Audrey came to me with tears in her eyes. "Mom, I'm not really good at drawing the little letters. Ella wrote them for them, but I still can't write them."
We sat down with sheets of penmanship paper and I wrote out the capital letters with their lower case counterparts. She practiced copying them on her own for a few minutes and then came to me where I was working in the kitchen.
"Mom!" she smiled. "You know why I want to practice this? So that when people see me do it, they'll say, That girl does that like she has the alphabet in her mind!"
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Saturday, January 26, 2013
january 26th
It was one of those nights.
Audrey had a bad dream and crawled into our bed. Before long, I was clinging to the edge on my side, with Kim crowded in the middle, and Audrey sprawled on what seemed like half of the bed. At some point, we invited her to go back to her room, but the suggestion was met with tears. Too tired to address her fear, we suggested moving her to the foot of the bed. This was met with immediate protest and a pitiful request: "I just want to snu(sob)ggle." But when given the alternative of going back to her own bed, she crawled into the comfortable space I'd made for her. For awhile.
Before long I woke up to find myself back on the edge of the bed with Audrey saying, "Mom. Mom. Mom. Mom."
"What?"
"My nose is stuffy. I need a tissue." I brought her a tissue, settled back in, and closed my eyes. "Mom. Mom."
"What?"
"I can still feel my stuffy nose."
"Trying putting your head on two pillows."
"I don't have two pillows." Kim climbed out of bed to find an extra pillow and put it under her head. I thought dawn might be peeking through the blinds, but I avoided looking at the clock for fear it would confirm my suspicion.
Finally. Silence.
Just when we thought Audrey had settled down and fallen asleep, we heard her whisper. "Dad. Dad. Dad. Da-a-a-a-d."
Kim and I answered in unison. "WHAT?!"
"Happy birthday."
Audrey had a bad dream and crawled into our bed. Before long, I was clinging to the edge on my side, with Kim crowded in the middle, and Audrey sprawled on what seemed like half of the bed. At some point, we invited her to go back to her room, but the suggestion was met with tears. Too tired to address her fear, we suggested moving her to the foot of the bed. This was met with immediate protest and a pitiful request: "I just want to snu(sob)ggle." But when given the alternative of going back to her own bed, she crawled into the comfortable space I'd made for her. For awhile.
Before long I woke up to find myself back on the edge of the bed with Audrey saying, "Mom. Mom. Mom. Mom."
"What?"
"My nose is stuffy. I need a tissue." I brought her a tissue, settled back in, and closed my eyes. "Mom. Mom."
"What?"
"I can still feel my stuffy nose."
"Trying putting your head on two pillows."
"I don't have two pillows." Kim climbed out of bed to find an extra pillow and put it under her head. I thought dawn might be peeking through the blinds, but I avoided looking at the clock for fear it would confirm my suspicion.
Finally. Silence.
Just when we thought Audrey had settled down and fallen asleep, we heard her whisper. "Dad. Dad. Dad. Da-a-a-a-d."
Kim and I answered in unison. "WHAT?!"
"Happy birthday."
Thursday, January 24, 2013
classic
Lauren's blanket was in the wash and, sadly, she lost her stuffed animals after several warnings that it was time to be quiet and go to sleep. When I checked on the girls before going to bed
I found her like this:
Yes, those are crocheted slippers.
daily sighting
What's a girl to do when her necklace-wearing dog is on a leash tied to her jeggings, but she doesn't want to risk him getting dirty in the bathroom when she has to go?
Strip and run.
confession
Dear Kate,
Every time I put you down for a nap I hold you in my arms with your furry blanket and hum "I Am a Child of God." If I think it will help, I hum it twice. But then, whether you seem willing or not, I lay you down in your crib.
Sometimes you lie perfectly still on your back exactly where I place you, as though you've already found the most comfortable position possible. Your head turned to the side, you clutch your blanket to your nose, sigh, and close your eyes. It's the sweetest thing.
Of course, there are also times when you writhe angrily to your side and get to your feet in an instant. You grip the bars of your crib like a wrongly accused prisoner. You look to the ceiling, as if to make sure I can really hear you, and let out a cry that is equal parts fury and helplessness. After a few moments (or minutes), you give up in disgust. You look down at the furry blanket at your feet and plow into it face first. You push the blanket under your belly and, with your little bum in the air, you start getting comfortable. You complain with a whimper or two, but before you know it, you're sound asleep.
And here is my confession: I know this because every time I lay you down for a nap I close the door and watch you through the keyhole. When you stand, your big head and little body fill my view perfectly. When you lie down, I hope you turn your head my way so I can see your rosey cheeks, your mouth open in a tiny "o," and your eyes closed so peacefully. I love to watch your antics, and your surrender. And, most of all, I love to watch you sleeping.
I love you.
Mom
xoxo
Every time I put you down for a nap I hold you in my arms with your furry blanket and hum "I Am a Child of God." If I think it will help, I hum it twice. But then, whether you seem willing or not, I lay you down in your crib.
Sometimes you lie perfectly still on your back exactly where I place you, as though you've already found the most comfortable position possible. Your head turned to the side, you clutch your blanket to your nose, sigh, and close your eyes. It's the sweetest thing.
Of course, there are also times when you writhe angrily to your side and get to your feet in an instant. You grip the bars of your crib like a wrongly accused prisoner. You look to the ceiling, as if to make sure I can really hear you, and let out a cry that is equal parts fury and helplessness. After a few moments (or minutes), you give up in disgust. You look down at the furry blanket at your feet and plow into it face first. You push the blanket under your belly and, with your little bum in the air, you start getting comfortable. You complain with a whimper or two, but before you know it, you're sound asleep.
And here is my confession: I know this because every time I lay you down for a nap I close the door and watch you through the keyhole. When you stand, your big head and little body fill my view perfectly. When you lie down, I hope you turn your head my way so I can see your rosey cheeks, your mouth open in a tiny "o," and your eyes closed so peacefully. I love to watch your antics, and your surrender. And, most of all, I love to watch you sleeping.
I love you.
Mom
xoxo
oldies
There's just not much worth watching on TV these days, especially for kids. Some of my old favorites, like Little House on the Prairie, have been enjoyed by the girls on cable TV. But our recent subscription to Netflix has opened up a whole new world.
First up, Brady Bunch. Before I played the first episode I explained to them, "Girls, when I was your age, every day after school I would race off the bus, get a yogurt out of the fridge, and sit down in front of the TV just in time for this show to start. See what you think." Safe to say, if Brady Bunch were still on TV they'd be racing home to watch it, too. I let them watch the first three episodes for Friday Movie Night, and by Sunday night they'd watched the whole first season. Two things dominated our discussion afterward: The girls wish we had a Tiger, and I wish we had an Alice!
Next up, Leave It to Beaver. I wasn't sure if they'd go for black and white, but it turns out black and white TV is to kids what subtitles are to adults; a few minutes into it they didn't even notice. They were too busy laughing at Wally pretending to take a bath to stay out of trouble, and The Beaver carrying a toad in his pocket. Personally, I'm amused by June and Ward's perfection and, at times, educated by their parenting. It's funny to see what the girls are picking up. Today I found a gift tag Ella made for Audrey's birthday present to Kim. It reads, "This book was made by Audrey Moore on account of her Dad's birthday." Ha!
We just got Brady Bunch Season 2 in the mail. Next in the queue: The Cosby Show.
Who needs cable?
First up, Brady Bunch. Before I played the first episode I explained to them, "Girls, when I was your age, every day after school I would race off the bus, get a yogurt out of the fridge, and sit down in front of the TV just in time for this show to start. See what you think." Safe to say, if Brady Bunch were still on TV they'd be racing home to watch it, too. I let them watch the first three episodes for Friday Movie Night, and by Sunday night they'd watched the whole first season. Two things dominated our discussion afterward: The girls wish we had a Tiger, and I wish we had an Alice!
Next up, Leave It to Beaver. I wasn't sure if they'd go for black and white, but it turns out black and white TV is to kids what subtitles are to adults; a few minutes into it they didn't even notice. They were too busy laughing at Wally pretending to take a bath to stay out of trouble, and The Beaver carrying a toad in his pocket. Personally, I'm amused by June and Ward's perfection and, at times, educated by their parenting. It's funny to see what the girls are picking up. Today I found a gift tag Ella made for Audrey's birthday present to Kim. It reads, "This book was made by Audrey Moore on account of her Dad's birthday." Ha!
We just got Brady Bunch Season 2 in the mail. Next in the queue: The Cosby Show.
Who needs cable?
Thursday, January 10, 2013
audrey marie moore
Today on the walk home from school Audrey took off ahead of us, as she sometimes does. But instead of stopping at the intersection nearest our house as usual, she ran dangerously across two streets. I called to her, "Audrey! Stop right there!" Lauren set out to catch her, but after a few strides stopped and turned back to me, "Mom?" she asked seriously, "Is this a time to use Audrey's full name?"
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