A New School Year - 2017 - 2018 at Mount Juliet Montessori Academy!

Hey Babies!

You both started another year at MJMA.

Maxon is in his last year of Toddler and his teachers this year are Ms. Desi and Ms. Mayra!

Mollie is in her 3rd Year (final) of Primary or Kindergarten, and her teachers this year are Ms. Debi, Ms. Heather, Ms. Melissa, and Ms. Doris.

A few pics of the two of you together.  Mollie is wearing Aunt Jenny's Kindergarten dress that Olivia and Lily also wore on their first day of Kindergarten, so that was pretty cool.  However, you asked to change clothes before you went to school because you needed to run, jump, play, and roll around on the ground, so there are pics of the costume change as well! 

Cheese... Literally and Figuratively 

We have like 1,000 pics of this exact picture.  Mollie looks like she's choking Maxon (trying to get him to look at the camera), and Maxon screaming and pulling away.  

Mom and Dad were a little emotional at our growing babies!

Love, Mommy

Entering a Whole New World

Mollie,

You are a little girl now... and it is amazing to watch you growing and changing. You have a lot to say, you are going through a lot, you get scared a little more easily, you always and only want to sleep with us and you don't understand why we resist sometimes.  You are imaginative and right now you would like to start your own YouTube channel, so we are working on that.  You love to play games like Clue and Yahtzee.  You are an incredible, patient, kind, and loving big sister, and it blows me away how you have handled Maxon's changes with such grace and dignity.

You get frustrated a lot.  Like daily, with me mostly, because I put a lot of restrictions on you, I discipline you when you are out of line, I limit TV time (especially during the school week), and we are probably a bit too busy for your taste.  You want to do what you want to do, and it is hard for you to process the alternatives.  You have a REALLY hard time going to sleep and you won't fall asleep without us there, so that process takes like 2 1/2 hours and wears us out.

We try really hard to give you all that you need.  We play, we have family time, we pick you up on time every day from school, we usually go to the park, the library, or come home and swim.  We do bath, teeth, snack, water, you read a book to me, I read a book to you, we sing songs, I rub your back, we talk about our days, we snuggle, and then still your body and mind is afraid or anxious and you can't settle yourself enough to go to sleep.  We have kind of tried everything. You have spent four weeks sleeping with us with family coming in and out of town, daddy's treatment (I'll sleep with you in the guest room so he can get extra rest), and trying to go back to a normal routine where you sleep on your own or fall asleep on your own has been hard.

You argue and push back on a lot, but you are agreeable to a lot as well.  I actually love watching this part of you grow.  I get tired sometimes, but mostly I am fascinated and amazed by you.  I love to hear you tell me in detail about your day (you've never done that before).  I love that you share all the secrets.  "It's a secret, but I'll tell you" - thank goodness for that.  I love that you are honest and have a heart of gold.  We have the absolute BEST time together every single day, but when it is time to say goodnight or stop playing or hanging out - that is when most of the issues begin.

We have had to say goodbye to Karate, Piano, and Dance due to money and due to interest level.  You are still in gymnastics, and I think that is our chosen route for the time being.  You are doing really well in school already with entering into the stamp game, the chains, you are reading, and you got your VERY FIRST LOOSE TOOTH last night, August 29, 2017.  I got video if you ever want to see it.

When you explain stuff you point with your middle finger, you make wide ranging motions in the air as you try to figure out what you are trying to say and your facial expressions are epic.  You are so dramatic in the best possible use of the word.  Daddy says you are wonderfully dramatic... I like that.
At Maxon's 2nd birthday party, you wanted to open all of his presents for him.  It was hard for you to be able to let him do it... it was REALLY hard this year for you to let him be the center of attention.  You are entering into a new milestone and mental leap right now... your sense of justice is coming into crisp focus, and that has been a real adjustment.  You deal with disappointment well, but your concern with how much of our time we devote to Maxon versus you is genuine and real.  You also cannot handle when we show interest in something Maxon is doing well.  It seems unfair to you that we are paying him so much attention and it was worst during his birthday, because not only was he the focus of the part and the celebration, but he got viral pneumonia and became the center of my attention for days (due to seizure fears, etc.).  We have talked a lot about it, and I think you understand, as it has subsided since then.  It is so interesting.  You were also EXTREMELY loving and uplifting and encouraging and proud of your brother during that time, so you always have a balance... also amazing.

Here are some pictures of the last couple of months.  I love you my beautiful, loving, smart, fierce, independent, justice-driven, darling daughter...

Love, Mommy

You CHOO-CHOO'd right past TWO!

Hello Love,

Well... I can't keep up with life, this blog, or you!  You just chugga-chugga, choo-choo'd right past two, and you are 25 months already!  What?!?!  I'm missing all the amazing things you are doing.  I have pictures and video, but I haven't documented it all, because keeping up with a five-year-old and two-year-old, a sick daddy, a house, cars, animals, a job, etc. I have enough time to think about how I don't have enough time!  Ha!

Plus... I've sacrificed your letters to actually spend TIME with you, which I figure means more than anything else.  You are an incredible and amazing little bike rider!  You love to ride your bike morning, noon, and night.  Besides the intense desire to actual drive the car - you care about little else.  Except for Moana.  You love Moana.  LOVE IT.  Every. Single. Day, son.  You have never been interested in TV. You like YouTube to watch planes taking off and landing, monster truck rallies, and trains going by, but never a movie or tv show, which has been fine with me... until Moana.  It's Adorable.  ;-)

I am about to post a bunch of random photos that I just love.  You are so much fun and you and your sister have such a great bond... one that I hope will last a lifetime.  You should always take care of each other, always love each other, always forgive each other, and always be each other's biggest cheerleaders.  We are trusting you both to do that... You will need each other long after we are gone. 

You Love dressing up in masks and capes,, you like glasses, and hats and towels that you can wear on your head. 

You give her this look a lot and I LOVE it! 

Swim class - you came a LONG way this summer... looking forward to maintenance and next summer to see how much you grow!

An almost nightly summer occurrence is popsicles on the deck!

Watching Moana with your sis on a Saturday morning!

Animals at school!  You LOVE animals.  

Snuggles with Daddy on the 4th of July when the Fireworks got a little crazy!

Snuggling up to Daddy on the 4th of July to watch some much anticipated Fireworks!

My Littlest Love!

At school - you eat with your whole face ;-) 

You stamped your face - Ha!

You like to grab pieces of our face and eat it.  We caught you on the monitor eating your blue tiger's ear.  It is part of our evening routine.  Take a bath, brush teeth, read a book, eat your face, tickle fight, kisses, light ON, and then blow a kiss and let you drift off to dreamland on your own.

You dance like a BOSS.  It is amazing.  I can't even handle how incredible your dancing is.  I catch you just jamming out when you hear a song and you don't even know we are paying attention... Be Still My Heart.

You have come SO FAR with your hitting, etc.  Even when you are terribly angry or frustrated with me, you don't hit me.  I watch you restrain yourself, and for a two-year-old... that's impressive.  I was a little worried about that, but it took you about as long as it took your sister to stop biting when she was a little younger than you.

No toilet training.  Not for you.  Probably not ever.  That is sure what it FEELS LIKE.  You are barely two, and I knew it wouldn't be so quick with you.  I am being patient, offering you the toilet every time we change you, and talking to you about it a lot.  You even come up and say I pooped, keen (clean) diaper pees (please).  So... now I'm taking bets for when this toilet training thing is actually going to happen.  I say before your three, but like RIGHT before you are three.  You break out with cloth diapers, and disposables are super expensive, so COME on kid!

Your birthday party was a wonderful success.  However, the night of your party you got a fever and a cough and ended up with viral pneumonia.  You had lots of friends and lots of presents and your cake was AMAZING!  We also took some great family photos.  I'll post as many as I can here!

I love you so much buddy.  You are a joy and hilarious and fun and loving.  You are a precious, valued and loved little guy.  It is impossible to put into words how I feel about you... I just don't have the right ones that carry enough weight or mean enough.  I love you to the moon and back. 

Love, Mommy