Details, details...

In our lives (as I am sure with yours), sometimes the details are overwhelming and then sometimes, the details are all that matters. I thought that I would post some more details about our everyday lives just to give you a little bit of a glimpse into our lives.

1. Samantha is mostly potty-trained except for naps and at night. We'll take that gladly. She pretty much does everything by herself, washing her hands, etc. We are thankful.
2. Alexandra is growing in her school work in leaps and bounds. She can write some of the letters of the alphabet - by kindergarten, she needs to learn how to write her first and last name using upper and lower case letters. Since she has a really long name, we thought it best to work with her a lot on it. Drawing people and hearts are her big thing now. It's pretty neat to watch her be able to do things that she could not do a few months ago.
3. Samantha is also interested in writing letters just like her big sister. She too is amazing in how fast she is learning to write some upper case letters. Her motto is "If Alexandra can do it, I can too!"
4. Alexandra is now in a booster seat (vs. a normal car seat). She is so excited to ride in it everyday and to be able to get out on her own.
5. We have already started cold and flu season at our house. The girls and I are sick right now, of course when John went to a conference. But by God's grace, we did okay. We also had the help of a wonderful friend who came to give the girls lunch when I was too sick one day.
6. The girls love going to preschool. One of their favorite things is to meet each other on the place ground. We hear about how they met everyday they are at preschool. It's a lot of fun to see how much they like each other.
7. I (Susan) am in the process of making a home notebook; a notebook that has information about us and our everyday lives. I read about them on the internet and it seemed like a good idea. Already, it is wonderful, having a bunch of information that I use often at my fingertips, all organized.
8. John is hard at work. He is teaching a new graduate course this semester and a course that he has taught before, but with a new book. So, he is spending a lot of time on his classes. Hopefully, next semester can be all about research.
9. John found out at his conference that the area he researched for his PhD is becoming popular. Now more people will be reading his research, hopefully. This is good for him.
10. We took Alexandra to see a pulmologist about her asthma and croup. She had to do a skin test and did great. We are doing everything correctly, which is good. We just need to figure out a way to keep her well.
11. The girls adore Mary Poppins. Our neighbors (who are wonderful) bought the girls the movie for Alexandra's birthday and it has become a favorite. We listen to the soundtrack often, sometimes too often for me.
12. Both of the girls are going to dress up as princesses for Halloween, of course. Would they be anything else? I am not making their costumes, but I do have to do some hemming on Samantha's. I am glad that everyone will be looking at how cute she is and not at my stitches.

I am sure that there is more, but that is all I can think of right now. Feel free to ask any questions and I will respond. As soon as we are well, there will be more pictures, so be on the edge of your seat!