Hair Do(n't)

The occassions are so rare that Audrey lets us do her hair that we try our best to grab the camera before she takes out whatever hair band, barrette or clip we've managed to put in.  She looks sooooo cute with a pony tail...and I'm sure she looks even cuter with pig tails but we wouldn't know.  It's never happened. 

Natalie has always loved having her hair done.  Well, not the actual process of getting her hair done.  That involves lots of tears.  Still.  But she loves the finished product of braids, curls or pig tails.  Audrey hates the process AND the product.  Bummer. We're hoping she comes around when it's 115 degrees outside and she experiences (even for a brief moment) how good hair off the neck can feel.  We'll see.

She also loves to brush her teeth.  I'm not sure how effective all this brushing of hers is but I figure even if she's just chewing on the brush the bristles have to be doing some good.

Just another quick shot taken of a pony tail before Audrey realized what had happened. 

Natalie Ann

Some recent Natalie-isms :

While drawing in her notepad:

N: Look, Mommy! I wrote a whole page in cursive!
Me: That's great, sweetie. What did you write?
N: How am I supposed to know? I can't read cursive!


While writing her name on KidsDoodle:

Me: Remember, your teacher wants you to use lower case letters when you write your name. Not all caps.

N: Well, that's because that's what the Kindergarten teachers expect. So, I'll do it that way when I get to Kindergarten. It's just not necessary now.


While "working" at her new desk:

Me: What are you working on?
N: Taxes. Ugh.
(hmmm...guess what Mommy has been working on lately?...with a smile on my face, obviously.)


While we were driving in the car:

Me: Natalie?
N: I'm not Natalie, I'm a rose princess.
Me: Okay, rose princess, can I talk to you about something for Natalie?
N: Sure!
Me: Natalie has a nut allergy and the doctor said she should wear a special bracelet every day so that other adults would know in case she forgets to tell them. If I were to order Natalie a special bracelet, do you think she would wear it....?
N: Okay, okay, Mommy, just talk to Natalie now. I'm now Natalie, not the rose princess. Can the bracelet be pink? Can I wear it today?

Gotta love this kid!  And do we ever! 

The Second Time Around

It's amazing how much faster our second born is exposed to everything we made our first born wait for. We didn't let Natalie watch TV until she was 2. It helped that we didn't have TV during that time but I still think we would have held firm on that.  Well, Audrey watches videos often. Videos like Disney movies with scary villains that we didn't let Natalie see until very recently.  As often as possible, I try to limit the movie selection to Elmo and Miss Spider, but often the movie is one of Natalie's choosing and Elmo doesn't quite do it for her anymore.  Sniff.

And then there are the toys. Natalie waited (not so) patiently until this past Christmas before we'd let Santa bring her a few Barbies. I still feel like she's too young to have dolls with halter tops but she's crazy about all things Barbie. Two days after Christmas, our 14 year old neighbor was selling all of her Barbies at their garage sale. Natalie eagerly took Grandma Lala's dollars over and promptly bought herself another Barbie and a glittery, glitzy horse to go with her. The neighbor girl's mother felt awful for an empty handed Audrey (and, let's face it, she wanted those Barbies outta there!) so she sent her home with a Barbie, too. Lovely.

Natalie with one of her prized Barbies.

And just like the baby doll that Audrey received for Christmas, her own Barbie is not nearly as exciting as Natalie's...so there is always Barbie-napping going on around here!

Then there is the ice cream, the juice, the Halloween and Valentine candy, the markers, the lip gloss and the temporary tattoos! All of which Audrey has experienced before the age of 2. Good thing she still cuddles like a newborn and thinks The Itsy Bitsy Spider is the best song, EVER! 

Been a while...

I can't believe it's been 2 weeks since I've posted anything.  It's not for lack of activity to write about, that's for sure.  Just crazy days that turn into crazy weeks and then repeat.  Nana was here for two weeks and it was wonderful, as usual, to have her.  We really don't like to let her go and one of these days we're just going to refuse to take her to the airport to catch a flight home. 

This visit, she was able to spend a lot of time with Audrey as Natalie was in school every day and that was great for both of them. They played and picnicked at the park most days. 

And Natalie had her fair share of Nana time, too, starting with a wake up snuggle every morning at 7:00 (This is a kid who the rest of us have to bribe to get any snuggle time.).  And Corey, Nana and Natalie even fit in 3 or 4 hikes on the mountain.  The weather couldn't have been better for a Michigander looking for some sunshine.  We had highs near 80 almost every day she was here. 

Thank you for everything, Nana!

Birthday Squared

On Thursday night we had Ashley and Paul over to celebrate Ashley and Natalie's shared birthday.  How cool is it to share a birthday with your aunt AND be able to celebrate it with her over cupcakes?  Although Natalie's present pile out-pinked and out-numbered Ashley's, they shared their special day beautifully. 

The Birthday Twins

(Twenty something years apart!)

Bliss

Yum!

Nana and "Sugar High" Natalie

What a pink pile of presents!

On Friday we had a few of Natalie's classmates join us at Jambo Park, an indoor African themed amusement park.  We were so excited to get the party room with the zebras all over the wall as we'd pretty much already taken the zebra theme and run like crazy with it!!  The kids had a great time and, most importantly, the birthday girl had a blast!!  Corey had to miss out because he finally caught the crud the rest of us have been trying to get over.  It worked out well, though, because Audrey got to stay home with him so we didn't have to chase her around Africa!

Our big 5 year old girl!

5

5 years old.

Doesn't that sound so grown up?  Our little girl is 5 today and what a little lady she's turning into. 

She loves preschool, being outside, taking pictures with her camera, digging in the dirt, collecting bugs, riding her bike, drawing, painting, cutting, pasting and creating.  She loves her baby dolls, her Barbies, anything having to do with princesses or mermaids, books of all shapes and sizes, purses of all shapes and sizes, dress up clothes, princess crowns, high heels, lip gloss and nail polish.  Such a girlie girl, this one is!

She still LOVES the color pink and wishes she had curly hair.  She could do a craft project 3 times a day, every day of the year, if I had the glue stick supply she requires.  She loves rainbows and organizes everything from dolls to crayons in rainbow order.  She's a collector (major pack rat) like her mama.  She's musical like her dad.  She's stubborn like both of us.  She pretty much thinks she's smart enough to run this place.  She probably is but don't tell her I said that.

Five years ago today she was determined to get here on her due date.  To this day she hates being late for school or to a birthday party.  Her teacher made her a birthday crown at school today and she's worn it all afternoon.  She wears a crown quite comfortably and a little too naturally!

Nana is here for a few weeks and the girls (and their parents) are thrilled.

We love you so much, Natalie Ann.  Keep sparkling, sweet girl!