Saturday, January 31, 2009

the bean-spiller

There has been some talk lately about a special project the girls have been working on with my mom for my birthday. It's top secret, and the girls both promised not to tell me anything about it.

You know where this is going, don't you?

The other day while we were in the car, Catherine kept talking about the big secret. She was about to crack when I stopped her and reminded her that she wasn't supposed to tell me. She assured me that she wasn't going to...

Catherine: Don't worry, I wasn't going to tell you about your birthday present. But you know, Mommy, pot holders are sure hard to make!

Grace: Catherine! You just told her!

Catherine: No I didn't! I just told her that those pot holders were really hard!

Grace: Ugh!

Guess we know who not to tell our secrets to!

Thursday, January 15, 2009

name that hymn

Each week in BSF, the kids learn hymns in their classes. Last week, two of the hymns they've been learning were on a CD in our car, so we'd been listening to them while we were out.

Yesterday, the girls couldn't wait to tell their teacher that they had been listening to "Holy, Holy, Holy" in the car. As soon as they saw her, they told her the great news, then proceeded to bust out in song.

After a particularly moving rendition of the popular hymn, Grace went on to tell her teacher that one of Pop's favorite songs was on the CD, too.

"Pop loves one of the songs on the CD! It's the one about the boat!!" she says.

I couldn't figure out what she was talking about for a minute, but then it hit me.

"No, Grace. That song isn't about a boat. It's called How Great Thou Art!"

"Oops, I thought it was How Great's the Ark!" she giggled!

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

not so fast

I guess I spoke too soon. Maybe we need a little more time with Safe Side Superchick.

The girls were overcome by temptation today in the Wal-Mart checkout line. The waiting, the friendly older couple behind us, the inquisitive cashier...it was the perfect storm.

Technically, they didn't really break the rules.

They pointed out that they didn't know anyone in line, labeled them all "don't knows," and then asked if it was okay just to say hi.

It was all over after that.

They started with "Hi," then proceeded to put on a mini-talent show right there in line. It was complete with theme songs from all of the Disney Princess movies, some high-kicks, and a little hair-pulling. Fortunately for the girls, there was a problem with the register just as we tried to pay, so they had a captive audience for an additional few minutes.

When the couple behind us asked the girls what their names were, I was curious to see what they'd say. Like I said, they didn't technically break the rules. Instead of telling them their names, they spelled them!

What can I say...if there's a loophole, these two will find it!

Monday, January 12, 2009

making progress

After our oil change the other day, the girls and I came home and had movie time. They were hoping for one of the Disney Princesses. Instead, they got Safe Side Superchick!

I've had the Stranger Safety video, (part of The Safe Side program) for several weeks, so I figured the time had come to watch it. I was actually really impressed with the video! It's pretty corny, but the girls really watched it. It teaches kids about staying safe by putting people into three groups- Don't Knows, Kinda Knows, and Safe Side Adults. While we watched, we would pause the video and talk about what they were saying. The girls seemed to get it, and started to understand why we have certain safety rules. The video is very clear about why these rules are important, but in a way that wasn't over their heads or scary.

We've been out in public several times since watching, and I'm happy to report that they haven't engaged in conversations with random strangers, given out their address to any cashiers, and have only introduced themselves to one person. They even asked me if it was okay to say hi to one of our waiters at lunch!

The girls are spirited, funny, and outgoing, and I don't want to change that. I just want them to be safe. Hopefully, this video will help!

Saturday, January 10, 2009

new friends

On the way home from my parents' house this afternoon, we made a quick stop to get the oil changed.

We all piled out of the minivan, grabbed a few things to pass the time, and headed inside to wait. I gave the girls their markers and coloring books and hoped they would be entertained until the car was ready.

Little did I know, they would soon be doing the entertaining.

Not even three minutes into our wait, one of the mechanics came into the waiting room to do some paperwork. Grace glanced up at him, looked back down at her book, then quickly turned her attention back to him.

"Mommy!" she says, in a tone that's a cross between amused and appalled, "that boy is wearing earrings!"

"Yes, he is." I mumbled, hoping she would just drop it.

She did, and quickly went back to her coloring. Kim, however, couldn't stop laughing.

Who is Kim? Kim is the complete stranger that was sitting next to Grace. Wait...scratch that. She was the complete stranger sitting next to Grace. They grew quite close in the ten minutes we were there.

Once Grace saw Kim laughing at her, she didn't waste time getting to know her. Grace introduced herself, then bombarded her with a string of questions, revealed some random and personal information, and told a few silly stories. Catherine chimed in pretty quickly, and it didn't take long before they included Pete, the retired mechanic sitting next to me, in the conversation.

By the time we left, we'd learned about transmission fluids (thanks Pete!), shared a little too much with people I'd never seen before in my entire life, and made three new friends (we met Ernest,too, shortly before leaving).

Apparently, my "don't talk to strangers" speeches are not making much of an impact.

Never a dull moment with those two. Even when you sometimes wish there was!

Friday, January 2, 2009

clear the roads

For Christmas this year, my in-laws bought a Barbie Jeep for the girls and their cousin. Even though it was late on Christmas Eve, the girls all took the Jeep out for a spin that night.

As I watched the girls drive around, I had a vision of what life would be like in 13 years.

Two giggling, carefree, fun-loving blonds out on the road together.

I'm not looking forward to it.

Thursday, January 1, 2009

Happy New Year!

...and a very belated Merry Christmas, too!

Yes, we're still here! I don't really have a good explanation for why I haven't posted anything in so long. We've been no busier than anyone else, we've been in town the whole time, and my computer wasn't down.

I think I was just a little overwhelmed. I get that way sometimes. Honestly, I kind of stay that way!

I promise I'll be back tomorrow.

Until then, Happy New Year!