Winter life

This winter, this season of life, has been the best with my girls so far. We have hit a sweet spot that I suspect will last for at least a few more years. I've got to tell you, having a child old enough to talk to throughout the day, old enough to help out a little, old enough to laugh with and share memories, it's just a whole new game. What's even better is that I have two girls capable of this. What's also wonderful is that those two girls happily entertain themselves throughout the day just enough to keep me from feeling completely burned out from full time parenting every second of the day. 

I also get to have a baby around to delight in. Do I need to list all the ways to delight in a baby? Because there are many. The big girls delight in her as well. It's something we get to share together. 

Real life #1

I'm so thankful for this life I get to live, where I am able to raise these girls all day as well as nights and weekends. I've said it before, but I don't think I can say it enough. I don't take it for granted, and I'm aware that in a different life I wouldn't have this privilege.

Amelia is getting her first two molars in. It's been rough. She's clingy, not sleeping well, crying at my feet constantly, and nursing off and on all day when I let her. Amidst all of that, she's entertaining and hilarious, playing games and learning new cute behaviors like playing hide and seek with anything and everyone, talking on a pretend phone, using sign language to get more food or tell us she's done (with everything, not just eating). She is learning more developmentally than I can mention and I swear every single day, hubby and I discuss what she did that day that is new, because there truly is something new that often. She prefers to walk but won't walk (or stand for that matter) on her own, so she is constantly eyeing up any surface within crawling distance that she can practice walking along.

Josie and Audrey are both embracing "school" lessons and are constantly asking for more projects to do. I've given them more access to our arts and crafts supplies now that they are more responsible and generally follow our rules about them. They both color all the time, sometimes work with their stamps, will happily draw pictures and practice letters (or shapes, as Audrey isn't quite there yet with letters). Josie is slowly learning to read. I'm not rushing it since she's still fairly young. I have noticed that it's worked well to do one day of her reading lesson, sometimes doing two at once, and then take off a few days before doing another. She seems to take a huge leap forward and the next lesson almost seems simple or easy compared to where she ended the lesson before. It's amazing to see her little mind grow and get stronger as she learns all about this world and how to be in it. Audrey is in the thick of being three, with all those three year old emotions. She's like a light bulb, all on and happy or all off and sad/mad/confused/bewildered/frustrated. Her hand eye coordination is improving rapidly and she's really taking off with her preschool workbook activities. Also, she's practically catching up to Josie in size. That age gap seems to be closing faster and faster.

Lately, our day to day activities consist of this: We leave the house almost every single day. It's good for all of us. When we are home, Josie and Audrey are busy playing in their room, downstairs in the playroom, at the table doing art projects, or on the couch reading stories, always together. Sometimes I join them, sometimes I'm cooking, reading, knitting (so slow at this let me tell you), doing chores, or getting office work done. Most of the time, I'm attending to Miss High Maintenance, Amelia. I can't be too far from her yet so she's usually playing around me while I do the above activities. When the girls have too much energy, I shove them outside. It's been nice enough weather to do this whenever it's needed, which is awesome and very unusual for this time of year. I have very rarely had to resort to the back up babysitter, the tv, and I'm grateful for that. We seem to have gotten into a good routine of finding other entertainment, and I don't want to spoil that by offering it more than absolutely necessary.

We all have quiet time during Amelia's afternoon nap. The older girls are separated and it helps them appreciate each other more when they get to play together afterward. We've ventured outside to go for a walk exactly one time this month. I always want to, but haven't been great about making time for it. You'd think we'd have opportunities all day long to do this, but we stay just busy enough where it doesn't always fit in. Also, early or late afternoon is really the best time of day to go (warmer, more light) but we are always working around something, whether it's lunch, naps, gym time, or evening activities. I'm hoping to fit this in better in the near future. I think it's good for all of us to be used to being outside even when it's not 70 degrees out. Jo and Audrey do play outside more often than that, but I want the girls to see me outside too, enjoying it even, as well as having them experiencing it on their own.

Real life #2

 I feel like this update is a bit redundant. I know I did an update not too long ago covering some of this, but I just don't want to forget these little details. I love our life right now, this stage we are in. We have time to visit friends and get our errands done. We aren't shuffling around a hectic school schedule. We have time together, really it's a crazy amount of time that we actually spend together, and I enjoy almost all of it. Like I said, it's a sweet spot that I don't ever want to forget.