“Calma… Me Calma… Calma!”

And he was suddenly calm. It was awesome! Joshua doesn’t only give little pep talks to himself, but to his sisters, as well. Whenever Kate or Liliana are upset you just might here Joshua telling them to be “Calma!”.

Aunt Janice and Aunt Linda have a huge stuffed dog named Boxer. The kids love this thing! It is twice Joshua’s size. In this picture he had picked up Boxer and was carrying him around. He was quite proud of himself!

When I let the children know it was time to go my little Kate proceeded to throw the BIGGEST tantrum I’ve ever seen her throw (which involved hitting, kicking, and screaming). And, of course, wanting to be like his big sister, Joshua decided to follow suit. Liliana was also upset because she was tired and hungry. We were one happy family!

Later that afternoon, once all was calm again, I talked with Kate and told her that no matter how sad she is about leaving, or how tired she is, it is never o.k. to act the way she did. In a very calm and thoughtful voice she said…

“Mom… I was trying to come, but my body wouldn’t let me!”

What a profound statement from my 3 year old. How well we all understand that at times “the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Matthew 26.41).

This is a sweet picture of Kate and Joshua playing together…

As soon as you unbuckle Joshua from his car seat he makes a mad dash to the front seat of the car, hoping to have just a minute to put the seat belt on and sit there. One day he was taking a long time getting out of his car seat, so I took the girls in the house. Then I went back to get him and this is how I found him. He was totally stalling so he could play up front!!

Joshua was helping with the dishes (aka playing in the sink). I went to put something in the other room and when I came back he had his head in the water. He looked up at me and just laughed because he thought it was so fun! Then he stuck his head back in. Smoothie mustache… pretty cute!

Remember me mentioning how Joshua loves microphones? This is one of his favorite pretend ones. It is a speaker at Aunt Janice and Aunt Linda’s house. This is where his love for them began. Check out his “changing voice!”

Joshua has this animal book that he loves. We read it almost every day. We have a fun time making the sounds together. Here are some of the sound he can make.

This was another attempt to get more animal sounds from him. I think it is a cute video of him, so included it as well.

The other day Joshua was chattering away, telling me all kinds of things. One of the things he told me in a very animated and excited voice was…

Joshua: Mommy, me older couts daddy!
Mommy: When you get older you get to go to scouts with daddy? (Steve is the scout master in our ward.)
Joshua: HUH!!! (which means yes, or uh-huh)

Joshua follows his daddy around whenever he can. If he puts on a hat, Joshua puts on a hat. If he puts on gloves, so does Joshua.

This picture was taken on a Sunday afternoon. Steve had fallen asleep on the couch and Joshua was in the kitchen helping me make dinner. He stepped out of the kitchen and after not coming back for a little while I went to check on him. This is how I found him…

With Mommy…

With her big sister…

With Emmy…

With Papa (and yes, that is a kiss she is giving. While Papa was holding her she looked up at him and then kissed him!)…

With her big brother (and Papa)…

With Aunt Janice and Aunt Linda…

This first picture is one of Liliana’s favorite poses. She will always roll to her side and hang out on her elbow, while checking everyone out. It is so funny! The second picture is how Liliana used to sleep. I’m glad she has outgrown that stage. It always scared me a little!

Look at those sweet little rosy cheeks!

By the time Liliana and I got outside Joshua was ready to come in. He got some snow up his pant legs while sledding and didn’t like it one bit. He drank hot chocolate and watched from the window while the rest of us stayed outside a little longer. He got a kick out of us throwing snow balls at him and letting them hit the window (very softly of course)!