This week marks the first time Zoe has had nightly homework (aside from reading). Along with reading for 20 minutes, she is to fill out a series of worksheets – some science, some math – each night and turn them all in on Friday. If we had another kind of kid, I might worry – homework is a big deal! – but Zoe is super excited about it. She’s so eager, in fact, that she wanted to do the entire week’s worth of homework yesterday after school! (We encouraged her to wait.)

-M

We put up our Halloween decorations over the weekend, and ghosts got stuck on Avery’s mind. When I put her to bed last night, she chattered on and on about them, telling me, “I know a lot about ghosts – except for what they eat.” She paused and looked pensive before asking, “Do you know what they eat, Mommy? That’s a funny question isn’t it?”

Funnier (and cuter) than that question, though, was how she pronounces ghosts “ghost-es.” I remember my parents telling me I used to call a haunted house in our neighborhood a “ghost-es house,” so I guess this runs in the family!

-M

The other day, Q and the girls waited in the car while I ran into a store to buy something. Checking out took longer than I expected, and I worried the family might be upset for having to wait for so long – but then I stepped into the parking lot and spotted the three of them. They were all in the front seat of the car, dancing and singing along to Lorde’s Royal – the furthest thing from upset!

-M

It’s been months since Zoe last lost a tooth, but she’s had a wiggly one for awhile. We were in the car yesterday when she suddenly cried out, “My tooth came out!” She was so excited that she asked the tooth fairy if she could keep this one; luckily she said yes.

-M

Avery wasn’t the only one to celebrate the holiday at school: Yesterday morning, Zoe’s class prepared for a sweet new year by enjoying some apples and honey.

-M

Avery has been learning a lot about Rosh Hashanah at school, and she seems to be enjoying it: The other day she came home and excitedly said it was a “SUPER special day” because a rabbi had come to her classroom to blow a shofar. She also did a lot of holiday-inspired artwork; below is one of her creations.

-M

Over the last several weeks, the girls’ favorite playtime activity has been school. Likely no surprise to readers, Zoe usually plays the role of the teacher – and she goes all out, with worksheets, homework, and a detailed agenda written out on our whiteboard. Grandma, Q and I have all been recent students, but Avery is the one who serves that role most often. And she doesn’t seem to mind: Yesterday afternoon she asked me, “Every day after school, can we play this?” When I told her yes, she cried out, “Yea! ‘Cause I love school.”

-M

When putting Zoe to bed the other night I casually asked how she would like if it if there were no rules, and she could do whatever she wanted. “That would be awesome!” she answered. When I asked what she would do, she told me, “I would watch shows very hour. I would eat treats like milkshakes and ice-cream. I would stay up late, until midnight every night. And I would go to school even on the weekends.” I’m thrilled that she likes school that much but I had to ask about one flaw in her plan: How could she watch TV every hour if she was at school? “Oh, I just meant I’d watch at night,” she clarified. (Sounds like she has it all figured out!)

-M

A few videos from the big game…

-M

Yesterday was Avery’s first soccer game. She and her teammates have only had three practices and are definitely novices,  but I was really proud of how well they did (and how much they tried). And I was particularly proud that Avery, who sometimes freezes up in new situations, stayed engaged the entire game.

-M

Work has been absolutely nuts (though a good nuts) lately, and there have been days when I come home absolutely wiped out. It was that way yesterday afternoon, and I think Avery – who came up and wrapped her arms around me at one point – sensed it. I thanked her hugging me, to which she replied, “I can never stop my hugs.”

-M

As mentioned, Grandma and Grandpa just stayed with us for a few days. Here are a few pics for their time with the girls…

-M

I haven’t posted for a few days because we’ve been busy with our guests. Look who was excited to see one of them arrive?

-M

Sometimes it feels like we have three mommies in the house – given how much love and attention the girls give to their various dolls (including Penelope). Here was the scene in our house on Thursday morning.

-M