I know for the grandparent's sake, and my own lack of memory, I had been pretty good at updating different things the kids were up to, and lately I've not been so good about recording their individual traits. The other night I took a picture of each of them sleeping, just because I love to do that and since they are currently all napping, I will take this time to fill in those who want to know.
Little John Lew, is what we still call him sometimes, though he is not so little anymore. In fact just today I strained my back to the point of being on the floor in pain after lifting him up. I'm okay. I just need to remember he's almost 30 pounds and not a baby anymore. He's very much the character I thought he might grow into. He loves to laugh and be laughed at. He has been talking now for so long that his sentences surprise me sometimes. "Mama, can I have the snack from the cubberator?" Is one of my newest favorite questions. Cupboard and Refridgerator in the same word. He is trying his own will these days as he likes to tell me NO and then when I give him the look he regrets it and says, "Okay Mama, I do it." Not every time, but he's for sure the quickest to listen for fear of punishment. He loves to play ball, and is athletic to the core. He throws right to me almost every time. He plays "Bak-set-ball" and yells, "Shoot da hoop!" When he makes a basket. He recently went on a bike ride where Andrew's steering handle was broken and he had to try and teach John how to steer the bike himself and John ran Andrew into all manner of things back and forth across the sidewalk. I could not stop laughing. He loves to be held and tickled. Books are still tricky unless they're short and he really wants to pay attention. He loves to be around Ella's school friends when I take him in to drop her off. He sings songs in his car seat and asks, "Mama, did you hear dat?" He still thinks it's funny to cover his head with his blanket and have me pretend I have no idea where he is. He is a great sleeper, always has been. He makes my heart fill with joy when every once in a while he will say without prompting, "I wuv you Mama." Nothing better than that.
Peter boy is still the most energetic of the three of my kids. You wouldn't know it by how precious he is while sleeping, but he is the one who could cause me to need medication some days. The thing about Peter, is that when he wants to be, he is the most sweet, loving, caring little boy. It is what makes up for the times when he literally throws himself on the floor and screams about something that he's mad about. It could be as simple as a snack mishap. Those times are getting fewer as he's getting older, but he's also a lot harder to lift off the floor when he's down there. I think the phrase that comes to my mind is "Anger Management." He lacks it in a bad way. But then again, so do I sometimes. He loves dinosaurs, cars, planes, helicopters, and farm animals. He rolls his tractors all over the kitchen floor and keeps all fire trucks in their collective cubbies and other things sorted as well. He's witty and funny. When we visit Ella's class for parties, her teachers laugh at everything he does, but I tell them, "You think it's funny now, just wait till he's in your class next fall, " Then I am the one chuckling. :) Ella's classmates yell, "Hi Peter! Bye Peter! Have a good day Peter!" when we come and go. He loves attention. He has an ear piercing yell when he's excited and most of the time just literally yells, "AH HA HA HA!!" We found out on our last trip to CA that he's a natural little golfer. Makes sense to me as his baseball skills fall short causing frustration for all. He loves to swing. He wakes slowly. He wakes early. Usually coming into my room and snuggling real close, wiggling all over then asking, "Can I watch a show on your phone?" Some days, yes, some days, no. He's a good eater, but does not like broccoli. Peter thrives on incentives. Do this...and you can have....Done. He can't wait to turn 4 in a few weeks and he is super excited for preschool. I know I'm going to cry on his first day. His action keeps me busy, but it also keeps me company.
Our Ella girl. I can't believe she's going to kindergarden in less than 5 months. She is so excited. Preschool is treating her wonderfully and I am so amazed at all she is learning. Her coloring and drawing abilities have just awed me lately. She loves to "write orders" like waitresses do and bring me back trays of food and chai tea. She and Peter talk about going up to their room to "chat" sometimes. She cares about her clothes and shoes which sometimes makes me crazy, but I have to remind myself exactly who she gets that from. It's not her dad. She loves to run and she's fast too. Her strong will lately could send us in circles of yes's and why's and whatnot, but she's learning that no matter how old she is, she still has to obey. The other night I made the kids say, "Children obey your parents in the Lord, " ten times before we could get out of the car for AWANA. By the tenth time, Ella was cracking up, but she hasn't forgotten her verse or what it means either. She loves to help me. Today she spread the peanut butter for the sandwiches, which was messy, but she's learning. Baking with me is one of her favorites. She talks all the time about "girl time" when her and I leave the boys home with Daddy and go do errands. She moved back into the boys' bedroom into a toddler bed again just because she didn't want to sleep alone. "The boys have each other and I have no one, " was what put us over the edge to let her go back in there after 2 weeks of camping on their floor in her sleeping bag. She still says funny things like, "Poodle, Toodle, and Stoodle," for pool, tool, and stool. "Nilla wipers" are Nilla Wafers. "Our chudders, " is what she means for each other. I don't correct her, I think its great. She loves to dance and sing. She's sensitive to others and is just sensitive herself. She doesn't like to be in trouble, but does her share of fighting with the boys. She recently got a new bike that is purple and girly. That's a first for her. Garage sale boy bikes are what she had before. She wants to grow her hair super long like Rapunzel and Peter tells her "You will not let your hair drag on this floor!" and they fight about it. Her hair is growing pretty well though and she loves when I use conditioner, like it's something great and special, so I treat it like that. She tells me it makes her bath smell like Junior Mints. HA! We are doing half day Kindergarden with her next year because I just don't want her gone all day. Call me attached, controlling, whatever, but I just need one more year with her home at lunch and naps. I will miss it too much when I don't see her all day.
There you have it. My three monkeys. Well, actually, the other night after AWANA, all the kids said they were hungry. I said, "Well, then you can each have a banana." Peter quickly said back to me, "Mom, monkeys eat bananas." Exactly, I said.
