Try to Remember the Kind of September...

When life was slow and oh so mellow...
Really? When exactly was that? Ok, so what happened this month? Well, besides Lucia starting school (I believe this picture was taken before her first full day... hence her forlorn expression), Mamas finally, FINALLY had their weekend away and we have Mimi and Nonne/Papa to thank for it. Not sure who had more fun - Mamas with their leisurely days or the kids having their every whim catered to. Did I mention Luce even got to meet a princess?? Lucia also started her first dance class and not to be outdone, Carmen also showed off her, um, talents. We also celebrated two important birthdays this month - cousins Jackson and Veronica! We fully expect our share of the cake to arrive any day now.
And then there was this. What is that you ask? Well, according to Luce that is a chalk depiction of a "stank." She went on and told this elaborate tale of what a "stank" was. This is more or less what she said... "Stanks are logs with fire coming out of them every 8 minutes. Stanks are indigenous (my word) to Australia and are sometimes grouped together in forests. Stanks are dangerous and never go near them. Please do not go to Australia." I really can't make this stuff up. The stank story is reminiscent of the Barret, which I don't think I've told before. A few months back (maybe even last year?) Lucia made up a creature called a Barret. A Barret is a bird like creature with "one fierce eye and one nice eye." Barrets live in bushes and mostly eat berries. Only mommy Barrets have the fierce eye, because they have the babies. Once again folks, you cannot make this up! Well, I guess if you were a 3 year old you could... And speaking of chatty, Carmen finally decided she has something to say (probably to keep up with her sister) and happily jabbers away to anyone who will listen. Chances are you won't be able to make out a single word, but Carmen will earnestly look you in the eye and convey something deep and meaningful, like, "Gaabaa dooda maama baby gah." Of course, she can communicate all the important things like "mama", "mimi", "chichi" (Lucia), and "cake"... and just tonight "Gaga" (because yes, we were having a dance party).