Random thoughts from the week

I've had several things going on with the kids this week that I've wanted to blog about, mainly so I could remember them, especially since I've failed completely at filling out their baby books.

Emma is READING. Seriously, read.ing. I find myself breaking out into a smile every time it happens because I'm just so amazed and so proud of her all at the same time. Her reading is like my being pregnant - I didn't really do anything except read to her a lot and answer her questions, and poof! she starts reading. Same way I feel like as when I was pregnant - I just drank a bunch of water and ate some food and poof! this perfect little baby arrived. Incredible. I'm in such astonishment because I've had a hard time figuring out whether she had things memorized or whether she was reading. She read a few store front signs on the way to school Monday, but we drive down the same stinkin road 5 days a week to get to school/ church so I couldn't tell if it was reading or memorizing. And she busted out with the first line of The Cat in the Hat comes back the other day, and while it had been ages since we'd read that book, her memory is freakishly good. But then Monday night at dinner we opened the Conversation Starters jar I had made at MOPS and the girlfriend read her card - How will you know when you are grown-up? She needed help with 'know' and 'grown'. I just sat there beaming at her. It was awesome. She is awesome.

Grant is talking! Lately he's been saying wa-0 for water instead of signing it. He's calling people by name - nin-ney (Sydney, a high school girl who works in the nursery), Mon-ny (Maddy), Icah (Micah, a friend from church). Yesterday he kept saying "oh no" over and over and over and over after he heard Emma say it. Yesterday he told Hubs "ub ew" (love you) when he left for work. Today he touched my new shirt and said "oft" (soft). His little voice is so precious.

I had this brilliant idea to get some exercise walking around the neighborhood and give Emma some time on her big girl bike all at the same time. My reasoning was that I'd be able to walk at a good pace because her bike is so much bigger she should be able to go faster. I didn't factor in her newness on the bike and our bumpy street. We hit a rough patch going down the driveway curb at a snail's pace which led to her almost falling off her bike and Grant in the stroller 4 wheelin it onto the grass to keep him out of traffic. Once we got that worked out, we took off at a pretty good pace. Emma was smiling, having fun, lavishing in the glory of her big girl bike, I was basking in my brillance of getting a walk in and Emma getting to ride her bike. Then we came to the corner, and all went awry. She bailed going around the corner, the bike fell on her foot, hysterical screaming and crying ensued. Grant sat quietly in his stroller, looking around at the birds. Thank goodness for that calm child. I convinced her to get back on, she finally did, took a few pedals, hit a rough spot, freaked, started to fall again, I grabbed the bike with one hand, shot the stroller onto the grass with the other, heard her say "thanks for catching me mom", and then turned to see her splat off the bike while I still held onto it. Good times. Again I got her on the bike, with much convincing, and had her ride in the middle of the road, which was considerably smoother. We did great for the rest of the (slow) walk, until we were almost to our house and our neighbor called my name. Emma turned her head, thus turning her handle bars, and plowed right onto their yard, and, you guessed it, tumbled off. At least onto the grass this time. She walked the last few houses home.

Grant has this hilarious way of getting around now that he's started jumping with his feet off the ground. He sort of jumps skips his way around - down the hallway, through the school parking lot, into Emma's classroom, you know, wherever he's going. He does it holding my hand, he does it without holding my hand, it's his general form of transportation now.