Kids update

This is Amelia Jayne wearing a pair of Xander's boxer briefs that she put on all by herself. Because she needed to "do it, too."

Amelia Jayne
It's been too long since I've written about my little princess. (There's a lady at work that asks me every time I see her -"How's the little princess?" It's fitting.)

Oh my goodness how can I describe her?
She is beautiful and funny and charming and full of life and passionate and determined and sweet and loving and a joy to be around.

She will not be left behind. She is very determined to do the same things her brother does. For that reason, I often feel like she is much older than she actually is. She's very brave and tries new things all the time. Contrasted with her brother who is very cautious and needs to observe new things.

This girl loves her brother. She always has, but he truly is her world! She follows him everywhere. She needs to do (and eat and go and be) the same things that he is. Oh my goodness. Their love is strong. It's a beautiful thing.

They've started playing so much more together these days. They pretend together, laugh together and squabble together. Xander mimics her baby talk. Amelia Jayne climbs and jumps and carries out silly antics just like he does. It's cute and endearing and annoying and pure love all at once.

She talks all the time. She went from barely saying any words to speaking full-on sentences. It's hilarious. Xander is such a talker that I didn't know if there would be room for her little voice once she started talking. Room or not, she also needs to be heard. I often hear, "I want that, too," "I need that, too," or "I do that, too." Almost every one of her sentences ends in "too."

She knows lots of colors and I just love asking her about them when we're reading because in her little language...well, it's so darn adorable!
peent = pink
geen = green
boo = blue
urnj = orange
poopul = purple
lellow = yellow
She knows most of her animals and their sounds. The way she says "meow" and "ribbit" still melt my heart. :)

She named her blanket. I thought we were going to get rid of it, but instead she named it - Nonny. I guess that disgusting little pink-starred blanket will be with us for the long-haul. Who am I kidding? Despite the smell and the dirt and the grossness that is my child sucking on a blanket that is smelly and dirty and gross, I will miss that little Nonny one day. So today I will cherish her Nonny almost as much as she does.
And I will wash it.
Now that we have a front load washer and dryer, AJ stands in front of them and cries and calls out for her Nonny. Sometimes I can distract her, other times she is determined to stand there and pine after her beloved. Luckily there is a "speed wash" that gets it done in 15 minutes, so her pining is minimal. And on an even more positive note, Xander now helps me transfer the clothes. He's become quite the helper. See the "Xander" section below. :)

She loves to sing and dance. One of my favorite things right now is putting her down for bed. I'll rock her and start singing a song. She'll shake her head "no" and say "uh uh" until I get to a song that she wants. Then she'll lay her head down on my chest and snuggle with me while I sing. Be still my heart.

She is so spirited and fun-loving. I enjoy her addition to our family more and more each day.

Xander
Xander has become quite the little helper. At four and a half, I can ask him to do lots of things and he complies. He cleans his place after meals. He puts leftovers in the fridge. He can get his own water (and milk, if it's already poured, sitting in the fridge) and can get snacks out of the pantry. He straightens his room, vacuums and dusts. The other day he even helped me load the dishwasher and wipe down the table. He picks out his own clothes, dresses himself, and does his potty business by himself. He can even wash in the bath and brush his own teeth (though I still help him do both of those things, per doctor and dentist's recommendations). And as mentioned above, he thoroughly enjoys helping me switch the loads of laundry over.

He continues to be very responsible and helpful, especially where Amelia Jayne is concerned. The other day the three of us were in the car when Xander said, "Mommy! Pull over right now!" When I asked why in the world we needed to do that, he proceeded to tell me that Amelia Jayne had unbuckled her seat belt and that she was being dangerous. He was very adamant that we needed to be safe and that Amelia Jayne would not be safe until we pulled the car over and fixed her seat belt.
He also cried the other night when it was very late and I told him to go directly to bed, "But Mommy, we forgot to brush our teeth. We NEED to brush our teeth!" Haha! What kid says that?!?

He's mostly given up naps. He plays quietly in his room most afternoons and will occasionally take an hour or so nap, but that's very rare these days.

He can ride his bicycle with training wheels, though his tendency for caution keeps him from gaining a whole lot of skill in this area. In fact, since the move I haven't been able to find his helmet, and, well, we just cannot ride a bicycle without a helmet. Per Xander's orders, "It's dangerous."

My boy starts real preschool this year. It's such a bittersweet time for me. I'm so happy that he's such a well-adjusted, self-sufficient, smart little boy, yet I also want to hold on to him as a little guy. I cherish those rare naps when I can lay with him and hold him, knowing that they're numbered. He often asks me, "Mommy, am I your baby?" And my reply is consistently, "You'll always be my baby."

I love his squeezy hugs and his desire to be close to me. And though I complain about it at times, I love that he still chooses me to lay with him at night even though I've been with him all day. And I love that he still "needs" me...he still often says this, though it's becoming less and less of a daily occurrence. He has such a sweet heart and an old soul.