Daddy & Me

LOVE

A new favorite photo.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Our three leprechauns wish you a happy St. Patrick's Day!  

Remember last year's visit from the leprechauns?  That didn't go over so well.  Tessa did not stop asking questions about them until probably December. So, this year, Calder wrote a note to the leprechauns to let them know that his sister was "afrade" of them and taped it to the front door.  So, they respected her wishes and did not come inside this year.  Instead, they left a little pouch full of chocolate hanging on the front door.  The result?  Three very happy kiddos!

 

Calder wanted me to take a picture of him in his head to toe green outfit, but a little someone decided to come out of nowhere and photo bomb!

She loves him so.

Warning: Objects in Pictures Are Exactly As They Appear

 Where, oh where, did I go wrong???

Four

Tessa is four!

We didn't do a party this year.  We celebrated at home with Poppa and Grandma Peggy who were visiting for the weekend.  I thought she might be upset, especially as she continued to talk about her "party" as the big day approached, but I think she was perfectly happy with our little celebration.  She had cake with her friends at school earlier in the week, and we had yummy fruit pancakes on her birthday -- with lots and lots of whipped cream and sprinkles, and then strawberry shortcake for dessert that night!  She couldn't be happier!

She was thrilled to get her first bouquet -- from Mommy!

A few things I want to remember about her at age 4:

- Her favorite game is hide and seek.  And she gives herself away every single time.
- She loves to refer to people as "My dear"
- She loves pistachios  -- just like Zaidy.
- She has a major sweet tooth.
- She's very sensitive, and easily gets her feelings hurt.
- She loves any project that involves glue or scissors.
- She loves riding in the car with the windows down -- just like Mommy and Poppa!
- When something goes her way, she gives a fist pump and says "Yes!"
- She likes to listen to bible stories on the iPad.
- She LOVES hidden picture activity books.  And she's really good at them! 
- She is always asking if she can do some "homework".  We have tons of preschool workbooks that she really likes to do -- especially if Calder has homework. 
- She is always taking off her socks, so her feet can "get some fresh air".
- She has recently taken a huge interest in Lucky, and is constantly trying to get him to kiss her. 

And some quotable quotes from "our dear":

"May I please excuse the table?"
"Sounds like you went to sleep on the wrong side of the bed!"
"I had a furious day at school today."
"I want to wear my booty pjs tonight. You know - the ones with socks what aren't really socks?"

Oh, how she loves to be silly!

She still naps, which is quite a surprise, since Calder gave up his nap at age 2.5.  We actually did give up Tessa's nap at one point, and then realized that she really still needed them.  We don't call it nap time though.  It's "quiet time" in her room and she just happens to fall asleep almost every single time.  She's a little bit Jekyll and Hyde.  She can be super super sweet one moment...but can easily turn on a dime.  We're still struggling with some behavior issues, but have high hopes that age four will show some major improvements! 

She still has a little bit of a lisp, and she says "Thl" instead of "fl".  So, it's "thlower" instead of "flower" (which is funny, because Calder used to do the exact opposite!)   She also says "what" instead of "that".   

She continues to be obsessed with baby dolls.  She's expanding a little bit beyond her favorites (Rohan and Jaya) and even shares them with her sister, sometimes.  She loves to pretend that she is a mommy and that she is dropping her baby off at school with me, the teacher.  She also loves to stuff the babies up her shirt and then pretend that they were just born. 

Happy Birthday to our big girl!  We love you so!

Sisters

"I'm not sure how I feel about this..."

"Well, I guess it's alright."

Snuggly sisters!

First Haircut

At 4 years old, Tessa finally got her first haircut! It took me months to convince her to do it. She finally agreed after one too many tearful hair brushings. She still had a little 'tude about it before we went, but she did go willingly (ok...there may have been a bribe involved.)

She was so serious the whole time, but she did great!

Success! I only let them cut off an inch since I can't bear to part with those curls. It made a big difference though, and it's so much easier to brush her hair now.

Happy girl, bribe in hand.

Xmas 2012!

We spent Xmas in Michigan this year.  It was a lot of work to pack up a family of five for Christmas away from home, but we wanted to take advantage of spending the holiday with my brother's family while they were on home leave from Africa.  We successfully packed and transported everything....except the extra camera battery.  Ugh!  So, I have my sister-in-law to thank for these pictures!