I think life has gotten the best of us lately – we feel like we’ve been so underwater! Combined with the inevitable holiday recovery that takes place in January, Portman started a new job and for the first time in over 2 years is working in an office in DC full time. It has been a big adjustment for all of us, but the kids and I are doing great. I think we were ready for it! On top of that, we decided to go ahead and start our basement renovation. I can’t complain because it really is going to be awesome when it’s done, but dealing with the constant noise and construction mess is not my cup of tea. As Portman would say, “First World Problem.” Anyway, here are some of the things from “around the house” in January:

We got one, pitiful snow. It was clear when it started that it wouldn’t last through the next day, so I let the kids go out in the dark and play in it before bedtime. This made for some pretty terrible photos, but I had to document it since it might be our only snow this year (if we’re lucky!) They were so excited because the “big kids” in the neighborhood convened in our yard, since apparently we had the “best snow.” We are in kind of a flood plain, so maybe it all drifted our direction? Who knows.

I’m taking a photography class with a friend on Sunday afternoons. We’re learning how to actually use our cameras, rather that just put it on “auto” all the time! This is one of the better pictures I’ve taken since learning some of the settings. My beautiful baby girl:

Santa brought Harper a fish tank, and after we got back from our holiday extravaganza, Daddy took the big kids to pick out fish – our first pets! Harper picked out an orange goldfish which she named “Cheddar,” and Roman picked out a black goldfish named “Underpants.” We’re just thankful he didn’t name him “Poop,” because that was one name he was tossing around! Portman did a ton of research before we brought the fish home, and so far so good. We are testing the water a few times a week, we have live plants in the tank, and water conditioners in case of emergency. We have had a few water emergencies, but so far Cheddar and Underpants are alive and well:

Basement – we spent Martin Luther King Day weekend (all three days of it) hauling loads of stuff out of the basement. Aunt Cammie came over at one point and said “remind me never to buy anything, ever, because this is what happens!” We had an embarrassing amount of useless stuff down there, but we were diligent about donating it and only keeping the essentials. Some of the more fun things we tossed: approximately 1,200 software CDs dating back to the late 90′s. Encarta 98 anyone? We are adding a large bedroom/office, a finished laundry room with hook-ups for two washers and two dryers, and we are adding a little extension onto the playroom. Photos from during the cleanup and the framing:

Since the basement is out of commission for at least a month, we brought a few toys upstairs. We also brought all of the trains down from Roman’s room, where they have just been collecting dust. It turns out playing trains on the floor is much more fun than the train table – they have been having a blast making some huge tracks through the family room! Roman built a “house” for Harper out of magna tiles:

Finally, we have been blessed with the mildest winter ever, and I am in heaven! The kids and I have had some really good days lately, and I have to think it’s because we’ve been outside so much. Harper whined the other day “when am I EVER going to build a snowman?” My response was: you’re riding your bike outside in January without a coat on. Don’t complain! The kids obviously don’t appreciate it, but I sure do.

Harper loves to pose for the camera. She reminds me so much of Cammie at that age! Roman yells at me when I try to take his picture.

Watching your kids grow up is one thing, but lately I’ve been thinking a lot about how much growing up we do as parents. There is the obvious explanation – once you have kids, you aren’t a kid anymore – but I think there is so much growing up that takes place as you learn how to be a parent. It’s taken me 5 years, but I think I’m getting there.

I don’t normally believe in New Year’s Resolutions because I think statements like “Eat less desert” and “Lose 10 pounds” are stupid, but this year I quietly made a resolution to myself (although I guess it’s not so “quiet” anymore since I’m typing it up for the world to read). One thing I am not good at, as a mom, is slowing down. I’m sure this is completely normal for someone who spends all day trying to keep it under control with a house full of preschoolers, but it bothers me. I’m constantly thinking two, three or four steps ahead, as in “okay they are eating lunch now, so I should go ahead and prep the sponges and the dust buster, make sure there is room in the dishwasher, get clean diapers ready for nap time, and if I get at least two of them down for naps together then maybe I can finish some laundry so that I don’t have to do it tonight.” Like I said, probably normal, but it bothers me that I can’t just sit down and relax while they eat. So I’m trying to change that and just let things go a little bit. A few crumbs won’t hurt anyone, and they make that exterminator bill seem worthwhile.

One way I decided to force myself to slow down is to focus on reading. I am so embarrassed to admit it, but reading often slips under the radar because I’m worried about getting that next load of laundry in, cleaning up a meal, or dealing with some other “crisis.” Odds are, it’s not a real crisis. For the past month or so, we’ve been reading a ton. I make sure that each kid gets to sit on my lap and read for at least 30 minutes a day. They can do it in pairs or threes, or by themselves, but I make sure it gets done. It’s a lot of time, but it’s important. And the funny thing? I’m loving it. I feel more relaxed, I love getting the special quiet time with the kids, and oddly enough I’m not really worried about what else I could be doing. Often our reading sessions coincide with bedtime, but sometimes we just plop down in the middle of the day and read a stack of books.

So, like I said, we started our family reading marathon about a month ago. Here’s the amazing thing (and my motivation to keep going): it turns out that Roman can read (oh yeah, he’s 3 1/2). We had no idea! He must have been picking up on us teaching Harper, but he can consistently read 3 and 4-letter words. Moreover, in just a few short weeks Harper has gone from what I call “frustrated reading” where she could sound out the words, but got so flustered after a few minutes that she would just throw in the towel, to reading “real, actual books” (as Roman would say). Today she sat with Portman and read the “Frog and Toad” anthology for an hour and a half! She’s slow, but she is reading. It is so exciting to watch it “click” for her, and we are so proud of her.

But I digress.

Growing up. The best way to describe it, for me at least, is that the past five years have beaten out any last bit of selfishness that I was clinging to. Yeah, sometimes I think it might be nice to kick back and watch that trashy TV show without having to fold laundry and do dishes at the same time. But you know what? I can do that in 10 years when the kids are more helpful around the house. I’m still young enough to handle staying up late to clean, so while they are awake I’m trying hard to enjoy their company, because they really are the best company I can ask for… most of the time

I cannot, cannot, cannot believe that my very first baby is FIVE! Harper’s 5th birthday was two weeks ago. Since we had her birthday party in December, on her actual birthday we just had a low-key celebration at home. In previous years we haven’t done anything on her real birthday, since she was fully convinced that her birthday was the day of her party. That didn’t fly this year. She was well aware that her birthday is January 2nd and would not let us forget it! We explained that she already had her party, but we could do a little celebration at home. In the morning she opened her gifts from Grandpa and Grammy, then Harper invited her friends (and neighbors) Laura and Grayson over for some quick after-dinner ice cream sundaes, which she picked instead of cake.

Opening presents and playing with her new chalkboard/dry erase board:

Ice cream sundaes with Laura:

Post ice-cream bath:

The days following Harper’s birthday were absolutely crazy for us, which is why I am just getting to this post! The next day was supposed to be the big kids’ first day back to school, but at 8AM we got an email saying that due to a water main break, school would be cancelled for the week. I quickly bundled all three of them up and loaded my bag with activities so that I could take them to my dentist appointment (pretty much the worst-case scenario in my book). While we were at the dentist (they were perfect angels, by the way!), Daddy was supposed to be leaving for work, but his car wouldn’t start so he ended up working from home – thank god, it turns out. The kids and I stopped for bagels on the way home, and just as we sat down to eat, Harper grabbed her stomach and doubled over screaming. She was screaming like someone was stabbing her and wouldn’t stop, so I had to pack everyone up, get back in the car and rush home. Once home, Harper curled up on the couch in the fetal position, and drifted in and out of sleep, waking up every 10 minutes screaming in pain. On top of that, she started to run a very high fever, which quickly climbed to almost 103.

I wasn’t able to get a doctor’s appointment until almost 4pm, so by the time we go there, she was very, very sick. The doctor sent us immediately to the ER. He later told me that she was the sickest kid he saw that week. By the time we got to the ER, the Motrin had kicked in and she was starting to feel a lot better. She actually asked me to get her Chick Fil-A at one point. Ha! They did an ultrasound of her tummy and some other tests, and it turns out she had a bad bladder infection. We got home around 8:30 pm, and she was up most of the night with a high fever, but once the antibiotics kicked in the next day, she was back to her old self. Like I said, thank god Daddy’s car wouldn’t start, otherwise that would have been an interesting situation for me!

Last week I took Harper in for her 5-year check-up. She weighed 37 pounds (30th percentile) and was 42 inches tall (40th percentile). She has gained 2 pounds and grew 3 inches since last year. Out of curiosity, I had Roman step on the scale, and he weighed a whopping 40 pounds! Harper had to get 4 booster shots, which luckily I knew about ahead of time and was able to warn her. We talked about being brave before we even got there, and boy was she brave! She barely whimpered, even though I know how much it hurt her. I was so proud of her. On top of that, because I had all three kids with me, Harper had to do all of her vision and hearing tests by herself with the nurse. She was such a big girl about it and the nurse said she followed instructions perfectly. They also had her draw several shapes and a person, and both the nurse and the doctor commented that she must like to draw. Yes, she does!

Harper has grown up so much in the past few months. Just a few months ago, I could barely make it through the day with her. She was whiny and demanding and her favorite word was “NO!” Now, I can honestly say that 90% of the time she is such a joy to have around. She is cooperative, helpful, and extremely affectionate. She is very loving and attached to me right now, and does not hesitate to give me a big hug and an “I love you!” She is still my independent girl, likes to take the lead on things, and is constantly cooking up plans for her and Roman to do. But, she genuinely loves to just hang out with me, and not in an annoying way. I’ve really enjoyed the past few months with her.

Harper has also just recently taken a huge interest in Ada. I think it started around the time we moved Ada into her room. Harper loves to play with her, read to her, cuddle her and help her. Ada loves the attention, and showers Harper with love in return. It’s not unusual for me to find the two of them trading kisses with each other, or just playing together in their room. Harper is always the first one to volunteer to help Ada with things like putting on her shoes or unbuckling her car seat. Also, I think Roman is glad that some of her sisterly attention has turned elsewhere!

Harper lifting Ada up so that she can taste the muffin batter. I’ve taught them well!

Some more sisterly moments. Eating breakfast in front of the fire, watching a show together, and some kisses:

Other things that Harper enjoys right now include art (in a major way), ballet (I’m convinced she likes it only because she gets to be on stage), acting (she is in a theater program, again in it for the stage) and biking. We cannot keep this girl off her bike! She still has training wheels, but she can cruise on that thing. She goes on rides around the neighborhood with Daddy and has been constantly asking me when she will be allowed to ride by herself. It has been interesting vetting out Harper’s likes and dislikes in terms of activities. It is very clear to us that she loves performing, and we encourage it. She recently told me (I kid you not) “Mommy, I want to be an actor when I grow up because being in the audience is no fun at all!” Apparently two days ago at preschool, she put on her entire ballet routine for her class while the other 21 kids sat quietly and watched. The girl loves a good audience. She just started a theater program at the Adventure Theater at Glen Echo, and I hope to find more things like this for her to try.

Our next big adventure with Harper will be getting ready for Kindergarten – I might just have a nervous breakdown!

By the time we got back home, our tree was nice and crispy. This was Harper’s idea for what to do with all of the fallen needles. Daddy helped her with the glue. Cool idea, huh?

For the second year in a row we celebrated Four Christmases. Yup, four separate family gatherings, four rounds of gifts and four Christmas dinners. You read it first here: this will be the last year that we do this! While we do love the chance to see all of our family, we were utterly exhausted by the end of it and feel like we are still recovering!

Kicking it off was the Anderson Family Christmas Dinner, which we hosted for the second year in a row. Grandpa and Grammy Anderson and Uncle Jared drove up from NC, Uncle Luke and family from Charlottesville, Aunt Cammie and Uncle Carson from DC, and the kids’ great uncles Ron and Jhoel from Alexandria. It was a really fun night having everyone together, and it’s such an easy way to celebrate Christmas with everyone in the same place. This year we did an Italian pot-luck dinner, which was much easier than last year’s turkey dinner. There was tons of food, wine was flowing, and the kids got to open some much-loved gifts from Grammy and Grandpa. What more could we ask for? Oh, a bigger table. We could ask for that. Maybe next year!

The next day we packed up the kids and headed to Hershey, PA for a quick family adventure before the next Christmas party. We had planned to spend the day at Hershey Park, but didn’t realize that the park wasn’t open until 5pm! We scrambled and found some other fun activities to fill the day – a local farm with an indoor playground and Chocolate World (which was free). The kids wanted to do the ride at Chocolate World over and over again, so we did. It was free, and I swear they liked it just as much as Disney! We bundled up and headed to Hershey Park right at opening time, and oh man did we have fun. The kids were able to do 10-15 rides before we had to cut them off, despite the fact that it was 33 degrees outside! The whole park was decorated with Christmas lights and holiday decorations, which added a huge element of excitement for the kids. It was really fun for all of us, and we will definitely head back when the weather warms up. Oh, and did I mention that the tickets were only $12 each?! Suck it, Disney.

The kids were almost as impressed by the hotel pool. We went swimming three times (our first time in a pool since the summer) and they jumped right in as if no time had passed. Harper didn’t skip a beat and strapped on her goggles and swam. Ada was an ANIMAL in the pool. She was happiest when she wrestled free from our arms and slipped under water, only to be “saved” by us seconds later. She would come up laughing! She is definitely the fish in the family and I predict that she will quickly catch up to her big sister. Roman is still very tentative near water and prefers to just sit on the edge. We didn’t push him – hopefully he will come around this summer.

On Christmas Eve we drove a mere 30 minutes over to Lancaster, PA to visit Portman’s grandparents en route to his family’s Christmas celebration. Harper got to make pizzelles with Gaga (her Italian great grandmother), which is a Christmas tradition in Portman’s Italian family. We ordered a pizzelle maker and hope to incorporate this into our Christmas traditions.

After visiting with Gaga and Pop-pop, we drove just a little further to Glenmoore, PA to Portman’s cousins’ house. Every year Portman’s 100% Swedish great aunt (who is married to his 100% Italian great uncle) cooks a huge Swedish feast for Christmas Eve. We eat, visit, play with all the cousins, and then the Elves drop off pj’s for all the kids and we pack up and head home. The kids had SO much fun playing with all of their second cousins and were not excited to leave, but did manage to fall asleep on the drive home. We got home at midnight and tried to get some sleep before Christmas morning!

We were all dragging on Christmas morning. We actually had to wait for about an hour between the girls waking up and when we finally woke Roman up! The kids were beyond excited to open their gifts. Let me rephrase that, Roman and Harper were excited… Ada walked directly past all the gifts, climbed into her high chair and demanded “nack.” She could care less about her gifts! Harper helped her open some, and she did get excited about her new Boots and Dora dolls, and has since set aside all other dolls and comfort items in favor of Boots.

We stuck with our 3 gifts per kid rule, and were once again so happy with that decision. The kids were super excited about everything that they got and played with everything that day. Harper was legitimately surprised that she got more than one gift since she only asked for one thing! Favorite gifts were: pillow pet and fish tank (Harper), Boots doll (Ada) and Design and Drill game (Roman). Santa brought one group gift. He had to leave a note in the tree because it was too big to fit under the tree. The kids followed his directions and found it in the basement: a soft slide with soft stairs. It has since been re-positioned as a slide, “super slide,” platform from which to jump on the trampoline, “mountain” and race car. I think they like it.

Nona, Uncle Julian, Uncle Jonathan and Aunt Mandy came over for Christmas dinner. We served two big pots of fondue and a big salad. This has become our Christmas dinner tradition since I can’t seem to handle cooking a big dinner by the time Christmas day rolls around! We put the kids to bed early and had a really fun evening playing board games with the fam.

On Boxing Day we drove down to Charlottesville for our fourth and final Christmas with Yaya and Pop Pop. Great grandma Abie was in town for a few days and we got to spend some quality time with her. Harper roped her into playing endless rounds of Pretty Pretty Princess, she and Abie read books and they colored together. Roman had pretty much maxed out on fun and spent most of the trip lying on an Aero-bed in Portman’s office while Portman did some work. Ada spent three days terrorizing Yaya’s kitties and exploring the space. The kids opened a new round of gifts and we tried to catch up on sleep. I could kick myself for not taking a single picture of the kids playing with Abie, but suffice it to say that Abie was often seen decked out in Pretty Pretty Princess jewelry. The highlight for me was watching Abie, my 90 year old grandmother, send a text message! Abie, you are amazing and we love you!

Whew! It was a busy Christmas and we won’t likely try to pack all of that in again, but we really did enjoy getting to see everyone! This sums up how I feel right now:

I’ve completely neglected my blog during this crazy busy holiday season! We had a very busy December around here getting ready for Christmas, having the big kids out of school, celebrating Harper’s birthday, and just surviving the holidays. This time of year I’m always thankful for indoor toys that they really enjoy, like their magnet tiles. Seriously, if you ever wonder what you should get your toddler, get these! They’ve been turned into animal hospitals, doll playgrounds, boats, pirate ships, birthday cakes, rocket ships, a fire station and a fire truck, which held an array of fire-fighting Little People:

Harper turns 5 in just a few days, but we had her birthday party in mid-December. We started doing that a few years ago – we found that by January 2nd everyone was all partied out, so it’s much easier to have her party a few weeks early. This year we had her party at a “place” for the first time (rather than our house), and I swear it was the best decision I ever made! We did it at Kids N Motion, or as Harper and Roman call it “the bounce house.” The kids had an absolute blast, and all we had to do was show up and bring the cake! It was stress free, I didn’t have to clean my house, and the kids all loved it. We will definitely keep it on the list for next year! The only downside is that the “bounce house” is essentially in a warehouse, so it’s impossible to get a good photo. I got a few, but they are terrible.

Harper requested a “gingerbread house cake” for her party. I thought about it for a few weeks, and ultimately decided that it would be really hard to make the cake and have the icing distributed evenly. I convinced Harper to do a gingerbread house (from a Trader Joe’s kit) as a centerpiece, and I made Christmas tree cupcakes to go around it. I took photos of the process and will explain it in a separate post, but they turned out so cute. The only mistake I made was to make the cupcakes from scratch a day early. They didn’t taste as good the next day, and I definitely should have just used a box mix, as much as that kills me to admit!

The kids’ last day of school was in mid-December, so we had over a week to kill before Christmas. We caught one of our favorite holiday exhibits at the National Botanical Gardens with the Bastos family. Every year they do a big replica of the National Mall and other historic sites made entirely out of plant materials. The dome of the capital (as well as the Jefferson Memorial and Monticello) are made of giant Amazonian acorn shells. They have train tracks running through the whole thing with Thomas, Percy, James and other engines that the kids know and love. The kids love the exhibit, and it’s a great way to spend a few hours!

All three of them touching a train right after we said “don’t touch the trains:”

Monticello:

Very proud to be showing me the “Lincoln Demorial:”

BFFs together again:

When we left the Gardens, the sun was just setting on the Capitol and it was absolutely gorgeous! We couldn’t resist the chance to take picture of the kids, well the 4 who agreed to pose.

“Snow angels” on the streets of DC. So sanitary. Their idea, not ours.

Finally, on the last day of school the kids participated in a school sing-a-long. Roman surprised us by belting out all of the songs and participating in all the dances. He was really into it! Harper’s class put on a nativity play. Harper was one of the angels. I forgot my camera, but took a few photos on my phone.

Roman singing and dancing – I was standing behind him, but you get the gist.

While reading bedtime stories tonight:

Me: “As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,

When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky.

So up to the house-top the coursers they flew,

With the sleigh full of Toys, and St Nicholas too.”

 

Roman: “Is that Spanish?”

I could not stop laughing!

We moved a lot growing up, and I always wish that we had more photos of the houses that we lived in. I remember all of them, but I would love to have more photos for posterity. A few years ago I started taking pictures of the house once a year – a room-by-room tour of where we lived that year. I didn’t do it last year because we were still unpacking, so I wanted to make sure to check it off the list for 2011. I got most of the rooms, but skipped Portman’s office and our bedroom (aka the dumping ground for all laundry and everything else that doesn’t have a home) because they were just too nasty!

Kid’s playroom. Our big project for 2012 is going to be a full basement renovation. The playroom won’t change much except for the lighting and flooring, but we will add a big office/guest room and fully-finished laundry room (with a second washer/dryer!), as well as some big storage closets.

“Fireplace room” and family room. The family room is new to us since it used to house all the kids’ toys, and we are loving having an adults-only TV/lounging space! After we moved out all the kids’ stuff we realized that we had practically no furniture, so it’s a work in progress. My mom helped me with the color scheme, and I’m working on switching out all the pillows and upholstery. The blues will be replaced with gold and cinnamon colors. Maybe in a few years it will be finished!

Dining room. My mom recently made the valance for us (which contributed to my decision to change the colors in the family room!)

Art nook. This was a breakfast nook when we bought the house, but we don’t have a breakfast nook table. We do, however, have an extensive collection of art supplies, so that’s what we did with the space.

Kitchen, duh. I miss my granite from our old house, but I can’t complain too much.

Front hallway and Roman’s room. The cabinet in the front hallway was one of the first pieces of furniture that Portman and I ever bought together. It is a TV cabinet for an old CRT style TV. We were going to get rid of it (can’t put a flat screen in it), but I randomly had the idea to install a clothing rod in the cabinet part. Now we hang all the kids’ coats and bags in there, and we put their hats, gloves and shoes in the drawers. It works perfectly!

The kids little bathroom. We are going to have to do something about this when they get older!

I already posted a ton of photos of the girls’ room, so I’ll skip that one. This is the powder room on the main floor. I so want to renovate this, but it is incredibly low on the priority list.

Last one – photo gallery in the hallway. In our old house we had this cool curved staircase with the photos going up, and this is my weak attempt to recreate that. It’s okay. It’s really hard to keep all the pictures straight, and that kind of thing drives me nuts. This probably doesn’t surprise anyone!

My friend recently introduced me to the term “musical beds,” and that could not be a more accurate description for us right now. Before I launch into that, however, here’s a quick Ada update.

She is doing GREAT in her new digs. She waves “night night” to Daddy’s office (her old room) before we go in her new room, we read stories on Harper’s bed, and then she snuggles down in her favorite corner of her crib and goes to sleep. To add fuel to the fire, last Friday I took the kids to Buy Buy Baby to try to find a gift for their cousin. Ada had an absolute fit over a pink sippy cup, and practically launched herself out of the cart and onto the shelf to get the “bah bah.” She was so insistent that we get the pink “bah bah,” that I decided on the spot that this was our chance to get rid of her baby bah-bah’s and switch permanently to a cup. So we bought the “big girl bah-bah” (as well as a new Dora cup because she is obsessed and I couldn’t say no) and headed home.

As soon as she was distracted (probably with an episode of Dora – seriously, obsessed), I hid all the baby bah-bahs, and that night at bedtime I put her to bed with her cup. She didn’t protest, and she slept for 15 hours straight! Throughout the next day she gave me a little sad whiney face and pointed to the cabinet where we used to keep the bottles saying “bah bah,” and I had to gently remind her to find her “big girl bah-bah.” She was fine with it after a few days, and that transition was SO much easier than I expected it to be!

But I digress.

So, musical beds. Here’s what has become our new normal. (1) Ada goes to bed between 5:45 and 6, with a cup, in her crib, by herself. (2) The big kids go to bed between 6:15 and 6:45, Roman in his own bed by himself, Harper in our bed by herself (occasionally in her bed, but she likes to fall asleep in ours.) (3) Around 10pm I move Harper into her own bed and I go to sleep in our bed.

This is when the fun starts. Sometimes we make it until after midnight, but usually just before midnight, right as Portman is coming to bed, Harper wanders back in and gives us some BS about “there’s a scary shadow,” or “I can’t find my mimi,” or “I’m cold.” Then she crawls in between us and goes back to sleep. At some point when one of us gets kicked in the back or face, or has too many limbs on top of us to sleep, we kick each other until one of us caves in and moves her back to the bunk beds. Everyone is happy and asleep for another hour or so until we wake up and find that she is back between us.

This is when Roman makes his entrance. He sees Harper sleeping in our bed, wants in on it, and Portman has to go sleep in his bed with him. More often, however, Portman gets pushed out of the bed by Harper’s erratic sleeping positions, gives up and goes and sleeps in her bunk beds. This is the ideal situation for me because he is now in the room with Ada, so by default he has to get up with her in the morning. If he ends up in Roman’s bed, I have to try to sneak out when Ada wakes up without jostling Harper awake, since Roman sleeps in until 9 or 9:30.

I know some families have a strict “no kids in mom and dad’s bed” rule, but we actually love sleeping with our kids. They are only going to be in this snuggling phase for a short time, so we can have our bed back when they are teenagers and want nothing to do with us!

The kids have been hard at work on their usual art projects. The two things in our house that get used the most are the Magna Tiles (best toy we own), and the art supplies. Roman has recently taken an interest in drawing, and comes up with some creative descriptions for his artwork. He has also recently learned to write his name and draw an accurate person!

Christmas “ornaments” that Harper painted at school. While she is incredibly creative in her pretend play, she has recently wanted all of her drawings and paintings to be real-life accurate in both colors and shapes.

A sampling of Roman’s recent work. This one is “me blasting into outer space and also there’s a rocket ship and bags of snack.” (not snacks, just “snack.”)

This one is “a whale jumping out of the water.” I cannot look at this picture without thinking of something dirty – it looks anatomically correct to me!