunes
• plays a good game of hide & seek (she has gotten much better at staying quiet while hiding)
• can be found jumping off anything she can climb onto
• wrestles her little sis
• any art project ends with Char covered in markers/paint/glue
• rides the roller coaster at Sea World, "sea won" as many times in a row as they will let her
• loves playing games where we make animal sounds
• consumes massive quantities of macaroni & cheese, pancakes, cheese & crackers, broccoli (if she has to pick a veggie)

Busybody:

• learning to use scissors
• loves to paste cut out shapes onto pink paper only
• frequently draws a turtle & a seagull or as she says "eagle" 
• wants to throw, catch and bounce our ladybug ball everyday- can do all three pretty well
• sorts beans really fast
• jumps rather high (at least I think it's high for a 3 year old, ha!)
• turning somersaults with quite the grand start & finish 
• loves to help vacuum (very new thing but I think I like it!)

Heart:

Charlotte is becoming more sensitive to others emotions.  Anytime she sees someone walking alone (like when we are driving in the car) she says "Oh no mommy! Why is he all alone? He is sad!" She also says that about animals.  Jenny's brother & his wife recently adopted a little girl that was born in Florida.  We got to meet her & Charlotte has talked about their family a lot since then. I shared with her about how they asked God for a baby for a long time & had to be very patient then God decided to answer their prayer and gave them a little girl that was from another mommy. She was snuggling with me this morning and out of nowhere said, "I like that baby, her mommy had to wait a long long time then God gave her a baby!"  I think that is evidence of her mind trying to process things we have talked about.  My prayer always is that her heart would be transformed as we share with her about who God is & what He did for her through Jesus & it is through little conversations we have each day, that we can teach her truth.

She is responding to discipline well & after spending sometime thinking well say she is sorry & ask for forgiveness.  I know at this point she may be repeating what she have told her to say but as she grows, the words will have more meaning in her little heart & mind. She loves practicing her catechism questions & is so particular about it. She wants you to read directly from the little yellow book asking her the questions. Then she wants the book so she can ask Eloise all the questions.  That is really entertaining! She asks, gives Eloise a split second to answer & then says the answer followed by "that's right, good job Eloise!" Elo can answer the first one "Who made you?" "don" she exclaims & then giggles. When she gets to the last question she says "Are you ready for your new one Elo? Here it is, it's really hard!" This is exactly what we say to her so it is hilarious to see that she remembers word for word. The cute way she says some of the answers must be recorded. 

Who wrote the bible? Hoe-ee men infired by the hoe-ee ferret (Holy men inspired by the holy spirit)

What is God? God is ferret (God is spirit)

What is spirit? An invis-ble bing who doeset have a body just yike us (An invisible being who doesn't have a body like us)

Rob & I have been teaching our 4 & 5 year olds from Sunday mornings this song, so we have listened to it quite a bit at home. Charlotte started singing it at the table the other morning & got most of the words of the first verse & chorus & then went on to say 2 of the scripture verses at the end! I was shocked & I cried because it was SO sweet.  Also in relation to this song.... we were riding in the car just chatting away & had this lovely conversation.

Char: Mommy, God is wif me.

Me:  Yes Charlotte, He is always with you.

Char: God is wif me in the dark. (when she is afraid)

Me: Your right, He IS with you in dark.

Char: But I can't see'em!

Me: Right again, remember your catechism question that said that God is spirit & that spirit is an invisible being that doesn't have a body like us? Invisible means we can't see him. Someday in heaven we will be able to see God.

Char: We see Calliou in heaven too mommy?

Sleeping like a baby:

The common thought on the phrase "sleeping like a baby" is that a baby sleeps really hard right?  Think back to the newborn stage....they sleep hard for 2 hour blocks.  That's where we are right now. She is still showing up in our room sometime during the night & we wake up with a snuggle bug next to us. I have been up past midnight all week and have taken Charlotte back to her bed at least 6 times between 8-12.  We are convinced she is not really awake & I wish we had video evidence to prove it.  We were up late a few weeks ago. Robby was coming into our bedroom from the living room & I was walking out of our bathroom into the bedroom. Charlotte was right in front of Rob walking like a zombie. The lights were dim but she barely opened her eyes. She crawled onto our bed then went up to the pillows & spent a good 4 minutes trying to move them along with the covers to get into a comfortable position. It was super un-coordinated.  We were silently laughing so hard as we observed the poor girl trying to get cozy with so much opposition from the perfectly made bed.  When it was all over, Robby whispered "I feel like we just witnessed the elusive snow leopard mate or something."  That got me laughing even harder. It's true, we are so zombie like ourselves in the middle of the night that it is a mystery how she ends up in our bed!

There is always something to postpone reformation in the sleep department & now it is that we are headed on vacation soon & will sleeping in one room for some of the nights. One day, we will lay down the law & will have one VERY unhappy snuggly Charlotte. She still sleeps from 8-7:30 (in our bed or hers or any combination of) & then from 12:30-2:30ish each afternoon.

Chatterbox:

• talks ALL the time speaking in full sentences but is still somewhat challenging for others to understand who don't spend much time with her
• "pot-to-tol" for Popsicle & "hot-to-tol" for hospital
• counts to 20 usually skipping 4 then hits 14 "fourteent" & says that 5 times before she says 20
• mimics me talking to Eloise with the same exact set of phrases with inflection especially before nap
• says "that'd be a good idea?" about nearly everything
• addresses me as "mom" most of the time
• "reads" ie tells the stories with many of the correct words- Baby Dear, 5 Little Monkeys & Miss Lina's Ballerinas
• says this ALL the time: "When I grow up, I gonna youse my teef but then I get a new toof." This all stemmed from Hannah, on of my sweet kindergartners on Sunday morning who lost both front teeth. Char saw her & said "Oh no mom! She doesn't have her teef!" 
• also says "I gonna grow up real soon & so is Eloise but Mommy says 'you stop that growin!'"
• Sings the ABC's starting with A, B, cease, D
• tells me "I very upset mom" when something is bothering her
• when Elo has a poopie diaper Charlotte says "Eloise! That's not funny!"
• if I see her sucking her thumb & ask her if she is sleepy she says "no mom, I just restin'"
• says "sprinkles" for sprinkler & sparkles
• about a month ago Robby walked into the bathroom & she was standing in front of the mirror with her shirt off & said "Daddy, these are my breasts. I feed Eloise milk from my breasts." He walked out & said, "I'm not really sure what to do with that." haha!
• when she eating she says "I'm gonna eat it all up" which the phrase apparently works with reading & watching "I'm gonna read it all up & watch it all up!"
• she is working hard to say he & she for the right people but usually talks about Eloise as a he. As she processes, her little monologue goes like this "if it is boyee, say he & boyee can be a daddy. If it is a guyl, say she & a guyl can be a mommy." So she know it but still says it wrong every time. 
• says "Funder" for thunder & "Fider" for spider

So, three years in & we LOVE her from her sweet little face...................................down to her toes : ) 

Charlotte at 2 3/4 years

The original plan was to wait until Charlotte turned three to do another "update" post but seriously, she has been hilarious lately & seems to change daily so here I am writing a "Charlotte at 2 3/4 years." I do this so I won't forget the precious way she says things, the silliness that has overtaken our household & to record many of the things she is so proud of being able to do.

Her eyes are so bright and in turn brighten my day....every day

Chitty Chatty Char

• I love how I can ask her to tell me about something & she thinks for a minute and starts to describe it.  One thing she loves to tell me about is the whales at Sea World & how they "spash eveybody" & how she can make them jump out of the water.  A couple weeks ago when we were leaving Sea World after the evening show Char was crying & upset that we had to go home. She informed us that she would like to stay there all night long. We told her that the whales had to go night night since it was dark outside.  The next morning she woke up screaming "whales awake! whales awake! I go see'um?" Many nights/mornings she will look outside and let me know if the whales are awake or "sleepin'"
• When you tell her that you have her lunch ready, she says "What you have for me Mommy?"
• She requests "pive" (5) of anything that is quantifiable
• My dad was asking her questions at the dinner table this week and the following conversation transpired- Dad: Charlotte, what has 4 legs and sleeps on the couch all day?  Charlotte: thinking for a second.... MY DADDY! (hahahaha) Me: Your Daddy doesn't have 4 legs! How many legs does Daddy have? Charlotte: thinking again.... PIVE!
• She tells herself stories from many of the familiar books she has. She will snuggle up in the chair or on her bed & read to herself. On the airplane to Houston she "read" the whole Skymall magazine which makes for some pretty interesting descriptions!
• She says "hahn" for head: example "don't bump your hahn baby Elo!" She also says "bahn" for bed: example "let's read books in mommy's bahn!"
• She says "yen" for leg
• She likes to identify people as "boyees & gayls" (boys & girls.)  She thinks it's really funny to say that Daddy is a girl or Mommy is a boy. She says it & then grins waiting for us to say "are you sure?" then she says "NO, you a gayl mommy!"
• When you ask her what her full name is she says "Tawlott Gace Vowtime"
• When you ask her when her birthday is she say "youlie tateent" July 13th for those of you who don't speak her language.
• Our names are "Lawin & Wobby"
• She calls one Grandpa "Pop Pop" & one "Paw Paw." We were helping her remember which is which & I told her that Paw Paw (my dad) does the werewolf sounds when we Skype. She said "Oh yeah, I like Paw Paw werewolf raaaaroooooo!"
• I feel like I am reliving the movie Groundhog Day every night when we put her to bed. Charlotte: "I wah leave the doohee open." Me: "okay Char, we can try it." Charlotte: "But what happens if I come out?" No need for me to reply, she has already memorized the answer. Charlotte: "We have to close doohee." Every night for like 4 months....no kidding.
• Another thing we hear frequently is "I wah candy for dinee please" or if she gets up to use the restroom during a meal she will tell us or the dogs "doh eat my dinee!"
• She says "parrot" for favorite. A few examples: "I yuve pink, it's my parrot color!" "Peanut butta & je-wee is my parrot mommy!"
• Speaking of parrots, I feel like I have a parrot named Charlotte that follows me around.  EVERYTHING I say to Eloise is repeated immediately following the closure of my sentence. It is pretty funny. She has also been heard telling Bennett "take a chill pill Buddy!"

It's just a figment of her imagination:
Someones imagination has really taken off recently & has provided quite the entertainment for our family. Here are the best of the best...

• This started when we were reading the story of how an angel came to Mary to tell her that she would have a son & his name would be Jesus.  Charlotte interrupted the story & said "I have a baby in my belly! It's baby Isaac....you wanna howee?" So I reach out to hold him & she shouts, "Oh no! He fly away!" When she is holding this said baby, he is about 8 inches long.
• One afternoon Rob had the girls at the park by himself. They were sitting on a bench eating a snack when Char said "Daddy, I see a mouse!" He said "you do, where is it Charlotte?" She told him it was up in the tree.  He started looking and couldn't find it. A few minutes later she said it again so he started looking up in the branches.  He said, "Charlotte, what color is the mouse" to which she replied "pink!"
• Just during our stay in Kingwood, she has pretended to be Matilda, her BFF.  When you are getting her out of the car or asking her to do something and refer to her as Charlotte she says "I not Tawlott, I Mati!"
• My mom was trying to get her to lay down & take a nap the first day we were at her house.  She was lying down on the bed with her & Charlotte started telling her about the baby in her belly. Then, she stood up & looked out the window behind the bed. She told my mom that there were animals out there & when asked what animals there were she said she could see elephants & zebras with pink stripes! Wow! Did you know my parents have an African safari next door? I didn't!

silly, silly, silly

Mr.Sandman...bring me a dream:
I wish there was a sandman who could bring me a full night's sleep maybe once a week ; ) We are tackling the overnight visiting to Mommy & Daddy's bed when we get home from Kingwood next week.  She goes to sleep in her own room without much of a struggle, stays in until sometime after 3 (usually) and then comes straight to our bed.  Robby says she is like a ninja & can sneak in completely unnoticed. One morning we woke up to our heads being scratched simultaneously. We actually thought the other person was doing it until we were completely conscious & found Charlotte between us. Hahaha! The other sleep related thing that has made us laugh is when we have watched Char nurse all of her stuffed animals before going to to sleep at nap time. She is going to be such a great mommy someday.  Her usual hours of snoozing are 8-7 overnight & 12:30-2:30 each afternoon.

Some of Charlotte's "parrot" things:

• playing hide & seek but screaming to get the person's attention that is seeking
• swinging in the big girl swing at the park
• shouting out the letters on signs while we are driving
• balancing on one foot
• jumping onto the couch from the arm rest
• carrying her baby sister around...she is seriously strong
• running, skipping, climbing
• walking backwards- the other day she walked backwards from Matilda's house to our house...a good 5 minute walk
• saying things she knows are funny then waiting for a response from us
• watching Angelina Ballerina or "ange-yeena by-yeena" & Shaun the Sheep or "tawn teep"
• playing with stickers
• sorting buttons or laying ribbons out straight
• wearing ALL of her silly bandz at one time on her ankle

I let her wear them for about a week straight but had to make a new rule that she can only wear them on her wrist because her ankle had some really deep creases that weren't going away....oops!

Charlotte is a sweetheart. I love spending my days (and nights) with her.  Three more months & she will be a big three year old!  Here is a great picture that shows her most recent haircut result....only the second haircut in her lifetime : )