Wendy---
Ok, so our 8-year-old Wendy is at this very moment, taking the STAAR test at school! Because she is anxious, like me, and because her teachers emphasized the importance of a good night's sleep before testing, she had difficulty falling asleep and awakened with a nightmare! Predictably. BUT! She was cheerful and ready to go this morning! She asked me to write a note in her lunch. Of course I did! And I filled it with goofy lettering and a fun picture of her blowing a bubble (because they get snacks and GUM during test days!) Thursday will be fun for her as it's a camp-in day at school. They get to bring a stuffed animal, blanket, pillow and books and relax after their test!
She is into, and when I say into, I mean INTO fairies! She is a magical thinker and believes that they are real...and believes she is really one of them. It's fun to see her creations around this house, all having to do with her fairy fantasy world. There are drawings and stapled books complete with fairy lifestyle details. It's really quite sweet.
She's such a reader, she of course asked us Sunday to go by the Half Price bookstore to get new chapter books for after she completes test sections this week. She got about three Diary of a Wimpy Kid books..and a prank book, which when she used the key to unlock it and read it, got red glitter all over her hand, which she thought was just PERFECT! Yesterday, our bedroom was rearranged, object-wise, with toilet paper wrapping my lampshade beside the bed, etc. A prank for which she recruited Linc's help, and which "tricked" us parents!
Lately everyone comments on her height! "Wendy is TALL!," they say! It's true! Thanks to James' grandmother and great aunt's genes! Tall German women!
She just got her hair cut, and I allowed her to tell the stylist what she wanted! She got "edgy" layered bangs that hang over her eye intentionally. I asked to keep the length of the rest of her hair though, as it's thick and pretty! So now she's really looking like a young Jody Foster to me. It's dark blonde and she comes in all sweaty from the trampoline and with these wild layers over her eye! (I kinda wanna clip it back! AH!)
Lincoln, a few days ago when we reviewed them, had about 5-6 letters left to recognize. We have worked on his letters, off and on, taking 6 month breaks when he had NO interest earlier on, since he was three. Wendy picked them up freakishly early and so read early, but Linc is not wired to identify his letters with ease, for some reason. But. BUT!!! The boy understands math.
Just this morning, he asks, "Mom, how many 2s are in 10?" I answer, "5." He goes, "So 20 times five is 100!" A little while back he looked deep in thought in the car one day and he declares, "29 plus 5 is 34, RIGHT?!" Another time he asks if 8 plus 8 is 16, and then he goes, "so 4 times 4 is 16!" We don't know how he does it, but he does it in his head. I don't think he could write it. So along with this math mind, he's into Settlers of Catan, and after James explained it to him, he got it. He enjoys board games, like his dad.
He's a good boy. He's a dream boy. He hugs EVERY woman we see out and about, if the opportunity presents! He also hugs his little friends, both genders, at Sonshine school, speech and Power Sports, and he's popular among these little people! Joshua's mom says he asks her if it's going to be a "Lincoln day?" and Carter, at Linc's party, said to me, "I'm Lincoln's BEST buddy!," while hugging him. Soooooo sweet.
Alice, aka Ally Boo, aka Owlet M'toe. She is still just super fond of other kids' attention, her brother and sister's in particular! Linc loves to hold her and they snuggle their foreheads together and cuddle! She crawls over to me if I'm sitting in a chair and kisses my leg! If I'm also on the floor, sitting, she crawls over and lowers her forehead into my hands, as a little bow of love. As I taxi her around on my hip, she spontaneously kisses my shoulder. Daddy comes home, and she says, "Hi!"
Her physical therapy is twice a month, and we work with her here at home, but it's slow going. She's made progress though! Since that first assessment, she learned how to get into a sitting position and learned to crawl properly. I have seen her pull up to stand maybe twice, but it was very shaky!
She is a RED HEAD!!! More and more I get that confirmation from strangers who comment randomly, "Oh a ginger!" "Look at that red hair!" I. love. it. So special she was born on St. Patrick's day and has this red hair! Wow!
Well, I'm taking my little ginger with me to Aerofit here in a second, so I must pack my diaper bag and be gone!
I'm so behind on posting recent pics from recent events so I'll try to catch up at some point, ah me, I have three kids and a lot going on all of the time!
James and I have become super involved with church (Sundays are full!), and it's a joy, and then I'm co-chair for VBS, trying to plan for homeschooling Wendy for 4th, and waiting to train to become Hermann Sons insurance agents! And then there are other things going on as well. We wait to hear the date of my dad's heart surgery, my folks continue to clean out Suzon's apartment and tie up her loose ends, and things are happening with James' job, and on and on and on!
Doctor appointments are a big focus in recent times...I had to do lots for my nephrologist (2 24-hour collections, labs again, ultrasound, nutritionist, etc) and I hope to find out if lithotripsy damaged the vasculature of my kidney, causing my high blood pressure, which is what I just know happened. If so, God's will, but it's been hard for me to get over it. I need to know for sure. Is my kidney making too much renin? I think that's what I'll ask to test, if it hasn't been checked yet. Ok, rabbit trail! I am the worst! MOM ADD!
Signing off for now, before this stream of consciousness goes all psychedelic on ya!
