That's right, everybody! Kendra finally has THREE TEETH. She got her first two at the same time when she was ten months old (a little late, yes, but Bentley was the same). And then nothing else happened! NOTHING! Only two teeth! As my father-in-law pointed out, "What can you do with only two teeth? It's like trying to clap with one hand!"
But after gnawing on a dill pickle for twenty minutes (gross, huh? what baby likes dill pickles?), she finally popped out one on the top of her gums! Yaaaaay! And #4 is visible beneath the gums, so it's just a matter of time for that one, too.
Now if only we could convince her to try walking...
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Monday, April 20, 2009
Pictures
It's a rainy, dreary Monday morning, so what better way to spend my time than posting pictures of sunny days? Hope you enjoy them! (I should explain-- Kendra gets in more of the pictures because she doesn't move fast enough to get out of them, unlike, say, a certain older brother of hers... So please don't think I'm playing favorites!)
One of the dresses Kendra got for her birthday
Bentley and Kendra looking very Eastery (although I think I put Kendra in a different dress on the actual day...)
I love the flower behind Kendra's ear
Before the weather warmed up...
Spring break gave us a great chance to finally go to the National Zoo!
You can see the Asian leopard-y thing in the background. Bentley and I, however, are mesmerized by the goldfish.
Bentley's favorite exhibit: a construction site. Why am I not surprised?
Me looking spacey in front of the elephants. In my defense, I didn't know when Craig was going to take the picture...
Craig looking much better in front of the elephant-- I guess I'm a better photographer! ;)
One of the dresses Kendra got for her birthday
Bentley and Kendra looking very Eastery (although I think I put Kendra in a different dress on the actual day...)
I love the flower behind Kendra's ear
Before the weather warmed up...
Spring break gave us a great chance to finally go to the National Zoo!
You can see the Asian leopard-y thing in the background. Bentley and I, however, are mesmerized by the goldfish.
Bentley's favorite exhibit: a construction site. Why am I not surprised?
Me looking spacey in front of the elephants. In my defense, I didn't know when Craig was going to take the picture...
Craig looking much better in front of the elephant-- I guess I'm a better photographer! ;)
Xcite!
That's what our new toilet seat says. "Xcite!" Close to the hinge, on the inside of the lid-- basically, really close to where your derriere goes. Do you know of anyone who thinks/says/mutters that when they're using a toilet? Because I don't.
Other than that, I really like the toilet seat. It's wooden and heavy in a substantial, this-won't-break-underneath-me way, and it's nicely rounded out so it's comfortable to sit on. I'd been meaning to replace the original seat as soon as it was set up and I realized what a cheap, plastic seat it was (and it probably goes without saying, but it was angled all wrong, too). Who would have guessed that I had such strong opinions about toilet seats??? Anyway, "meaning" to replace something and actually getting around to doing it are two very different things in my world. And then convincing Craig that it's worth the money is a whole 'nother ball of salami, so I didn't think it would happen any time soon. But THEN we bought a new toilet for our downstairs bathroom and it didn't come with a seat at all! So I suddenly had a golden opportunity to buy the toilet seat of my dreams. And yes, I'd already picked one out. What a dork!
Anyway, I like our new toilet seat. I think the only reason that the word "Xcite!" bothers me so much is simply because I already was excited! I didn't need orders from my toilet seat!
Other than that, I really like the toilet seat. It's wooden and heavy in a substantial, this-won't-break-underneath-me way, and it's nicely rounded out so it's comfortable to sit on. I'd been meaning to replace the original seat as soon as it was set up and I realized what a cheap, plastic seat it was (and it probably goes without saying, but it was angled all wrong, too). Who would have guessed that I had such strong opinions about toilet seats??? Anyway, "meaning" to replace something and actually getting around to doing it are two very different things in my world. And then convincing Craig that it's worth the money is a whole 'nother ball of salami, so I didn't think it would happen any time soon. But THEN we bought a new toilet for our downstairs bathroom and it didn't come with a seat at all! So I suddenly had a golden opportunity to buy the toilet seat of my dreams. And yes, I'd already picked one out. What a dork!
Anyway, I like our new toilet seat. I think the only reason that the word "Xcite!" bothers me so much is simply because I already was excited! I didn't need orders from my toilet seat!
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Who's up for a poll...?
I've been resisting the Facebook craze for a while now, mostly because without internet there didn't seem to be any point in bothering with it. Now that I have internet, I'm not sure what to do... I like the idea of keeping in touch with my friends better, and especially of seeing the pictures that they post. But I really hate the idea of having to befriend the people from high school who I never really cared about much and still don't care about. I know, I know-- I can always ignore them or whatever. But that seems a bit harsh, don't you think? I don't actively dislike them, I'm just completely indifferent to them. But I certainly wouldn't want to hurt anyone's feelings.
Having said that, I'll be the first to admit that if none of them tried to "friend" me, I'd be totally offended. And I hate myself for feeling that way. Maybe it's for that reason alone that I'm afraid to join? Hmmm... Chomp on that for a moment, Freud!
Anyway, it's been on my mind. And then this morning, I was reading the Weekly Standard and there was this whole long rant about how stupid and boring facebook is, complete with an example about the guy's wife, Alana (!!!), who was a complete facebook junkie and then suddenly quit because the thrill was gone and she realized it was a big waste of time. What are the odds? It was spooky. But, on the same day, I also got two emails from friends telling me I should join. Who's opinion do I go with? I'm stuck!
So that's why I put up the nifty little survey. Feel free to express your opinion (or just put it in a comment, or send me an email, I don't care how you do it!). And if you don't care enough to respond at all, then that's completely understandable, too!
Having said that, I'll be the first to admit that if none of them tried to "friend" me, I'd be totally offended. And I hate myself for feeling that way. Maybe it's for that reason alone that I'm afraid to join? Hmmm... Chomp on that for a moment, Freud!
Anyway, it's been on my mind. And then this morning, I was reading the Weekly Standard and there was this whole long rant about how stupid and boring facebook is, complete with an example about the guy's wife, Alana (!!!), who was a complete facebook junkie and then suddenly quit because the thrill was gone and she realized it was a big waste of time. What are the odds? It was spooky. But, on the same day, I also got two emails from friends telling me I should join. Who's opinion do I go with? I'm stuck!
So that's why I put up the nifty little survey. Feel free to express your opinion (or just put it in a comment, or send me an email, I don't care how you do it!). And if you don't care enough to respond at all, then that's completely understandable, too!
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Hallelujah!
Driving home from Craig's parent's house on Sunday, they started playing Handel's Messiah on the radio. Can I just say that I love, love, LOVE Messiah. It is some of my favorite music. And the recording they happened to be playing was a really good one, from the little bit that I heard. I was a little surprised at first that they were playing it at this time of the year, but then I remembered that in England, this is considered Easter music, and it's only in America that we sing it at Christmas time, so then it all made a little more sense. (Maybe the D.J. is British?)
Anyway, listening to it and feeling slightly drowsy from eating too much at my in-law's, I began reminiscing about the experience I've had with this amazing music. So I may as well share it with you, right?
I only knew a few of the songs-- the Hallelujah Chorus, "For Unto Us a Son is Born," just the obvious stuff, really-- until my mission. My first Christmas in the mission field, the ONLY Christmas music we had was the Mormon Tabernacle Choir performing Messiah, so as you can imagine, we listened to it a LOT. And it was fun. Sister Howard and I spent many a night riding around on our bikes singing "All We Like Sheep" to our heart's content. We got some weird looks, but we were already foreigners (gaijin!) riding around on bikes in dresses in the snow and wearing helmets to boot, so we were pretty much going to be freaks no matter what we did. May as well have fun doing it, right?
My favorite songs, along with the two I just mentioned, are "And He Shall Purify," which just builds and builds and becomes more and more beautiful and intense as it goes along, and the Overture. I love how the very first bars are very slow and sad and even a bit melodramatic, until suddenly this one violin starts playing this cheerful little tune and the whole orchestra takes it up until it becomes more and more joyous. I could listen to that one little violin for hours, it just makes me so happy. I would want to learn to play the violin just for that one song, I think.
Anyway, since my mission, I've had some wonderful opportunities to continue my love affair with this music. My first Christmas home, my good friend from high school, Elizabeth, told me that her family had an extra ticket to a performance of it at Benaroya Hall and would I like to go. Would I??? Can you get much luckier than that? And then Craig and I got tickets to the National Cathedral performance last year, which was amazing. But I think my absolute favorite performance was the free sing-along that they hold at the Kennedy Center, which Craig and I were able to attend this last year.
To get these free tickets, all you have to do is stand in line for a really long time. (You used to have to camp out, but they changed that this year-- what luck! Camping on December 22nd in D.C. sounds like a very cold version of hell to me... And the wait now is inside, so it's not too bad at all!) So we enlisted my ever-helpful in-law's aid, and were able to score some seats in the fifth row! (And, extra-bonus, our friends the Fords were able to join us, so that made it even better!)
And now that I've done the sing-along, I have say that the whole thing was just incredible. It probably would have even been worth camping out for. And I hope to be able to do it many more years to come!
The main conductor (they had three throughout the course of the performance) not only conducted the orchestra and the audience, but also added his own advice and his own reading of the songs in order to help you get the right feeling for some of the pieces. So, for example, he began by asking us to turn to our neighbors, smile at them, and then remember that we would never see these people again. So if we messed up, who cared? "Sing your heart out! This is the most joyous message of all time!" he advised us. And I took it to heart! I don't think you can really fully appreciate the joy of the Hallelujah Chorus until you've actually sung it all the way through yourself. It truly is amazing. I can't remember the last time Craig and I had such huge smiles on our faces!
And speaking of joyful messages, in one of my classes at BYU, we talked about Messiah, and my professor explained that it was first performed in Dublin, and then as it became a hit in England, the proceeds from the show would go towards helping people get out of debtor's prison in Ireland. My professor commented that he thought it was highly symbolic that music about our Savior helped people pay the debts that they themselves couldn't pay.
Layer upon layer of why I love this music. I couldn't have asked for a better treat Easter night.
Anyway, listening to it and feeling slightly drowsy from eating too much at my in-law's, I began reminiscing about the experience I've had with this amazing music. So I may as well share it with you, right?
I only knew a few of the songs-- the Hallelujah Chorus, "For Unto Us a Son is Born," just the obvious stuff, really-- until my mission. My first Christmas in the mission field, the ONLY Christmas music we had was the Mormon Tabernacle Choir performing Messiah, so as you can imagine, we listened to it a LOT. And it was fun. Sister Howard and I spent many a night riding around on our bikes singing "All We Like Sheep" to our heart's content. We got some weird looks, but we were already foreigners (gaijin!) riding around on bikes in dresses in the snow and wearing helmets to boot, so we were pretty much going to be freaks no matter what we did. May as well have fun doing it, right?
My favorite songs, along with the two I just mentioned, are "And He Shall Purify," which just builds and builds and becomes more and more beautiful and intense as it goes along, and the Overture. I love how the very first bars are very slow and sad and even a bit melodramatic, until suddenly this one violin starts playing this cheerful little tune and the whole orchestra takes it up until it becomes more and more joyous. I could listen to that one little violin for hours, it just makes me so happy. I would want to learn to play the violin just for that one song, I think.
Anyway, since my mission, I've had some wonderful opportunities to continue my love affair with this music. My first Christmas home, my good friend from high school, Elizabeth, told me that her family had an extra ticket to a performance of it at Benaroya Hall and would I like to go. Would I??? Can you get much luckier than that? And then Craig and I got tickets to the National Cathedral performance last year, which was amazing. But I think my absolute favorite performance was the free sing-along that they hold at the Kennedy Center, which Craig and I were able to attend this last year.
To get these free tickets, all you have to do is stand in line for a really long time. (You used to have to camp out, but they changed that this year-- what luck! Camping on December 22nd in D.C. sounds like a very cold version of hell to me... And the wait now is inside, so it's not too bad at all!) So we enlisted my ever-helpful in-law's aid, and were able to score some seats in the fifth row! (And, extra-bonus, our friends the Fords were able to join us, so that made it even better!)
And now that I've done the sing-along, I have say that the whole thing was just incredible. It probably would have even been worth camping out for. And I hope to be able to do it many more years to come!
The main conductor (they had three throughout the course of the performance) not only conducted the orchestra and the audience, but also added his own advice and his own reading of the songs in order to help you get the right feeling for some of the pieces. So, for example, he began by asking us to turn to our neighbors, smile at them, and then remember that we would never see these people again. So if we messed up, who cared? "Sing your heart out! This is the most joyous message of all time!" he advised us. And I took it to heart! I don't think you can really fully appreciate the joy of the Hallelujah Chorus until you've actually sung it all the way through yourself. It truly is amazing. I can't remember the last time Craig and I had such huge smiles on our faces!
And speaking of joyful messages, in one of my classes at BYU, we talked about Messiah, and my professor explained that it was first performed in Dublin, and then as it became a hit in England, the proceeds from the show would go towards helping people get out of debtor's prison in Ireland. My professor commented that he thought it was highly symbolic that music about our Savior helped people pay the debts that they themselves couldn't pay.
Layer upon layer of why I love this music. I couldn't have asked for a better treat Easter night.
Monday, April 13, 2009
Disappointing Dye
I absolutely LOVE dying Easter eggs. As a kid, my Mom decided one year that eggs were cheap and it was something we all liked, so she started buying a dozen eggs for each of us. How cool is my mom? We loved it. And probably because of her attitude, I have so many happy memories wrapped around this tradition. Like the time when my oldest sister Leah, in High School, announced that she was too old to dye eggs any more. We accepted this. It wasn't a very big deal. So then when Leah's friends came over and saw the rest of us dying eggs, they all got excited because their parents wouldn't let them dye eggs any more (what kind of parents are these?) and asked if they could join in on the fun. We were actually a bit annoyed, because that meant less eggs for us, but it was worth it to watch Leah eat her words as she and her friends joined us!
When I was a grad student I decided to throw my own Easter egg dying party, and my Mom once again came to the rescue by offering to pay for the candy I wanted to buy for it. (Thanks, Mom!) So I invited a bunch of friends over, and we had a nice time. But the highlight of the party was afterwards, when Craig was leaving. No one else was ready to go yet, but Craig and I were going on my ward's temple trip to Manti the next morning, so he wanted to get to bed. Rather than kiss him good-night in front of everyone, we opted to sit in his car and chat for a few minutes before he took off. We'd been dating for about four months by then, and as we sat talking away, Craig suddenly got quiet. I finally asked him what was on his mind, and he turned it around and asked me what I was thinking about. Being way too up-front, I told him I was just wondering where our relationship was going, to which he responded, "Yeah... It just keeps getting better and better, doesn't it?"
Then he paused (probably gathered his courage a bit) and said, "So I'm thinking, maybe get engaged next month and then get married this summer?"
It was one of the happiest nights of my life.
And since then, dying Easter eggs has taken on a whole 'nother joyous aspect.
I did have Easter egg parties the next couple years, but then when I should have had the 4th one it was so soon after Kendra was born that I just couldn't pull my act together in time, and this last year seemed too soon after having Kendra's Birthday party (go figure), so it just hasn't happened. But I'm determined to do one next year! Consider yourself warned!
Anyway, we did, of course, dye eggs as a family. Unfortunately, they were all out of the Paas brand at Target. The only egg dye kits they had left were either the weird ones (who really wants to bother with marble and tie-dye?) and then some other brand called Dudley's. Well, the Dudley one had nine colors, which is my only real requirement, so I went ahead and bought it. Bad idea. I should have looked more closely at the kit.
Let me just ask you: who really wants to dye their eggs brown??? And even if you did want to, you could just dip the egg in all the other colors! You don't need a cup of brown dye! And then there were colors listed on the box that weren't even there-- no purple, and if there was both a red and a strawberry, then I certainly couldn't tell them apart! But there were two greens, which was not mentioned. (Was one of the greens meant to be something else?) And some of the colors were just plain wussy. I like my colors to be as vibrant as possible-- my favorite thing is to leave an egg in each dye for as long as possible so they get as much as they can out of it. They're so pretty that way! But that wasn't going to be worth it with this dye.
Anyway, I was disappointed. But the kids didn't really know or care, so I guess it doesn't matter. Next year I'm getting the good stuff. For my totally awesome party, which you can consider yourself invited to. Till then!
When I was a grad student I decided to throw my own Easter egg dying party, and my Mom once again came to the rescue by offering to pay for the candy I wanted to buy for it. (Thanks, Mom!) So I invited a bunch of friends over, and we had a nice time. But the highlight of the party was afterwards, when Craig was leaving. No one else was ready to go yet, but Craig and I were going on my ward's temple trip to Manti the next morning, so he wanted to get to bed. Rather than kiss him good-night in front of everyone, we opted to sit in his car and chat for a few minutes before he took off. We'd been dating for about four months by then, and as we sat talking away, Craig suddenly got quiet. I finally asked him what was on his mind, and he turned it around and asked me what I was thinking about. Being way too up-front, I told him I was just wondering where our relationship was going, to which he responded, "Yeah... It just keeps getting better and better, doesn't it?"
Then he paused (probably gathered his courage a bit) and said, "So I'm thinking, maybe get engaged next month and then get married this summer?"
It was one of the happiest nights of my life.
And since then, dying Easter eggs has taken on a whole 'nother joyous aspect.
I did have Easter egg parties the next couple years, but then when I should have had the 4th one it was so soon after Kendra was born that I just couldn't pull my act together in time, and this last year seemed too soon after having Kendra's Birthday party (go figure), so it just hasn't happened. But I'm determined to do one next year! Consider yourself warned!
Anyway, we did, of course, dye eggs as a family. Unfortunately, they were all out of the Paas brand at Target. The only egg dye kits they had left were either the weird ones (who really wants to bother with marble and tie-dye?) and then some other brand called Dudley's. Well, the Dudley one had nine colors, which is my only real requirement, so I went ahead and bought it. Bad idea. I should have looked more closely at the kit.
Let me just ask you: who really wants to dye their eggs brown??? And even if you did want to, you could just dip the egg in all the other colors! You don't need a cup of brown dye! And then there were colors listed on the box that weren't even there-- no purple, and if there was both a red and a strawberry, then I certainly couldn't tell them apart! But there were two greens, which was not mentioned. (Was one of the greens meant to be something else?) And some of the colors were just plain wussy. I like my colors to be as vibrant as possible-- my favorite thing is to leave an egg in each dye for as long as possible so they get as much as they can out of it. They're so pretty that way! But that wasn't going to be worth it with this dye.
Anyway, I was disappointed. But the kids didn't really know or care, so I guess it doesn't matter. Next year I'm getting the good stuff. For my totally awesome party, which you can consider yourself invited to. Till then!
Friday, April 10, 2009
Easter Surprise
Craig was outside with Bentley yesterday and guess what he found in our backyard??? A little nest of baby bunnies! How amazing is that? When I was really little I wanted a pet bunny so badly. I loved bunnies. (Later on whales became my favorite animal, and it turned out that my parents wouldn't let me get a pet orca either. I had a rough childhood. But that story should probably be a different post...)
Anyway, I feel that these are my pets now, even if Craig says we can't keep them. They're so tiny and cute! And their ears are so big and folded back and perfect! I love them. It's all I can do not to run out and check on them every fifteen minutes, but I'm worried I'll just scare their mommy away, so that wouldn't do anyone any good... (Although maybe if he thought they were dying, Craig would let me keep them?)
We took a picture. You can't see them very well, but trust me, they're in there. And speaking of the wildlife in our backyard, we had four deer wandering around all day in the woods behind our house. I've also seen a fox (he better not come near my baby bunnies), and a groundhog, not to mention a ton of birds. I love our backyard and all our wildlife! Manassas is so much fun!
Anyway, happy, happy Easter! If you want a pet bunny, just let me know!
Anyway, I feel that these are my pets now, even if Craig says we can't keep them. They're so tiny and cute! And their ears are so big and folded back and perfect! I love them. It's all I can do not to run out and check on them every fifteen minutes, but I'm worried I'll just scare their mommy away, so that wouldn't do anyone any good... (Although maybe if he thought they were dying, Craig would let me keep them?)
We took a picture. You can't see them very well, but trust me, they're in there. And speaking of the wildlife in our backyard, we had four deer wandering around all day in the woods behind our house. I've also seen a fox (he better not come near my baby bunnies), and a groundhog, not to mention a ton of birds. I love our backyard and all our wildlife! Manassas is so much fun!
Anyway, happy, happy Easter! If you want a pet bunny, just let me know!
Guess Who's Finally On-line
WE HAVE INTERNET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hallelujah. As my sister Leah said, "Welcome to the world of the living." For all of you who I haven't kept in touch with at all-- hopefully all that will change now! I look forward to actually keeping up with my friends again! And looking up stuff-- addresses, recipes, history, WHATEVER I FEEL LIKE! Yay, yay, yay!
Hallelujah. As my sister Leah said, "Welcome to the world of the living." For all of you who I haven't kept in touch with at all-- hopefully all that will change now! I look forward to actually keeping up with my friends again! And looking up stuff-- addresses, recipes, history, WHATEVER I FEEL LIKE! Yay, yay, yay!
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Inheritance
So it’s becoming more and more obvious to me that Kendra has inherited things from each of my sisters. Genetically, I realize that's probably not likely. You have to see it to believe it, but it's definitely there. It would probably border on being spooky if I didn’t like my sisters so much. So here’s a list of what I’ve noticed recently.
From Favorite Aunt Leah: Personality. If Kendra’s birth hadn’t already tipped us off that this girl does things her own way and on her time table, you can prove it really fast just by trying to take her toy away. She has an amazing grip and a very loud squeal of rage when she thinks it’s necessary to use it (and growing up with Bentley means that it’s used about twenty times a day). Kendra doesn’t put up with any crap. And in this day and age, I think that’s a great thing for a girl. I like that about her. Thanks, Leah!
From Favorite Aunt Tracy: Skin. I am capable of tanning, eventually, but it takes months, and usually several sunburns and I don’t really even try for it any more (No need to lecture me about the evils of tanning, Leah!). But even coming right off of winter, Kendra has the most beautiful olive-toned skin ever. I’m so jealous. I first noticed this last summer when I realized that she had a diaper tan line from the two times we’d gone to the pool! And it’s not like we hadn’t slathered sunscreen all over her! Tracy has this same easy-to-tan skin that I’m pretty sure skipped all the other Bentley sisters, but somehow popped up in Kendra. No fair. But very pretty. Thanks, Tracy!
From Favorite Aunt Natalie: Early-riser. Kendra didn’t sleep through the night until she was about eleven months old and I was finally too exhausted to wake up to her cries any more. She did finally give up on the night-time feedings, but got me back by changing her wake up time to 6:30am. I’ve gotten her to back down to 7:00, but she’s been stubborn about this time. Natalie is the same way. Her favorite thing to do in middle school was to practice the violin at 7:00am on a Saturday morning right under my bedroom. It was a source of contention, at the time, if I recall correctly. To this day, I think the latest Natalie’s ever slept is, what, 7:30? (Correct me if I’m wrong about this, Natalie!) Anyway, Kendra certainly didn’t inherit this trait from me or from Craig! Um, thanks, Natalie, I guess…! ;)
From Favorite Aunt Rachael: Fashion. I make it a point to try to time my clothes shopping with when Rachael is in town and can go with me because I trust her fashion advice implicitly. It’s a little early to tell if Kendra actually has any fashion sense (I still get to choose her outfits for her), but any time I put a bow or (heaven forbid!) a hat on her head, the only way to get her to leave it on is to show her her reflection in the mirror and tell her how pretty she looks. This will actually amuse her long enough for me to even get ready for church! Again, I should stress that this is not what Rachael does (at least, to the best of my knowledge… hmmm…), but if Kendra got any fashion sense whatsoever, you can bet that she didn’t get it from me. Thanks, Rachael!
From Favorite Aunt Jeni: Loving. I’ve seen Jeni take care of her girls, and she is a very kind and caring mother. (I like my kids a lot, but I certainly wouldn’t claim to be a particularly patient mother. Especially after my last post…!) Kendra is like that, too. She loves to snuggle with her mommy and daddy. One of her favorite games is to hug her stuffed animal doggy and then pass it around so everyone else can take turns giving him hugs, too. She’s a very loving little girl. Thanks, Jeni!
This is by no means an exhaustive list of Kendra’s aunt’s good traits—- they have many other wonderful qualities that are hard to spot in a one-year-old (like, say, punctuality). But so far she seems to have gotten more than her fair share of good things from her aunts. What a lucky girl!
From Favorite Aunt Leah: Personality. If Kendra’s birth hadn’t already tipped us off that this girl does things her own way and on her time table, you can prove it really fast just by trying to take her toy away. She has an amazing grip and a very loud squeal of rage when she thinks it’s necessary to use it (and growing up with Bentley means that it’s used about twenty times a day). Kendra doesn’t put up with any crap. And in this day and age, I think that’s a great thing for a girl. I like that about her. Thanks, Leah!
From Favorite Aunt Tracy: Skin. I am capable of tanning, eventually, but it takes months, and usually several sunburns and I don’t really even try for it any more (No need to lecture me about the evils of tanning, Leah!). But even coming right off of winter, Kendra has the most beautiful olive-toned skin ever. I’m so jealous. I first noticed this last summer when I realized that she had a diaper tan line from the two times we’d gone to the pool! And it’s not like we hadn’t slathered sunscreen all over her! Tracy has this same easy-to-tan skin that I’m pretty sure skipped all the other Bentley sisters, but somehow popped up in Kendra. No fair. But very pretty. Thanks, Tracy!
From Favorite Aunt Natalie: Early-riser. Kendra didn’t sleep through the night until she was about eleven months old and I was finally too exhausted to wake up to her cries any more. She did finally give up on the night-time feedings, but got me back by changing her wake up time to 6:30am. I’ve gotten her to back down to 7:00, but she’s been stubborn about this time. Natalie is the same way. Her favorite thing to do in middle school was to practice the violin at 7:00am on a Saturday morning right under my bedroom. It was a source of contention, at the time, if I recall correctly. To this day, I think the latest Natalie’s ever slept is, what, 7:30? (Correct me if I’m wrong about this, Natalie!) Anyway, Kendra certainly didn’t inherit this trait from me or from Craig! Um, thanks, Natalie, I guess…! ;)
From Favorite Aunt Rachael: Fashion. I make it a point to try to time my clothes shopping with when Rachael is in town and can go with me because I trust her fashion advice implicitly. It’s a little early to tell if Kendra actually has any fashion sense (I still get to choose her outfits for her), but any time I put a bow or (heaven forbid!) a hat on her head, the only way to get her to leave it on is to show her her reflection in the mirror and tell her how pretty she looks. This will actually amuse her long enough for me to even get ready for church! Again, I should stress that this is not what Rachael does (at least, to the best of my knowledge… hmmm…), but if Kendra got any fashion sense whatsoever, you can bet that she didn’t get it from me. Thanks, Rachael!
From Favorite Aunt Jeni: Loving. I’ve seen Jeni take care of her girls, and she is a very kind and caring mother. (I like my kids a lot, but I certainly wouldn’t claim to be a particularly patient mother. Especially after my last post…!) Kendra is like that, too. She loves to snuggle with her mommy and daddy. One of her favorite games is to hug her stuffed animal doggy and then pass it around so everyone else can take turns giving him hugs, too. She’s a very loving little girl. Thanks, Jeni!
This is by no means an exhaustive list of Kendra’s aunt’s good traits—- they have many other wonderful qualities that are hard to spot in a one-year-old (like, say, punctuality). But so far she seems to have gotten more than her fair share of good things from her aunts. What a lucky girl!
Good Advice
The other day as I was trying to get out the door, Bentley somehow slipped into ultra-slow toddler mode. I will hazard a guess that those of you who have had children understand this state, but for those of you who have somehow never experienced the aggravation, let me just clue you in: it’s really, really annoying. How can it possibly take anyone (even a two-year-old) five minutes just to climb into the car, climb up into his car seat and then SIT DOWN??? That’s all I was asking him to do, but to hear me trying to nag him into actually doing it, you would have thought I was Craig trying to get me to write my master’s thesis! I was practically begging, and since I was trying to reach over from Kendra’s side of the car to help him out, I was literally on my knees for this, so it looked AND sounded like begging. In the midst of my despair of ever actually getting him buckled in and going anywhere, Bentley suddenly held his hand up against me and in his very authoritative voice commanded, “Don’t cry, Mommy.”
Sound advice if I ever heard it. I could only laugh in response. Did my two-year-old really just say that to me?
Sound advice if I ever heard it. I could only laugh in response. Did my two-year-old really just say that to me?
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