At breakfast before the first day of school:

Andrew: Mommy, do you throw your yucky underwear out the window while I'm at school?
Mommy: (somewhat perplexed) Umm, no, why?
Andrew: NO, do you throw your YUCKY underwear out the window?
Mommy: No... why?
Andrew: I don't know. Nevermind. What DO you do while I'm at school?

I have just witnessed an impromptu dance recital to "The Morning Report" from The Lion King, involving lots of sticking out of the tongue, jumping, and running, completely coreographed and performed by my dear Andrew.

I never realized the best was yet to come.

Liliana Marie.

You are 6 months old today. You are AMAZING. You smile with your whole face, and when you hear your daddy's or your brother voice, you kick your little legs and grunt with that little smile and we all know you love them. When I take a drink of water, with you in your perpetual seat in my sling, you kick and bounce and grunt until I let you drink some, too.

You have a dimple in your left cheek, but not your right, just like your brother. You can roll yourself all over the place, but wherever you go, your brother can make you laugh. He bounces and sticks out his tongue and makes crazy monster noises and you just laugh and laugh. You are about the size he was when he was half your age, but you're gaining on him.

You are so loved. Your Grammy holds you and stares at you while you sleep, and your Grampa barely notices me when I'm holding you .. (come to think of it, I barely get noticed a lot these days) ... You are the apple of Daddy's eye and Andrew sometimes wakes you up just to play with you.

You have two teeth, whose arrival has left you somewhat sleepless and grumpy. You play peek-a-boo and love to dance to "Everyday" by Dave, just like your brother does. Soon, you will be crawling and then what will I do? Right now, you're just my little mini-me. I love to hold you and snuggle your neck and kiss your round little chin. You are so precious to all of us. Thanks for being our little girl.

Mommy

Sunday Confessional

Okay, I have done pretty well since I last posted, but Deanna over at Crunchy Chicken posts her confessions on Sundays so I thought I'd sync up.

I have bought, used:
3 outfits for Liliana for winter at a garage sale
1 pair of shoes for Liliana for when she starts walking, same sale
2 toys for Andrew at same sale
6 children's books, same sale
6 plastic pots for my growing avocado-plant collection
Total: $27.50

And:
More postage for stuff I sold - $4.80
6 yards of fabric and coordinating thread to make 2 slings to sell - $42.76

Not bad!

Selected Shorts

Andrew: "Cockroaches are bad! (much yelling and growling at a near-dead roach he found) I don't like cockroaches. Mommy, can you spit at bugs? . . . Do bugs have feelings?"

Also: "We will have to bring LOTS of water when we go to Ft Waterdale (no pun intended, just a 4yo's lisp). Do they have water there? (Mommy, being ignored: "yes, they have LOTS of water there...") We'll have to bring MILLIONS of jars of water when we go.
Mommy: I don't know if that much water will even FIT in an airplane...
Andrew: Maawmee.. Don't be silly. We'll bring LOTS of backpacks.

Confessions from "Buy Nothing Month"

Buy NOTHING month. Was I even paying attention?

This is what I've bought so far that's "OK":

1. Food
2. Diaper rash salve
3. Shipping for diapers that I sold (does this count? I dunno)
4. StrollerFit classes (this is a service, does this count?)

And dubiously justified purchases:
1. Toys and books for Andrew. Listen. I am NOT going on plane ride and to a wedding with this kid UNARMED. I don't care if it's Boycott Amazon Month, or Only Watch Paint Peel Month, or whatever. I will be whipping out the Transformers at the first sign of discontent.
2. A water filter replacement cartridge.
3. Clothing hangers for selling some stuff at the consignment sale. Again, an expense related to reselling my stuff. I could fashion my own from cardboard and bubble gum, but I won't. Sorry.
4. Sunscreen. And another bottle of sunscreen. Both stink like micronized metal and I will be taking them back. Or getting my secretary, um, mom to take them back for me.

Things I wanted to buy and didn't:
Don't even know where to start, people. It's HARD.

I'm tired.