52 Project | 12-14/52

52 Project | Weeks 12-14

March 15 - April 4, 2015

A few things I want to remember...

Yesterday morning we were playing outside and there were roly polies everywhere.  Sloane sat on a lawn chair and refused to move.  She shrieked, "More bugs!!" every single time she saw a new bug.  Meanwhile, Jude thought it was the best day ever and tried to squash as many as he could before I told him they were our friends and to be gentle with them.  From that moment on, he gingerly picked up each bug and placed it on the table. (Sloane: "More bugs!  More bugs!! More bugs mama!!)  These two could not be more different if they tried.

Right now Jude gets in trouble more than Sloane.  He's an amazing kid but his listening skills need some serious work.  Whenever he gets put in timeout, Sloane goes about her business and will occasionally ask "Where's Jude?" A few weeks ago, Sloane got in trouble several times in one day.  The first few times I corrected her (we were both sitting down),  Jude kept trying to climb in my lap.  The third time, I noticed it was deliberate.  Every time she got in trouble, Jude got right in my space, put both hands on my face so our noses were practically touching, and grinned.  He was doing his best to distract me so I couldn't get onto Sloane.  Sweetest brother ever.

Both kids have been "Super Star Singers" at Mother's Day Out (I'm quite positive the teacher goes down the list of classmates, but I'll take it).  As we were leaving MDO on Monday, the music teacher was standing outside their classroom and told me how much she enjoyed them.  She followed it with, "And they hold hands everywhere!  Anytime we go to a new place, they find each other and grab hands."  We hold hands A LOT simply because it's the rule whenever we're in a parking lot.  To hear they look for each other and grab onto each other made my day.

Sloane rarely says "Cece" anymore.  It's now Jude ("Ju").  A part of me is glad (seriously, what was up with Cece?) but the other part is a little sad.  It was such a cute nickname.  She still calls herself "Me" - I don't see that going away anytime soon.

Speaking of not going away ever, Pinky (Sloane's pig) never leaves her side.  We don't let Pinky go to public places but if Sloane's at home or in the car, Pinky is right next to her.  When Sloane goes through the grand list of people she loves, Pinky is always one of the first.  Not far behind is, "I love Me."  :)

Recently I was in the kitchen and they were playing in separate rooms.  Jude walked into the living room and Sloane casually said, "Hi Ju."  He replied, "Hi Schloane."  I don't know why but it made me so happy.

While it doesn't happen as much as it used to, Jude & Sloane still love to sleep in the same bed.  He always goes to her and she never seems to mind unless he wakes her up.  I will never get tired of seeing them share a bed.

I know I say this all the time, but this is such a fun age.  Jude & Sloane will always be my kids, but now they're my buddies too.  I'm honest with anyone who asks - this is also the hardest age for me.  I am physically and mentally exhausted by the end of the day.  They get upset for the silliest reasons.  I lose my temper far more than I should.  I ask them for forgiveness every single day.  They apologize to each other every single day (per their mom's request).  We're a work in progress.  :)  But they are, by far, the best work.