Over this last summer, it's been hard to separate Olivia and Carmen and it would be hard to do it in a kid update. They are always playing together. Lately, the theme has shifted to My Little Pony, and they will play with their ponies for hours. They build houses for them out of blocks, or reenact the scenes from the show.
As you can see, Olivia likes to dominate the action during playtime, to the point of telling Carmen what to say. My favorite is when she says something then tells Carmen to say "Say 'oh'" in response. Carmen is a good sport, but it will be good for her to get some independence when Olivia goes to school.
They
love the My Little Pony tv show. I have season one on my iPad, and Amber recently got season two on hers, and there is very little else they like more than to watch those shows, sometimes one on each iPad right next to each other.
They also finished up their swimming lessons together, and both got to the point where they can move across the pool a short distance if they have to (and got some ponies as a reward).
Olivia is reading very well. She's a smart little cookie and is often asking for definitions. It's not uncommon to find her sitting alone, reading a book (sometimes a non-picture book) in her head. She's still learning piano, mostly through experimentation, although she teaches herself from her books too along with impromptu lessons. She tries very hard to be grown up, and loves to be included in whatever we're doing.
Carmen, as ever, is completely different in so many ways. She is still so tender and snuggly, kind of shy, but very loving. She gives Damon genuine hugs and kisses, whereas Olivia seems to do it more to be like us. She's been boycotting dinner for quite a while now. Hopefully she'll hit a growth spurt sometime that will increase her appetite. Potty training again became in issue over the summer (which spread to Olivia, too). Carmen has been very clingy; she'll grab my hand as soon as I come home from work and not let go. I think Olivia is the squeakier wheel, so it will be good when Olivia goes to school and Carmen can get the attention she wants.
Damon is growing up fast and his personality is already developed in full force. He's still got a motor that won't stop, but he's starting to understand boundaries and will often listen to "no" (at least the first time). We can't keep an eye on him all the time, though, and he leaves a trail of mess everywhere he goes. He's still a very happy, easygoing kid. He seems genuinely excited to see me when I get home from work and will come give me hugs unprompted. He is generally very content to toddle around and play with whatever he can get his hands on, but his favorite place is his sisters' room, where he can get to all their toys, or even better, play on the top bunk. He isn't much into talking yet (he does like to say "touch"), but he babbles incessantly. He eats anything you put in front of him, in great quantities, but he hates staying in his high chair and is always trying to climb out. One day when I held out my hands in the "let me pick you up" position, he toddled over and pretended to pinch food out of my hand and put it in his mouth, which I thought was hilarious. He's always hungry.
