“GRACE-FACE”
Wow, I fell off the blog bandwagon, but lot's of things are going on around here, so I'll get updated! Tonight was a great night.... I had the missionaries and my neighbor over for dinner and I wanted all 9 of us to sit around the table, so we were all pretty close. I just got everyone served and as I pulled my chair up, Gracie puked all over her plate, the table, herself and me...it was awesome- I was waiting for one of the missionaries to puke on me too- oh well, all that matters is we tried, right? So, on that note, I thought I'd dedicate this post to Gracie! I had some great pictures of her, but I also wanted to highlight her in a “Top Ten” manner when I post these great pics so you can get to know her little personality. She is her own little person, full of...let's say "spark". I love the cereal on the head, and being totally naked when I got her up from a nap...nope, the other three never did this! She is really cute and I secretly like it when she’s not feeling well, because she will actually sit and let me snuggle with her- other than that, she is always on the go! Anyways, her best friend is her Aunt Chelsea and she loves her sisters too! She’s not around me much when they are home, but don’t worry, when they are at school, she needs my constant attention. When I leave the room, I give her about 5 seconds until “Mommy, where are you???” and it’s constant talking. She cracks me up and she has renewed that sense of “first time mom”, as she throws stuff at me I haven’t seen my others do!! So, here it its…the Gracie top 10!
10. Transition child-- She is preparing the way for a boy…like, by standing on the kitchen table and as I walk to get her, she begins jumping and then says “Look, I’m jumping.” I’m not stupid. I realize I have somewhat let her get away with way more and have some ownership, but she really was born with an extra spark in her spirit. I’m hoping I can crack down on some of the issues, but I am grateful the children who are sent to the world at this time are strong - they will need it!!
9. The bathroom--we have to be really careful to keep the bathroom door shut, because she pulls the toilet paper off as fast as she can and goes running through the house. My favorite was the other day. She came out with a huge wad of toilet paper- wiping her nose and said, “My honk is running!”
8. Let’s see how mommy handles this one in public???-- She is my Humbler…So, we’re at gymnastics the other day and I said it’s time to go, so she hit me on the shoulder and then kept hitting me several times in the waiting room at gymnastics with all the other moms...seriously, I know what they were thinking… “I would never let my kid do that”—well, she already did, and it took me 4 kids to get one that hit me! She’s got all kinds of tricks to pull out for the first time, but only when there are other people watching her!
7. Is she your first?-- I love this question when we are out in public. No, she’s not my first, she’s my fourth, I know exactly what I’m doing …it’s called surviving the first trimester. The last few months I’ve been too sick and puky to take her on, and she screams the loudest- so, if we’re in the car and she’s screaming, she’s going to get what she wants. In fact, if she’s screaming anywhere, her sisters give her what she wants. I’ve made my bed, I’ll have to lay in it, but sometimes you just have to do what works until you can stop vomiting and handle the situation like a grown up! And yes, honey, when you’re in the check out line after a big trip to the grocery store, and she’s on her last leg, cell phones are a toy!! I’m totally understanding why the “youngest child” gets such a bad rap!
6. Tantrums--- My favorite tantrum is the sad boo boo lip, the dramatic “Oh No”…then slow motion fall to the knees, then down to her face- all in a dramatic slow motion way. It’s still funny to me, not so much when they are five, but the under two still cracks me up. Seriously, who taught her that? It’s as if they all come down with the inherent gene to throw themselves on the floor. I assure you, Troy and I have never shown this to her.
5. Can’t catch me---How about the running from me?? No, I’ve never been a fast athlete,
(as some of you I played with over the years know I was generally there to provide comic relief, not trophies), but I’m really not fast 5 months pregnant. I can appreciate that my girls all seemed to get their Dad’s athleticism and speed- except when it makes me look stupid. There is no question she is faster than me, and let me tell you how awesome I look chasing her down in the middle of the field during the twins soccer game. And right when I think I’m going to catch her, I go for the grab, and she seriously jukes me and spin moves the other way…of coarse everyone is laughing, not to mention I’m running in public!! And Gracie thinks it’s a hilarious game and yells “Funny mommy?” So, I’ve decided, I don’t care if Daddy’s is on the field coaching, he’s catching the one year old who is faster than me the next time she gets her big break.
4. Crazy vocabulary and Repeating—So, I dropped my cottage cheese on the floor loading the groceries into the car at Wal-Mart and said “ oh crap”. So, she immediately threw her sippie cup and said “oh crap, I dropped it.”
It’s kind of weird to hear vocabulary, she’s just a tiny little thing, but she can fully communicate very clearly what she wants to say, it’s kind of frightening.
3.Most embarrassing moment-- Let me paint the picture for ya…It’s the week before school started I took Gracie to Wal-Mart to get stuff for the girls lunches. The “lunch” isle was packed with other parents doing the same thing, and as my hands are occupied slowly pushing my cart and my eyes looking on the shelves, and she does the double squeeze on the “you know what’s” and cracks up. I assure you again, she has never seen this done before, and I’m pretty sure she hasn’t seen Sixteen Candles (Tune in Tokyo). See, this is what I mean when I say she throws me curve balls I’ve never seen before. What do you do in this situation?? Seriously??? I tried not to make a big deal and just calmly say “No Gracie”, but I was quite embarrassed and yes, several people saw it!
2.Dr. Jeckle and Mr. Hyde---She’ll scowl her eyebrows and shout me some orders like, “No, mommy, no like that...no want that!!! (Then she’ll throw it) Then she’ll turn her head like a puppy and in a sweet high tone, say, “K?” We’re proud that we’re noticing principles of self- correction at such a young age! Self-correction…multiple personalities, whatever…
1. Dad calls her King Kong--She got this name several months ago as we watch her play with toys. So, I wanted to catch her tantrum on video (because it’s still funny to me because she's so little), so I pulled out the camera when she was cranky to see what I could get. She didn’t throw the tantrum, but she shows us the “King Kong” element…you can see why she was coined the name! If you can't hear her talking, you'll have to pause the music (all the way at the bottom) so you can hear what she says... but check out Copie's eyes and the very end, it's classic!
