Fire, ITS A FIRE!!!!!

Boy, this week was pretty interesting! They are truly a product of their father and mother... Before Charles and I had kids, we used to joke, "they are gonna be little genius, wanna be superkids, who have something to say about everything, are not scared of anything, and run on a full tank of energy for 23 out of 24 hours in a day." Well, all I can say is that we got what we bargained for! So, here's the breakdown of the week:

Catalina

So, she's still "into" Tae Kwon Do. Charles has actually been taking her to classes, but because he had to work tonight, I took her. I was watching her and I went through 2 emotions - "How cute!" and "Won't that girl PAY ATTENTION!!!!" My Pastor's son, Joseph, and daughter, Isabella, have tons of patience to deal with her ADD self!! :) With all that said, she loves it, and after just 3 or so weeks, she'll get to the point to where she can practice discipline. She IS the only one in her class that can do a split!!

I do have to admit, I am nervous that she is getting her report card soon. She hasn't been doing that great, especially in Reading, but last time I was so upset that she got mostly S's (the equivalent to C's). When I was a kid, I made STRAIGHT A's - I mean on tests and EVERYTHING - and its frustrating to not see the same thing in your kids. She is unbelievably smart - and I think sometimes my expectations are WAY too high. Its a question of "do you push hard or let things go as they may?"

Something Charles and I were talking about today is how she is beginning to make up songs...about EVERYTHING! The funniest ones are when she sings about her life being unfair because she has to clean her room, or her dad being mean, her mom making her read, you know 7 year old drama stuff. This child wears the drama-queen crown well! However, I do love hearing her in her room, alone, singing about Jesus. THAT makes me smile :)

Branden

Oh, boy, where do I start? So, as some of you know, Branden is like Momma's Cooking Helper. He really shows an interest in cooking, so I let him help. Well, Sunday, he set our microwave on fire!!! Although he knows basically how to use it...he can melt a butter stick (with help) and other stuff. Apparently he got hungry and we were not moving fast enough for him. So, Branden takes it upon himself to take 4 pizza rolls out of the freezer, put them on a plate, and put them in the microwave for about, oh, 20 minutes!!! I was upstairs watching the Saints game (WHO DAT!!!) and although I was congested and sick, I smelled something burning. How in the world did Charles and Catalina not smell it or see the smoke I don't know, but our house was CONSUMED by smoke. So of course we had to air it out and toss the microwave, but we are all, thankfully, okay.

He got his report card this week, and again, mom wasn't satisfied. Do I ask too much? Actually I don't think so. He is the youngest in his class, and to my surprise, one of the top students. The actual grades don't upset me, but the fact that he went down a letter grade on some things does. Maybe its laxidasical parenting. I've slacked off, I'll be honest. So, this "semester" we are going to work on B-funk's writing!

And finally...the Brandenisms. Maybe its just me, but this boy is hilarious!!

• We had just listened to the country song "Redneck Woman." I guess he liked it because after it was over he said, "Mom, put that 'Big Woman's Neck' song back on!" I just about had to stop the car because I couldn't stop laughing.
• As he was trying to "give me a shot" he says, "Trust me, mom, I'm a doctor!" I'm just hoping he loses this line before he hits the teenage years!
• "Dad's are supposed to be mean, mom...that's why they are taller."
• "When you sing, you sound like a beautiful angel...except when you sing in the shower." Gee, thanks, Branden, LOL

That's all I can think of at the moment, but I'm sure there's more. One of my favorite things about him, that I was reminded of tonight, I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE that when he cracks up laughing, he get's hiccups...EVERYTIME!

Anyway, looking forward to another week in the lives of the Stewart Littles! I think of people, including myself, who've had miscarriages and experienced the loss of an unborn child- (I know one friend who's lost 5 kids in less than a year), and all I can do is thank God that I have these two blessings. Thank you God for such wonderful blessings.

The First Adventures of 2010

Branden:

The 4 year old mommy's boy...

This has got to be one of the most affectionate kids I have ever met. He tells me about a 100 times a day that he loves me. His new thing is this: "Mom, you're the best, best, best,bestest, bestest. bestest, bestest, bestest, bestest, bestest mom I ever,ever, ever, ever,ever. ever, ever, ever, ever, ever had!!!"

Of course, I love to hear it, but I have to admit, I love hearing his sister's disgruntled reply as well: "Branden, she's the ONLY mom you've ever had...DUH!!!!" (as she shakes her head). I have decided to start writing his "Brandenisms" in this blog. This dude is funny. He says some crazy stuff! Two things he's said this year so far is this:

• He told a man that goes to our church, Arthur, who was teasing him for hurting his sister, "When I get big, you better watch out because I am coming after you and I'm gonna beat you up!" He was pointing his finger and all!
• As I was fixing my hair the other day, he tells me this: "mom, I know how to make your hair fabulous." I ask, "how's that Branden?" "You can get one of those bump-its like on the commercial and it will make your hair fabulous." Then proceeds to tell me that his Auntie Katie is going to get one too so she can be fabulous.

So, yeah, he's just funny. He tells his dad yesterday that the guy came in the house to fix our satellite dish took a shower while he was here - imagine the questions that raised, hehe! All the while he was watching him like a hawk in our backyard. Then later on he says, "Mom, the refrigerator told me I had to drink this juice right now (those who know him know he's ADDICTED to juice).

On a serious note...he is doing amazingly well in school. He's in pre-K at a Christian private school. He's taken over our dinner prayer before we eat, and NEVER goes to bed without reminding me to pray for him. I am so glad tho because he's realizing, whether he knows it or not that prayer works! His teacher says he is the most well-behaved child in his class...surprising, I know! He's learning to write his letters and can spell his name. I'm so proud of my baby.

Lastly...the ONE THING I love the most in Branden's new changes...HE IS A SAINTS FAN!!! Someone at church corrupted him last year into rooting for the Cowboys, so this year it was my goal to groom him into a little Saint's fan like his sister and I. "WHO DAT!!!"

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Catalina:

The 7 year old drama queen...

This year so far, Catalina has been working on not whining as much. We had a talk with her explaining the importance of respecting when people say "no" and to learn to obey without asking "why?" for every single little thing. However, we added a little incentive: Tae Kwon Do. Although she started out in ballet, and she will return this year, she has recently taken an interest in Martial Arts. She worked hard with no whining for 2 weeks beginning the year so that she would be able to join the Tae Kwon Do group at our church. So far, so good!

I am still awed by how smart she is in Math; in fact her teacher told me the other day that when other children don't get a concept in class, she often calls on Catalina to help clarify. She's actually working on multiplication at the moment, which is really impressive for a second-grader. A chip off the old block? I hope!! :)

We are working on her reading because her teacher says she needs to be a lot higher up than she is. I think what's really going on is that she is used to watching TV so much that the respect of reading just isn't there. So, we reduced her viewing time to 1 hour a day. I think once she builds confidence that she is a good reader, she'll be ok. Another thing she takes after her mother with is art. She is becoming quite the little artist. I'm so proud...*sniff, sniff*

I have been home the past couple weeks, so I've had a lot more time with her. I have observed the same bratty, bullying behavior in her towards Branden that I used to display to my brother, Ralph. It is actually funny and I often crack up when she's not looking. I see myself in her...majorly! However, Branden isn't too happy about it. He often fights back...and boy do they go at it. Physical? YES!!!!

She's been singing a lot on her new Karaoke machine and has also been playing her new Hannah Montana guitar (the one that her Uncle Joe wants to play at church, lol) and I think she might really start to learn some things. That's awesome. You know I gotta raise up some future worship leaders, so why not start now? Although I have to admit, the song "Party in the USA" is the most frequently played song in the house...

New Year

So, we are now in a new year. I've promised to update this blog pretty regularly so that I can always have something to show my kids when they are older about their lives growing up. I hope this year brings about new changes in motherhood because I've vowed to make that big priority this year. I feel like going to school has really taken away from my children because mom was always busy, but school is finally done - for a while - and now its time to focus on the right things...

Anyway, enjoy Catalina & Branden! Mommy loves you more than you will ever know.