January 2009 Highlights

* I don't know how advanced Emma is for girls her age, but she's definitely more advanced in her coloring than my boys ever were (in fact, I think she's better at it than Gehrig is now--don't tell him that!). I just had to post an example. I mean, she just barely turned 4. Look at how she can stay in the line. And look at all the variations in color! I love it!



* Damian really loves to clean, but he HATES to be asked to do it. So. . .it seems he has come up with a creative way to accomplish helping without being asked or "discovered". He's become Elfe (pronounced Elfie). Elfie and I have been exchanging notes today and he's gotten a real kick out of it. I'll interpret the letter for you down below. Don't judge me for the poor spelling, etc. He's not been ready to write, so I'm VERY excited that he's communicating through letters right now. Maybe he'll finally take off!



Interpreted the way he would read the letter out loud. ."Hi! Elfie here. I will clean at your house any time that you write to me. Bye, bye. Write back. To Angela. Love, Elfie"

* Isaiah found a cup on the ground today and said, "Mama, is this my cup?" Then, he turned it over and put his finger on the bottom of the cup, as if following words that he was reading, and said, "Isaiah Baby. Yep, that's my cup. It says Isaiah Baby. Is that what it says Mama?" I looked at the bottom and laughingly said, "No, it says 'TOP DISHWASHER SAFE'" He laughed and repeated, "Top dishwasher safe. Ha, ha, ha." What a sense of humor. This kids cracks me up all the time! I also love that he's picking up on the idea of reading. He can always pick out his name on the cup that's his (I have one for all 6 of us with our names on them).

* Gehrig was supposed to be getting ready for scouts, when this cute little guy came up to me to say hello. Gehrig thought it would be fun to dress him up in his scout "stuff". The cutest little Cub Scout! Too bad he had dinner all over his face! What a charmer! :)



* Isaiah has found a CD that he likes more than any other CD. It's a New Orleans Jazz CD. I'll find him sitting behind my lazy boy singing and dancing to this CD on the karaoke machine for long periods at a time. It's so cute to hear him trying to copy Louis Armstrong's voice! I love how much he loves music and loves to sing. He has great pitch for a 2 year old--exactly like Gehrig had/has.

* Isaiah's also the one who loves to go outside the most--even in the cold. I'll suit him up in Emma's black and pink snowsuit (b/c she has two and he doesn't have one that fits him other than hers--and her other one is lavender and pink--at least this one's mostly black)and send him out to play all by himself. It's so fun to watch him playing on the swing set, having a good time all by himself.

* Lately, I've been letting the kids watch The Brady Bunch and Little House on the Prairie because they've been pretty good with their school work and by 5:30, I'm ready to have the TV occupy their attention for a little bit. In between the two shows, they usually show one of the BYU dance teams in a number or two. Today there was an Irish dance with partners, so Damian grabbed Emma and began dancing with her. He even copied some of the lifts with her. It would be so fun to get them into Ballroom sometime in the near future! Isaiah didn't want to be left out of the fun, so he grabbed me and began dancing with me.