Liliana Lately

Liliana, at four and a half, is probably the most spirited of my children.  Nothing she does is halfway.  When she is happy, she is the happiest girl in the world.  When she is sad, she is in the depths of despair.  She is passionate about, well, everything.  She is incredibly loving, a wonderful sister, and quick to make others laugh. Here is a little bit of what she is up to these days:

--She is slowly but surely figuring out how to read and spell on her own.  As her mother, this is fascinating to watch.

--She currently loves for me to read her the Amelia Bedelia books.

--She spends a fair amount of time sounding out and asking me how to spell words so that she can write lists.

--She enjoys dressing up in fancy dresses, but is equally happy to be in scrubby play clothes so that she can make mudpies and splash in mud puddles.

--She has little treasure hoards all around the house.  She collects little things and hides them together in any empty drawer or cabinet space she can find.

--She has an alter-ego named Bubblegum Girl

--I overheard her talking to Little Ish about Saints the other day.  After Little Ish told her that he has always liked Saint Michael a lot, Lily told him: "I always look up to Saint Mary; she's my girl!"

--She has an unrivaled enthusiasm for glitter glue

--She loves to pick and gift people with wild flowers and dandelions.

--She will get Little Ish to play house with her by asking him to play Ninja Turtle's house.  It is just house where they call eachother by Ninja Turtle names and occasionally bust out the ninja moves to prevent Shredder from disrupting dinner.

--She is starting to demonstrate some facility in basic addition and subtraction.

--She finally has long enough legs to pedal the tricycle.

--She asked me to do a photo shoot of her so she could wear a flower crown I bought as a photo prop.  The photos above are a result of that shoot. 

Sisters

When I was pregnant with Zélie, I was absolutely convinced that I was having a boy.  And while I would have happily welcomed another sweet little boy to the family, my heart ached for Liliana who spent much of the pregnancy telling me how she was really hoping for a sister.  I spent a lot of time trying to prepare her for the possibility of a brother and the ensuing 4 yearold heartbreak.  It clearly turns out that was all for naught. 

Liliana couldn't be more excited to have a little sister.  She loves on her constantly.  Lily has become a pro at calming Zélie down when she is fussing.  She wants to hold Zélie frequently--even when she is screaming.  I am very encouraged by how she has grown into her big sister role this time around.  [She is an excellent big sister to Atticus too, but when he was born she was in the throes of being a two yearold.]

Zélie loves Liliana already.  She smiles when Lily walks into her field of vision and often starts to fuss if Lily walks away.  I am excited to watch these girls grow up together.

Happy 4th Birthday, Liliana!

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Happy 4th birthday to my sweet and spunky Liliana!  You are such a good sister to your brothers.  You keep me on my toes with all of your interesting questions.  Your zest for life and curiosity never fail to amaze me.  I love you sweet baby girl.

The Adventures of Super Lily

Lily at 3 years 7 months

After my brain dump about Atticus on Tuesday, I thought I would follow up with one filled with things I don't want to forget about Lily.  Today she is 3 years and 7 months old so it seems as good a time as any to jot a few things down.

--She loves helping Ish water the garden in the morning.

--If another child takes a toy from her she throws a royal fit, but when they ask nicely she readily gives up whatever toy she is using.

--She loves picking flowers.  She especially loves picking dandelions.  Every time we go outside, within seconds she says, "Mommy, I have a surprise for you," and  she pulls a dandelion out from behind her back.

--She collects things and stores them in bags.  When she can't find a bag she stores her treasures in a hat.  She has one hat that she lovingly refers to as her "hat-bag-purse".

--She likes to wear necklaces and bracelets and has reached an age where she'll actually keep them on for more than a minute or two.

--She would subsist on carrots and hummus if she were allowed to.

--She is starting to draw a lot more often.  Recently balloons are a favorite.

--She can recognize her name when it is printed (both Lily and Liliana).

--She has several characters that she pretends to be.  The two most frequent are Etta, who rides a horse and Callie who has fuzzy pink and purple hair.

--When she is scared of something in a movie she asks Ish to "protect me of the bad guys".

--When she is looking for Atticus she asks "Where's my Ats-a-bats" and when she is looking for Little Ish she wants to know where her "Ferks-a-berks" is.  She refers to her cousin Percival as her "Herfs-a-berfs".

--She is still tiny enough to front-carry in the Boba carrier and will often request for Atticus to ride in the grocery cart so that I can wear her.

--She is petrified of ants.

--She gives an amazing side eye.

--She likes to play a game she calls "Grape Shoopa" in which she pours water from one container to another.  She will often play this for an hour at a time.

Little Ish and Lily

Little Ish and Lily have only a 16½ months age difference.  Having two kids so close in age was terrifying to me when I was pregnant with Liliana.  I couldn't quite fathom how I was going to effectively care for and mother two babies at the same time.  Honestly, I felt completely off my game for the first year of Lily's life.  As Lily got to an age where she could run around and play with Little Ish, life got infinitely easier.  They gradually developed a strong and deep friendship. 

As things stand today, Little Ish is quickly approaching his 5th birthday and Liliana reached 3 ½ this week.  While there are days that they bicker endlessly, the majority of the time they are the best of friends.  Sure, they know how to get a rise out of each other and push all the right buttons to cause the other one's temper to flare, and those moments are hard for them and for me.  The shadow cast by those rough patches are vastly outshone by the sweet and tender moments they share.  It is a common scene for me to go to check on Lily when she cries out in the middle of the night only to find that Little Ish is already at her side patting her back or holding her hand and has soothed Lily back to a peaceful sleep. They are full of giggles and jokes when they play--peels of laughter ring through our home.  As I watch them, I realize that they are teaching each other so much about love and friendship. I look forward to watching their bond as siblings strengthen as they grow.