Avery and I were lying together and having a quiet moment the other afternoon. “What do you think I’m thinking right now?” I asked, as our faces were pressed close together. “That I’m the cutest girl ever?” she suggested. “You always say that. Or you tell me you love me and give me kisses.” She paused and continued, “You’re the best mommy ever – in my whole life! Mommy, even when you’re grumpy, like tired, I love you. I love you for your whole life.”

Doesn’t get any sweeter than that…

-M

While they were cuddling/acting silly the other day, I asked the girls what they liked best about their sister. Take a look to get their (silly) answers.

-M

Here are my remaining faves. She’s with her bestie in the last (and most recent) photo.

-M

Last year of preschool = last year to sift through the hundreds of school pictures for our yearbook project! I saved some of my favorites of Avery; below is the first batch of photos.

-M

After everyone was feeling better, a little photo shoot…

-M

We had a very sleepy weekend, with half of the house feeling under the weather. Here was the scene in our living room at 8 AM on Sunday; Q found the girls like this when he woke up.

-M

In honor of Presidents Day, her teacher asked Zoe what she would make happen if she were president. Zoe’s thoughts:

I would make smoking not legal. And I would make no littering allowed. And I would make sure there’s swimming pools everywhere. And you could say abracadabra and a bathing suit would appear. And I would ask when you fill your piggybank to one hundred dollars to take half of it and give it to people who can’t afford toys like you can.

No school for Avery on Friday, so the two of us met up with some friends at the zoo. (There were at least 10 kids from her preschool there!)

Zoe, not normally the jealous type, was upset when she heard about the fun she had missed. I promised to take her the next time she has the day off and her sister doesn’t!

-M

In advance of Women’s History Month (in March), Zoe and her classmates were assigned to interview their moms. Zoe asked me all sorts of questions the other night about my past and present, and I asked for her help when the question turned to my hobbies. (I didn’t think it sounded good to answer “shopping.”) “Cooking?” Zoe suggested. “You’re a good cook,” she said sweetly – which made me smile, since I’m not much of one. She then offered: “How about being a good mother? I think you’re really good at having babies.”

-M

Zoe has quite a few girl friends – just today her teacher sent me a note commenting on the blossoming friendship between Zoe and another girl in class – but she still likes hanging with the boys. Here are two pics, both from earlier this week, of two of her closest buddies.

-M

Avery and I were talking about babies the other night, and I reminded her that she lived in my tummy before she was born. She asked when, and then thought about my answer for a moment. “Are you suuuuure?” she asked me, looking skeptical. “Yes,” I told her, to which she replied, “Are you really sure?” I had to laugh as I assured her that yes, she was most certainly in my tummy!

-M

…for her friends to arrive on Saturday.

-M

What happens when you invite six 4-year-olds over to your house to watch Frozen videos and play around? See below.

-M

We had a potluck at Avery’s school on Friday night. It was the last time we’ll attend the annual event, and it was so sweet watching the girls light candles with Director Jan, play with their friends, and (as in the last video) dance around.

-M

The girls, also big fans of the TV show “The Voice,” have taken a liking to “American Idol” this season. The three of us were watching the other night when one of the contestants sang Sam Cooke’s “A Change is Gonna Come.” The first line is “I was born by the river,” and a few minutes after the boy sang it, Zoe very seriously asked me, “Mommy, do you think he was really born by the river?”

-M