My Longest Year

her prince

Overheard:
Evyn (to James, at bedtime): "I'm going to be a mommy someday."
James: "I want you to enjoy being a kid.  You're a pretty cool kid."
E: "But I want to be a mommy."
James: "But then you'll have your own house, and I won't see you as much.  And I'd miss you."
E: "But I'll have another boy then."

 

happy dad day

To my darling hubby, who had to spend Father's Day away from his babies (National Guard), and to my friends whose hubbies have spent many holidays away from their babies...

Love you, Babe!  Thanks for being their Knight in Shining Armor.

evyn's work: the barbie series

So, I have a feeling that someday as I am flipping back through this online journal, this is going to be one of my favorite posts.

Evyn is venturing into photography.  After giving up on the stupid Little Tykes camera, I decided to let her use my old Canon Powershot.  She operates it quite well.  Every once in a while, she'll ask to use the camera, go fishing in our junk drawer for it, and disappear to her room for an hour.  She really has an imagination.  I've decided to start printing a few of them for her to put in an album.  She's very proud of her work and I'm loving all of the outlets she's exploring, including the camera.

She's really proud of this set and when I told her that I was going to post it to my blog for everyone to see she got a little giddy.  I don't think she knows exactly what that means, but she seemed to understand it was cool.  I take her seriously, but when I first flipped through these photos full screen, with her standing over my shoulder proudly waiting for my opinion, I couldn't help but giggle.  What must go through that little four-year-old mind of hers...

So, without further ado, I bring you the Barbie series (there is also a shoe series):

Evyn: "She's swimming up and down."

Evyn: "She's dancing; it's called a 'bya' " (this is a made-up dance move)

Evyn: "That's her swimming."

Evyn: "That's called 'her laying down in a swimming suit'."

Evyn: "That's arabesque."

Evyn: "That's laying down arabesque."

Evyn: "She's getting a haircut.  But I didn't really cut her hair.  I'm just pretending."

"choices have consequences"

It's something that I'm often saying mostly for Evyn's benefit, when she's whimpering in time out or has a favorite toy taken away from her. 

So when I was in a hurry to get Evyn to school and got pulled over by the police right. in front.  of her school parking lot, I looked at it as an opportunity.  Yeah, a DERN EXPENSIVE and EMBARRASSING opportunity.

I had a good chuckle as I took the girls to the courthouse to pay my fines.
E: "Where are we going, Mommy?"
Me: "Remember when I got pulled over for speeding and I got a ticket?  Mommy made a bad choice and now I have to pay money."
E: "You were going too fast and now you have to pay money?"
Me: "Yes, Baby."
E: "Are you going too fast NOW?"
I looked down at my speedometer, and, actually, I was going a little fast.  I swear, four year olds are like your conscience out loud.

Later, though, this whole ticket thing became a useful analogy.  When Evyn copped a teenage-sized attitude, stomping and slamming her door and yelling something about HER room. 

 

Fifteen solid minutes and a hammer later, said door was perched on the wall across her room.  Evyn values her space and her privacy.  And she was horrified to be without her door.

I reminded her that bad choices have consequences; that I wouldn't let a four year old be without them, just as I wasn't without consequences for my own behavior ("remember when Mommy had to pay money for breaking the law?").

There are days when I'm at my wit's end with her, exasperated by the fact that she's only four and has the verbal capacity of an entire debate team.  Someone please tell me this will get easier.  That there is something I can do to head this off at the pass.  She has a bright, sparkling, witty, dramatic - beautiful - personality and I love her so much that I worry a bit that it will all be eclipsed by this dark attitude that sometimes comes from nowhere.

I'm just sure there is something I should be doing better...

going somewhere?

Last year it was dressers.  This year its chairs and suitcases.

If you saw the growing collection of both in my garage, you'd think I either planned to do a lot of sitting or a lot of going.

You remember MAD's suitcase?  I didn't stop there.  When I spied the mustard American Tourister in a dark corner under a shelf at our dumpy Salvation Army I snatched it up.

Then I saw this strawberry Carousel suitcase and couldn't believe it.  I mean who gives up a suitcase that color?  There was a matching train case perched on the shelf above it that I probably should have picked up but I didn't. 

I'm hoping to use these in a session sometime.  At prices like these I just couldn't pass it up.