Anson at 15 months

Handsome Anson is 15 months old & bringing much laughter to our home each day. He is a mini comedian, super snuggler & a sneaky little swiper when it comes to food or toys that belong to someone else.  It seems like learning has just exploded with the twins in the past few weeks which has resulted in lots of cheering in the house. 

STATS:

23 lbs 6 ounces

30 1/2 inches 

12-18 month clothing

Size 5 shoes -chubby width : ) 

What Jack Benny is up to at 15 months:

• although he is only 23 pounds, he feels more like 40 pounds when lugged around the house on a hip. He LOVES to be held & requests by standing at your feet saying "uh uh uh uh uh uh"
• has four teeth on top, two on bottom & one other that is just cutting through...can't remember where 
• took his first step on May 26th while we were in the kitchen at Grammy's house & was quite proud of himself. I was excited to catch it since it was my first week of full time work & he was SO on the verge of taking off on foot!
• On June 7th while watching the Horse Races on TV, both boys popped up & started taking lots of synchronized continuous steps. They were hilarious & adorable.
• This past week Anson has figured out that he can walk long distances & will go a good 20 steps before tumbling.
• is pretty good at balancing things on his head including but not limited to: cups, cars, broccoli & chunks of meat
• likes to stack blocks or stick Legos together & pull them apart
• has some beautifully long eyelashes that he got from his Daddy
• puts just about any non edible item in his mouth

• does not refuse ANY food & is a bottomless pit. Favorites: steak, black beans, cheese, grapes, PB&J, chocolate chip cookies at the grocery store, broccoli, eggs, toast, muffins & about a million other things
• attempted to self feed with some oatmeal the other day....was quite messy
• Says- Mama, Dada, "Cuh" for car, "Duh" for duck, "Bah" for ball, "Dah" for dog, Bye & attempts to repeat any sound you ask him to. I swear he said "I love you" one time : ) 
• absolutely loves to be read to with his favorite book being "Row, Row, Row your boat" in which he throws at you while saying "whoa whoa whoa whoa" 
• does the hand motions for Twinkle Twinkle & Itsy Bitsy Spider
• knows where his head, ears, eyes, nose & belly are
• "sings" along with me when I sing to him before bed or just "sings" to himself at random times
• loves for his Daddy or sissies to lay on the floor & climb all over them
• always has a more snug fitting shirt than his leaner bro ; ) This picture makes us laugh...

• follows simple directions like "Bring mommy your car" or "Get your book."
• struggles to follow simple directions like "Don't pull the nightlight out again" or "Don't throw your cup on the ground" or "Don't feed Bella" not sure why those aren't sinking in ; ) 
• is very sensitive when told "no" & cries until snuggled 
• when we say "Let's go take a bath buddy" he races to the tub & last night actually walked all the way there!
• attempts to kick ball while standing. Has been watching lots of the World Cup with Daddy & throws his hands up in the air & yells "Goal!" on command.  

• is very sweet with a stuffed animal or baby snuggling & patting
• could not be any happier then when he is outside getting dirty in the sandbox or flower pots
• would swing all day long if you kept pushing
• loves to growl & sounds a little intimidating
• growls when asked what sound pretty much any animal makes....hilarious 
• is a great sleeper napping from about 9-10:30am, 1-3:30pm & overnight from about 6:30pm-7am
• Anson is still a die hard thumb sucker!

Anson is fairly laid back in comparison to his look alike older bro. He being the heavy weight champ in utero & beyond still steals food off Owen's tray by grabbing the high chair tray, pulling him close & swiping. No wonder Owee-O stays so trim! His extra few pounds gives him the ability to chase Owen down, crawl onto his back & flatten him out like a pancake. Mighty-O doesn't go down without a fight (more about him in his own post) & can usually escape.  Their interactions are humorous & absolutely precious. How fun to have someone the same age to play with! They aren't very good at sharing toys but when it comes to popsicles, they will hold it out for the other to take a lick.  They talk to each other when put in their cribs which are currently touching. They play peek a boo & make each other laugh. They hold hands in their car seats but play a mean game of holding each others heads down between their knees until someone cries "uncle" when in the wagon. 

Here he is with his best buddy & number one fan.... 

They hate to be separated & when one is in a chair, the other requests to join him.  This presented the perfect opportunity to snap a pic of the first walking shoes for the little guys.  They like them but much prefer the barefoot look.

Time is a flying that's for sure! The combo of two walking & climbing is a bit exhausting but couple that with the ability to learn all sorts of new tricks & words, we are fast approaching one of my favorite stages. 

One last one of Anson looking like a nap might be calling his name....

Father's Day 2014

Talk about packing in the celebrating while living with the Valentines! In our short stay which may feel long for two other people ; ) we have celebrated three birthdays, two anniversaries, Mother's Day & Father's Day. Sweet Charlotte asked me (again) recently "how many more sleeps till my birthday?" & "when is kid's day?" I told her everyday is kid's day with a smile on my face I could just not hide....she is so cute & that is SUCH a valid question for an almost five year old.  We are feeling the stress of living in transition so it did seem that Father's Day snuck up on me but we put together a mini makeshift banner with the supplies on hand & took a few pictures for the favorite Daddy around here....

My original plan was to have them ready in enough time to print from my favorite photo printing website but like I said, Father's Day was sneaky this year so I settled for uploading to Walmart on Saturday morning & going with family in tow to pick them up. Total BAD idea.....mostly Walmart, partly family in tow. I try to give Walmart a fair shot but I have not encountered too many employees that happen to have excellent customer service skills to put it nicely. I was a little ticked off....or maybe a lot ticked off because Robby was like "Whoa, calm down, what is going on?" So I had to ruin the surprise & tell him that I was getting pictures printed for him. After hearing me out he refused to let me pay them a penny for photos & said he wouldn't want them if they came from there. Ha! So, we finished up our shopping, headed home & planned to show him the pictures via laptop screen the following morning.

Sunday we hoped would be relaxing & it was partially. We fired up the smoker, filled up the mini swimming pool & played outside all day long.  By the end of the day we realized once again that there is just not a whole lot of relaxing with really young children near a hot smoker, a pool or a sandbox with tasty sand. We made the best of it though & look forward to a re-do next year ; )

In our time outside, Char watered the garden for Papa. We have been amazed at how quickly it has grown & all that we have harvested thus far considering it was all planted Mother's Day weekend. After our rain in the past 24 hours the far right is all taller than Charlotte. Crazy!

The pool was a blast for those who liked to act ridiculously crazy ...

Others (like Owee-O) were more comfortable watching from the side.

and Chubsters, he was happiest in guess what? His high chair, with food in his mouth. Here he is doing his best Jack Benny impersonation. I was unaware of this funny man from years ago but Bob noticed Anson doing this move often & said he looked just like Jack Benny so after a week of saying "Anson! Jack Benny!" He does this...

When not standing poolside or strapped in a high chair, these two stayed happy in their "pretty in pink" chairs.


Jack Benny got some sugars from that Daddy we were celebrating as he passed by to check on the smoker once again. He was hard to catch on camera that day do to his "smokin'" but we did get a few.

We saw a lot of this....

That was a DELICIOUS rack of ribs wrapped on the left. No matter how rough a go it is on the smoker for him, it is always amazing when we we sit down at the table. I am glad he keeps going back for another round!

Daddy & his girls...

Those two girlies were excited to show Daddy all the questions & answers from our Father's Day interview. 

All about my Daddy

By Charlotte

-Father’s Day 2014-

What is Daddy’s name? um Rob

How old is Daddy? 49

What is Daddy's favorite color? Gray
What does Daddy do for fun? Plays hide & seek tag with us
What does Daddy like to watch on TV? The horse race & race cars 
What's your favorite thing to do with Daddy? I love to color with Daddy 
What does Daddy say a lot? He says a lot of words to us like “we be disciplined”

Why does Mommy love Daddy? because He married you
What does Daddy do at work? He works with his friends & looks up stuff on his computer

Who does Daddy love? Mommy & he loves us too

Where is Daddy’s favorite place to go? Chuy’s

What does Daddy call you? He says “Charlotte” like “Moses” in that movie we like

What's Daddy's favorite thing to eat? Goulash that Papa makes
What makes Daddy laugh? Silly faces

What makes Daddy sad? When we disobey him
What makes Daddy smile? When we obey him 
How does Daddy help you? Daddy helps me learn how to obey

How do you show Daddy you love him? I obey him
What's your very favorite thing about Daddy? He has short hair

We were laughing so hard later about how much obedience/disobedience talk there was. I guess that reveals a bit of what has been going on lately ; ) He is sweet on his big girl though...

It was Eloise's first time with the questions & she didn't miss a beat....and she was hilarious.

All about my Daddy

By Eloise

-Father’s Day 2014-

What is Daddy’s name? Rob

How old is Daddy? 3

What is Daddy's favorite color? Black, like this (pointing at Daddy’s work bag)
What does Daddy do for fun? Plays wif me & he chase
What does Daddy like to watch on TV? The News 
What's your favorite thing to do with Daddy? I like when Daddy does that “sh sh” song so I can dance 
What does Daddy say a lot? He say that “sh sh” song

Why does Mommy love Daddy? Because he really cute
What does Daddy do at work? Plays with his friends

Who does Daddy love? Mommy

What is Daddy’s favorite thing to do with you? He yike to play chase & fight & tickle

Where is Daddy’s favorite place to go? He yike to go to work

What does Daddy call you? He calls me sneezy

What's Daddy's favorite thing to eat? He yike when I make him some goulash like Papa
What makes Daddy laugh? When I do this face (eyes to the side)

What makes Daddy sad? When I do this (makes a mean face)
What makes Daddy smile? When I make goulash 
How does Daddy help you? He help me obey

How do you show Daddy you love him? I make him goulash, I makin' him goulash right now!
What's your very favorite thing about Daddy? He play with me

It is pretty apparent that Eloise was hung up on goulash which was soooo funny to us. One night Bob threw some random things in with pasta/sauce & called it Goulash. It was pretty tasty, the girls are hooked on it & think that Daddy is too! 

He's pretty sweet on that littlest girlie pie too....

I did fail to mention that the night leading up to Father's Day was nothing less than exciting but looking at Charlotte's lip in the photo above is a good reminder of what should be included.  We put the girls to bed & expected them to stay there, like we do every night.... yet they came out, like they do every night. Although a common occurrence, this time ended with a lot of blood.  Somehow they crashed into each other in the hallway & we heard awful screams.  By the time we got to them, they had run all the way back to their room. Robby said he had it under control & closed the door but within seconds was yelling for me to get back in there. Char had her hands over her mouth until we could convince her to relax enough for us to take a look. There was blood all over her hands & mouth but once we figured out where it was coming from we stopped it fairly quickly.  Her top teeth on the left side had cut into the inside of her lip leaving some fleshy pieces dangling for lack of a better phrase. Sorry if that is too much detail. We were debating on heading to the ER. We called Grammy in for a consult since she took Uncle Steve to the ER for stitches quite frequently in his early years. I also gave my Uncle a call who happens to be an Oral & Maxillofacial Surgeon, how perfect?! I described what I saw & he said we were probably good to stay at home. THANKFUL we took his advice because she has healed up quite nicely. 

If you remember, Char has most recently healed from her literal "run-in" with the big red truck which I missed while I was in Dallas for my interview. I had only heard stories of that husband of mine & his father of the year worthy interaction with a panic stricken child until the eve of Father's Day when I got to experience it first hand. I was utterly impressed by his ability to remain completely calm & in turn calm his sweet baby girl down. Even though I am a nurse, with my own kids, I can be a little extreme with the first reaction usually sending them into a new state of hysteria upon minor injuries. That being said, God knew that one of us needed to be cool, calm & collected so He gifted Rob in that way. I have a feeling with two boys bringing up the caboose, we may be just getting started on debating whether to go to the ER or not ; ) 

Last year in June, Owen & Anson were just barely four months old. MUCH has changed & I have loved seeing Rob be a father to four little ones including twins that are busier every day!  I love that the look like his baby pictures, especially Anson & their eyes are more brown than the lighter color they started. 

So, following our wild evening of contemplating a trip to the ER we decided to take it easy & relax on the couch once the kids were in bed. I had just filled up my nightly bowl of Blue Bell, collapsed in the chair & hit play on a show we were watching when I looked over & noticed some flashing lights. I asked Rob what it was from & he peeked out the front window & noticed an officer who had someone pulled over in front of the house across the street, cuffed & sitting on the sidewalk with one or two others. In the very moment he looked he yelled "No way! He's running!" & the guy took off to the back of the house with officers running behind. The other two walked back in the front door & then the "excitement" began.

Within minutes the street was flooded with flashing lights & officers everywhere. I was staying put eating my ice cream while Robby updated me from the window. All of the sudden he said in a very serious tone "get the kids out of the front rooms now!" I grabbed Elo who had been in our bed & threw her into Bob & Jeannine's bed then Jeannine & I scooped up sleeping babes & got comfy in their room with Eloise. The newest update was that their were officers with guns drawn at the house including one with a rifle hiding out behind the air conditioning unit about 8 feet outside the kitchen window. They were taking cover behind our vehicles parked out front! What??? It was crazy. They were on a loud speaker saying "We know you are in there, come out with your hands up!" One guy came out on his own & long story short, it went on for quite sometime so we put the pack in plays in the bathroom & put the boys back to sleep & moved Lolo back in with Char. I had already taken my melatonin pill to help my drift off sleep more easily & by the time we were an hour & a half in, I was nearly in Lala land so I had to lay down & be updated later. They never found anyone in the house & the street cleared up by the time we fell asleep but man oh man, two nights in a row of absurdity, one inside the house & one out!

All that to say, every Father's Day looks a little different & to reiterate, we are looking forward to a re-do in 2015 ; ) As I consider how thankful I am for my husband, I think of how he is steady day in & day out. He trusts the Lord, he gives & gives of himself to best care for our family, he recognizes my struggles & walks with me through them, he lovingly disciplines our children & helps me do the same. He is honest with me about his own failures. He is hilarious & finds humor in situations that are stressful. He is present with me in the craziness of life right now with the Fab Four & their unending needs. I love being his wife.

To help encourage him to find humor in potentially stressful situations ie parenting, I got him a copy of Jim Gaffigan's new book called "Dad is Fat". This guy is a stand up comedian with five very young children which provide for ample amount of "material." We have read a few chapters to each other once the kids are in bed & have shared some good laughs so far. I highly recommend laughing and this book : )

Wild about Elo- celebrating turning three

We do love celebrating around here & Eloise's third birthday was no exception! We love surprising them with decorations when they wake up on their birthday but two sneaky girls ruined the surprise this year by poking their heads out to see after they were put in bed for the night. Grrrr! They were SO excited & were wired until quite late with lots of peeking going on.  Even though I was sad it wasn't a surprise they seemed to be just as excited the next morning as we woke up & began the celebration with a birthday breakfast complete with party hats....and lion masks...

The baby boas liked their hats although the picture below may show a different emotion ; ) I do love how Anson's belly always seems to be hanging out of his shirt!

We enjoyed an easy peasy & favorite breakfast of Special K Protein which "tastes like it has cookies in it" according to the chickadees at the Valentine Nest.  After all tummies were full we let Eloise open a few birthday gifts. She is pretty easily excited when it comes to receiving gifts but one in particular stood out to that sweet girl. It was a pony that walks along when you press her back.  Guess who picked that out? Her big sis that loves her baby sis dearly & spent a good 45 minutes strolling around the toy store looking for just the right gift. She had originally chosen a Hello Kitty purse followed by waiting in line for five minutes before having a change of heart & saying "I really think she would LOVE that pony instead!" So we ran back to that aisle, made the swap & purchased the big hit pony. Her smile says it all...

It was a treat for us all to be celebrating another birthday while calling the Valentine's house "our home." They take great care of all of us & are especially loving on our little ones day in & day out. 

After breakfast, gifts, getting ready & packing up which takes a half a day in itself, we were headed out for our wild adventure at the Dallas Zoo.  I had not been there since Robby & I were dating so it was special to bring the whole crew & have Grammy & Papa join us.

As we walked in from the parking lot we were alongside multiple school groups of kids that could be no older than four with 25+ per group plus a few chaperons. Clearly we had it easy with four on four in comparison : ) At the gate we were approached by a representative claiming that an annual family pass was the way to go & as we did some number crunching we quickly realized he was right. Either $60 each time we go or $99 for the year...for the whole family? Made Disney seem like a rip off ; ) So within minutes, we had our passes & were headed through the gate with triple wagon, double stroller, bags & the Fab Four. First stop was the carousel which I rode with the little ladies, Charlotte on a cheetah & Eloise on a bear then we made our way to the plains of Africa where we were greeted by these elephants or as Charlee used to say "Elo-phants."

For how obsessed Eloise is with her Gaga, she has gotten pretty attached to Grammy as well. Grammy makes Elo feel so special & dishes out lots of cuddles, pats & lifts up to see an animal or two.

Rob was on double duty except for when his crew had a double duty blow out if you know what I'm sayin'. Seriously though, I don't mind if they are in unison with screaming, walking, pulling books of shelves and many other things but double blow outs? C'mon boys! All three of them looked pretty cute in their khaki shorts & black shirts. Rob wouldn't wear the T-rex skeleton shirt I had picked out for him ; )

One thing the girls LOVE every trip to the zoo is feeding the giraffes million dollar lettuce & since it was Eloise's birthday I didn't flinch when I handed over my credit card for something that costs one hundred times what it would cost me if I bought it at the grocery store, snuck it in & fed them out of my bag. I guess it might cost me more in legal fees if I got caught. So, the giraffes (in our previous experiences) have been hungry & quickly ate whatever we offered. This time, oh my goodness, they were just staring at all the people waving their lettuce like "I'm going to throw up if I have to eat one more bite!" It took us at least 15 minutes to convince them to eat what we offered & in the process they were more interested in the guy with the camera (my husband) on the bridge next to the feeding area! Silly giraffes! Eloise's squeal when they finally ate her lettuce was worth the wait.

After the non feeding frenzy, we walked around the rest of Africa. My favorite question was from Charlotte who with wide eyes said, "Mommy, are we really in Africa?" Sometimes she seems so old & other times I quickly remember she is four. Love that sweet girl.  The cheetahs were pretty incredible right up against the glass, even O&A took notice & were bouncing up & down.  In the midst of huge elephants, lions & being face to face with giraffes all the girls could ask was "where are the goats, I want to go see the goats!" I was thinking "Goats? All you care about is goats? It would have been a LOT cheaper to find some goats in someones backyard which here in the Lone Star State is not a difficult task." Anyway, they probably asked about twenty times & were actually getting on my nerves so much that I told them if they asked again, we would skip seeing the goats. Mean? I don't know but I was done hearing about goats! 

The boys were happy in the wagon until they eventually moved to the stroller for a quick snooze. I had to include this picture of Owen with his crooked little grin....oh my, he is so darn cute!

We grabbed some beverages, changed the previously mentioned blow outs & made out way to the infamous monorail that goes around Africa at the tree top level. I could not have convinced Eloise to get in this picture to save her life....she is quite stubborn at three ; ) 

Lunch was next followed by a quick trip over to the bird show & children's zoo area where they FINALLY got to see the long awaited goats.  It was pretty anti-climactic in my opinion but the girls sure were happy to be walking around petting all goats equally. Grammy surprised the girls with a ticket to ride the pony which also brought smiles. We decided to head home before anyone got too grumpy & I think we made it just in time!

We made it home, got the babies down for a nap, I snoozed with the birthday girl & Robby got a little work done. We woke up at dinner time, made some pancakes for Elo-Pancakes & headed outside to finish off the gift giving! It is wonderful to have so many helpers to open!

Since Eloise has been completely intrigued with all things "Fida-Fida" since seeing the firetruck at Uncle Darrell & Aunt Sandy's house we decided to surprise her with her own "Fida-Fida" costume. She absolutely loved it & was beyond adorable all dressed up! She tells us we have to call her "Chief" & we do...happily.

The rest of us with the birthday girl & her sideways glance that just screams "ELOISE!"

Charlotte worked really hard to make this beautiful card for Eloise. I just about melted observing the sweet moment of giving & receiving.  Eloise opened it up & was completely silent as she studied each part for longer than she pays attention to anything.  She then looked up with a sweet smile on her face & opened her arms up to hug her favorite sissy. Just precious. 

You may also notice her snazzy new Crocs that light up. Big hit with the birthday girl! After gifts were opened & played with we went back inside for some cake. The cake was more of a Pinterest fail but I didn't care at all for one because I knew Lolo didn't care & two, I didn't have time to care about it. Eloise loved her Pinkalicious cake as she called it topped with a "lellow" three. It could not have been more perfect to have a "Fida-Fida Chief" to handle the flame appropriately.

And that was it, our two year old turned into a big three year old right before our very eyes! But when we look at her, we still see this little face & think, "oh, how we love her!"

Eloise at three

Eloise Hope is three! She is hilarious, spunky, dramatic, chatty, helpful, silly, sweet, a little lot on the wild side & absolutely precious to our family. Elo has been the baby girl at the Valentine Nest but is seeming more like a big girl every day with her vocabulary, assertiveness in taking on new responsibilities to "help" around the house & desire to express her likes & dislikes very clearly whether asked to do so or not. 

We are thankful to be sharing our life with this sweetheart....

STATS:

will fill in Friday after our appt. 

Busybody:

• Always seems to be saying "Watch this!" while she hangs off something with her head back & leg up or some other strange & adorable pose. 
• She likes scissors but cannot be trusted with them unless your hand is pretty much on top of hers. When used appropriately she cuts the paper or whatever else she is "working" on ; ) 
• LOVES to watercolor & chooses the most beautiful color combinations.  She doesn't miss a beat when asked to share about what she made. Her descriptions are somewhere along the lines of "it's a pizza party for all the animals in the forest" or "it's our family standing on a hill in the rain while we eat our yunch." Basically it is never what I see when I look at the picture which is why I love her descriptions & glimpse into her imagination.
• Serves imaginary food to us like we are in a restaurant. It is usually pancakes (her fave) or ice-keem & she reminds me not to make a mess. She would be a great waitress with her speedy return to the "table" but I have a feeling she would spill a lot of food with her wild arms delivering our food ; ) 
• Likes to throw a ball back & forth. She has great aim & is getting the hang of catching a ball. Her latest interest has been learning to bounce a basketball like her big sis. 
• Does somersaults with ease & excitement. 
• Her imagination runs wild & she's says interesting things like "Jesus is in there drawing a picture."
• Likes to sweep with her broom & even more with the big mommy broom. She also likes to help Grammy do the dishes. 
• Loves to sing but has a heck of a time remembering the words to ANY song
• Counts to ten without fault most of the time but then gets stuck and says "eleventeen" a yot of times.  
• Enjoys anything art related  & even drew a picture of herself for the first time last week. 
• Even being a busy girl, she is always requesting that someone hold her & boy can she cuddle!
• Watching her we know that she is always planning her next move....

Bear Necessities of Life- Eating & Sleeping: 

• This girl might be the best eater & sleeper in the whole family besides mommy & daddy who are capable of being good eaters & sleepers but are hindered by the rest of the roomies if you know what I'm sayin' : ) 
• Just about everything she eats she exclaims "I yike it mommy!" even if it something we have fed her a million times. Zest for life. 
• Some favorite food items- pancakes, any berries, Chick-a-Lay, milk, any type of juice, dipping her finger into coffee, when we are enjoying an adult only beverage & we say Elo, this is a beer she says "I yike beer" so...add that to the list ; ) she loves anything to dip her food in such as BBQ sauce or salsa, red meat, macaroni & cheese, salmon, spaghetti cous cous which we all call "goose goose" & pretty much anything we offer her she tries & ends up loving 99% of it. Above & beyond all the typical foods, this girl LOVES chocolate which I will address in another section. 
• She eats her three meals a day plus two snacks but always seems to be asking for more "sacks!"
• Night time sleep for this chickadee is usually 8-7 with one trip to our room followed by being returned back to her bed or curling up on a mat on the floor of our room. She is allowed to crawl in bed with us once the sun is coming up which right now is around 6:20. If you snuggle her real good she falls back asleep & may stay that way past 7. She also has a hard time falling asleep without her best buddy Charlotte. 
• She still rubs her belly button & covers her mouth with the back of her hand. She also still wants someone to pat her when it's time to go to bed. 
• Afternoon nap is usually from 1-3:30 or 4 depending on how much activity we have in the morning. She is also capable of skipping the nap now if we are out & about or spending time with someone we would rather hang out with than take a nap. On those days by bedtime she has a hard time holding it together & falls asleep closer to 6:45 or 7. Every now & then we have to try to wake her a few times from her nap if she is totally zonked. 

I love her precious little face in this picture.....somewhat serious but equally sweet. 

Heart:
Eloise is really changing lately. We are beginning to see more care & concern for others, especially for her sister.  If Charlotte is going to climb onto something on the playground that Eloise has deemed unsafe, she completely panics saying "no, no, no Char! Be careful! Don't go!" If she is standing near a street, Eloise grabs the back of Charlotte's shirt & lays on the ground screaming, "Don't go in the street!" She also panics if Bella seems "stuck" in the ivy up against the fence. It is so sweet & has been a good example to help the girls understand their role in caring for & protecting one another. Robby was in the room with the girls one evening in the midst of an Elo-freakout due to Charlotte wanting to perform some trick that including jumping off the bed which was probably . He said to Char that even if it seemed safe for her that she should consider not doing it because Eloise was SO concerned about her well being. He reminded them about how much they love each other & that concern is something that should not be taken lightly when coming from someone who loves you.  She also cares deeply for Owen & Anson but usually shows this in a dangerous manner. Lots of things to work through....just like the rest of us!

When we are consistent she is capable of answering some of her catechism questions. Consistency is something I am struggling with right now in this in between time while we wait for our rent house to be available....I have grand plans for July 1st ; ) She does love to listen to the Jesus Storybook Bible & can help re-tell a story after we have read it.  She asks lots of questions following Charlotte like "Why did Jesus die?" so there is lots of explaining going on & re-asking of the question even though we thought we just answered it & then someone saying "I don't understand." Another reminder that God is the one who will open their hearts & minds to understand & grasp the truth of the Gospel when He sees fit.

This precious girl is so very sensitive & takes off to her room in tears when corrected.  She needs some explanation, hugs & kisses to return to the "scene of the crime" if you will. She can tell you the answer to "How do you obey?" which is "right away, all the way & with a good attitude" but we are sensing there is some disconnect ; ) The "right away" part is the hardest for this little dreamer who seems to be living in Lolo land.  She is quick to say she is sorry but once we have talked in private seems to be beginning to really feel sorrowful when she hurts someone.  She is also quick to forgive Charlotte but only if Charlotte asks for forgiveness in the way Eloise wants her to which includes the offense. We have them do this anyway but if Charlotte forgets, Eloise will correct her & say "no Char, you say please forgive me for kicking you in the head, not my arm." This makes me laugh because when she says she is sorry & asks for forgiveness she usually gets confused & says "Please forgive you?" Again, we are in the background trying not to smile.

Finkles, Farkles, Fankins & other Eloisms':

• The sp sound comes out as an f which makes sprinkles, sparkles & spankings come out as finkles, farkles & fankins.....oh my, it is hilarious & cute as can be. 
• We were at the park a few weeks ago & Eloise saw a hula hoop up in the tree. She asked what it was & once I told her about it she told Charlotte to look up at the "Huly poop" she saw in the tree!
• I was talking with the girls about something I could do with each of them that was special. Charlotte's answer was something about an art project we could do together but when I asked Eloise the same question, What do you want to do special with mommy? She smiled sweetly at me & said "I wanna eat chocolate with you mommy."  That's my girl!
• While on the chocolate train of thought, she was at the grocery store with her Daddy & he asked her what kind of chips we should get to go with our burgers. She quickly replied "Chocolate!"
• One last one....it was time to get out the door on a Sunday morning & I asked "what sandals, pink or brown?" Eloise said "Brown because they look like chocolate." LOVE her!
• When you ask her a question that she doesn't know the answer to she does her eyes to the side, gets a crooked little grin & says "I can't know dat"
• If you tell her "Eloise, you are so beautiful (or funny, or sweet!)" She says "No I not! I Fecial!" which is "Special" if you happened to miss the first bullet point of this section ; ) 
• Much like her older sis we are still trying to understand the concept of yesterday, today & tomorrow. Apparently it is pretty confusing. It makes for some good conversation with people though when she is clearly talking about today but says something like "We have so much fun at the zoo tomorrow!" when we have just returned from said place. 
• she says "a yot"& "a yittle"
• When asking for a number of something she usually holds up four fingers whether it be pats or cookies & says "I want dis many"
• She often crawls into our laps & says "I really yike you" or "I yuve you" and.....we melt. 
• Many times when I ask her if she likes/dislikes something she says "sometimes I do, sometimes I don't" & if I think she is going to finish at just the "sometimes I do" followed by a long pause, she always says the rest really fast with a smirk on her face since she knows it always makes me laugh.

Born to be wild:

• Dances all the time whether there is audible music or not. Her favorite tune is when Daddy does his own rendition of Smooth Criminal & she gets down in her room.  She has some pretty cool moves that I am guess were inherited from me. 
• Can often be found hiding behind something coloring her hands with marker. When she is found out she immediately exclaims  "I saw-ee, I saw-ee, I saw-ee, I go wash it!"
• Always on the go when in a setting she is comfortable in. 
• Can scream extremely loud & loves to do so in order to get her brothers to join in. 
• Often acts like a lion or tiger growling as she crawls around & swiping her paws across your face...not our favorite thing  ; ) 
• Attempts to ride Bella on a regular basis....also sits on her brothers until they cry. 
• ALWAYS has a silly face for you but it usually comes when you say "Eloise, smile!" examples to follow....

Oh my this girl keeps us laughing & quite worn out ; ) Three is a fun age but I do remember it being a challenging year with another precious little girl. That being said, I look forward to what lies ahead with a realistic view & a thankful heart to experience the changes from three to four with little Lolo.

Looking at her still slightly chubby hand showing off the flowers she picked for me I imagine all that her hands will do as she grows.  We pray that they will be hands used to serve God & bless others much like the way God uses her hands holding a thoughtful surprise for mommy to bless my heart.  

Happy third birthday to our sweet Eloise, we love you more dearly each day, beautiful girl.