Why I Love Having a Kindergartener...

Reason #389:  Because in kindergarten, a little boy begins to write all by himself without asking Momma for spelling help.

Here he was working on his class roster to make Valentines for the upcoming class Valentine party.  (In case you can't fully translate, it says "Johnson Elementary School, Dual Language Class, Kindergarten".)  He is really enjoying his class.  It's so neat to see him learning to read and write in Spanish as he is learning to read and write in  English too.  The other day he said to me: "Momma, I can write in Spanish as well as I can in English! (Which is probably true because he's pretty much a beginner in both.)  But then he followed that up by saying: "But you know, with all this Spanish, sometimes I think I'm starting to forget English!"  He is such a hoot!

Three Months...

This week Mollie turned 3 months old.  Time is flying by, and she is changing every day.  She is such a sweet baby...like a little angel...my bundle of preciousness!  Today, for the first time, she rolled over by herself from her back to her tummy.  It took her several tries, and she was getting very frustrated, but she kept trying until she got it!  She seems to be a very determined little girl--not surprising to us, since Mason and Ellie were also the same way as babies (and still are!)  Here are some new pictures of Mollie at three months old:                 

This Girl...

This girl keeps me on my toes.  She can disappear and get into no-no's quicker than I can keep up with sometimes.  She loves to climb up cabinets and get into the sinks.  She loves to climb into her sister's baby bed to join her after a nap.  And occasionally, she likes to show up at my bedside at 2 a.m., with blankie in hand, to climb into bed with me.  She has a hot temper, but can turn around and melt my heart with an overabundance of kisses and hugs.  My favorite things she currently says to me are "Hold you, Momma", "I proud of  you, Momma!", and "Hey Mommy girl!"  She adores her big brother and copies everything she sees him do...good or bad.  She loves her baby sister, and always wants to be first into her room to greet her when she hears her waking up from a nap.  "See Mollie! Hold it...hold it!", she says (meaning hold her).  She knows all the letters of the alphabet now, and she loves to quiz us to see if we know them too.  :)  She is a feisty girl--she can hold her own against a 6-year-old brother, and yet, she fears the flashing light on the smoke detector because it is "scary".  I love this girl.  I can't imagine a day without this girl.  She is my girl.

Look Alikes...

From the moment I first saw Mollie, I could tell she bore a great resemblance to Mason when he was a baby.  Nearly 3 months later, she still favors him quite a bit.  Here are Mason and Mollie both at approximately two months old.

Kinder Awards...

Last week Mason's kindergarten first-semester awards ceremony was held.  (I arrived on time with the girls, but somehow managed to forget the camera! So I had to take this picture once we got home).  Mason received a Perfect Attendance award for the fall semester, and he also received his kindergarten class' Master of Mathematics award.  It was so much fun to see the pride on his face when he walked up on stage to receive his certificates--wish I would've had my camera to capture that!  We are so proud of you, Mason! 

She Smiles...

Mollie is two months old now.  One of my favorite things about this age is her responding to us with her smiles.  They come more and more frequently every day, and if we're lucky we get some accompanying coos and gurgles along with it.  I love it!

Lately, Matthew and I have caught her trying to roll over.  She makes it halfway, but she still hasn't figured out how to get over that right-arm obsticle.

This Is The Reason...

This is the reason why those doorknob covers were invented for toddlers.  Obviously I haven't put one on Mollie's bedroom door, otherwise Ellie wouldn't be frequently letting herself into Mollie's room while she's napping, climbing up into the baby bed with her, and loving on her until she wakes up.  (Apologies for the lack of clothing on Ellie--she also doesn't like to wear clothes unless she has to!)