BAD Baby!

When Madeline inevitably destroys a block castle built by her big sisters or colors all over their drawings, Caroline and Maureen have been calling her "bad baby." We tried to get them to stop but Madeline keeps repeating it to the point that it's become her mantra.

Madeline: Bad Baby Bad Baby Bad Baby

MaShell, just joking: Maddie, say, "Bad Da-da"

Madeline: Bad Momma

And busted!

Maureen Sleeps With Her Friends

Maureen outside playing with friends: Mom!! I'm going to sleep with my friends tonight! We're going to have a sleepover. It is going to be SO EXCITING!!!

MaShell: Maureen, what are you talking about? (thinking she's invited all the neighborhood children, who are all boys, over to spend the night)

All the neighborhood dads raising their eyebrows: Mmm...hmmm....

Maureen, gently lifting her hand filled with crawling roly-poly's up to me: My friends, here they are!! They are going to have a sleepover with me!!

Maureen, to her friends: C'mon guys!! Let's go to bed!!

And then she ran all the way home holding her hand high.

Nature Center Friends

Maureen at the Nature Center pointing at the eagles: Look mom, there's my friends. Bob and Lisa. Hi Bob. Hi Lisa.

When Madeline Draws on the Walls

Green crayon covering nearly every open wall space on the main floor.

MaShell using my mean Mom voice and pointing to the wall: Madeline, did you do this?

Madeline nodding and smiling: mmmmm

She then took me to the next wall to proudly show off her creation....

Madeline: Awwwww

I LIED!!

Maureen: I'm going to stay in here and talk to them.

MaShell: Talk to who? Daddy went downstairs.

Maureen: Talk to my imaginary brothers--Bobby, Tommy and Jack!!

2 minutes later...

Maureen (fake sniffling): Momma, I'm so sorry. I LIED!

MaShell: About what?

Maureen: Last week, the week before, the week before the week before that I lied (bursting into tears) about my imaginary brothers. They aren't real.

Poop Story #??

Maureen, looking into the toilet: It's a poop eh-stravaganza in the toilet!

Shopping With Maddie

Madeline LOVES the food section at Target. Boxes of cake mix and muffins were right at eye level. She grabbed a box of yellow cake mix with chocolate frosting and said, "MMMMMmmm....back?!" And tossed it into the cart. Then ran over and grabbed a cinnamon struesel muffin mix. Maureen wanted blueberry so there was some negotiating between them and they settled on blueberry. Again, Madeline was all big-eyed and full of " Mmmmmm....back, back, back" and then tossed it in the cart.

Miiiiiinnnne!

Madeline, every very day pretty much all day: Miiiinnnne! Mine ball! Mine ball! Miiiiinnnnne. Un-uh. Milk?

On Death and Dying...

Maureen: I miss that Grandma.

MaShell: I know, we all miss Grandma Helen.

Maureen: She's dead. And now she's in the ground.

I Need to Find Erin a House

Maureen with a very sad face: I miss Erin.

MaShell: I know, I do too.

Maureen: I have to find her a house. That way she can move back here and be my aunt again.

MaShell: She's still your aunt.

Maureen: No she's not. She moved. That's why I have to find her a house here.

Caroline was SO good!

Our nanny writes up a little summary of what happened during the day. Today, in Caroline's first grade handwriting Caroline wrote: Caroline was so good today. And the "so" was clearly a last minute squeezed in addition.

Mmmm

Maureen to PT: Dad, everything tastes better when it's dipped in something.