Getting back into it....

I don't know what's happened to me, but it has been extremely hard to sit down and blog! Okay, maybe it's because I'm taking care of our three kids alone, or maybe because I have a mental block about blogs right now. But, either way, here I am, with some kind of update....

We have been desperately trying to stay as busy as possible, to help us pass the time while Daddy is in training. The results have been: 1) lots of fun activities to blog about 2) a very tired mommy and three very tired girls, and 3) the realization that all the activity in the world doesn't bring Daddy home fast enough. :) We miss him greatly and look forward to hugging him very soon.

So, here's a few new funny things about our girls...

***** Kendyll *****

1) She continues to be the bubbliest girl I've ever known....well, maybe except her Aunt Cortni. :) This week has been a countdown to the big day---the day she starts her first piano lesson. It has been cute to overhear conversations with countless people this week about her big news. Everyone from the entire team of kindergarten teachers at her school to some random lady at McDonald's, to her entourage of church friends....she is excited and it shows.

2) Along the same lines, she has really peaked in her interest in piano over the last few weeks and months. She plays every day, and knows the first four songs in her beginner book (thanks to Gammy!). She is so proud every time she plays, and of course, we are building her up (maybe way too much) about her ability---although we always phrase it as something she is blessed with from God. The day Mark left, he told her how proud he was of her using her gift for music and that he really could tell that God had blessed her with this talent. It was so cute to watch her smile from ear to ear and completely take that in to her heart as truth.

So, the next morning on the way to school, she was talking about her piano lesson. And, she said this: "Mommy, you know that a long time ago I wasn't sure what my gift was, but it is so great to know now that God has given me the gift of the piano!" So precious. I sure hope she is right (and not sorely disappointed). But, I thought, man, I wish I knew with certainty at age 30 what she does at age 5. She is absolutely confident that the Lord has given her a talent, and she is ready to find out exactly what it is and use it. May I follow in her footsteps. :)

3) She has also suddenly become quite picky on her clothing. Not necessarily fashion (although that does come up from time to time), but primarily on comfort. The most important part of her entire outfit is the socks. (Cassie, does this sound familiar??) She can't stand for the line on the toe to hit her the wrong way. She can't stand for them to be too tight...or too loose....too long or too short when they fold over. And, shoes---I won't even start on the shoes. Let's just say we have perfected the toilet paper wad in the toe of her shoes so that no part of her foot "wiggles" inside. Other phrases we hear now is that "she feels like she has sand in her toes when her socks are too tight" or she "has rocks in her elbows when she bends her arm in this shirt", or that she "feels like her arm is going to be cut" by a 3/4 sleeve. Quite frustrating, since she has never cared before. But, I guess the day was coming.

(Another new opinion is on bows....Mommy's sad about this one, but I guess it's time to say goodbye to hair accessories. She is into headbands now and they drive me crazy. Her hair is all over the place! So, we're going to have to come up with something that is a compromise.)

****Carlie*****

1) Oh, man. Where do I start with this girl? The other night, she was picking her praise song for bedtime, which is ALWAYS "Oh God you are My God". But, she changed it up and picked "O Lord our Lord, how majestic is your name". So, we're all three singing away and she is looking up toward her ceiling the whole time. (Kendyll does this sometimes and even puts her hands out as she is "praising"---you know, a little dramatic flair shouldn't surprise you from her.) But, it surprised me (and made me smile) from Carlie. So, I said "Carlie, what are you looking at?" ---thinking she's going to say "God" like Kendyll does. Instead, she said "What are you talking about?" I said "Are you looking up to God when you sing?" And, she said "No, (with her "you're so weird" look), I'm just lookin' at the fan!" Oh, of course.....

2) The other day in the car, we were driving to her school. We had some music playing pretty loud and Abby Kate was also screaming pretty loud (because of a dirty diaper). Carlie says "Mom, Mom!" I turn around and say "What?" She says "Umm, can you turn that baby down?" Totally cracked me up. She had her "I'm trying to be serious, but I know I'm funny" look. It worked. It caught me completely off guard.

3) She is REALLY into singing these days, especially Christmas carols. The funny part is the absolute butcher job she does on the words. Here are a few of my favorites:

"Oh Christmas tree, Oh Christmas tree, your leads are so untangling",

"Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, all the way to Christmas, uh wuh fuh uh ee i a sleigh today" (the sounds are truly indistinguishable...they are not words.)

"Away in a Manger, no crib for its bed, the little Lord Jesus asleep on the hay", then repeat, and repeat, and repeat. (she is getting better at this one if we give her a word or two to get her past the hump she gets stuck on...)

"We wish you a merry Christmas, we wish you a merry Christmas, we wish you a merry Christmas, and a happy new year. It's exciting new year and all of our friends, we wish you a merry Christmas, and a happy new year."

I know there are more that I can't think of right now...

*****Abby Kate*****

1) Abby Kate is officially my first child who actually has to be caged. She has a "baby jail" in our living room, that is a large gated play yard where all of her toys are contained, and so is she. Otherwise, she is gone in a split second. Tonight, I left her "out" because she was tired of baby jail. I ran (literally) upstairs to get her some pajamas and came back to see no baby in the living room. I ran to the kitchen and to the dog food (where she prefers to go first), and no Abby Kate. I start calling her name (which usually just makes her crawl away faster), jogging from room to room. Finally, I find her all the way in my closet. That is quite the trek in such a short amount of time! She is one busy bee. And, she thinks it's completely hilarious. She starts giggling as soon as she sees me.

2) She is full of tricks these days and I really believe she loves showing them off. She shows anyone who is "new" how she waves bye-bye and then she claps for herself. Of course, she is always showing her family too, and we rejoice with her each time. Her new trick is peek-a-boo, but it took me a little while to figure out what she was doing. I play with her all the time by covering my eyes with my hands---you know, the typical way. I discovered the other day that she is playing back. The difference is that she just turns her head away from you and looks behind herself (kind of over her own shoulder), until you say "Where's Abby Kate?" and then she turns around really quick and starts laughing. It is the most precious thing I've ever seen. I think she's getting tired of me asking so I can see her do it!

Well, I promise to be back very soon with lots of pictures. We really have been doing quite a bit that I need to catch up on---including Braden's big TWO YEAR OLD birthday party, fun days at home with friends, and a visit to Santa. Back with more later....first, I must go start the search for Christmas cards before it's too late!