Rebecca & Friends

I guess it should come as no surprise that even little girls are not strangers to "friend-drama." It's hard to learn how to be a good friend, right!?! 

A little tea party Rebecca planned in the backyard for "her friends." Emphatically: Maggie cannot come because SHE.IS.NOT.A.PRINCESS!  Oh, girl...we need to talk.

Left to right: Rosalon, Jingle Doggy, Rose Princess. 

Put her in my hair towel. Rest assured - I am definitely that cute right out of the shower.  

In my dreams.

Found an little notebook that had gone missing for a few weeks. She immediately flips to a page and says - Oh, look - its Annabel! (She had drawn a picture of our friend's foster daughter - Annabell, who has since gone back to bio family). She said she wanted to visit her and take her a treat and tell her we still love her. Oh, I wish we could baby!

Every once in a while I realize that I don't treat Rebecca like the big five year old that she is. She and M and I were at Taco Deli for breakfast the other day and she wanted a 2nd taco (first clue she's getting bigger!) and insisted on doing it all by herself. Like wouldn't even let me walk her up to the cashier and wait with her! She had cash in hand and waited in line.

Ordered (egg, bacon and cheese taco on flour, please), gave them her name, paid and waited. 

Enjoying the fruit of her labor - and so proud!

Back to her friends: Having a little "sleepover" at Nana's house with Pet Monster (Uncle Luke's childhood "friend" that lives with Nana), Rosie (panda bear from China - recently given a name that started w/ R, just like Rose Princess and Rosalon) and Rose Princess.

Getting her friends ready for the 60+ international students coming to our house for a Halloween party (another post) - Rose Princess, Rosalon, Jingle Doggy, Elvis (Ms. Laurie's class pet that got to stay with us over Halloween weekend) and Pet Monster. 

**Please note that they have costumes - Rose Princess and Rosalon each have "ninja clothes" on, not sure about Jingle Doggy, but Elvis is definitely wearing a pumpkin and had previously in the day been dressed like a mummy, and Pet Monster is scary enough but got a new t-shirt and Mardi Gras beads.

With Rebecca - their Ninja Mom.

And Maggie the Cheerleading Photo-bomber.

More fun that weekend w/ Elvis

 Random grandma spoilage: Bee took R to get her nails done. Look out world now she's got flowers on her toes!

 Twisting some vines together outside - "making decorations" for somebody's birthday party (one of her stuffed animals, I just can't remember which one) - its always about a party.

Party planning and daring ninja moves.

WPDS official school photo 2014-15

Living with Rebecca:

•  Maggie is so clever. She's basically a racoon.
• After I commented on how high she climbed a specific ladder thing at gymnastics: It wasn't scary. Ninja's don't get scared, Mom. 
• You can't help me. You're not a ninja. 
• In the car, eating a snack of goldfish. Held up two that were stuck together. Then started educating me on the food chain - which fish each wish fish, then whales, you get it. I asked her where she learned that. I know it just because my brain told me. I AM the best kid in your family, Mom. 
• Got a cute pair of hand-me-down boots from a neighbor girl - tall, shiny, blackish, two sizes too big. Calls them her fashion boots. Bee gave her some leftover fabric and sparkly "notions" leftover from a sparkly Bee project and Rebecca has been working on fashion clothes to go with her fashion boots for the past few days. Has already made drapey little vest (she can do arm holes!) and some accessories. 
• Told Kyle last night that Toots are sometimes a warning sign. That they are, sweetheart!

Oh Maggie

Shhhhhhhhhh!

Your guess is as good as mine as to why she really really likes to shush people right now. Its mostly sweet/funny. It's also understandable - #3 trying to create a space where she can get a word in edgewise.

Trampoline time

The new cheese face - she is a HAM.

iphone selfies w/ Daddy

We did a little experiment a few weeks ago where we skipped her nap. It backfired. She would fall asleep somewhere (preferably car or back of Kyle's bike on our really rough/bumpy neighborhood roads) at around 4:30 or 5:00. And let me tell you that even 20-30 minutes of sleep at that time of day made bedtime even harder than 1-2 hours in the early afternoon. No good. So, we're back to a normal napping schedule, but we limit her to 1 hour and it has seemed to help. That and no more daylight savings time.

We still love Pip and Posey, but these have been her two favorite books for the past 4-6 weeks - we keep re-checking them out from the library. I finally turned them in last week and Maggie handled it surprisingly well, saying "We see them again, sometime". Both are super sweet and I think we both have every word memorized, plus her commentary. We pretty much read them daily before her nap - she'd lay on me (in my closet, where her tent it - its quite a picture) - this is the type of parenting moment I want to remember!

More hamming it up for the camera - the big smile head tilt look is so in right now.

If you pay attention you can tell if Marisela (our wonderful babysitter) has been around. If she hasn't, Maggie's hair is either just down or in a pony-tale. If "Sella" has been around she has elaborate twists and braids. This is what they look like after a full day of playing.

And some trike riding. I can't tell whether she prefers the trike or her glider bike right now - they both get used a lot.

Yelling: Outta my way!

WPDS official school photo for 2014-15

More moments from life w/ Maggie:

• I'm sure I've mentioned this before but she's obsessed w/ my iPhone - and surprisingly she's the only kiddo in our family who really cares about it (which is good)! She's also the best at navigating it. Her favorite thing to do with it right now (other than watch videos of herself and the other kids on it) is to put it in camera mode and walk around taking pictures or sometimes must pretending to take them. She says: Say cheese eh-body! (pretend snap) Ooooh, good one! 
• For her 2nd birthday some friends gave her a little wooden Melissa/Doug puzzle set w/ 3 bears that you can dress in different clothes. It sat on our toy shelf for a while but for the past 4 months or so she has been obsessed with it. They are her bears. As in, where my bears go? Hang(d) on momma, got to get my bears! We allow her to have books in bed at night (in an attempt to keep her in bed when she's not quite tired) and her bears somehow made the cut-off too. What's amazing to me is that it has a lot of pieces and even though she carries it all over the house at multiple points during the day she has managed to keep up with them all - I think she actually cares. Her favorite is putting all 3 bears into their jammies before bedtime. 
• When something is not okay (she, ahem, poops in her undies; or spills milk - don't cry) she sticks her hand out (stop-in-the-name-of-love style) and says Isss okay, Is OKAY!!!
• When something happens that she doesn't like (e.g. spills milk) she says Not again!!! (I especially find this funny because its usually the first time - at least in a while, maybe ever.)
• Apparently I like to smell her when she gets out of the bath because the other day she saw me right after a shower and she said Oooooh momma...momma all keen? I'onna smell you!!! (sniffs my wet hair) Ooooh, smells good! All keen!!! I could repeat that every day and be happy. 
• Very into familial titles - likes to talk about my sister, my brother. This is Owen, he's my brother. This is Rebecca, she my sister. Also knows Kyle and I's real first names. So funny to hear her use them. (Ask my mom - I went through a phase at about 3? where I called my parents Stan and Becky.)
• You probably know this but each of the kiddos have "their song" - a hymn Kyle and I picked for them when they were born. But in practice Maggie's song is the first stanza of each of the three - makes sense - since she has heard us sing O and R's songs probably just as much as hers. So, for Maggie her song is "Fountain-Dodabud-Bision." (Come thou Fount of Every Blessing = Fountain, Before the Throne of God Above = Dodabud, Be Thou My Vision = Bision). I asked her the other day who these songs were all about. Her response: Uhhhh, Micky?  
• Even when something is exactly like she says things like Um, its kinda like purple...It's kinda like apple. 
• When she's doing something she isn't supposed to and I ask her about it she says: Its noffing momma, it's noffing. 

Miss Geanine

I don't have many pictures because its just part of real life, but I'd like you to meet Geanine! We have had the pleasure of having her in our guest room since September. She was an intern w/ our church for 2 years and is currently support raising so she can move to Atlanta to work for a nonprofit that works with people coming out of the sex trafficking industry. We'd love to keep her through the holidays but she might be gone before then. She is such a good sport in terms of putting up with our family! And is she absolutely wonderful with our kids!

Here she is all dressed up for the Halloween party (recognize my apron and garden gnome hat?).

Letting Rebecca harass her.

Funniest story of having her with us: She does NOT like Pet Monster. Once Rebecca figured that out it was game on. Pet Monster ended up (mysteriously!!!) on Geanine's bed - just sitting up in the dark waiting to surprise her when she came home one evening and flipped on the light! Eeeeeek!

Bridges Halloween Party

Got to have two Halloween's this year - Thursday night we hosted Bridges International's Halloween Party.

 Getting ready...

Probably around 60 students and volunteers/staff.

Hearing about the history/culture in America of Halloween

Waldo's view

The winners of the costume contest: The Spice Girls (Pumpkin Pie and Basil)

Let the pumpkin carivng begin!

Waldo helping our crew (who got to stay up waaaaay past bedtime).

Some of the pumpkins

Seriously a fun night. The kids love it and its fun to interact with these students - many of them for their first American Halloween!

Owen + Drone + Soccer Finale

For Owen's birthday Bee got him a subscription to "Pley" - a Netflix-like subscription service for legos. You pick them, they send them, you build them, then send them back. Repeat. 

Here is his first creation - something from Star Wars.

He enjoys getting the mail and getting to pick lego sets that are too expensive for him to buy, but I'm not sure he's doing enough of them to justify the monthly fee. We'll see how it goes and when the gift subscription runs out we'll see...

Here he is with friends flying his little drone helicopter. Its like watching a bunch of cats chase the red light from a laser pointer!

Helping me keep Maggie from inviting herself to Rebecca's tea party in the yard. He was having fun right before I took this picture.

Finally brought my camera to a soccer game. The season ended last Saturday and I think we were both bummed! It was fun seeing his team really start to work together and I know Owen was really enjoying it. He says he likes defense the best.

Some words of affirmation from Coach Friesen and a medal (I wish it was gold. Next time it should be gold.)

• Owen has lost 3 nice nalgene water bottles this school year. He now has the honor of carrying a cheap plastic one (probably laden w/ all sorts of chemicals) that Carlos brought home in a swag bag from a music festival. It was branded with a vodka company's name - which I covered with duck tape so it is now appropriate for a kiddo. 
• He talks like me. To Rebecca who was in the middle of doing something potentially dangerous: Let's see how THAT works out for you...
• No surprise, into specifics: There were about a hundred. No, more like 105.