Audrey declared it was circle time this morning.

Ian does not always want to do circle time upon demand.

Especially on a Saturday morning.

After several repeated attempts to "make" Ian sit down, Audrey increased her level of bossiness.

I intervened.

Audrey, don't be so bossy!

"Well, we're in school!"

That doesn't mean you have to be so bossy!

"Well, I'm the teacher and that's what teachers do! They're bossy!!"

(That's for all the teachers in our family!) :)

This is a picture of Audrey leading circle time. I cannot stop laughing about the fact that the Reader's Digest is the subject material. And the cover story is, "Are You Normal or Nuts?"

Wheels on the Bus

Ian loves to get us to sing Wheels on the Bus. We're thinking they must do this after breakfast at school since he will often rolls his hands to cue us to sing (and of course act out!) Wheels on the Bus after he's finished with breakfast.

After a not-so-good night of sleep, we were all dragging a bit this morning. Except for Ian.

So, Ian did his thing, asking for Wheels on the Bus, while Audrey and I were sitting and eating breakfast.

And then I hear it, mumbled under her breath:

"No Wheels on the Bus this morning! The wheels are FLAT!"

Obecalp

Audrey is dramatic. Lots of bodily complaints. Definitely a somatizer. Even a small scratch on the knee results in limping. For hours. She will often try to get medicine for her ailments.

Eric has started giving her Dr. M's special medicine.

Water.

I laugh every time he does this because he goes into the bathroom and fills a medicine cup with water. And Audrey drinks it down. Dr. M should really patent this stuff given its effectiveness. I asked Audrey one time what it tastes like.

"Water!"

I still can't figure out if she actually knows it's just water or not. But, she calls it 'the medicine that tastes like water.'

I asked Eric what the real name of the medicine was. To which he replied, "Obecalp."

It took me way too long to decode this but it's harder to do upon hearing than seeing 'placebo' backwards (at least that's my excuse). While I was thinking out loud on Audrey's bed, trying to figure out how he had come up with the weird name, Audrey joked and said: "Oh, don't listen to that Eric! He doesn't know what he's talking about! It's called 'medicine that tastes like water!' Right, Suz?"

I'll have to ask her someday when she figured out what Dr. M's special medicine was made of. But, for right now, I'm not planning to tell her.

Gymnast

Audrey started gymnastics lessons this morning! I bet it's all we'll be talking about for some time! I can't believe what some of the girls can do in there, though they have been taking lessons for a while, some for a couple years. Can't wait to watch her and learn with her!

Age 4

I am *really* loving age 4. I mean, I've enjoyed Audrey at every age, but she is such a neat person to know. Intelligent, witty, charming, thoughtful, loving, endearing. Still strong-willed and dramatic. But I love those aspects, too. Her brother adores her. She makes friends everywhere she goes. Curious. Entertaining. I get asked at work for some good "Audrey stories".

She stopped napping when she turned 4, and now loves being called an "expert fall-asleeper". Never thought I would say that about Audrey! She does still wake sometimes during the night to ask to be covered up. (One night, a loooooonnng night in which the kids were ganging up on us and one kept waking up after another, Audrey called me in her room one last time, to let me know she was going to fall asleep now! But, I digress...) So, while Ian naps, she and I hang out, often cooking, or playing a game, or snuggling on the couch. I love it. She talks my ear off. Sometimes will jokingly ask for a moment of quiet (guess who she hears that from?). And I can always give her one! Or more!

She loves watching a PBS show called Super Why. Ian loves it, too. It's a great show which teaches literacy. Yesterday morning, when I came downstairs, ready to head to work, she and Ian were hanging out in their pjs, anticipating their day at home with Eric. Super Why was on, and I noticed that Audrey and Ian were right up by the tv. (Sorry Grandpa S, they were indeed too close to the screen!) I noticed that Ian was holding out his finger, waiting for Audrey to guide his hand to the right letter on the screen. Which of course she did. Repeatedly. I'm tearing up again just thinking about it. How thoughtful this little girl is. No wonder Ian adores her.

Of course I mentioned to her soon after how good of a big sister she is, and how proud of her I am, "Yeah, yeah, mom." Mumbled under her breath.

Never a dull moment with our red head!

March

Daddy, did March come in like a sheep or a lion? :)

(I heard Ian 'roar'. So, I'm guessing I know his answer.)