What I Love.

Ivey

-I love hearing, "I want to hold you."  (uness it's said in a whine!)
-I love that a "warm cup" means a cup of warm milk.  Each morning she "needs a warm cup".
-I love that when she realizes you are mad that she has done something, her response is, "I need you to be happy for me."
-I love when she sits at the breakfast table and says, "I need a calzone."
-I love that she adds the word "anymore" to any sentence to add more drama. She always speaks it in a very deliberate, enunciated, Queen of England type way.  For example, "I don't like dinner, anymore!" or "I don't like to play, anymore!"
-I love that tomato soup is tornado soup.
-I love that Snow White is "The White One".
-I love that Monsters Inc is called, "Mosters and Wink".
-I love that, even without an "I love you" from me, she says to me, "I love you, too, Mommy".
-I love her funny use of "why not", that always baffles me to silence.  For example, Me:  "We have to go to the store."  Ivey:  "Why not?" 
-I love that she says "I want to go home", even when we are home.  It means, "I want to get in the car and go somewhere."
-I love that she sings in the car, loudly, as if we cannot hear her.
-I love how she inserts Olive's name into songs, like "Twinkle Twinkle Little Olive."

Addison

-I love the fact that he explained to me 75 times how the Easter Bunny saved us money.
-I love how he is always letting me know when Olive or Ivey might be getting too close to something that may be considered a danger.  Including birthday candles.  On their own cake.
-I love how if I ask if he would like to play a sport, go to a restraunt, eat ice cream, etc., I can count on the fact that he will ask me about the cost in order to weigh it into his decision.
-I love that he can tell me how many pages are in the Hobbit.  And that I've heard it so many times I can remember (317).
-I love that, out of the blue, he will inform me of how many seconds are in 4 hours, or how many feet are in 2.5 miles, or explain to me the long and drawn out way that he can calculate 90 x 617 in his head.  I don't love it as much when it's 6:45am.
-I love that he usually does not ask to do something without explaining to me the educational value of it.
-I love that I cannot tell him "no" or "that is not correct" without him insisting on apologizing for asking or doing it wrong.
-I love that I cannot talk about running errands or starting school at 11:30 without him vocalizing his worry about it interfering with his farm chores.
-I love his concern with if we are using the most affordable insurance company, if the coupons in the magazine he found under the couch are expired, and if we can send in to the drawing on the back of the cereal box.
-I love that he wakes up at 6:30, even though no one else is up until 7:30 or 8:00.
-I love how he takes to the yard, with his Star Wars guns in hand, to battle imaginary foes for hours on end.
-I love how he uses military terms in everyday conversations, such as, "Olive is so ticklish under her chin!"  "It's a good thing it is heavily protected by her enormous head."

Asa

-I love how, whenever something even slightly surprising happens, he responds with a very comical "What?!"
-I love that he lights up when he hears the words "danger" or "destruction".
-I love how he delights in humor.  With a simple pun, I am the funniest mommy in the world.
-I love how his favorite shows are on Food Network and The Discovery Channel.
-I love how he cracks eggs perfectly, pretty much every time.
-I love the energy he has when he is excited about something (but not necessarily his inability to stop asking about it over and over again!)
-I love his transparency.  If he feels it, you see it.
-His heart:  I love the fact that if I get hurt, he is the first one (usually the only one) to run and give me a hug.
-I love that he is protective of me... even telling Daddy that he needs to be nicer!
-I love how he leaves Thank You notes for Santa, the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Fairy.
-I love his green thumb, and the fact that when we go to the store, his biggest treat is if I let him pick out some vegetable seeds.
-I love that he cannot see a machine, building, or contraption without trying to figure out how its made, and if he can make one himself.
-I love that I have no idea how on Earth he makes the Lego creations that he does... and that I am totally incapable of helping him fix one when it breaks.

Olive

-I love how she scrunches her nose and smiles with all her might.
-I love how she picks up her blanket and asks to go to bed by putting her head on my shoulder.
-I love how she cannot see someone lying on the floor without flopping down on them.
-I love how she says "More" and "Down" so delibrerately, and how proud she gets when she does.
-I love that, every time we go in the yard, she sprints straight for the goats and chickens.
-I love how she does not fear the vacuum, power tools, the garbage disposal, or pretty much anything at all.
-I love how she plays peek-a-boo by covering up her ears.
-I love her strong will, her snuggly nature, and her desire to be the class clown.