2020

 I walked in on Estelle doing downward dog in front of the laptop during virtual school.  Second grade elevated!  Hickam teachers working hard here!

Estelle in virtual class... "Mommy, look!  I'm sticking up my middle finger at the camera!"  I trip over myself to run in there and stop the insanity, and she laughs, "I was sticking up my ring finger."  

Lela got an email from Terry's cell phone so she didn't see his name in the "from" field.  It said something about a project that she was working on.  Well, she didn't know who it was from and replied, "WHO ARE YOU?!  I ain't a dummy!"  Terry wrote me asking what this was all about and I confronted Lela... she wasn't about to take any talk from someone she didn't know!

Lela has been doing bedtime meditations.  When we went to load it one evening, I noticed that someone had left a comment on the meditation that she was about to do.  The comment was from someone named "Sara".  :)  Lela had commented on the app (which was logged in under my name) stating how much she was enjoying the meditations!

Lela and Estelle both put huge rule signs on their door.  The rules are very specific and family member dependent.  Welllllll, one of E's rules is "only 51 stuffed animals".  I asked her what that meant.  She said, "Just go with it."

Estelle is very into time and and watching it click to :00 or to all the same number, such as 2:22.  She points it out often.  Also, she thinks all convertibles are Lamborghinis.

Estelle: "I cannot wait to see Nana & Opi & Grandmere & Papa soon!!!  I also want to meet a real live woodchuck!"

Playing Uno with the girls on the patio tonight and Estelle and I play the second game just the two of us... I win again.  She says, "Oh, I used to be the champion and now you're winning.  GOSH, I must be getting old."

Estelle just asked the woman next to us at gymnastics, also our friend, whom she voted for and as I quickly tried to find another subject to talk about, the woman answered, "TRUMP!" and Estelle did an eye roll and looked away.

e & l - the latest

lela: "mom, you're just too encouraging and it's embarassing!"

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estelle declared that she's saving her weekly allowance ($3/week) until she moves out of the house so that she doesn't have to work the rest of her life

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one of lela's friend's moms pulled me aside outside our apartment door and said she had something she needed to discuss with me.... her daughter had asked her (after being at our apartment) if "daddy is going to put his xxx in you again and make another baby" - based on a book she had read/seen at our place.  gaaaaaaaaaaaaa..... she and lela had been perusing the "it's not the stork" book that we bought lela and emerson hadn't quite had the discussion yet.  soooooo embarrassing.  needless to say, i apologized and her mom borrowed the book to read with her.

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me:  "girls, do you see all the tree pollen in the air right now?"

estelle:  "oh, that's not pollen, mom.  those are everyone's wishes floating through the air."

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lela got her ears pierced in the SED and wouldn't do the second hole... after some return attempts and also trying at claires in honolulu, she still wouldn't get the second one done.  so scared.  finally, on e's sixth birthday, she decided she was ready.  we went to claires and e waited ever so patiently for lela to muster up the courage to do it.  the fear overtook her again and the clock just kept ticking.  two hours into the ordeal (the clerk was SO patient), the clerk finally said, "i just need to clean it one more time because you've been touching the area with your hands and if we're ever going to do it, this area needs to be clean".  so, lela leaned her way (finally removed her hand from covering the ear) and the woman DID IT!!  i was not about to leave that place without the earring, so i was SO beyond happy when the woman pulled a sneak attack to get it done.  lela was first mad, but then grew happy that it was over and done... but still complained that it hurt.

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me (ALL THE TIME): "estelle, USE YOUR SILVERWARE!"
estelle (just this last time): "mom, it's just not my style."

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estelle to me while hiking in northern michigan with nana and lela:  "mom, did you see that tree - dead.  it just collapsed.  just like humans do when they die - just collapse."

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estelle

our little kindergartener is still a stitch... upon moving to osan, she developed her own language which she calls "minion".  she speaks minion periodically to us and we have to respond in minion.  we think she developed this because of the new language (korean) being spoken all around her here and not being able to understand it... very sweet, and wicked smart of her.

estelle lays her clothes on her floor every night before school.  she has just learned how to do the flossing dance, so the other night she laid out her clothes in a flossing position.... arms to one side, feet to other... so funny!