Chicken Chase

Rock-a-bye Chickie

Clementine is afraid of most bugs, including butterflies, and is pretty timid when meeting new people and in new situations, but one thing she is not afraid of is giant chickens with large talons.  Who would have guessed. She's also very good at catching the chickens when even Henry gets frustrated.  To help Clementine be gentle with the chickens we rock them and sing "Rock-a-bye Chickie".  Someday I'm going to enter her into the Chicken Chase at the Rodeo and maybe she'll be the Chicken Queen. 

Photogeina

Once again, dirty face!

Clementine is the photogenic one of the family.  Bea has her moments where she looks gorgeous, but can easily look quite scraggly, mainly because she has my same hair consistency(fine and thin) which rats into a giant nest after even just sitting in a car seat.  Clementine, on the other hand, wakes up from naps and in the morningwith perfect, slightly wavy tresses that are reminiscent of Rapunzel.  Unless there's a sucker stuck in her hair(happened more than once) I never have to brush it out to make it look nice.  I have some friends who just have that one child that is a natural in front of the camera and I feel that's Clementine.  I can never even decide on what photos to post because they all look totally perfect and she has a slight permasmile. 

Model pose

Easy smiler

Sweet farm girl with popsicles

Got this one on the move.  I wish it was in focus.  Love those dimples!

Manners

Happy and dirty farm girl

Clementine is at that critical stage where she can understand everything, can say just about everything she needs to say, but chooses to whine and cry for stuff first before I stop her to tell her to say "please" and "thank you, mommy".  I have been grooming her for a long time making her do the signs, but now she's speaking the words and believe-you-me, I make her say them every time.  I will still have to remind her for a few months, but hopefully she'll follow her brother and sister and ask "may I?" when she wants something and say "thank you" when she gets it.  I'm big on manners.  Just as it is not easy teaching Bea her alphabet now instead of at 18 months when it takes one month, I think it takes a lot of time to teach kids manners later on.  I'm also going to make it a big part of my home schooling curriculum and I have the Etiquette Bible so watch out kids!

Prayer

Here she is reciting her Alphabet

Clementine said her first prayer the other day.  She folded her hands and said the last word of every sentence I told her to say and then said "amen" at the end.  She is growing up so fast right now and I feel like this is such a great age to mold her little character and her dedication to the Lord.  She copies everything she sees and I'm so grateful that she is understanding that we say prayers at the dinner table and before bedtime.  When we mention prayer, she runs over, lays flat on the ground or kneels and folds her arms during the prayer. 

Last week, for the first time ever, all four(three) kids were kneeling and being reverent for the family prayer.  It was a literal miracle! Violette was at least quiet and not blowing bubbles.  That was a great moment.

Clemmie's Babies

Clementine loves to accessorize, especially with her babies.  She loves to sit in her little bench seat and watch ABC show together with her baby friends.  Love this girl.

Darling Dishwasher

Girl Colors

 Clementine is my new go to girl for unloading the dishes.  When I open the dishwasher to unload she knows exactly what to do.  She hands me the breakables and she puts all the girl colored plastic stuff in the girl drawer and the boy colors in the boy drawer.  She even knows where all the utensils go.  She's growing up right before my eyes. This time Bea got involved and I didn't even do a thing.  I love my girls!

Boy Cups

Happy little helpers

Eclectic Dresser

Happy girl playing outside with Daddy

Most moms I know have matching outfits for their kids.  Somehow, I just ended up with tons of non matching, hand-me-down patterned tops and bottoms.  Sometimes they look cute, but sometimes the combination is hideous, but we just roll with it.  I don't have the time or energy to care about their or my clothes.  This combo outfit isn't so bad. 

ABC Baby

 After teaching Henry the ABCs and watching Signing Time every day when he was a baby, I got burned out with it because that lady sings so horribly, so I didn't even take the time to teach Bea her alphabet which I now regret because it's taking a long time to teach her right now.  Clementine, however, is at the perfect age to learn the alphabet.  They both sit and watch a new ABC show once per day called Meet the Letters that is only slightly less annoying, but teaches both upper and lower case letters. I also supplement with my own knowledge of the letter signs so we don't have to watch Signing Time too much.  It has been about a month since we started with this show and they claim that after two months, "babies and toddlers will have complete upper and lower case letter recognition" and so far I think Clementine knows a little less than half of her letters and can recognize both upper and lower case in some letters, so I'm impressed.  She seems to be learning even faster right now and there's nothing she likes more than to open books and look and point to the letters she knows.  I can tell she feels really great about herself that she knows something.  She also tries to sign the letters but doesn't have the dexterity to do many of them yet, but it's really cute to see her flashing what really looks like baby gang signs.  lol.  She also loves to sign the animals, especially bird, dog, zebra, tiger, lion, elephant, penguin, and giraffe.  The most adorable sign she does is butterfly while she says, "fly".  I just love the sparkle in her eye as she communicates with me.  She just beams with knowledge!  I love you my darling girl.

Natural Napper

 I know I constantly mention how sweet Clementine is, but have any of you ever had a child who, when you mention going to take a nap or going to bed, goes to find her blankie, holds your hand, pleasantly walks upstairs, attempts to climb into her crib, smiles, gives you a kiss and lays down and goes to sleep? Well, that's what Clementine does every time.  I think I can count on one hand the number of times she has cried when we put her to sleep.  Then, when she wakes up, I can hardly get her out of her crib because she loves looking at the couple of books I leave in there for her.  She would be content for probably two hours if I left her in there. When she is finally ready to get out, usually because I mention eating breakfast, she puts her blankie on my face and gives me a huge hug as I lift her out.  She lays down and lets me change her diaper without any complaints and usually giggles saying "poo poo" and we laugh as I make funny faces and roll my eyes around.   THEN when I carry her out of her room (which is our master closet) through my bedroom where Violette is sleeping, she whispers, "baby sleeping" and doesn't talk until we're out the door and it's closed.  She always has a smile on her face, she giggles and dances for joy every 10 minutes, she tries her hardest to use ASL for what she needs and enthusiastically signs every animal and food item she sees in every book, and freely hugs and kisses her siblings and parents on request. 

I just want to document this moment in time because both Henry and Bea were this darling at this age too, but can't I just have one child that I don't want to send to boot camp from age 2-5?  It really makes me sick to think that Clementine might put me through what Henry and Bea have.  She's just such an angel. The good thing is that Henry has grown out of his hard stage so Bea has hope...right? 

Chatterbox

Clementine eating frosting off of a cookie at Henry's Valentine party at school

 How much do I love this stage?  I just can't get enough of Clementine and all the things she says and does.  Today I let her go outside with Henry and Bea to play in the snow and she just plodded along, happy as clam just playing and eating the snow, that is, until Henry accidentally hit her in the face with a stick, slicing her frenulum, but after 5 minutes she went back out again and was fine.  She pulls out one word here and there, but usually just walks around talking nonsense that is so adorable.  I would keep her like this if I could.  She is also learning her alphabet with a couple different shows like Signing Time and Preschool Prepco.  She saw an A today and announced, "Aaaaaaaaaae" and then did the sign for A.  I bet she'll learn it before Bea.  lol. 

Impression

When I undressed Clementine yesterday morning to get her dressed I found a Lego gun in her pant leg that had been stuck on her knee all night long and this is what it made...

 I think I would have been so uncomfortable with that pressing on my knee all night, but I guess there's nothing a nice layer of chub won't take care of...not that I'm thin or anything...yet. 

Little Ball of Sunshine

Clementine hanging out with handsome bearded Daddy at the zoo.  Look at those dimples!

 Clementine is my favorite child right now, there's no doubt about it.  Many people have a favorite child, which I think is horrible, but so far I just have favorite ages.  Whoever is two or under OR five and older I like the best.  Can someone come over and take Bea until she turns 5 please? She is definitely hard on everyone.  Clementine can melt your heart with her pigtails and gibberish.  She has big blue eyes and a chubby, squeezable body.  She is easy in every sense and is so gentle and kind.  She loves playing with her baby doll and copies what I do with Violette.  She loves to come give sweet hugs and kisses to the baby and spends most of her time arranging her baby doll on her stroller along with her blankie and pushing her around the house.  If she's not doing that, she's eating enormous amounts of food or sleeping.  She hardly ever cries, except when she gets hurt or Bea takes her stuff, in which case, she yells out, "mine!" which is so cute and makes me laugh every time and also makes the kids laugh.  She's my first kid to say that word at such a young age.  She likes to laugh and can fake laugh whenever she wants to, usually at the dinnertable with tons of food on her face.  We can't wait to watch her grow up from being 18 months to 2 years old.  It's such a fun process to witness.  I love you my sweet Clemmie Boo!

Mommy with her three girls in matching swimsuits.  I just love my girls!

 

 

 

Playing at the Museum of Natural History with Aunt Kris and Bea

Aunt Margie was especially fun and attentive to Clementine.

 

 

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