I Don't Want to Forget

I don't want to forget...

• After she brushed against a short brick wall while trying to stop her bike, I asked Serena if her leg was okay.  "Oh yes, it is barely even a scratch.  Big four-year-olds would never cry about such a small thing!"  Jordan asked, "How about little four-year-olds?  Would they cry about that?"  To which Serena replied in her most exasperated tone, "Dad! There is no such thing as a little four-year-old!"

The "big four-year-old" all dressed up!  Thought Aunt Julie would be particularly proud of this!  ;)

• Serena and Bret learning to ride bikes.  Serena's training wheels kept slipping, so we finally decided to quit messing with it and take them off.  Jordan took her and Bret down to the school a couple blocks from our house.  There's a nice big square cement pad there for basketball and such, and it's usually deserted in the evenings.  Serena was pretty nervous, and wasn't doing well at all, so Jordan finally asked Bret if he'd like to give it a try.  Bret was very excited to try, so Jordan helped him get on (the bike is too big for Bret), and Bret took off right away.  Honestly, I'd never dreamed that the balance bike would give him such an advantage in learning to ride a bike!  It's really amazing to see how comfortable he is on a bike!  I have some videos that I will hopefully get posted here one of these days.  (Right!)  ;)  After watching Bret do it, Serena was more motivated to overcome her own insecurities and managed to ride her bike a few times before they called it quits for the day and played on the playground.  Since then, we've gotten a little bike for Bret, and Serena has been practicing more and more on her bike.  I feel a little badly that we never really had her ride the balance bike.  It would certainly have made things easier for her!  Bret zooms all around and rides circles around Serena while she just tries not to fall down.  Just this week, Serena has finally figured out how to get started on her own, but stopping still usually involves a (somewhat) controlled fall.  In the meantime, Bret rides like a pro, looking all around and enjoying the scenery, coasting, stopping, starting, turning.  He tries to mix things up by doing really sharp turns where his pedal will actually skid against the concrete (though, one time he did ditch his bike doing that!).  His balance is incredible; he can ride so slowly and still stay up; or if he does lose his balance or something, he can pull out of it at the last second and keep on riding.  One evening, as we were on a walk, Bret on his bike and Serena running (it's often a pretty crowded trail and we didn't want to risk having a newbie biker out there!), Bret started standing on his pedals while he rode.  When we asked him about it later, he said he'd seen other people do that, so he wanted to try.

They're pretending to fish.  ;D

• If you ask Bret what he wants to be when he grows up, he says, "DADDY!!!"

I'm not sure if the world is ready for this pair!

• Serena finished the Little House series a couple weeks ago, and has become a very proficient reader.  It truly is amazing!  She reads aloud at the same pace I would.  It's very pleasant to listen to!  She rarely stumbles over words, and is quick to ask what one means if she's not sure.  With the last two books of the series came a new-found interest in weddings and marriage.  One morning, she announced her intention to marry Bret.  Not to be out-done, he retorted, "Then I'm going to marry you, Serena!"  They both obviously have a lot to learn about marriage.  ;)  When Mom was visiting a couple weeks ago, Bret told us that he is going to "marry all the people."  ;)  We went shopping and found a beautiful new dress for me, which Serena was particularly excited about.  Mom told Serena she had to make sure I wore it a lot, and Serena said in her wise and grown-up way, "Yes, I will.  And I think she should wear it to my wedding, don't you, Grammie?"  She likes to talk about that dress as the one I will wear to her wedding.  Luke was here last week, and Serena was telling him about her wedding, and asked if he was going to come.  He teased her about already planning her wedding and she asked him incredulously if he wasn't planning his own wedding???  The best part was that his girlfriend was within earshot, haha!  ;D  Apparently Luke and Lulu's relationship is going a bit over Serena's head, though, because at breakfast the day after they left, Serena asked me something about Luke and why he wasn't married.  When I said that I thought he's probably waiting to make sure he found just the right sweet girl, Serena nodded and then thought for a moment.  "I think he's waiting for me to grow up so he can marry me!"  So, look out, ladies!  Serena's throwing her hat in the ring!  ;)

I just love listening to/watching them play!  Even Cody is involved these days!

• When we're out and about, I get asked all the time if the boys are twins.Getting asked if the boys are twins.  They look so much alike anymore!  And, as long as Cody doesn't say anything and betray his baby-ish-ness, they appear to be the same age.  The other day at Aldi, as I was picking out produce, a lady came over and chatted with Bret & Cody (who were sitting next to each other in the seat of the cart).  Afterwards, she came over to me and gushed over how cute the boys were.  Then, she walked on down the aisle to where her husband was waiting and I heard her say, "Did you see the twins???"  Haha!  I had no idea she was thinking they were twins!

Cody is in the thick of the copy-cat stage!

• Cody has recently decided that he can and should pray whenever anyone else does (i.e., before meals, at bedtime, etc.).  It's pretty cute!  He folds his hands and puts them up to his face and says in a quiet, slow voice, "Baah, baah.  May-men."

Can't figure out how to put these shoes on, but insisting to do it ALL BY HIMSELF!!!  Oh, the trials and tribulations of a one-and-a-half-year-old!

• Bret:  Mom, how do people fly up to the ceiling? | Me:  I don't think people can do that, Bret. | Bret:  But I can, right? | Me:  So how do you do it? |
  Bret:  Well, I just go really really fast.  And then I go szhooo!  And then pppprew!  [insert more mouth noises here]

Gotta love the physique of a toddler!  Heehee!