lost time!

OK, so I've not posted in a LONG time! How do I make up for all the valuable tidbits that happened over the past month?

Sofia, well, Sofia is Sofia. She's sanguine, she's a princess, she's a sweetheart, she's defiant, she's strong-willed, she's smart, she's intuitive, she's an absolutey amazing 4/7 year old. When Nana was in town at the beginning of July, Nana asked her why she was 7. Sofia explained that 7 year old's know how to be polite! I think she summed it up for us right there! She knows that it is hard to be 4, and that there are a lot of things she is trying to figure out. But in her world, 7 year olds have already figured that out. So, she decided that if she is 7, then she won't have to figure all this stuff out!

The best thing I've discovered recently is that Sofia really responds to charts or writing. We made a "Mommy/Daddy decisions vs. Sofia decisions" chart, where we listed some decisions, such as bed time, which mommy or daddy make, and then listed all the decisions under bed time that Sofia can make, such as which pjs to wear, which bedtime snack to have, which stories to read, etc. We made a "Consequences" chart, where Sofia drew pictures of her doing something we don't like, and then talked about the consequence of that action. We made a "happy" chart, listing things that make us happy. Sofia loves to draw the pictures, and I can write out the words.

Sofia just finished a 1-week summer "Camp of the Creative Arts", where she had 1 hour of dance and 1 hour of art each day. Her art has really expanded this summer, her drawings becoming more detailed, and writing looking like real letters! She can write all the letters of her name, too! It's so interesting to see these developments.

Emerson. Well, Emerson turned 1! Yea!! We made it through the first year! I think the first year is the hardest. Some people love babies. I of course love MY babies, but I am fascinated by the developments as they turn 1 and beyond. Emerson is still our little social guy. He waves and says "hi" (which sounds more like "haaaa") to everyone he sees! We just walk out the front door, and he looks for someone to wave to. If no one is there, he sometimes waves just to wave! He is pretty smiley, and easy to bump out of a tantrum (so far!). He loves the dog and the cat. He is walking now, and proud of it! He is super-active, and into everything. Sometimes I feel I get nothing done because I'm constantly moving him away from something! With all his activity, though, it's amazing how much he loves to just sit in my lap and read books! His attention span on single pages isn't long, so we're more or less paging through books, but he will ask for one after another after another! Emerson is generally a pretty easy-going guy, which brings great balance to our household, as I think Kent and I are pretty opposite characters, and now Sofia has her opposite as well.

After a very busy June and July, with rounds 1 and 2 of visitors, August looks to be a bit calmer. (Of course as soon as I put it out there, our schedule will fill up I'm sure!) Uncle Robin and his girlfriend Kayle are here now, but they have their own agenda, so I don't think we'll see too much of them. Sofia and Emerson have really taken to Robin, though, and he has even promised to watch the kids some evening so Kent and I can get to a movie! What a treat! (Robin doesn't even realize what a treat that is for us!! Thank you Robin!!)