I'm pretty sure God makes them funny so you'll keep them...

Ella has had several "milestones" lately that she's extremely proud about. She's been doing a really good job wearing big girl underwear, and has discovered that she can take off her own pants in order to go to the potty. She has confined this new talent to the bathroom, which may be a difference between boys and girls? She's also figured out how to climb the various ladders and climbing walls at the playgrounds (which can be pretty entertaining and exhausting to watch since her legs are really short). She also has coined a new phrase for milk--"cow juice". That makes me laugh almost every time. We recently put a picture on the wall over the stairs; it's an abstract piece with mostly rectangular shapes/colors on it. Every morning as we walk down the stairs Ella tells me what she thinks it looks like. So far her most common themes are religious-- "I think that's Jesus, Mommy."

Ethan has become preoccupied with when he's going to go to school. Today he told me that when he reaches the "final number" (which for some reason is his wording for any age that he will have to be to do something) he's going to drive a car to the bus stop and then get on the bus to go to school. He also gave me lots of kisses, followed immediately by a request to watch some tv. Some work to do on his subtlety! Last night he made me laugh when we were cooking--"Are you going to put some sneezeaning in that sauce?"

If you're wondering how to pray for me these days, patience would be high on the list. It's been challenging to model respectful communication in the face of the kids' frequent bickering with each other, whining, and flat out disobedience. I know you're not supposed to pray for patience since like most virtues it comes through the trials, but we're living the challenges and I'm hoping to use all of these opportunities with them in a way that glorifies God and shows His love. God has mighty things in store for these two little ones, and I'd like all of us to survive 2 and 3 to experience them!