Enjoying Motherhood

I don't know why, but lately it seems we are just flying through the weeks and my babies just keep getting older. This week we decided that we can no longer consider Taj a toddler and that sadly, he is officially a big boy now. Haivi is fast on her way to approaching toddlerhood and is so close to walking I wouldn't be surprised if she took off on her own this week. I cannot believe that that she will be turning two in less than a year. Now that I teach, I am realizing just how short these years are and how sweet this time really is because  I can never get those chubby cheeks and bum bums back, those little fingers and toes, those infectious baby giggles, and that sweet sweet smell that only babies have. I still have those things with Haivi, except the baby smell, and all I have left of those with Taj are those slightly chubby cheeks and his button nose. Life is definitely moving faster than I thought it would. This post is for naming all the things I love about my kids at this age. This may be boring for some, but this blog is for me and my family and someday when I'm old I want to remember what it was like to have a one year old and a four year old.

Little Miss Haivi:
*She LOVES any kind of stuffed animal, but her favorites are her Minnie baby and her mangy, white stuffed kitty.
*She loves giving kisses to her animals and to her babies. She also loves giving kisses to her momma and her daddy and her big brother Taj. She makes the "mmmmwha" noise when she gives kisses and it always melts my heart.
*She loves her some soul food like her momma and you will regularly hear her exclaiming "mmmm" whenever she's eating. This girl loves food just like her momma AND sweets like her daddy.
*She follows her brother everywhere still and I can just tell that she is itching to run after him. I guarantee these two will be trouble sooner than later. She idolizes him and thinks everything he does is funny except when he takes her beloved kitty from her that is.
*This girl is THE feistiest little thing ever. We still joke that she has A LOT of her Auntie Macee in her. She screeches and squawks at everything and anyone that gets in her way. She is very sassy! We like to call her "squeakers" and "Haivi Hoo."
*She LOVES to dance. I will often look in the back seat to see Haivi's little legs bouncing in time to the song on the radio. She has all kinds of sweet dance moves that include swaying back and forth, flapping her hands, and doing a little shimmy. This girl will definitely be taking some dance classes when she gets older.
*She is super independent and has been since she was about five months old. She likes to try to do everything by herself.
*She is such a sweet little snuggly bug, but she only likes to snuggle for maybe one whole minute tops.
*As of right now she is the queen of tantrums, which has me scared because she's not even two yet. Her tantrums include ALL of the following: slapping, pulling of hair, screeching, kicking, arching of the back, gnashing of teeth, snot, spit, and swaying her upper body back and forth really fast. She really has a flare for the dramatic.
*She is right on cue with her speech, which has us thrilled. She tries to mimic everything we say and can manage a handful of words. She is very curious and wants to know what everything is. She points and we dictate the word and sound, if the object has a sound that is.
*Point is we love having little Haivi Hoo in our house. She has all of us whipped!

T-Man:
*We still call Taj, Taji, but another popular nickname for him is T-Man.
*Taj is doing so well in school right now. His latest accomplishments: counting to 11, writing his name, naming shapes and colors, and trying out all sorts of new words every single day. He feels very proud of himself when he can point to things and name them. I make sure I am his BIGGEST fan every time. He is progressing so quickly that I think we may be able to get him up to speed before Kindergarten. He still has one more year of preschool before he starts Kindergarten, so that will be three years total of preschool for him, which has and will make all the difference.
*Taj is still into riding anything with wheels on it, playing with cars/trains/trucks/, playing with (or teasing) his sister, helping mama cook dinner, getting the mail out of the mailbox, reading books, playing pretend with the holiday decorations, and playing the iPad.
*Taj also started singing in the last few weeks. Every night before bed I lay by Taj and I sing any and every song request he throws at me: Fahmuh Song (Farmer Song: Old MacDonald had a farm), Jesus song (Jesus wants me for a sunbeam), Star song (twinkle, twinkle little star), Santa song (santa clause is coming to town), Wudolph song (Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer), Wainbow song (I like to look for rainbows primary song), row, row, row your boat song, and several others I cannot even remember right now. We always say prayers first and then I sing at least five songs for him. He will also try to sing with the radio and he can pretty much sing every word of every song in that old-school Christmas movie Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Ask me what one of my favorite things to do is and I will tell you that nothing makes me happier than listening to my little boy sing. I have waited a long time for him to do this.
*Taj's other thing right now is that he loves giving hugs pretty much all the time. I can count on at least five hugs and smooches on the lips before I leave for work in the morning. I will definitely enjoy this phase for as long as it lasts!
*Something else about this boy is that he LOVES his family so much. He is always excited to see me when I pick him up after work and he always runs to the door when his daddy gets home. Don't even get me started on his papas and gwammas! I think he likes them more than us!
*Basically Taj is one sweet little man and you can tell that he has a very tender spirit. He is so very protective of Haiven and his family. He is very watchful over all of us to make sure that we don't get hurt. I've been scolded for clipping my toe nails before.  In his words, "Stop! Don't hut da toes!" We love this little man and what he's becoming so much!

 My sweet baby girl helping me get the Christmas decor out

 She is so proud of herself for this making such a huge mess, can you tell?

 Justin Bieber in the front

 Mullet in the back

 I cut it all off a couple of days after I took this pic. I LOVED his long hair, but it was in his eyes all the time and the back of it looked ridiculous with that mullet, so off it went!

 Taj helping me make the pizza dough

 This is why mommy  needs an apron for Christmas

Taj's picture of course of the mixer he finds fascinating.

You can probably tell that we are pretty darn lucky parents to be able to have Taj and Haivi in our house. Their daddy and I have both agreed they are the best thing that has ever happened to us and that life would be nothing without our babies. We are so thankful for our little family!