Happy Three-Month Birthday, Little Evie

There's not a photography studio around here anywhere, so I've been thinking about how I'll do Noelle's Two-Year Picture myself. Today I did a little experiment.

 

How did I set it up? I threw the blanket I made her over the HUGE pile of laundry on my bed I hadn't folded (still isn't folded, by the way) and propped her up against it. :) Uber professional.

Oooh, she looks like Chiara in this one. Only when Chiara does this smile it's fake. Eve's is real. :)

How I love this beautiful, charming child.

And here's Noelle chewing her fingers at the same age:

And Chiara:

All my babies ... All my heart. I knew I would love being a mom, but I had no idea it would take my breath away like this. Nurturing these little girls in our little corner of this world is the greatest thing I've ever done. 

The Joys Of Young Sisterhood

Noelle doesn't really care what Chiara is doing. She just wants to do it too.

If Chiara is sitting on a chair, Noelle wants to sit on a chair. Usually the same chair, actually, so that's a lovely unnecessary fight I get to break up. If Chiara is running, Noelle wants to run. If Chiara is sitting in the back seat of the van, Noelle wants her car seat in the back seat of the van. If Chiara is singing music from Frozen, Noelle wants Chiara to STOP singing music from Frozen so Noelle can sing music from Frozen, etc.

They are the very best and very worst of friends. Eldon and I wonder what Noelle would be like with no Chiara to boss her around and compete for toys and attention. Poor Eve. Sometimes I snuggle Eve to sleep at night and whisper, "You're not allowed to spend any time with your sisters."

Grown up Chiara and Noelle, I love you, and no matter what you do I'm always grateful you're my girls. Just sometimes I want to rip my hair out, that's all.

To Our Teenaged Chiara:

Oh, my precious "treasure" girl. You are so eager to learn and do all the things I do. This morning I was reading my scriptures on the couch, going over notes from the General Relief Society broadcast, and I heard you open your door. 6:37am. (At least it's not 5:30 anymore ... you're sleeping in. :))

You came running over to me, wearing that sweet, delighted smile you save only for this time of day, and after you hugged me you asked, "Hey, what are you doing over here?"

Me: "I'm reading my scrippers." (Yes, I call them that because she calls them that, and I'd hate to be the reason she stops calling them that.)

Chiara: "Your scrippers?"

Me: "Yeah, is that so great?"

Chiara: "But why are you drawing?"

Me: "Oh, I'm coloring the words I like."

Chiara: "Oh, don't worry, I can do it too." (reaching for the marker)

Me: "Um, that's not a good idea. These are just for Mommy to color in. But it's okay if you color in your scrippers. Should we go get them?"

Chiara: "(GASP) Oh, I'm so exciting!"

So we snuck into her room where Noelle was still sleeping, grabbed her little blue Book of Mormon, and snuck back out. I grabbed her some kid-friendly highlighters (the gel kind ... they're fantastic) and we went back to the couch.

Me: "Look, Honey, see how you can mark in a line over the words?"

Chiara: "It's okay, I can do it." (That's how she says "Back off!")

Me: "Oh, you did it, Love! What's that word you colored?"

Chiara: "I don't know."

Me: "It says 'Nephi'! What do we know about Nephi?"

Chiara: "He wants me to be baptized."

Me: "Yes, he does, Honey, you're right. (chuckling) Who else wants you to be baptized?"

Chiara: "Um ... Alma aaaaaaaaand Binadi!" (That's Abinadi, by the way,)

Me: "You're right! And does Heavenly Father want you to be baptized?"

Chiara: "(GASP) My Father??"

Me: "Yes."

Chiara: "He loves me. He needs me, Mom."

Me: "He does, Sweetheart, you're so right."

Chiara: "He's so sad because I'm so far away."

Me: "Why is He sad?"

Chiara: "Because He wants me to come back, but I'm so far."

Me: "Oh, Sweetheart ... I love you. You know all the things, don't you?"

Chiara: "Yes I do."

I just want you to know, my girl, that when you were little you came with a testimony of God's love and affection unlike anything I've ever seen. You told us Heavenly Father needed you before we ever taught you that. You are so convinced that He is there and that you have His loving attention. If you ever lose your way, my girl, I want you to remember you came to our home knowing these things. I have faith you'll never truly forget. I love you so so much. And you're right ... so does He.

"Let me explain. No. There is too much. Let me sum up."

One of my many 2014 resolutions: Keep a family history!

So here I am, sheepishly blogging after a long, long silence. Girls, I love you and want you to know we've had some truly lovely times during this gap in our family history. 

Noelle is TWO YEARS OLD now. I can't believe that. I mean, in some ways it feels like she's never not been with us, and I have to really concentrate to remember life before her in it. But in other ways I look at Eve and call her Belle* and it's shocking to me that so much time has passed.

(*We never call Noelle by her actual name ... not even when she's in trouble, which is - I'm just being honest here, Honey - a LOT of the time.) 

We were actually still in California visiting the Lowder family on her birthday, so she had lots of people singing to her on her special day. "Mamma" and "Dadda" got her a "cuh-coh!" for her birthday, which is a helicopter in normal human speech.* She loves them and will detect them before anyone else sees or hears anything in the sky. We'll be having breakfast and all of a sudden she'll gasp, "CUH-COH!!!!" and listen intently as she looks out the window, mouth open and eyes as wide as they get. It's hilarious. Nothing else in her life gets that intense of a reaction.

Except maybe Grandpa Lowder.

*Okay, so she doesn't really talk very well yet. Her pediatrician says it's perfectly normal for younger siblings with extremely talkative older siblings not to develop their language skills as early. I know. I was surprised too. "Wait, Chiara is considered extremely talkative?" But it's true. 

She talks to EVERYONE. I've stopped being embarrassed and just embraced it. If she wants to tell the girl with the bright pink hair that she looks like a princess, that's fine. If she wants to express her confusion that the guy next to us has earrings, go ahead. My personal favorite, though, is when she is clearly parroting phrases she's been taught at home. Example: 

We were in the checkout line at Safeway a few weeks ago and she saw the person behind us put a big can of coffee on the conveyor belt. I knew she saw it and knew what it was, because she fixated on it and I could practically see her wheels turning. 

"Mom," she said, in a matter-of-fact, right-out-loud voice. "They are buying coffee."

"Yes, they are, Love." I cautiously replied.

(little pause)

"We don't drink coffee," she had one hand on her hip and the other palm up about shoulder height. "But they are making their own choice about that."

"That's right, Sweetheart. Everyone makes their own choices."

I love her so much. I love all three of them so SO much. It's delightful to be the mommy of a little gaggle of girls. And the Lord, in His infinite wisdom, gave me the easiest third baby in all the land. Oh my goodness, Eve is the most calm, smiley, contented child I think I've ever encountered. She cries if 1) she's hungry 2) she's pushing (sorry for that image) 3) she lost her bink 4) there is no #4. It's remarkable. I can literally put her in her little portable bassinet thing next to our bed while she's wide awake, turn off the light and go to sleep, because she will just lay there until she falls asleep too. Not to be sacrilegious, but that's like Baby Jesus behavior. Fantastic.

Eldon swears he heard her giggle yesterday, but I haven't heard her yet. What are the odds he would witness the first giggle when he's with her a fraction of the time I am? Oh well, I guess daddies deserve some of the milestones as condolence prizes for how much they miss out on while they're out saving our little worlds. 99% of the time I'm so grateful I get to stay home with my children. About one day out of a hundred, though, I want to rip my own uterus into shreds. I can only assume that's normal. All I can say is if there are more babies waiting to come into this family it was a good call to send Eve this time around. :)