If we could freeze time...

Charlie and I were just discussing the other night how we want to freeze time at this moment in our lives. Life is good! We are healthy, Charlie has a stable career, I love being a stay at home mom and the kids are just so darn cute right now. Even though they are all in different stages, they all still need us, look up to us, are innocent, and it's amazing to watch them discover everything. Some day they will think they know everything, we are already getting a little bit of that from Aniela! They will not want to cuddle or be seen in public with us. There will come a day that we will have to deal with all the peer pressure. With them hating us for not letting them do what they want and all that other fun stuff that comes with growing up. Don't get me wrong I think watching them grow and become their own individual person is amazing but there is just something about where we are in life right now that I want to hold on to.

So at this moment we are taking it all in...

Aniela has learned so much since starting kindergarten. Her reading is coming along slowly but surely. Although she absolutely hates to read, which I find interesting because out of all my kids she was the one, as an infant and toddler, that I could sit there and read to all day long...go figure! She often times gets frustrated because she just can't read well yet. So many times she will look at a word and completely guess what it is even though the word she guessed doesn't remotely resemble the word actually on the page. It's not easy for Charlie and I either...wow does it take a lot of patience and I just thank God there are teachers out there that do this. I also hope that as reading gets easier for her she will come to enjoy it.

She may not like to read but boy can she build...

Aniela still loves coloring, crafting, and doing anything art related. She can literally sit there for 3 hours straight and work on one thing, and I know this because she does it all the time. She has her first art class coming up through Lakeview Museum that I think she will love.

Aniela also likes to take her time. She is the kid that will be the last one sitting at the dinner table, the last one to get on her shoes and get in the car. She is totally going to be the girl that makes the guy wait in the living room while still getting ready for a night out. I think 5 has also been the most challenging in terms of her level of "Sassiness"(aka...please do not talk that way so you don't sound like a spoiled brat). She really is a compassionate and good girl but the tone in her voice sometimes makes me think we have a teenager in the house already.

Yesterday when she threw something away she saw that some of her school worksheets were in the garbage. She came up to me and asked, " Mom, why did you throw away my school work?" "Well sweetie I don't think I need to keep all your math and letter worksheets. Do you think you will really need them when you are an adult?"

"Well yes mom, don't you think I will want to look back at them and see what I did in Kindergarten...HELLO!" (imagine her eyes rolling and head moving back and forth...all she needed was some finger snapping and she would be an all out diva) I almost busted out laughing. Instead I told her that it was inappropriate to talk to me in that tone. I have a feeling that this is not a phase...yet just a little taste of whats to come!

The things Charles says also crack us up all the time. Since his speech is coming along he has lots to say lately and there isn't a day that goes by that I am not laughing at his comments. Here are a few of my favorites:

Me: "Charles do you want ice with your water."

Charles: "Ummm no mommy it makes my head cold and itchy."

As we are watching morning cartoons in bed...

Me: "Charles, get your hands out of your pants.:

Charles: " No, it's my penis mommy. I can do it!"

As we are leaving the grocery store..

Charles: "Mommy can we go get some food."

Me: "No buddy we just went grocery shopping. We can get a snack at home."

Charles: "No, mommy go to stores wit the microphones"

Me: "Oh you mean like McDonalds?"

Charles: "Yes mommy... Mcdonalds! Pweese mommy, pwetty pweese wit cherry on top!"

He is also a mischievous little guy and is at the stage where he doesn't always tell the truth. Although who would want to when you know your going to get in trouble for it. Too bad he hasn't figured out that you get in more trouble when you lie..and mom and dad always find out! He has also grown so much and is very heavy. Being only three years ols he still likes to be carried at times. The other day I just had to weigh him because it feels like I'm lifting a ton of bricks. I was right because he is already 40 pounds. Maybe we do have a linebacker in our future!

So tired he couldn't even make it to his room for a nap

And last but certainly not least, Zoe! She is officially 10 months old and boy was this past month a busy one. She is crawling on all fours, pulling up onto her knees, and eating lots of finger foods. Once she started crawling it didn't take her long to find the kitchen cabinets and shoes in the mud room...her favorite spots to explore. She loves pears, bananas and yogurt and all 8 of her teeth sure help out! Out of all my kids she is also the one that has the biggest mommy attachment. When she is tired and crabby all I have to do is step away from her and she starts screaming. She is also very feisty and will randomly pull back her hand and smack you in the face...umm can we sat trouble! Her baby talk is becoming more clear and we can start to hear parts of words...especially when she calls out for Charles and Aniela. I am yet to hear mama though! I guess she knows she doesn't need to call for me.