Firecrackers and Crickets

Emma is a firecracker. We knew from birth that her personality was going to be different from James but now that she is getting older it is really coming out!  She is talking like crazy now. She says hundreds of words and strings sentences together in 3-4 words.  The lady in the nursery at church calls her "the little linguist" She has taken to saying "knock it down"  when she doesn't want to play with something. When she is mad and wants her own ways she says "throw it"  and throws whatever she is holding down. We are really working on getting through this little phase and I am hoping that the tantruming will pass soon.  Despite her minor tantrum throwing she is very sweet and will kiss me, "snuggy" with her blanket on the couch with me and play really nicely with James.

She loves to help around the house by sweeping and wiping up after meals. She definitely has a mind of her own and is incredibly independent.  She wants to do most things on her own, especially eat. She also wants to have say in what she gets to eat.  If you ask her what she wants for breakfast she says "cererereal". If you ask her what she wants for lunch she says, "olives, cookies,  crackers."  She likes to choose her own outfit in the morning (with some help from me), try on shoes at target and in my closet, go for walks in the "shoedee" (stroller).  She loves James' friends and if you ask her who her friends are she says,  Luke, Max, Sammy.  She loves to play with puzzles, blocks, and her dolly. She says, "dolly cold" and asks Dan to put a blanket on her. She loves to read and can fill in parts of the story if I ask her to.  She also likes to plan out what we are going to do after her afternoon nap. When I go into get her, she says, " Jacket, shoes, boots, outside, shoedee"  Everyday.  We do play outside most days after nap before it gets dark.

She has also learned to tattle on James. She is good at making it known when he pushes her, takes something, or  doesn't play with her the way she wants.  I have made a very conscious effort not to immediately blame James everytime and have started asking what is going on.  Usually I can get a straight answer out of both of them.  James is a pretty honest dude.
                                   Emma in September...this is a true representation of her personality.

James is our little cricket.  After watching Pinocchio one night we started calling him Jiminy Cricket. The name stuck and now it is one of the chosen nicknames for him at home.  He is always trying to do the right thing but sometimes he does get into trouble.  He loves to play outside, go to school, Lego Duplo, gymnastics, and reading.  Overall he is such a good boy. He loves to help out whether we are cooking, doing laundry, crafting, or fixing things around the house.

He talks a lot and can be very serious.  We love when he talks and makes what we call "the idea hand".  He moves his hand around and his face gets all scrunched up when he is saying something he thinks is very important.  I would love to get a picture of it but of course it is very difficult. He is very inquisitive and wants to know exactly how things work and what happens next. He can also be very persistent and if he doesn't get his way he asks and asks until he thinks you will give in. Sometimes we do and most of the time we don't which can be very exhausting for me!

He is so great with Emma for the most part and really wants her to play with him. She doesn't quite get playing with someone yet so sometimes James gets frustrated. Yesterday I heard him asking her to be a reindeer and pull him along because he was Santa.  He calls her "Babes" and picks up her milk when she drops it on the floor. He snuggles her on the couch and reads her Corduroy's Christmas or Who said Moo?  He is very proud of being such a good big brother!