i don't want to miss a thing

i feel like sam and will have grown up a ton during these last few months. i am sad that i feel like i missed so much because i didn't write anything down. i'm committed to starting these posts again, and i hope to be able to remember random things that have happened over the last few months.

sam: today we were trying to design a valentine card for his friends. he didn't like any of my ideas, so he came up with one of his own. this was it...

glue a quarter on a card and write "it's a money world. from the Vanderlindens". i'm not sure quite where he is coming from, but in a weird kind of way it makes sense, just not for 4 year olds on valentine's day!

will: he is talking SO much lately! he doesn't drop the 1st letter off of words anymore. that was so cute, and i can't believe how old he sounds without talking like that. your favorite word is "dude". you call everyone dude and use it in context; i don't know where you learned that, but you say it all the time.

sam: going to church has been a major battle the last few weeks. we have made it clear that when you are a dad you can choose whether you go or not. you have tapered off on the melt downs and now just ask if you are almost a dad. you don't mind church itself, you just hate having to wear church clothes. or at least you hate the church clothes i choose. i decided this week to take you shopping for you to pick out church clothes that you like, and that has made all the difference. you were up at 7:30 this morning fully dressed in your new clothes and there was no issue. you have always had an opinion about your clothes.

will: you love the kitchen we have put together in your room. you always pretend you are the mom and you cook dinner all the time. your favorite things to make are noodles and eggs. i love how you make everyone call you mom while you are cooking.

sam: you are growing even more opinionated about your projects and plans. you are always dreaming of inventions and writing the plan down in your notebook. last week you designed a slide that went off your bed and around the whole earth. you had a separate slide for people to go on when they were having a cardiac arrest. a lot of your games and ideas somehow involve a cardiac arrest. i asked you what a cardiac arrest was and you said it is when something in your body gets hurt and then you can't move your arm. anyways, about your projects... you always want me there to help, but if i try to help in anyway you freak out and saying i am messing up your plans and acting just like a baby. alrighty then....

will: you are very excited for me to have a baby sister. you are always talking about baby maggie. you are always telling me that you want to cut her out of mommy's tummy with scissors. i guess that would seem like a good solution to someone who loves to have scissors all the time.

you both love watching tom and jerry. you both laugh your heads off. i'm still having to monitor your tv watching time, but i think we are getting better. you actually turn it off when i ask you to and you know we won't watch it until the morning jobs are done. i'm ok with tom and jerry; i love it when we spread out blankets on the floor, have a snack, and watch it together. we all laugh.