Breaking News...

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Bella informed me last night that she would be having a baby boy and I'd be having a baby girl!
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Silly Bella!

While Brooklyn was napping on Sunday and Bella was supposed to be napping (or at least playing in her room) - Bella raided my "linen closet" and took out every wash rag we have and made a path of "magic carpets" through the living room and leaving a "magic carpet" in front of each door in our house! You've got to love this kid's imagination!

Here is the path through the living room area!

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Here is Bella sitting at the end of one of the paths just giggling because she knew I had the camera out and that she was technically supposed to be in her room!! Little squirt - but look how cute she looks....Needless to say, she did not nap on Sunday!

Playing together - nicely!

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Generally, the girls play together nicely...as long as no one is trying to steal the other's one toy! Last Saturday - I was picking up/cleaning and happened to be in the kitchen. I looked around the corner and found Brooklyn on her hands and knees crawling while Bella was leading her around by her shirt! Bella said that Brooklyn was her puppy!!!! And Brooklyn was more than happy to oblige!!! They were just giggling away with each other!

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Here the puppy must have broken loose from her master, aka Bella!

Where's Bella? Where's Brooklyn?

We live in an older house, so the closets do not have doors on them. I have improvised and hung curtains to (most) of the closets in the house to hide the clutter contents of the closets. Bella and Brooklyn love to hide behind the curtain and we, of course, act like we have no idea where they are asking each other "where's Bella", "where's Brooklyn" and they come running from behind the curtain!

From the mouth of Bella...

Just a few things Bella has said lately that have left us laughing and/or shaking our heads wondering where she ever could have heard that!

• Ah Man!!!!
• I got to tell my friends (said this when I told her the swing set was arriving on Friday)
• Momma, I hang these up with the magets! (that would be magNets, we do not have maggots in or around our home).
• Momma, I not big, I still small...but I big enough (have no idea where this came from)!
• Momma, hush! Brooke is sleeping (this has been said a couple of times while we are in the car and I'm talking to Brannon).
• Momma, I otay..I just a little sick! (this was said on the way to school after she had coughed one time. I usually ask if they are okay after they cough, but I guess she anticipated the question -so she just gave me the answer - that's being proactive in my opinion)!

I know there are more, I just cannot think of any more right now! She definitely keeps us entertained!!!

How am I supposed to discipline these children?

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Bella wanted spaghetti for lunch on Sunday, so I obliged and made spaghetti! They decided it was way more fun to throw the noodles on the floor rather than eat them!!! I told them no and even said I'd put them in the corner if they did it until they started giggling - then I start laughing at them and it's just down hill from there! So you tell me how am I supposed to discipline these children?

On a side note - they did help me pick up each and every noodle they threw on the floor - actually, they picked them all up and handed them to me! So no harm done, right??

Walking in Mommy's Shoes

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The girls LOVE to play with my shoes! Here is a picture of each of them walking in my shoes!!!

This kid cracks me up...

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Now that it stays light out longer - Brannon usually takes the girls out for a ride in their wagon at night. Some nights I go, some nights I do not. One night that I did tag along, I noticed Brooklyn "lounging" in the wagon as Brannon was pulling them. It just cracked me up!! (Sorry the picture is blurry - but they were "on the move"!)

Baby in Box

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I don't know what it is about babies and boxes! I had emptied a wipe box and it had not made it to the trash yet and I come into Brooklyn's room to find this...

And then of course Bella had to try it out for herself!

A few more conversations...

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Last night we were driving home from school and I always try to get Bella to tell me about her day (I also ask Brooklyn but she usually just smiles at me)!

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Bella bowed her head and got her "upset" face on and this was the conversation:

Bella: I bad at school today.
Me: You were bad at school today? What did you do?
Bella: Abby Tate (it is actually Abby Kate) hit me.
Me: Abby Kate hit you today? Did Abby Kate say she was sorry?
Bella: BIG PIG!! (haha - she had a library book in her lap about going to a farm and I guess she found a big pig)

So I don't know exactly what happened at school - but she was very glad when Abby Kate got there this morning - so I guess there were no hard feelings.

This conversation took place in the bathroom last night and again this morning while Bella was using her potty as a stool (I mean what else is a potty for) and making faces in the mirror:

Me: Bella, what are you doing in the bathroom?
Bella: I justa lookin at myself

This conversation took place this morning when I was getting Bella up to get dressed for school:

Me: (turning on light in my bedroom - b/c this is where Bella slept again last night)
Bella: It's too bright; turn light off; it's too bright
Me: Good morning. It's time to wake up - time to face the day
Bella: turn light off; it too bright!

She did finally get out of bed but then the usual battle of getting her dressed began! The joys of a 2-year old!

Mean Monsters

During naptime on Saturday, Bella came out of her room to me (I was in the kitchen) and told me she needed to vaccuum because there were mean monsters in her bed!! She needed help turning her vaccuum on! Here she is vaccuuming the mean monsters off her bed!

Brooklyn

It is so much fun to watch the personalities evolve and emerge!! Brooklyn is certainly full of personality! We were just hanging around the house on Saturday evening and Brooklyn "disappeared" from our sight and this is what we found (she is in Bella's room)!

Two Little Monkeys....

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Playing on the bed....It started out as them watching the train outside our window but turned into a jumping party!

How do you wear your boa?

It can be a "dress" and a "belt" as modeled by Bella!

Or can be worn the traditional way, around one's neck as modeled by Brooklyn!

Or it can be worn as a hat, apparently the latest trend in boa-wearing, as modeled by Bella with Brooklyn looking on...

Another shot of the latest trend modeled by Brooklyn with Bella looking on..

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So, how do you wear your boa?

Say Cheese

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Lately, whenever you tell Brooklyn to "say cheese" or you say "Look at insert name", Brooklyn will make this face! It is too cute!

Also - please notice that she is AGAIN on top of the table!!! I left the room for a second and came back and there she was - I guess she wanted some of my drink!

Thank You, Lady

We've tried to teach Bella to say "please" and "thank you" and we've actually done pretty well at this task - very rarely do we have to prompt her to say either. Brooklyn will even sign thank-you with very little prompting!

Anyway, on to my story. The girls and I were at Wal-Mart or the grocery store one day and as we were leaving the check-out, I said to Bella "tell the lady thank-you" and she took me very literally and said "Thank You, Lady" in the sweetest little voice! The nice lady just chuckled. She has continued to say this to people when she says thank you but does not know the person's name. My philosophy is at least she is being polite!

Baby Gone Wild

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Sunday night we had spaghetti for supper and I had already taken Brooklyn's shirt off to keep from getting spaghetti all over the house but didn't run immediately to put her pj's on and she went and found some beads and was running through the house shirtless with beads!!

Please notice the one sock too! Poor kid - you guys probably think they have no clothes! Brooklyn is notorious for taking off her shoes and socks as soon as I put them on her! Obviously here, she only got one of the socks off!

Brooklyn and the camera

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Lately when I bring out the camera, Brooklyn automatically makes this face! I was finally able to snap the picture before she stopped!

Bella in her "belt" and "dress"

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We have these two boas and Bella has recently started wrapping them around her waist and neck saying she has a "new belt" and "new dress"! She did this all by herself...