Super Stuff on a Monday (or Tuesday, as the Case May Be)

So thankful for some super fabulous highlights from the past week!

1)     We kicked off the week with the girls’ four-year old check-ups.  We were of course thankful for a healthy report…and we were also thankful for NO TEARS!  Our big girls took their shots in perfect stride, and we celebrated as a family with a cookie and milk at Panera. 

2)     After our appointment, the pediatrician gave the girls pencils…their first.  They were SO excited to come home and use them!  While we only use them under strict supervision [can you say lead poisoning and puncture wounds???], the girls have had so much fun, mostly making lists…which, incidentally, cracks me up!

3)     Monday afternoon it was nothing short of magical to watch the President take the oath of office with the girls.  I remember four years ago on inauguration day, the girls had been home from the hospital just five days.  What an incredible difference four years makes!!!

4)     One afternoon, the girls were practicing putting each others' hair up in a ponytail.  I kept a very close eye on things…thinking one false [accidental] move could result in hair pulling…but they were so cute together!  They didn’t know how to double-over the ponytail holder [nor did I attempt to teach them!], but they had so much fun getting loose ponytails in place.  I couldn’t help but think, this is one of the sweet joys of sisterhood!

5)     On Wednesday I took the girls to have their pictures made.  After a very successful session, we decided to treat ourselves to lunch.  It was a bit early, though, so the girls and I went to Walmart to pick up some Valentine’s Day craft supplies.  They were such little helpers…picking out fabric…and then they watched so intently as the lady cut it for us.  We then enjoyed an awesome lunch.  It doesn’t hurt that one of my favorite bakeries now tops the list of the girls’ favorite places, too.

6)     The girls have been giving high fives for almost as long as I can remember, but it dawned on me that they haven’t really high-fived each other.  They were practicing this week, and it was pretty hysterical.  There again, I kept in close range, as they came perilously close to hitting each other quite a few times…but it sure was cute!

7)     Baby A has been fixated on “fuzzy socks” since she got a pair for Christmas.  B doesn’t like them very much, so A has twice the number of pairs at her disposal.  She particularly enjoys them for playing hide-and-seek, since it makes her moves even more stealth across the hardwood floors.

8)     If I had it to do over again, I would have mounted a mirror in the den for the girls long ago.  Lately, the girls seem compelled to stop in front of any mirror and dance.  And Baby A has been making the most hilarious faces at herself (and me!) as we do our bedtime routine.  She makes me laugh every time.

9)     Baby B has continued with her awesome shows of affection.  She has been planting so many kisses on this mama…my cheeks, my hands, my arms…so sweet!  And at bedtime, as I’m leaving the girls’ room, I usually rub her back for a second.  One night she found my hand and gave me the biggest hug.  Sigh!

10)  On Friday we enjoyed an impromptu day at home with Daddy, thanks to sleet and ice.  It was such a nice day…the girls were playing hide-and-seek with Daddy before 7am, and we all enjoyed a hearty family breakfast.  Family time is always good…especially when you score some “extra”!

11)  Baby B has also continued to whisper secrets in my ear.  Most of the time they’re so silly…like, “Mommy, kiss my neck,” or, “Mommy, I love books,” or, “Mommy, the sun is shining.”  I think it’s so sweet how she likes to share something so simple with me.

12)  It had been FAR too long since we’d had a family sushi date, and Saturday was the day.  Daddy and I got our raw fish fix, and the girls ate every morsel of their shrimp teriyaki…along with several pieces of the crunchy shrimp roll we got for them.  I’m so thankful that we all love our favorite Japanese restaurant so much…and I can’t wait to start sharing real sushi with the girls in a few years!

13)  One morning Baby A "built" a computer from her blocks. She was "typing" on it intently, when B peered over her shoulder. "Sissy, where's the help button on here?" "There's no help button. Ask me, I can help you."  :)

14)  While they were playing over the weekend, Daddy was mocking the girls.  Baby A told him, "You need to use your big-girl voice!"  And later, poor Daddy got schooled on zoo animals.  “Daddy, that's a lorikeet, not a parrot!"

15)  And the quote of the week?  "Mommy, when are you going to shave your shoulders?"  I realized pretty quickly that B was looking at my razor in my cosmetics drawer.  “Mommy doesn’t shave her shoulders, Sweetie.”  “Well, under your shoulders?”  I couldn’t help but laugh at her description of “armpits”…makes sense!

I wrote this post on Monday morning, but it's somehow taken me through Tuesday afternoon to get it published.  We're off to another super (and bustling!) week!