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Mommy & Claire on an autumn stroll

Why do we put off doing the things that make us feel good? You know — like exercise, lunches with old friends and, for me, updating this blog. Without further ado, here are a few highlights of the past few weeks in the Rudy fray:

Savannah: A month into her kindergarten year, Savannah is in a full-fledged love affair with school. While volunteering in her classroom last week, I was surprised to learn that my daughter has a split personality. At home, she’ll sass, stomp, and slam doors from here to Saturday, but in Mrs. Gingrich’s class she’s as quiet as a church mouse, and even more well-behaved.

Our oldest punkin

She’s finally gotten over her fear of the school bus, which takes a huge crimp out of my mornings — no more waking up Claire and Abs just to drive 2 miles up the road. Reading is a huge fascination for her — she’s starting to put together words and sentences, so it’s only a matter of time before she becomes as much of a bookworm as her Mommy and Daddy. Savannah continues to amuse us with her adult-like expressions, as in “Is it sweltering in here, or is it just me?” And, during a Mommy-and-me shopping trip last week, as we strolled footloose and stroller-free through Kohl’s: “I really do love Abby and Claire, but everything is just so much easier without them.”

Abby: Our resident goofball continues to amuse us with her antics. Whether she’s inventing her own vocabulary (”Mommy, I want pink-tails” while holding out two pink rubberbands) or scaring the bejesus out of us with her “monster face” (eyes wide as dinner plates, mouth in an “O”, head vibrating back and forth like a tuning fork), she never fails to get the laughs.

Abigail's famous grin

Abs is doing great in pre-school this fall — every day when I pick her up, she leads me all around the classroom showing me her latest works of art. In class, she chums around with cousin Ashley and her new friend Ava (teacher Michelle has dubbed them “the three As”). When she’s not in school, Abby’s activities of choice include painting, scavenging for candy, and lounging in bed watching movies (and, of course, sucking her beloved thumb).

Claire: With each child, you forget all the different levels of amazement. Each new expression that comes out of Claire’s mouth is hailed as a funny miracle. Lately, she’s seized on the phrase “I’m tired” — she says it about 100 times a day, usually in her best sleepy voice while laying her head on your shoulder. She also says it at 3 AM after we’ve retrieved her, wailing, from her crib. Other favorite phrases are “Bodie, get down!” (to the cat as he hops onto the counter), “What doin’?” (to whoever happens to be within earshot), and “I talkin’!” (as she wrestles the phone from your grip).

Claire working on a masterpiece

She’s slowly mastering the stairs, and is just about at the point where she can be trusted to snuggle on the bed with her sisters without taking a nosedive onto the floor. She wriggles out of her diaper like Houdini and loves going on the little potty, but she still poops in the bathtub at least twice a week.

John: Daddy continues to entertain all of us with his hourly guitar solos, and has occasional jam sessions with some of his musician buddies. Although he still plays in his weekly volleyball league, he’s eased off the all-day Saturday tournaments (hallelujah!). He’s still pining away for the elusive Utah camping trip that dangles just out of reach. John amused the entire family by sporting a goatee for a few weeks (and, for one horrifying day, just a full moustache).

Melissa: To celebrate my 33rd birthday at the end of September, John & I enjoyed a kid-free dinner at at my all-time favorite restaurant, El Coyote, and then took the girls to Disney on Ice. The book has (sadly) been moved to the back burner, at least for a few weeks. My agent has recommended some extensive changes to the current draft, and I haven’t yet had the time or energy to wrap my head around what needs to be done. Unfortunately, passion doesn’t pay the bills (yet). In the meantime, I’m focusing on getting caught up on WBM work and doing my best to make up for the time I sacrificed with the girls during the chaotic summer. My plan is to show the book some TLC in November.

We’re poised for a fun, busy autumn. I’ll try not to wait till the first snowfall to post again.