these days

Sophia and Rebecca being kitties, with their faces painted with cocoa paste,
just like my Mum used to do with me.

Well, today is the 30th, but as you can see from the date above, I started this post 2 weeks ago - sorry for the silence - if only you could access all the mental blogs I've composed! Seems computer time is a rare thing these days. For real. I have been sorting through the ups and downs of a whole new phase of motherhood. Having a 3 year old and an 8 month old is hard work - have you heard about that? So how do I say that without feeling it's a total negative? Without explaining that in the same day I can feel incredible joy and extreme anger? That just saying, "It's hard" is not betraying me, my kids, my Mum, God? I guess you just say it.

Today is an up. I feel like I am making progress. that is my mantra these days thanks to Fly Lady - "Progress, not perfection."


Eleanor is seriously mobile and so that means a whole new level of baby watching. She has four teeth and is fearless, she tosses herself headlong everywhere - Wade may get his dream retirement plan of child professional skateboarders yet, though Sophia is not sure she wants to learn to juggle fire yet. Today Sophia decided to empty her own potty- full of poo - in the bathroom sink. She was so good about it "Oh Mum, I am so sorry, I will never ever do that again", it was easy to be gracious - just smelly.

We were tagged weeks ago (I can't believe it, wasn't it just the other day?) by Ari & Noah
and it's our first tag! so here goes:

Here are the rules: You must list one fact that is somehow relevant to your life for each letter of your middle name. (If you don't have a middle name, use the middle name you would have liked to have had.) When you are tagged you need to write your own blog-post and then choose one person for each letter of your middle name to tag. Don't forget to leave them a comment telling them they're tagged, and to read your blog.

Sophia Joanna Jubilee

J - Joyous - Sophia wakes up happy every day. I can never ever remember her waking grumpy.

U - Ubiquitous - I learned this word from Don Neufeld. It means it seems you are everywhere at the same time. From the music to fun to the mess, Soph fills up the house when she is here.

B- Ballet- she was meant to take ballet in July but the 4 month, city wide strike cancelled the class, yet she still loves all things balletic, dances a lot and believes she is an excellent ballerina already, though no professional has ever told her so. I hope that confidence never goes away.

I- Ice Cream - There can never be enough. The only child I know who at the age of 2 turned down plain vanilla ice cream with smarties because she heard us talking about gelato later on.

L- Lyrical - (OK, I used a thesaurus for this one) - Sophia sings all the time and makes up songs. Wade and I often comment that her life is a musical.

E- Eat - She loves to eat all kinds of things I had never even tasted until I was in my 20's. her education started early and she still loves to find treats in her Malaysian seafood soup and yell "Squid!"

E- Exultant - It has been so interesting to see our girls become what we named them. (or rather, see how what God put on our hearts for their names, come to pass) We named Sophia with the middle name Jubilee and she is a kid who loves to celebrate. She LOVES it when it is any one's birthday and she has pretend birthday parties all the time. her Auntie Heidi gave her some money the other day, and despite my explanations that we had lots at home she chose to buy her own package of birthday candles to play birthday with. Jubilee indeed.

Angela Eleanor Joie

J - Joie - joy in French. She is what she is called. The Joie-baby is SO happy so much of the time and laughs and makes others laugh too.

O - Outgoing - she;'s already diving in to any kind of movement, pulling herself up, and when we do "ladies ride" bounces on our knee - she has been known to flip her own legs over her head!

I - Ir·re·press·i·ble - incapable of being repressed or restrained; uncontrollable: irrepressible laughter.

E - EEEEEEEEEEE! the sound she makes most often to communicate. She's a screamer!

Thanks Heather - this was fun!

So, since you can tag one person for every letter in your name (I will be merciful and choose Joie), I tag Jan, Leanne, Jessi and Ange and Jamie
and since I have a bizarre habit of memorizing people's middle names, I look forward to see what Leah, Beth, Mae, Amy and Lee have to tell us about themselves.