day 27: vivi on the phone and marley on the world

"Hi-ee Da-ee!"

Daddy left today to go to a fishing tournament.  We went to an alpaca farm this morning with a local homeschooling group.  But it was rainy and in the 40s.  It was a rough day of not being able to go outside, grumpy mommy, fussy kids, no Daddy, and an annoying dog.  We had a long day.

But I have enjoyed watching Vivi play on our phones.  She sent her first text message a few days ago and even took a few pictures all by herself.  It's pretty cute watching her act like all the adults around her.

Tonight at bedtime, Marley and I spent a long time playing with her globe.  She showed me all the places she wanted to go, and I told her what they were all called.  She wants to go to Africa and Florida and Australia most of all.  Having a globe is seriously the coolest thing to our four year old.  She is really learning that there is an entire planet of things to explore!

day 26: adoration and the secret adventure club

Vivi looking at her sister in adoration.  She really does love her Marley, despite all the fighting and competition.  She even tries to say her name now.  It comes out "mah-ee."

Marley wrote these letter all by herself after Asa helped her build a fort.  She copied it from a Franklin book she loves, where Franklin has a secret club and learns about sharing it with all his friends.  She had a blast inviting every one in on this cold, rainy day.

day 25: our picky eater and our first fall fire

Marley is the pickiest eater I know.  My mother would probably disagree and tell countless stories of how picky I was as a child.  And as a teenager.  But Marley is the pickiest eater I know.

A few times I had read the theory that if you just let your kids decide what they are going to eat off of their plate, they will eventually make the right choices.  It really sounded like a dumb idea to me.  How would they eat healthy foods by choice?  She can't just eat cheese for dinner every night!

So, we kept pushing it and telling her, four more bites.  And she would whine and sometimes she would win and sometimes we would win.  It was exhausting and frustrating and Marley knew it.

I decided to give the ignoring thing a try.  We would make her a plate of all the food we were having, including vegetables and anything else she claimed to not like.  And every night I would tell her, "Marley this is what we are having for dinner.  You can choose to eat it or not, but I don't want o hear any complaining about it.  If you don't want to eat it, just leave it there."

The first few times I wondered why we were doing this.  She still complained even when I repeated the rules to her.  She didn't eat and then asked for a banana at bedtime when she discovered she was hungry.  I would bring out her leftover dinner and tell her that was her only choice.

And then, one meal at a time, things have gotten better and better.

"I am loving this dinner," she told me as she scooped chicken and vegetable soup into her mouth.
"This is weely good!"
Last night she literally shoved handfuls of green beans in her mouth.  (Yes, she was filling her hands with green beans.  This was a victory and I didn't want to mess up her flow by mentioning using a fork!)

She is not a perfect eater by any means, but one success at a time, we are getting better!

Vivi hasn't been wanting to sleep without company lately.  Maybe it's new teeth.  Maybe it's a runny nose.  Maybe it's just growing up.  But either way, we naps are short and her nights are spent pressed up against me.  So, tonight Asa and I were enjoying a fire and I brought her outside to join us.  She is a busy baby and rarely sits still in my lap.  But she was mesmerized by the fire and content to hang out for a while.

day 24: bookworm and chalk

The library is one of Marley's favorite places to go, and I adore that about her.  Sometimes I ask her if she would rather go to the library or the playground, and she always chooses the library.  If I let her get every single book she chose, I literally wouldn't be able to carry them out of the library.  She is interested in everything.  She wants to learn everything about everything.

Unfortunately, I can only handle going once a week because little Vivi, little sweet adorable Vivi, is a complete monster in the library.  She is pulling the books off the shelves, running into the computer area screaming, and crying any time I try to control her.  As Marley says, "It's hard having a little sister."

We played outside with chalk today and Vivi loved it.  She watched Marley lie down on the ground and me trace around her body.  When Marley got up, Vivi immediately lied down on the ground and stayed perfectly still while Marley traced around her.  It was a rare moment when Vivi wasn't moving.

I love seeing how she is watching us, studying us, and then she tries to copy what we do.  15 months is a fun age in that way.  Their little brains are just soaking up everything they see and filing it away in the right areas.  Her mind is constantly working and I love seeing the proof!

day 23: painting and knights

Vivi's first time painting.  She loved it and I will definitely be doing it again!  What started out as painting with a paintbrush quickly turned into painting her face, hands, feet, and my arms.  It was so much fun, though.  

 "This is how a knight poses."

She is obsessed with knights right now.  We have been learning all about them.  Well, we have been learning some nice things about knights, skipping over the not-so-pleasant parts.  She has decided now to be a knight for Halloween. 

Oh, and she is in love with this shirt Asa got her.  When she wears it she says, "People will pwobably think I'm in the ah-mee."

day 22: daddy comes home

Today, Daddy came home from training.  He has been gone for two weeks and we missed him something fierce.  I was honestly a little worried about Vivi still having a bond with him when he got back.  But she knew exactly who he was and where he fits into her life.  She loves her da-ee and was delighted to have him home!

Marley put on a front for days that she wasn't excited to see him.  Unfortunately, she equated Daddy coming home with having to leave Texas.  So, every time I mentioned him coming home, she would say, "But I just want to see Mimi and Papa..."  It broke my heart.

So, we all got in the truck and drove up to the company to pick him up.  Even on the way there, she was keeping up this charade and I was just hoping with all my strength that she wouldn't act like that in front of him.  We waited until we saw him walking up to the truck and I said, "Marley, who is that?"

She squealed, "GET ME OUT! I WANT TO HUG HIM!" and threw her hands up and kicked her feet!  Relief.

We have been trying very hard to explain to her that we miss every one in Texas also and we understand how she feels, but that our family of four needs to be together.  She still isn't the same since coming home.  She is happy to be with us, but she misses every one is Texas and I think her messy little heart is having a hard time with it all.  She lives a life where she is always missing someone and that is hard for a little girl.