Faith:
She is very into chap stick and uses it continually not just on her lips but also on her cheeks and hands. No, it is not easy to get off. She put it on this morning and said, "I'm going to wear this when I get mawwied" (that's "married" for those not into toddler speak).
She says "last day" to mean "yesterday". As in: "Last day at Miss Wendy's we played Candyland!". It is so cute I just don't want to forget it.
She is going to be flower girl at Miss Wendy's wedding in April and is very excited about walking down the aisle. I'm a little worried because she demonstrated how she plans to do it and she closed her eyes up tight and started snoring. I asked her what she was doing and she said that she intended to walk down the aisle "asleep". Hmmm. That doesn't bode well.
She absolutely adores my mom's dog, Reba. She just smothers her with hugs and kisses. She plays with her and asks mom to bring her to our house all the time. Luckly Reba is patient as Faith covers her up with blankies, puts her to sleep, etc....
She loves to read and will take a book and "read it" to herself or me by
making up the story as she looks at the pictures.
She loves to kiss me on the cheek or lips and tells me to "laugh when I kiss you, Mama, OK?" and then plants a big one on me and waits for my response.
She bounces when she is excited. Kind of like Tigger.
TANNER
He is coming into his own with friends now. He went to his first birthday party last week and although he wouldn't let me out of his sight, he had a great time and especially loved the goody bag he got to bring home. He has also been asking me for the last 10 days to invite his friend Gus over for a play date. I tried to contact Gus' mom, but never heard back and then I went out of town for work. So, tired of waiting, he decided to take matters into his own hands. When Brian picked him up that day he told him that Gus's mom had been in the classroom that day and he asked her if Gus could come over on Saturday. His mom told Tanner that she had been out of town and that was why she hadn't called back. He arranged the playdate and told Gus's mom to call me to check if it was OK. Brian and I were very proud of him!
He is really ready to read. Whenever we are driving he asks me what every sign says. He wants me to point at each word when I read to him. He has memorized the first book of Henry and Mudge and says it practically word for word and wants to "read it" to me every day. He spells everything. For example, when he wants a banana he will say, "Mom, can I have a W-A-N-D-E-E please?" Of course the letters are never right, but it is so cute that he is trying.
He is very into his ipod and recently asked Brian to add a Theory of a Deadman song onto his playlist. He also likes Kenny Chesney's "Everybody Wants to go to Heaven" and continues to be a fan of "If You're Out There". He definitely is developing diverse musical tastes!
JAKE
Brian and I decided a long time ago that we would let our kids choose how to wear their hair. It is an easy piece of control to give up without any real ramifications except that it may drive me crazy to see my son look like a skinhead or punk rocker or, currently, A LONG HAIRED HIPPIE. But overall we both think that letting them express themselves how they want to should be allowed from a young age. But, boy, Jake's hair is getting really long! We do make him trim it every once in awhile to keep the split ends manageable, but other than that he is just growing it out. Not sure his plan- does he plan to grow it to his shoulders? His butt? His ankles? Not sure, but it is pretty funny.
He, too, continues to love music. Currently he likes Nickleback and is going to the concert with Brian in May. I am not really sure of the appropriateness of this at 7 years old, but we both agree that if it is debriefed before, during, and after the event he won't be harmed by the possibly foul language he will hear (like he doesn't already hear that at home!), inebriated people he will encounter, etc.... On a funny music note, his favorite song right now is Bryan Adams "Summer of '69" and he will listen to it over and over. When he has a friend over he will put on 'It's Good to be Us" by Bucky Covington.
He had his first play date with a girl last week. He had been wanting to get together with Kate since holiday break but when the actual time came he was obviously nervous. Unfortunately it was on a Sunday and she has a 9 year old brother that was watching football, so Kate's mom had to redirect his attentions from the football game and "guy time" to playing with Kate. Still, I think he had a good time.
I guess installing a full sized backboard in their room was enough to turn the boys into full fledged basketball nuts. They love to shoot hoops in their room and play NBA 2K on the Wii. As always in our house there is no shortage of balls flying around and fights breaking out over rules violations. The boys play everything from basketball to full on tackle football (usually until Tanner gets hurt...either physically or emotionally). 
