No, I'm not going to give one. Jewel is learning to master it and the process is very fun. Trevor still has his little "mistakes" that are funny and cute. He often tries to use words he doesn't know the meaning of, like embarrassing and aggravate. I remember Taylor doing the same thing. Sometimes Trent calls him "little Taylor" because of the things he does and says. But, he looks so different from Taylor that it is hard for me to compare them too much. Jewel is learning to put together sentences and her attempts are also funny. "Me have it", "You, no no, Bubba, that mine", "I have cheese, momma, I ant cheese, pease, come on, fowow me" are some examples of where she is right now. I laugh all day at the things those two say to me, with their little serious faces, trying so hard to communicate their every whim. Trevor it seems has grown up entirely too fast, but he continues to get more wonderful, so I'll try not to long for his baby days and just look forward to teaching him more complex ideas. But, sometimes they amaze me, as with all parents, I suppose. Yesterday, when she was sent out of the kitchen because she wouldn't leave the knives in the dishwasher alone, she (with real tears on her cheek) looked up and said, "I sad, momma, you make me sad." She, no doubt, learned that from her brother, but she used it at the correct time and so sincerely. I was shocked that she's already learning about her own emotions, I don't know when that is supposed to happen, but I think I must wish she was still too young. I immediately felt guilty, but loaded the dishwasher while she played in the bedroom with Trevor anyway. She has also begun to have the dreams that I am known for. She and Trevor both cry out in their sleep about someone taking their cup, ice cream, cheese, toy, etc. Jewel is in fact right now, calling "Daddy!" from the bedroom in her sleep. Taylor didn't dream as disruptively as the two little ones seem to, but I have crazy vivid dreams most nights. I knew having the two of them so close in age was going to be very different from my previous child rearing experiences, and boy, has it been. Taylor had Morlynn for most of his younger years, but I worked more often and they weren't quite so close in age. I have become acutely aware of every stage that Trevor leaves, if for nothing more than the fact that Jewel is about to enter it. As grateful as I am that we got a girl, I can't help but wonder if we would have still gotten a girl a year later. Of course, that would also have dragged out the time that I was home with the kids all day, and let's face it, I have things that I need to do right now (like get a degree). So, you can either believe that I got lucky or "everything happens for a reason" or (if you so choose) you can say that "God only gives you what you can handle" or "This must have been God's plan", but it seems that everything is coming together about as good as I ever expected. Also, I should add, I feel more responsible for my situation than God should, I suppose that is just because I "find evidence to support my beliefs" like everyone else. Oh yeah, speech. Ha ha ha well, I suppose I'll stop before I make one.
Trent and Taylor got up early this morning with the plan to sneak out before the babies see them. However, Jewel forgot to wake up and get in bed with us last night, so the sounds of Daddy and Bubba woke her. She tried to get in bed with Trevor and me but only managed to wake Trevor. Any other morning, that wouldn't be a problem. Trevor has a built in snooze button and is the King of sleeping in. He can ignore offers of fun for hours while lolling in half-sleep and refusing to get out of bed when he feels like it. (And yet, somehow he is a ball of energy all day when he gets up.) However, this morning, the lightest little murmur of the word "fish" from the living room sent him shooting straight up in bed. He got very quiet, listening for more conversation. After a few seconds, he looked at me and said, "I'm going to go see what Bubba and Dad are talking about." So, Trent, Taylor, and Trevor are going fishing this morning. I don't know how I feel about pollution levels in the local waters, but, pick your battles, right. And, the catches have been small for now, so mass quantities aren't yet an issue. Jewel wanted to go, but Mom had to sit this one out. We've been many times in the last week or so and I have things I'd like to get done here. But, it is hard to stay home because every time we've gone something great has happened. One time there were the pelicans swooping and diving right in front of us, another time we found a hiking area that is more fun than any playground (we had to take Taylor back to see it yesterday, because he wasn't with us when we discovered it), and (despite Dad's phone incident) its been great and the kids have asked a million questions. I took some pictures and videos yesterday. We plan on going back to the hiking trail many more times, it is beautiful and very interesting. Jewel is currently changing from one dress to another and then changing shoes, I suppose if she can't go fishing she'll just play dress up. ha ha
