Carrie’s been begging for a Belle dress for her dress-up box, so I finally gave in – after all, she’s been so patient and well-behaved at all of the rehearsals I’ve been dragging her to. And with all the dialog and vocals she has memorized, I think she’d make a pretty good (although perhaps slightly short) understudy for Belle!
(P.S. Happy Leap Day!)
Dear Carolyn,
Some of my very earliest memories of childhood are from when I was exactly the age you are now. So I wonder what you’ll remember when you’re all grown up? And even more, I wonder what I’ll remember of you being this age…which is why I keep trying to write it down!
With the musical opening in just a couple of weeks, we’ve been at rehearsal a lot. And you have pretty much every song, including all the dialog over the underscoring, and most of the scenes memorized. I just have to play the opening bars of any song and you’ll immediately start singing along. Your favorite line, though, is when Chip says “See? I told ya’!” to Mrs. Potts. So now whenever you tell me something it’s usually followed with “I told ya’, Mommy!”
And I have to admit, aside from rehearsals, we haven’t done much else besides your daily activities (school, playgroup or dance class) and watch TV. I have been so incredibly tired lately that I have to just close my eyes for a few minutes after lunch every day, and that translates into you getting to watch however much JoJo’s Circus, Word World and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse you want. I feel like a horribly mommy, but you’re just plain thrilled. I’m just glad we have a Tivo!
This month has been a bit…dramatic. Everything is meltdown worthy, even though you’re generally an easy going kind of kid. I don’t know if it’s the extra on-the-go time we spend at rehearsals, or if it’s just that the idea of a new sibling is finally catching up to you? If it’s that, I know we’ll have to show you and not just tell you, but we’ll never run out of love for you just because we’ll have another baby in the house to love, and you’ll always be my baby.
Love, Mommy
Tonight at dinner, Carrie said, “Mommy, I finished all my green beans, can I have some salad now?” That’s just so not normal for a three-year-old.
She’s decided to name the baby “Teeny”. So when I went to pick her up at preschool the other day she ran up to me, wrapped her arms around my stomach, and said “Hi Teeny!” into my belly button. Oh, and the baby’s nickname? It’s apparently going to be “Tiny”. Watch this kid turn out to be a football player, with nicknames of Teeny and Tiny.
Carrie also asked the other day if the baby is wearing an itty-bitty pair of pajamas in my tummy when he or she is sleeping. Uhhh. Not exactly. “But why not, Mommy? Won’t the baby be cold?” I just have one question…why did we have to hit the “why” phase right in the middle of my pregnancy?!?
She is just all about the baby lately. We bought her a new carseat today (the Graco Nautilus) for Denis’ car, because she’s too tall for the ComfortSport that was in there and we’re not ready to put her in a booster seat just yet. We haven’t really shopped in a baby department lately, and Carrie apparently had no idea the range of things you could buy for a baby. If she had had her way we would have come home with dozens of little socks, tiny pairs of shoes, bibs, washcloths, toys and an exersaucer. Oh, and another stroller. I had to promise her she could pick out a special toy for her to give to the baby just as soon as we know whether it’s a brother or sister just to get her out of the store!
For Christmas, Carrie got a sled from Uncle Dan & Genevra. She’s been so eager to use it, but the only days we’ve gotten enough snow were days I had to work at the shop all day, and then by the next day it would all be melted. Well, today the stars (and clouds) aligned and Carrie finally got the chance to sled!
Denis pulled her around the yard a bit, and then let her slide down the tiny little hill next to our house…which is perfect for a tiny little three year old!
Carrie likes Valentine’s Day. You get cards and goodies from all your school friends! I feel kind of bad because they sent home a note suggesting that the kids all exchange little cards, but everyone else gave out little cards plus pencils, candy or other goodies. Silly me for following directions. Sigh.
Yep, Carrie’s going to be a big sister this July. And she’s ecstatic, excited, and exhaustingly sweet about it!
I hope this explains why I’ve been so incredibly horrid about blogging. I’m so much more tired this time than last time. When I was pregnant with Carrie, I took naps, went to bed early, ate the exactly perfect diet and did everything by the book. This time? I can only apologize in advance to this poor child, who’s already been subjected to more caffeinated soda than can possibly be good for them and the least amount of sleep a pregnant woman can possibly get without falling over. I’m actually already 17 weeks along. I’ve been meaning to blog about this for more than a month, but by the time I manage to stay awake long enough to read discussion boards and catch up on everyone else’s blogs, I’m too tired to write a coherent post. (Technically, I doubt this one counts as coherent either, but I’m too tired to care!)
I have a funny story from when we told Carrie. It was shortly before her Christmas pageant, and I asked her if she knew what it meant to be a big sister. Blank look. So I tried again, and told her that when it’s summer again, when it’s hot, a new little baby is going to come live with us. And she gasped and excitedly said, “Is it the baby Jesus?!?” Uhhhh. Not exactly…
Every day she talks about her “newbabybrotherorsister” (really, she says it fast enough that it might as well be all one word) and how her new baby is going to sleep in her old crib, and she’s going to feed her new baby baby food, and her new baby will be too little to drink from her big girl cups and will have to use a baby bottle, and her new baby is going to play with all her old toys and wear her pink socks that her big girl feet are too big for and…you get the picture, I’m sure.
Carrie keeps asking to listen to the baby in my tummy, and she gives my belly hugs and tells the baby how much she loves him or her. It really is absolutely, wonderfully sweet. Although, I can’t wait to find out if she’s having a brother or a sister, to cut down on the “Mommy, I want a baby brother” requests, followed the next day by “Mommy, I want a baby sister!”
Last time I was sure I was having a girl, and I was right. This time? No clue. I don’t sleep enough to have dreams about boys or girls! But I will be very, very happy either way. And I think Carolyn will too. Especially if she gets to pick out the paint color for the newbabybrotherorsisters room. ;)