First, I am thrilled about the feedback I’ve gotten (most of it, anyway) about my honesty. As moms, we think we have to love every second of everything our kids do, but that’s just not how it works. It’s reassuring to know that ALMOST all moms feel that way. That being said, this is not a ranting post. I’ve fallen way too far behind on keeping track of the things my girls do, and I know I’ll forget it at some point.

First, Jenna has had a growing entourage of imaginary friends. It started with Alli, a year or so ago. She often joined us for dinner, on car rides, or in the park. She was often in Hawaii though, and couldn’t make it to certain events. Alli was quickly joined by Sally. We were never sure which of them was with us, but Jenna made sure to clue us in. Alli and Sally both kind of disappeared for a while, but they’re back. Now, they’ve been joined by March, April, and May. I don’t know–maybe their friend, June, will join soon. 🙂 I don’t discourage that–Jenna has a pretty vivid imagination, but that’s a good thing. I make her have quiet time in her room most days when Sarah is napping, and I hear her in there having all sorts of conversations with all sorts of people and animals. She claims not to like “quiet time,” but she sure seems to have a good time!

Jenna is a great big sister, but she is often a little TOO “helpful.”  Always doting on her sister, usually to the point of tears from Sarah. Of course, Sarah cries about everything so I think some of it is just habit. She is constantly trying to get Sarah to do things, trying to pick her up and carry her, read to her, and teach her songs. A few days ago, I was watching Jenna try to teach Sarah something that I explicitly told them both not to do. She was being very quiet about it, not knowing I was watching. As soon as she saw me, she loudly said, “No, Sarah! I said don’t do that!” WHAT??? I know it will continue. I also admit it was kind of funny, but of course she got in trouble. She’s a smart one.

Jenna loves to color, and lately Sarah has been joining her. I LOVE that they can sit and do something together, and because I have magic erasers, I don’t even care what Sarah colors! I’m hoping that continues, too. Jenna also loves to make necklaces with beads. She pretty much likes to do any kind of craft. It’s great, if I can find something that she enjoys and Sarah doesn’t get into or cry about.

Now, Sarah. Sarah’s a pain in the ass, but she’s so cute that it’s almost OK. Almost. That girl has some crazy hair. It’s really curly, and when it’s humid, it’s worse. But she has a few straight pieces in the back, so it always looks super messy. It’s been getting curlier as she gets older, and as it gets longer. Lately I have been putting it in little pig tails, which helps a lot but they don’t stay in all day. She tries to pull them out, too. We say her hair matches her personality. She’s a sassy little thing, but she’s got these looks that crack us up. She looks at us sideways and just turns her eyes, and then laughs. Like a devilish, mischievous thing. It’s so cute though–I wish I could get it on video. She also loves to sing and read books right now. She’s very particular about what she wants to read, and what she wants us to sing. For books, anything goes. Her favorites change weekly. For songs, her favorites are ABCs, Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, Jesus Loves Me, and You Are My Sunshine. She always wants us to sing ABCs. Over and over and over. When we sing Jesus Loves Me, she does the hand motions that they do at church. I never get tired of seeing that and hearing her sweet little voice.

I have made no secret of how much Sarah drives me crazy. She cries. A LOT. Lately I have been putting her in her room and telling her she can come out when she’s done crying, because every little thing sets her off. It gives me some sanity, except I often have to put all her clothes back in her drawers because apparently she’s “showing me” by emptying them when I make her stay in her room. Ahhh. She also likes to be naked. She has been sleeping with her zip-up footing jammies on backwards for a few months now because, well, let’s just say there was a poop incident. That was before she abandoned her crib (which happened to be Christmas Day), so at least it was contained at that point. I don’t want to take any chances now! She has been using the potty lately, but not really. She’s in the early stages of potty training, always wanting to sit on it but very rarely doing anything.

Not that anyone’s still reading, but I’m going to talk about my obsession. My name is Karen. I am a knitter. I started knitting in September, and I think there have been 5 days since then that I haven’t knit. That’s not really true though. I tried to teach myself several years ago, but I quit. Then I tried again about 3 years ago, but never finished anything. Since I’ve started in September, I have made lots of things. Lots of dishcloths, bags, hats, headbands, and last night I finished the biggest thing I’ve done.

My short-sleeve cardigan thing. It took me 6-7 weeks. I don’t have much patience for something this size, so I think I’ll be sticking to smaller things for a while. And I really meant to have a cheesier smile to match the cheesy pose, but I guess I stopped before the picture was taken? Here are some more things I’ve made…

I have stacks of magazines I haven’t read, and the house isn’t as clean as it should be, but I credit my sanity to this new obsession. 🙂