Braced

I set the alarm clock to go off a little earlier (5:05 am. YIKES!) this morning in anticipation of bad roads and a longer trek to work. Actually, I planned to have to shake Pat awake for 10 minutes so he could go shovel a bit before we left. But granted, since we're only 5 minutes away from daycare and 10 minutes away from work and take side streets the whole way, weather really usually doesn't play a factor into our commute. Which is such a blessing. Anyhoo - our whole morning went off without a hitch. Pat shoveled. We remembered to set the recycling out. Josie was in a delightful mood. Eve was up early and was rarin' to go. I had a chance to pick up the house a bit before we left. And we were about 7 minutes early to daycare, where we had a happy drop-off. Pat commented as we climbed in to the van after saying goodbye to the girls that he felt a bit "off" having everything go so well! Moments like that make me stop and realize how fast-paced our mornings and days usually are. What a treat to have a second to relax and enjoy a "happy" morning! We'll have to strive to have more of those in the days ahead.

While most around here are anxious and dreading the storm that's a-brewin' (actually, it's already brewed - and here in full force,) I have to admit that I kind of enjoy the chaos that ensues when we start to get some snowfall. There's something exciting about throwing everyone into a tailspin. Maybe I'm just weird that way. And I guess since I have chauffeur service for drop-off and pick-up at work, that helps, too. :) I'd probably be whistling a different tune if I was the one who had to brush off the snow and scrape away the ice this afternoon. OH. Which reminds me... I wonder if Pat checked to see if we have a snow brush in the van... Hmm. Can you believe we live in Minnesota and have to even ask that question?

Here's some of the fun stuff Josie has been up to lately, in no particular order:

• Getting herself *mostly* undressed and sometimes, dressed, by herself.
• Constantly asking Daddy for piggy-back rides.
• Loves to brush her teeth. I think she just likes the rinsing and spitting part. Ask her sometime what a camel does. Then take a step back. :)
• Washing her hands. Anything to do with water, she loves.
• One of her favorite games is to lay down a dish towel on the table, set some various sized glasses and cups on the towel and put a bit of water in them, then pour the water from one into the others. Oh - I guess I should clarify - she isn't the one to lay down the dish towel. We finally learned that trick after a few times of playing this game.
• If you ask her where something is, instead of just saying "ummm," she'll also throw out an answer. Usually she starts with "Kitchen?"
• Asking for ketchup and mustard at supper. No matter what we're eating. Did you know mustard is tasty on fish?
• Helping put away dishes from the dishwasher. She's particularly good at the silverware.
• Says "love you" without prompt. I especially like that one. :)
• Learned to play "cut the pickle.. tickle, tickle!" from Lucy. Not sure if the cut-er or cut-ee is supposed to be the one doing the tickling, but she does it both ways.
• Knows most of her body parts now. Especially is fond of armpits. And elbows. Except she seems to think that elbows are on your belly.
• Loves to name colors of objects. Granted, she's usually wrong, but you gotta love the enthusiasm she puts into it.
• I mentioned before how she likes to "sniff" when Daddy toots, and scold him. Well, now that game applies to anyone. So watch out if you're around her anytime soon. You may get told you're stinky, even if you're not guilty of the crime. :)

And Eve. My Doodle is growing up so fast! She cut another tooth - but it's not the other front tooth. It's on the other side of the front tooth she already has. Far be it from her to do things in the order you're supposed to! I'm sensing this may be a trend with my youngest. Guess time will tell. But she's been a much happier little girl since this tooth came in. She loves to sit in the highchair and have an array of toys laid out on the table in front of her, then she grabs each one and tosses it. This usually brings a frustrated exclamation of "Ee-eevvvie!" from her sister. But Josie will always pick them up for her and hand them back. Over and over again. They were adorable together last night - they were playing this game, and Josie had her hand on the highchair and Eve grabbed her fingers. Josie laughed and laughed, then did it again. And Eve laughed and laughed at Josie laughing. They went back and forth this way for a while, and I never wanted it to stop. That's one of those memories that will be forever etched in my mind. So sweet. I'll have to remember that one in the future when they're pulling each other's hair. :)