Am I that gullible?

As we were climbing in the car after one of our Sunday dinners in Kaysville, there was some sort of commotion between the kids. No surprise. Chad turns to Andrew and says, "You're the wizard of getting people in trouble." Andrew blurts out, "No I'm not!" And then with a little mischeiveous smile growing across his angelic face, "Well.......kind of."   Ahhhhh-ha! The tricks of a middle child. The master of deflecting to the older sibling. I can't believe I was so gullible all this time. Or was I? For the record, Andrew does have a record...very good record. He's not perfect, but we don't call him "Angel Andrew" for nothing!

The other night I left the girl's bedroom window open. In the middle of the night Jenna bursts into our room,

"Mom! The window is flying away! 

It keeps flying up!"

Yes, Jenna is wearing Shark goggles in public...and I loved it!

She always has something to say

Yesterday as Sarah and I were heading home from her eye appointment she makes a comment out of the blue. She says, "Why is there so much killing? I don't like it." As I'm trying to understand what prompted this thought, she continued, "It's weird, they (meaning the criminals) were so sweet and cute when they were little and then they grew up." She is always thinking. We went on to have a great little discussion on "choosing the right" and what happens when we don't make good choices.

Andrew:

"MOM! Did you take Jenna to school yesterday? Cause I bet you forgot."

Oh ye, of little faith.

Lately, I've been loving age three

*warning: frequent use of the word cute in this post*
Ask me this question about 6 weeks ago and I would have told you 3 was the new 2. I was about ready to sell Jenna to the gypsies. However, we've experienced a really nice change the last couple weeks and I'm hoping this new and improved Jenna is here to stay. I could be wrong, but I'm thinking a big part of it is the achievement of being potty trained. It's almost like she could feel the tension before and acted out. Now that she doesn't feel that I'm uptight about it, she's relaxed as well. Mind you, she's certainly not perfectly behaved, but we haven't had any lotion, shampoo, make-up encounters lately (see old posts for reference).
She is just exuding cuteness. I find myself clenching my teeth and squeezing her cute panty-clad bottom and excessively kissing her cheeks and neck! I am I the only one that does that? Sometimes don't you just have to grit your teeth over the cuteness of something?!
She is so expressive right now. I was just feeding the kids lunch and apparently I set Jenna's cup of juice down a little too hard. Jenna exclaimed, "Mom, don't spank it!" Note to moms...don't spank your child's cup of juice! lol She not only expresses herself through words, but loves to dance and sing. I just crack up watching her sing and move to songs on tv and in movies...shaking her hips twisting her hands. One recent favorite is performing the "Augustus Gloop" song from "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory." She especially loves the part where Oompa Loompas are swimming and singing in the chocolate river...she lays right down on the floor and imitates the movements.
Jenna has also gotten much more involved with the older kids. She wants to be doing what they are doing. Often yelling out, "Kids! Come on...," or "Hey guys!" This photo is a perfect example. She had to play "Rock Band" with all the cousins. Don't you love how she totally has the drum pose down? She is also a big Guitar Hero (or i-tar as she says) fan. The other day we were adjusting the radio in the car and "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" came on. She immediately started singing the lyrics. Yesterday, she was playing "I Spy" on the computer with her cousin Davis. As we were looking for clues, we came across a bearded knight. Jenna confidently stated, "Mom, that's not Jesus."
I love being with her, playing with her and mostly just watching her right now. Maybe it's because I'm trying to hang onto any bit of baby that is left in her, but I also think it's the big girl that is coming out in her. It's just wonderful to see her cute little self blossom. Ahhh, such a fun age!

Said by Sarah...

Just moments ago as I was sitting at the computer, Sarah sat next to me. She said, "Sometimes it feels like I want to be a kid forever. I don't want to grow up." I remember having the exact same feelings when I was her age. I assured her that we would always have each other, even when she's grown up. I told her the best part of me growing up was having her (and my other kids). If I hadn't grown up I wouldn't have her. With that she said, "I love you, mom. I'm so glad I'm in your family." And I'm so glad I've grown up so I can have moments like these.

My toothless cutie...

Sarah lost her front tooth yesterday. She pulled it out herself (yep, she did...she's not like her brothers! lol). I feel like it instantly made her look older and sound even cuter! If this adorable photo isn't enough, check out the envelope she put her tooth in for the tooth fairy. I almost laughed out loud when I saw it in her dimly lit room last night. "It's your lucky night!" Seriously, could that be any cuter? She never ceases to entertain with what she says and draws!

Upon returning home this morning...

I found this taped to my computer desk. Love the illustration Sarah included. Hmm...I think it's pretty good evidence that my off-track kids were really "enjoying" each other while I was gone. I asked Sarah why there was a note for Josh left by my computer. She replied, "I didn't mean it. Josh and I had an argue, but we're over it now." Well, I'm glad they worked it out on their own....here's to another two weeks off track!

Said by Sarah last night....

"Mom, I don't ever want anyone in our family to die.

Especially me. I just love life so much."

I asked what it was about life she loved so much.

She answered, "It's just so care-full...

there's just so much I care about."