Talking, talking, talking

• Hallie is a stinking hoot.  I may be biased but I think she is the funniest little almost two year old there is.  She is getting so much more talkative and knows exactly what she wants.  For instance if she wants to color (with markers that usually end up on her more than the paper) she says "I codor" pronounced like color but with a d.  She doesn't take no for an answer either.  She says please and thank you pretty plainly as well along with doggy, kitty cat, mommy, daddy, the normal words for little ones.  Last night as I was trying to corral her for bedtime she went in to Natalie's room (or Nanee's in her world) where mommy was picking up books with sister.  Hallie walks over, grabs the book off the top of the pile in mommy's hands, and said something we couldn't quite make out.  I don't think she realized what book she picked, she just knew it was time to read.  So I tried to grab her but she ran off down the hall saying whatever it was she was muttering.  I followed her only to find her sitting on the couch with the book on her lap going "on couch" "on couch" "on couch".  Hadn't heard that one before, no wonder I didn't recognize it.  Apparently she wanted to read on the couch instead of her rocking chair.
• One more quick Hallie story.  This one was relayed to me through Sara so I hope I get the details right.  Hallie found some pajamas on the floor by the washer that mommy hadn't picked up quite yet and so Sara asked her "Hallie can I put that in the washer?"  Hallie kind of whined and took off with the pajamas.  She actually headed for the girls bathroom where they brush teeth at night.  As I am hearing this I am thinking "Oh how sweet she knows those are night night clothes and so she is taking them to the bathroom where they get ready for bed".  I was wrong.  Apparently she dropped the jammies and grabbed the little footstool we have in there for the girls to reach the sink.  She took it to the washer.  Turned around, went back to the bathroom, grabbed the jammies, came back to the washer, stepped on the stool, and put the jammies in the washer for mommy!  Such a big helper!!
• This morning grandma came to pick up the girls and take them to her house and while she was there she was asking Natalie about her backpack because apparently they left it on the bus yesterday.  Well they got to talking about what was in there and grandma told Natalie that she accidentally had Mark's papers and her teachers must have got them switched.  Natalie said no, they didn't.  And grandma said "remember, the paper that said 'If I had a million dollars' and then 'I would buy my mommy and daddy a new house"  At this point I thought, wow how nice of my daughter, so giving. "that's what Mark's said".  Oh, not Natalie's.  I asked her "What did you say you would do with a million dollars?"  "Buy candy"  "That's a LOT of candy!"  "Yep, all for me!"

Their beginning to team up

• Natalie is slowly realizing that Hallie can be her little puppet.  And Hallie LOVES it.  They play together a lot now.  They will disappear in to Natalie's room for 30 minutes before we hear any fussing.  Last night was hilarious.  After about 5 minutes in to playtime we hear Natalie holler "MIIIIIIIINE!!!".  Daddy was poised to jump in to action.  But then the darndest thing happened.  Hallie laughed.  That's right, Natalie hollered and Hallie laughed.  So Natalie hollers again "MIIIIIINE!"  I am sure this time Hallie will not like it and realize it isn't a game, but again she laughs.  Then I heard a second little snicker.  Natalie was laughing now too.  So back there they sat for probably 30-45 seconds of Natalie hollering, Hallie laughing, then Natalie laughing at Hallie.  This began the night of playing.  Pretty soon they are running through the halls until we would hear a thud, usually Hallie hitting the floor.  They made their way out to the living room.  Natalie decided to jump off the tiles in front of the fireplace, only about 18 inches off the ground.  No sweat for her.  We asked her not to do it again because Hallie would think she could do it.  Too late.  There's Hallie perched on the ledge waiting to jump.  She starts bouncing (she can't get air yet) and saying "jump, jump".  Natalie walks over and helps her "jump" down by giving her a hug and pulling her off.  Hallie landed on Natalie and they both just cackled.  They did this probably 10 times before we diverted their attention.  Then they started holding hands running through the living room.  Being the good daddy I said "No running, Natalie".  I picked her because she was obviously leading this crazy version of tag/chase/ring around the rosy/whatever.  She grabbed Hallie's hand and said "let's walk Hallie".  They slowly, and I mean slooooowly, walked out of the living room holding hands. We knew something was up.  Had to be.  They just had this look like we are going to run as soon as we are out of sight. Sara was stifling a laugh on the couch, hand over mouth.  Yep, as soon as they were in the hall, they took off running to her room.  Thud.  Down goes Hallie.  Laughter ensues.  Run, thud, laugh.  Run, thud, laugh.  Run, CRASH. cry.  I go in to Natalie's room to find Hallie screaming.  A welt was forming above her eye.  Turns out they were playing a game where Natalie gives Hallie a little push and Hallie runs a few steps.  Natalie looks at me and says "I pushed her too hard".  Ya think?  So now Hallie has a big bruise above her right eye and learned that playing with big sister can be rough.  Fifteen minutes later she was back up and playing again with Natalie.  So she got her first injury from playtime with sister but also her first recovery and re-entering the fray.  And mom and dad got our first of many chances to fix a boo-boo for one caused by the playing with the other sister. :)

Story time

• A couple of funny stories from the past couple weeks.  First on our way to Kansas City for my cousin's wedding Hallie was having some issues.  She is not the best car traveler and doesn't sleep really well in the car seat.  We thought we had the whole thing conquered.  No videos puts them both to sleep.  So on the way up we put on a Bob and Larry CD and off to dream land they eventually went.  After about five minutes of both girls sleeping I turned the CD off and changed it to the radio.  About two seconds later Natalie wakes up and starts crying.  She is screaming "that's not Bob!"  She wakes up Hallie who then starts crying.  Oops.  Thought they were sound enough asleep that we could get away with it.  Guess not.  My punishment was to listen to Hallie cry for the next 1.5 hours AND listen to the CD again.  Sara tried everything to get Hallie to calm down.  We gave her snacks, a drink, videos, everything.  At one point Sara said "Hallie, shhh".  You would have thought she said the meanest thing Hallie could think of so Hallie ramped up the volume.  Natalie, being the good little mommy, says "Hallie, what's the matter?"  Now keep in mind that Hallie likes to get Natalie in trouble by tattling on her.  Hallie responds to Natalie "Mommy....ssshhh"  as if Natalie would reprimand mommy! It was so funny I about drove the car off the rode.
• The wedding weekend was a blur.  Between rehearsal dinner, family pictures, birthday party for my sister and my wife, the wedding, the reception, going to church and lunch with my brother-in-law and his family, there wasn't much time to breath.  Our girls were troopers.  They did so well.  Hallie didn't sleep worth a darn on Friday night and had to nap at grandma and grandpas hotel room but she made it through with flying colors.
• Hallie's newest thing is to pretend with her baby dolls.  She is obviously doing something with them because she actually strapped one of them in her booster chair....while it was on the barstool!  This left our Hallie bear on her knees in front of the booster perched precariously on about 3 inches of chair while strapping in her baby about three feet in the air.  Not cool.  So we took the booster chair and put in on the floor.  She then proceeded to put the baby back in the booster and get some food from mommy.  The food was actually a play spoon and play can of peas.  When asked what she was feeding the baby she said "hot dog".  I think she eats to many hot dogs.  After feeding her she decided the baby was thirsty.  So she got her out, cradled her in her left arm, and gave her a bottle.  So sweet.  Other than feeding them they are now beginning to cry.  Hallie will show up carrying a baby and look at mommy and say "baby, cry" and pout.  Things aren't better until mommy gives the baby a kiss.
• Natalie is entering the "I hear you but I am going to pretend that I don't" phase.  That's not so fun, in case anyone cares.  We have had some discussions about that.  She's getting better and most of the time is the most pleasant 4 year old to be around.  
• She will just lose herself in her imagination. She will sit at the counter for an hour playing with stickers.  She will tell stories with them and use and re-use them on different pages.  Yesterday she didn't even need a page she just used the counter itself.  Then she will get down, go get her princess paper dolls and proceed to play with them the same way.  When she's done with those she will grab her little people and pretend with them.  Sometimes they even sing.  Just yesterday the broke out in to a rousing rendition of some song she made up.  We asked her where she heard it and she wouldn't tell us.  The sweetest sound though is to hear my 4 year old sitting at the counter or playing in the living room and break out in to "Mighty to Save".  "Savior, He can move the mountains.  My God is mighty to save, he is mighty to save..."

Friday Free-For-All

Ah, another week done.  Time for football!!!  Oh wait, K-State and Chiefs are both off this week.  Time for .... yard work????  Oi.

• Sad yet ironic headline of the week:  "Segway company President dies after driving Segway off a cliff.
• Atheists/Agnostics know more about religion than Protestants and Catholics??? Link
• Interesting discussion I had this week with a couple of different studies:  Does it take more faith to believe God does NOT exist than it takes to believe He exists?  I contend that believing God exists is easy.  It can explain anything.  Origin of the universe?  Almighty Creator did it.  Don't have to think about it.  Reason for unexplained medical recoveries?  God did it.  You see where this is headed.  You wanna know the hard part?  ACTUALLY BELIEVING THAT HE EXISTS!!!  Because if you actually believe that, then your actions would reflect it.  Too often my actions don't reflect what I say I believe so then I ask, do I really believe or is it just words?  What about you?  Do you really believe God exists?  Does your life reflect that? :)
• I get to go to the KSU vs Nebraska game next Thursday.  I am so excited!  Oh, not because of the game so much (it will be great though), but because I get to go with my wife!  Just like the college days, going to a game with Sara.  We might actually get to listen to something other than Bob and Larry in the car!
• Lots of exciting things going on in October.  Cousin getting married, spending time with my sister and her husband, spending time with my brother-in-law, his wife, and our nephew, Fall Festival at church, my sister's birthday, my wife's birthday, not to mention that I think it's the greatest sports month on the calendar!  It's going to be a great month!
• One quick daughter update: they are both doing great.  Healthy, happy, and in great moods!  Natalie is getting better at asking for things before crying about them.  She is seeing that if she asks and we say no it's not the end of the world and if she doesn't get upset mommy and daddy are much happier with her. :)  Hallie is just Hallie.  There really isn't any other way to put it.  She is talking more and more, getting MUCH more opinionated and still eating everything she can get her hands on.  She has also discovered that most clothes come off of baby dolls and so if you're clothes don't come off, you are shunned.  She doesn't want anything to do with you baby, she only likes the ones that she can have us undress/redress for her.  Should I be worried about that yet?

Bob and Larry and Junior and....

VeggieTales Live was a blast! (pictures to follow soon)  Sometimes getting the girls to eat dinner is a chore, but not last night.  Just a simple "when you're done we get to go see Bob and Larry!" and they were scarfing like they hadn't eaten in weeks.  Of course we listened to VeggieTales on the way to the show.  How can you go to VeggieTales without listening to the songs on the way???  When we got there Grandpa Marty, Grandma Sue, and the Richardsons were saving some seats for us.  We also saw Aunt Julie, Cousin Christie and Destiny who came down to say hi to Natalie and Hallie before the show.  Once we decided on seating (Becca and Natalie on Grandma's lap and Hallie wondering everywhere) it was time for the show.  Bob was the first to make an appearance.  The look on Hallie's face was PRICELESS!  I tried to get a picture but they didn't allow flash photography so some pics didn't turn out so well.  Later I decided to forgo the warning and use the flash on my girls and no flash on the Veggies.  Never flash the Veggies!  Then out came everyone else Pa Grape, Mr. Lunt, Junior, all there.  Except Larry.  As part of the show he got his own big entrance and the kids went crazy.  Who doesn't love a talking cucumber?  They sang all of the girls favorite songs and there was much clapping and dancing and singing.  About 15 minutes in to the show Natalie turns to us and says "those aren't the REAL Bob and Larry!"  My mind started racing, how was I going to explain to my 4-yr old that there were humans pretending to be oversized talking vegetables?  The question we asked was "what?"  That's right we just took the easy way.  She said something like "those are the pretend Bob and Larry".  I can't remember what Sara said to that one.  After a few minutes of silence it never came back up again and she seemed convinced that it was the real Bob and Larry the more they sang.  At intermission Hallie got a t-shirt and Natalie got a new DVD (thanks grandma and grandpa!).  The show didn't end until 8:45.  Our girls were pooped.  Natalie didn't want to leave Becca, Hallie didn't want to leave Bob!  After just a few cries they seemed okay again.  On the way out of the parking lot Natalie says "I didn't think that was the real Bob and Larry because of the stem things on their heads.  What was that for?"  She was referring to the plugs where they inflate the costumes.  Now what was I going to say.  My answer:  "That's leftover stem from where they picked the veggietales off the plant.  They grow on plants like strawberries and have to be picked the same way."  Her response: "I didn't know they had to be picked!  Do they have to pick all talking vegetables?"  I didn't have a response for that one.  On the way home we stopped next to Grandma Sue at one light and the Richardsons at another and Natalie and Hallie thought that was the coolest thing ever.  Overall it was a fantastic evening with Bob and Larry!

This morning when I got Hallie dressed she saw her Bob shirt and started pointing at it.  I put a different shirt on her.  She wasn't having any of it.  She grabbed the VeggieTales shirt and said "BOB!!", then put it down grabbed her shirt with both hands pulled it up and said "OFF!".  I think she wanted to wear Bob....she is.

Those girls

• So this morning Hallie found a travel cup full of mini chips ahoy cookies somewhere in the living room.  She proudly marched in to the kitchen and proclaimed "COOKIES!".  I said "It's time for breakfast, what would you like?"  Obviously her answer was "cookies" while presenting me with the cupl.  I said "You can't have cookies for breakfast".  She thought about it and said "eggs".  Well she had eggs yesterday so I wanted her to mix it up a little. Would you like pancakes?...."Eggs"....."Pancakes Hallie"....."Eggs".....you get the picture. "We" decided on pancakes (frozen Eggo style, I'm good but not that good).  After I got them all fixed and cut up I sat her up in her chair at the counter and put the cookies on the table behind her.  She turned around and saw them and asked "cookies?".  I said "after you finish your breakfast you may have a few cookies".  She thought about it, looked at me, slid her plate across the counter and said "all done!" with the biggest smile you have ever seen.  Just for the record, I won and she ate every bite of her pancake.
• Tonight we are taking the girls to VeggieTales Live.  That's right they get to see Bob and Larry live and in person.  Natalie is actually really excited for a change.  She used to be afraid of all things in costume.  We'll see how she does.  I think it will blow Hallie's little brain that Bob and Larry are on the stage in front of her.  Full report tomorrow. :)
• During the pancake "war" this morning Natalie got up at the counter to eat her breakfast while Hallie was still in the "I'm not eating no matter what" phase.  So I asked Natalie "Will you please tell your little sister to eat her pancakes?"  Natalie assumed the voice and said "Hadgie Bear (our nickname for her) eat your pancakes so you can grow big and strong like mommy and daddy."  She cracks me up.
• I love my girls.

Friday Free-For-All

• We have a tattle-tale umongst us.  Hallie is ratting out her sister, even when there is nothing to rat out!  Last night she came out from Natalie's room crying.  We asked her what happened and she said "Nanee....push....no,no! (complete with a finger wag)"  So mommy took Hallie back to Nat's room and talked with Nat about what happened.  About five minutes later Hallie comes back, fussing again.  So again Sara says "What happened Hallie?"
• "Nanee.....book"
• "I don't think she took your book did she?  Can you find a baby to play with?"
• Hallie hesitated, then said "Nanee...push....no,no!"  That's right, she realized we weren't going to get mad at Natalie and so she thought of a reason that we had previously talked to Natalie and brought it up again hoping to get Nat in trouble!  She is too smart for her own good.
• The fair last weekend was excellent as always.  Hallie was a little fussy but overall not too bad.  She just was mad because sister was big enough to ride the carousel and she wasn't.  Natalie let us go see some animals first and have dinner before she went on the rides.  Didn't eat anything too exotic, Pronto Pup, Roasted Corn, and capped off the night with Call Hall Ice Cream from under the grandstand.  For those uninitiated Call Hall is a building at K-State that makes their own ice cream and it is FANTASTIC!
• Pick for the KSU game:  KSU 30 UCF 20
• As I've mentioned previously Natalie likes to play the Wii and often that includes the balance board.  Hallie isn't allowed to stand on it while Nat is playing.  She went in to the corner by the couch and we didn't think about it too much.  But pretty soon we look over and she is standing on the Wii box and doing the motions that big sister is doing.  She just made her own board, no problem. :)
• I can't believe what celebrity in this country has become.  It makes me sad that anyone can become a celebrity just by being an idiot and getting on TV.  What is celebrity anyway?  Why are people on TV any different than the rest of us?  Why do their opinions matter?  Is it because they make more money than us?  Why do they make that money, it isn't because they are any better than us I know that.  This country needs God more than ever.
• I struggle with worrying about what others think of my opinions or things I do.  If I make a mistake and people laugh I have a really hard time letting it go.  If people in a room are whispering and then start laughing I immediately wonder if it is about me or something I said.  I have gotten better but it is a personal struggle.  I wish sometimes that I could just be one of those people that doesn't care what others think, I am just going to be me.  But that isn't the case.
• I am not insinuating that anything about me is fake.  I love Jesus, I love my family, I love sports, I don't drink, I don't smoke, I don't appreciate conversations about drinking.  I don't see the fun in getting so drunk that I am sick the next morning and can't remember what I did the night before.  It is just baffling to me how that is fun.  I don't get it.  Call me a goody goody, call me whatever you want, I am done caring what anyone thinks, because if this changes your opinion about who I am then you didn't really know me anyway and weren't really a friend to begin with.
• I am not perfect.  I have issues that I struggle with just like everyone else.  Please don't take the previous paragraph as a holier than thou stance or attitude.  It's just something that's been weighing on me lately and I needed to say it.