Growing Up

I have not done a catch up post in forever......so it is about time, I guess.  The school year is zipping by so quickly.  The girls only have eight more weeks before summe break.  I cannot believe that Allison is about to wrap up her first year in middle school.  I was so worried about her trying to find her way around and was afraid that she wouldn't be able to do it, but it was all for nothing.  She has survived with very few problems.  She is struggling to get all of her work done, though.  She made a couple of C's at the end of last semester.  Most of that was due to the fact that she missed homework assignments.  Her test grades were generally okay.  Everyday I am trying to prompt her to see if she has gotten everything done.  Last night I looked at her grades online and found that she had a C in computer.  She is just getting started in this class and only has three grades.  One was a zero!  It was a homework assignment that required her to bring home a classroom contract for me to sign and to turn it back in to the teacher.  One of those "gimme" grades, and Allison gets a zero.  When I asked her about it, she said she can still turn it in, so I printed out the contract and signed it.  Who wants to bet with me that she comes home this afternoon with the contract still in her backpack?  She is not an organized person!!  I am still proud of how well she transitioned into the middle school setting, though and she is suddenly looking so much older.......My Allison is growing up! 

My Leah has gone and gotten all of her hair cut off!  She decided she wanted to do this a few weeks ago. I guess I have about gotten used to it.  I like her hair long, but she does look cute with it short.  It makes for easier brushing, but styling in the morning can be a challenge.  She wakes up with that hair going every which way!! As for school, Leah is doing great.  She has made all A's this year.  That is a first for her and she is very proud.  She has started reading some more challenging books for homework and discovered Harry Potter and The Hunger Games.  I was surprised that she had any interest in The Hunger Games.  I was thinking that those books were a bit old for her, but over spring break she asked if she could read it and she did!  Then she wanted to go see the movie.  Allison had just finished the book and was dying to see the movie too, so I took them both this past Sunday.  My Leah is growing up! 

Rachel is becoming quite a little talker, and she is starting to try to boss everyone around!  Hahaha.  Sentences still elude her, but she is starting to say more words.  For example, she will say "Allison", "hair", "cut", "Leah", "hair", "cut".........I have to respond to each word before she will say another, but I know she is talking about Allison and Leah getting a haircut.  She actually told me something that happened at school the other day.  That was really cool.  She told me "dinosaur", "Dee", "water".  The class had been to the zoo that day to see the dinosaur exhibit.  I knew from seeing the dinos before, that some spit water.  So, I asked the teachers the following Monday, and sure enough, Mrs. Dee got wet at the zoo when the dino spit water on her.  I am loving that Rachel is trying so hard to communicate.  Sometimes now, she can get a little bossy.  The other day, Leah asked if she could play with her friend, and Rachel said, "No!"  Leah asked why and Rachel said, "cuz........ya busy!"  Not sure what she meant but is was funny!!  Rachel also had to go to the dentist two weeks ago and get another tooth pulled.  She had a big tooth growing in behind her baby tooth, so we got the baby tooth pulled so that maybe the big tooth will move to the front a little bit.  Her grownup teeth are huge and she is not going to have enough room for all of them.  I am hoping she will be missing some of the grownup teeth in the back, but not counting on it, because she had all of her baby teeth.  Rachel has now "lost" five baby teeth.  And sadly, my Rachel is growing up too!