On Stuffed Hippo Babies & Daddy's Sword

Jenny readjusting a pacifier...


Jenny has quite a maternal streak in her. A lot of her conversations lately have centered around her future children, and what she is going to name them.
"I will have one baby, and I will name her Weese [Reese? Louise?]. She looked at me to gage my approval, I may have looked confused. "Weese is a good name" she said solemnly. I agreed.
"My next baby I will name 'Jammies' " She looked at me.
"Jammies?" I asked.
"Jammies is a good name." she said again, solemnly. I agreed.
"Pajamas Button" she concluded.
"What will you name your next baby?"
"I will not name my next baby right now"



Of all her baby dolls she has taken a shine to her stuffed hippo. This has caused a little conflict as Isaiah likes the stuffed hippo too, I think usually to make it a stormtrooper. She has defended it fiercely, and insists it is her baby. She has told me that it is her baby, and she is a mommy hippo.

 Today, she came up to me, holding the stuffed hippo, dressed in doll clothes and swaddles in a doll blanket.
Jenny "This is my baby. Baby Isaiah"
Isaiah "No! That's not baby Isaiah!"
I assumed it was because he didn't want the hippo to be him.
Isaiah "That's baby Jesus"
Jenny "It's not baby Jesus, its Baby Isaiah, Mommy say yes"
I agreed, thinking I'd rather the stuffed hippo stole Isaiah's identity than God's.

Isaiah loves it when us girls do our hair like this. I did it to my hair once, and after that he will find my bunmakers and bring them to me saying "Mommy! Be Princess Leia!"

Here is Jenny, obliging. Note the stuffed chick, it is probably being one of her babies.

Kuzzles chillin' with her sister. She's really been overall amazingly good during this transition. She seems to genuinely love Mariam and be glad she exists. She continues to rub her on the head saying "BE BE!" many times a day.

Mariam continues to be the chillest baby so far. She spends a lot of time looking thoughtful, and observing others.

We took the kids to Riverview Park. Being a Saturday, there were numerous birthday parties, and we had to keep Kuzzles away from going after other people's treat bags. We finally had to flee the table area...

But she consumed a cookie in the water area---I think of all the kids she had the most fun in the water. Isaiah kept picking up rocks and reenacting David and Goliath, he would put the stone in the middle of his forehead and fall down. Jenny watched him, got a little too into it, and picked up a stone and flung it at his head. I had to explain to her that is not how we make friends. Or keep siblings.

Kuzzles is very interested in washing dishes. The other day, I decided she had best learn sometime, and it was better to strike while the iron was hot/there is still enthusiasm for chores.
I scooted her up to the sink, gave her a harmless plastic tupperware to dip into the warm soapy water. I was prepared to mop the floor. After all, what harm could she do with that? I thought.

2 seconds later she was drinking the soapy water. End of dishwashing lessons for a few more months....

Kuzzles has also taken an interest in art.

A while back, I bought Josh this practice sword for his birthday. Isaiah loves it, and frequently climbs into our room to play with "DADDY'S SWORD." It clearly ranks in his imagination as something epic, like Pa's rifle or something. Out of devotion to it, he will scale 'the gate' to Mommy and Daddy's room, and try to surreptitiously drag it out to the hallway. Only, it is rather hard to be surreptitious with something taller than yourself. So it usually gets taken away from his little longing hands quite quickly.

But the other day, I decided to remedy this. I took it outside with the kids. First I decided to swing it around and pretend I was someone cool like Eowyn. Jenny stared at my less-than-ninja-level efforts. "Mommy, what are you doing?" she asked. "Practicing" I told her. So now she thinks "practicing" means haphazardly swinging a sword around like a lunatic.

Isaiah also got to play with it outside....which brought much joy...

Isaiah, with a stick. I think he was making up a story or something...

Josh has been reading them the "Jesus Storybook Bible" every night. Now, as soon as he comes into the room at night, Kuzzles stands, pointing up where its kept, saying "BAH BAH! BAH BAH!" like a little car alarm until he gets it down, then she laughs for joy and squirms into his lap.

I came in at night, and found this....



An epic selfie fail....while Mariam looks at me like I'm an idiot

"Mom, even I know to turn off the flash when taking a mirror picture"