EVB: 4 Years + 1 Month Old!

Ellen is proving to be a rockstar 4-year-old! We're just one month in, but I have a feeling that 4 is going to be a great year for EVB. She has been doing a wonderful job being a better listener and managing her frustrations when things don't go her way. It's so nice to see Ellen exhibit a sense of maturity I wouldn't have thought she was capable of just a few months ago. We are so proud of our little lady! Here's what else EVB has been up to:

• Perfecting buttons ... still working on snaps
• Asking lots of questions about death and heaven, which we do our best to answer
• Being a big helper to Mom & Dad (setting the table, picking up after herself, getting dressed without too much dawdling, etc.)
• Talking a lot about her next birthdays, going to kindergarten ... and high school ... and college. (She couldn't believe it when I told her that most people who attend college choose to LIVE at school!)
• Working on her flossing skills (Ellen loves the awesome pick flosses she got during her recent visit to the dentist.)
• Requesting to take more soccer lessons. (Ellen just finished her first session of pee-wee soccer, which she loved!)
• Excelling at swimming lessons (Ellen received a glowing mid-session report card!)
• Getting excited for CHRISTMAS!

JEB: 20 Months Old!

Miss Junie B. is 20 months old! (It's crazy to think that June is the age Ellen was when I got pregnant with June ...) JEB is just the best. She is the sweetest, most lovable little person and she only gets sweeter and more lovable by the day. I know there will be many times in the future when she's not so lovable, so I hope this current phase lasts for a really long time! Here's what Junie's been up to lately:

• Talking more and more, of course. She's using longer sentences more often (e.g., "Here you go, Mommy," "Oh, there it is ...," "I love you, Daddy," and "Are you OK, Ellen?")
• Counting. June can count to 13 or 14, but for some reason poor Number 2 is often omitted.
• Showing greater understanding for where people are, where we are going/what we will do when we get there (e.g., if I tell June that we are taking Ellen to school, she'll start talking about seeing teachers, or if Ellen is at soccer with Adam and I ask June where Ellen is, she'll say "soccer ball.")
• More singing. June has mastered the Mickey's part of "Mickey's Countdown," which we listen to (way too often for sane adult ears) on CD in the car. It's hilarious to hear the perfectly timed "hot dogs," "oh boys" and "swells" from the backseat. It makes Ellen giggle uncontrollably, too. :)
• Loving waffles. June typically houses one waffle during breakfast then says, "Mo 'awful' peez?"
• Complimenting the chef. June loves to take a bite of food, then say "Mmm ... 'licious.'" (June recently tried M&Ms for the first time, which she though were especially "icious.")
• Reading. June has started to "read" her books out loud to herself.
• Having an opinion about what she wears. June has many winter hats but she will only wear her beloved mouse hat.
• Walking on tip toes ... our little ballerina
• Learning her colors. June does best identifying pink and when she's unsure of a color, she defaults to guessing blue.
• Standing on furniture. June has yet to meet a couch or chair she can resist standing on. Despite numerous tumbles and scaring Mom & Dad half to death, she has escaped mostly unscathed and, unfortunately, undeterred. 
• Loving everyone. June has been sharing more and more unsolicited "love yous" and hugs and kisses with all of us. (My favorite is when she specifically requests to "snuggle" ... it's impossible to resist!)
• Mimicking conversation. June has taken to saying, "Soooo ..." during lulls in the conversation at the dinner table, something I often do.
• Requesting diaper changes. Lately when June poops, she'll come find me and say "change." We brought out the little potty chair for practice/fun, but I know we still have a long way to go before serious toilet learning.
• Being awesome. Seriously. I'll say it again, June is at a wonderful stage that I wish would last forever!

Halloween 2013

Ellen and June had an awesome Halloween! In fact, we all had a ton of fun. Ellen kicked off the festivities on Wednesday with a Halloween party at school. She was so proud to wear her sea turtle costume and had a blast seeing what all of her classmates were dressed as. We (mostly Adam and I) carved pumpkins Wednesday night ... Ellen and June refused to touch the pumpkin cuts and they're still too young to wield sharp objects, but Ellen did advise me on the shapes she wanted me to carve for her jack-o-lantern's face.

On Thursday, we rushed through dinner and got changed into costumes as quickly as possible so we could get plenty of trick-or-treating in before bedtime. June wasn't too crazy about wearing her seahorse costume at first, but eventually she gave in and complied as long as we left the hat piece un-velcroed.

Ellen couldn't get to the neighbors' houses fast enough! Unlike previous Halloweens, she was not at all apprehensive about marching up to people's doors, ringing the bell and saying, "trick-or-treat" and then, "Thank you; Happy Halloween!" just like we had practiced. As she'd leave one house, she'd yell "Their lights are on; I think they're home!" as she bounded up the next driveway.

To our surprise, June was also very into trick-or-treating. She proudly sauntered up to the doors with her treat bag (or "purse" as she called it) on her arm and managed to say her own version of "trick-or-treat" and "thank you." She would then yell, "bye" at the top of her lungs and wave enthusiastically all while flashing her trademark cheesy grin. She melted a lot of hearts with her adorableness, but she was all business going from house to house.

We called it quits after hitting most of the houses on our side of the street since it was getting cold and we needed to get back to hand out candy at our house. This was almost as much fun as trick-or-treating. Ellen loved watching out the window for kids and giving them candy when they came to our door. June, on the other hand, loved helping herself to our candy bowl and shuttling pieces of candy into the playroom to "feed" her dolls/animals a treat. She then would find a new home for the candy in her trick-or-treat "purse." (I had to sneak them back into our bowl to ensure our supply didn't run out!)

Ellen and Adam headed out for Round Two of trick-or-treating and then I took both girls over to see our friends who live close by. After that, it was back home and off to bed. Such a fun night! We can't wait until next year!