Height Predictions

I just discovered this nifty tool that lets you predict your child's future height: http://pediatrics.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=http://www.keepkidshealthy.com/welcome/yahtpredictor.html. According to this tool, Doodle is going to be 5 foot, 3.5 inches when she is an adult, and Tootle will be 5 feet, 8 inches tall. If only it could predict what age Tootle will be when she shoots past her sister: I think it will be by the time she is 9 and Doodle is 13.

A Question

Doodle asked, "You know how I'll have to do essays in school soon. What does the "S' and the "A" stand for?

It shows how used Doodle is to living in an acronym filled world. Last year she did BCR's, otherwise known as brief constructive responses, everyday, and the annual standardized test has an acronym too.

Artists at Work

When my office moved in May, the office manager decided to throw away a lot of paper rather than move it. I rescued several reams of light blue paper, and the girls have been spending hours this summer honing their drawing skills. Here are some of their masterpieces. Doodle's bear is saying "Adopt me!" I think Tootle was trying to write bunny. Tootle is very proud of her work. Doodle says: "She's pretty good for a 5 year old" and I have to agree.

Two of Doodle's framed works of art hang in my office, and have been widely complimented. I think I'll be able to frame one of Tootle's before too long.

Family FotoFun Friday Challenge: Harry's World

Doodle has only read the first Harry Potter book. She has an aversion to scary or sad stories, and since each Harry Potter book gets increasingly dark, it's probably best that she stopped with the first one, at least for now. If she ever decides to read the series, they will be waiting for her on my bookshelf. I finally got the final book today, at the end of a sun/fun filled weekend. Thus far, I've read the first chapter. Doodle, feeling mischievous, grabbed the book and read the last few pages, so she knows the answer to the question that I don't want to have revealed until I near the end of the book: does Harry live? She hasn't revealed the answer yet, and I don't think she will.

A Dream Realized

When we were waiting to bring Tootle home over two years ago, a picture kept forming in my head of my daughters falling asleep together. The girls are terrific at comforting each other, but they have never been able to sleep together, even though they have tried numerous times. Someone kicks the other one or takes up too much room or one is hot and the other cold, and they end up in their separate beds. Tonight two years and nearly two months later, it happened for the first time. albeit in my bed instead of one of theirs. I'll need to move them before I go to bed, but first I will savor the realization of a dream. Sweet dreams girls.

The Sounds of Music

Doodle spent the last three weeks at a music day camp, where she got to focus on learning the flute. At Friday's recital she and her fellow flutists performed "Love Me Tender." It's amazing how much you can learn in three weeks. I also heard how much the guitarists, cellists, violinists, pianists, etc., learned, which meant that the recital was 90 minutes long. One hour later came the second performance of the day, with the kids showing off what they accomplished in the camp's musical theater program. I didn't really need to attend the show since Doodle and her friend had been belting out the numbers in the car for the past 10 days, but it was fun to see all the 1st through 6th graders perform. Doodle even taught Tootle to chime in during "Downtown," a song whose lyrics are now ingrained in my brain. Doodle is very enthusiastic about continuing to play the flute so we'll be looking to either rent or buy a flute soon.

Progression of a Portrait

Clare Waterwash, a talented artist who does portraits to benefit Amity's Kids for Hugging Grannies project (http://www.claresartportfolio.com/), let me know that she has started work on Tootle's portrait, which will match one done of Doodle several years ago. Clare provided a link so that I can follow her progress. She expects to finish the portrait by the end of next week, and I will post an update or two before unveiling the final portrait. Clare, whose graddaughter Ming is adopted from China, is also going to do a portrait of both my daughters. I'm so excited. Doodle's portrait has been banished to a closet since Tootle came home because I didn't want Tootle to feel bad that there wasn't one of her. Soon it will be hanging beside one of her sister.