Maybrie Rae- 4 1/2 years old
Maybrie is curious, smart, shy, dramatic, and all girl! Since Maybrie attended preschool this past winter/spring, she has had a thirst for knowledge that continues to grow by leaps and bounds. She absolutely loved going to preschool and for a long while after it ended would continue to play school with us, forcing us to be Mrs. Brodhacker and Mrs. Swindle, her beloved teachers. Downsizing her mass amount of artwork was something that had to be done while she was sleeping, though we still have many pieces displayed. She loves to read books, draw, color, and write. We have been going to the weekly story time at the public library to help fill her structured learning void, which her and Thomas always look forward to. I am going to continue teaching her at home this year and I know she will miss the socialization of actually going to school. I hope we will be busy enough with outings and play dates to keep her interest.
Maybrie's imagination is through the roof! A day doesn't go by that we don't play house or dress up. Usually there is an ongoing game throughout the day with me struggling to repeat the lines she dictates to me or call her by the correct name! She loves to play with friends, though she struggles when they don't want to play what she wants to play... she can be pretty bossy! She loves to sing and dance and is often making up songs on the fly about whatever she is doing. She does have a good voice, and loves learning new songs in primary and singing along with the radio. Her favorite songs to sing along too are Taylor Swift's "Never Getting Back Together" and Alicia Keys' "Girl on Fire."
Maybrie is a typical 4 year old girl with the most gorgeous straight hair and dark brown eyes. She can melt your heart and make you want to scream within the same five minutes! She is so excited to have another baby in our home and I'm sure she is going to be a big helper this time around. She is getting more independent all the time. It is fun to have her company and someone to talk to at home all day. I love my Maybrie Rae so much!
Thomas Lee- 2 years old
Thomas is our sweet little chunk who is definitely a toddler now. He weighs a whopping 36 pounds now (more than Maybrie) and always gets told he looks like a little football player. He loves everything boy... cars, trains, trucks, sticks, animals, etc. He has his motor and gun sounds down too. I can't get enough of how cute he looks when he walks/runs with his chubby little body and back rolls. He has a super sweet temperament and is just barely starting to throw minor fits. He has a ridiculously cute belly laugh that can put a smile on anyone's face. Maybrie and Brian are the best at really getting him laughing hard... it is one of my favorite sounds! He is starting to talk a lot, learning a new word or two each day and beginning to repeat what we tell him to say. Many of the words he knows are animals and transportation. He is constantly pointing out cars, trucks, airplanes, and "cycles." He loves elephants right now and calls them "Li Li's." I keep checking out elephant books at the library and he still asks to watch the movie Dumbo, which we rented last week. He loves to go to the zoo and gets so excited to see the animals. I love watching him growl at the lions and bears! He gets super excited anytime we run in to a dog or cat, and always wants to go visit Michael and Maddie's "kitty cat."
Thomas is getting super busy. I thought we managed to avoid the "get into everything" phase, but now I think we've just begun it. He knows how to open doors now, which includes the front door! I have to keep it locked if I want to keep him from running outside. In fact, he just escaped while I was writing that! haha Oh man! He is keeping me on my toes! He loves to go outside and go on walks. He brings his shoes to us when he wants to go somewhere. It's hilarious. He loves to sweep and is always getting the broom and Swiffer out. I think I need to get a lock on the laundry room door too! He is definitely busy and curious. He is a good little eater and could live off of fruit (much like his daddy). He has discovered that he likes to watch movies, or maybe he just likes to turn the blu-ray player on and take movies out (probably the latter since he rarely sits still longer than 15-20 minutes). He loves books and will look at them for a long time. He always has a lot to say even though only a few words are understandable. He is starting to say short sentences, the most popular is "Want see ____." He loves to sing and dance like Maybrie and looks so funny when he twirls (as I'm sure you can imagine a little thick boy like him would)! He doesn't really understand that he has a little brother coming soon, but I hope he will be thrilled to have a new playmate (eventually anyway). He does love babies and is actually good at being soft with them. Honestly my biggest fear is that he will squash the baby with his weight trying to hug him too much! I love my chunky Thomas and can't wait to have another one like him running around!
