I take the girls to school each morning. It's a daddy kind of job, and I enjoy it. I don't have to walk Ella inside. I just drop her off at the curb, and she walks herself in. So grown up. The last few days she's been giving me a kiss, stepping out of the van, then turning and waving with a smile as I pull away. Every time I look back at her, she's still watching to see if I'm looking. And every time she catches me looking, she smiles and waves again. She seems oblivious to any reaction from the kids and teachers around her as she's waving enthusiastically at me. It dawned on me that there will probably come a time when it will seem very un-cool to her to actually wave at her dad in public. So, I'm just enjoying this moment and smiling and waving as long as she will let me.
Living the dream...
EJ

Sent from my iPhone

My two girls love to imagine. Today we have a very elaborate tent -
with a chimney - in our living room. Playing house is an everyday
activity. Throughout their play, my favorite sound is Annie's
imitation of a doorbell. Where most would say, "Ding Dong," Annie
prefers "Dong Dong." It really it too cute!

The other day while Ella was eating her third apple, she began telling
us how much she loves them. Annie asked her why, "is it because they
are so juicy?" Ella replied, "No, it is because they are so sweet.
Sweet like candy, but they are good for you. You should try them."
To this day, Annie does not eat apples. Ella is an apple-eating,
watermelon-craving, cantaloupe-begging girl. Annie, on the other
hand, is a strawberry-eating, grape-seeking girl. Annie's response
was classic, "well, you should try bacon." Annie shares her daddy's
love affair for bacon. And you guessed it, Ella has never tried the
stuff. Oh, how I love listening to their little conversations.

SGJ

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Shanna Johnson
Date: Sun, Jun 12, 2011 at 5:39 PM
Subject: Annie is 4!
To: Posterous

On June 5th, Annie Elaine turned four years old.  I am amazed at how
quickly time has passed since the very first time that I gazed into
her sweet face. We celebrated her big day on Saturday, June 4th with a
Belle Tea Party.  Annie invited a few of her close friends...
Lexie Holliday, Sadie and Hannah Rector, Elzie Baker (from school),
Caroline (from school), and Ella, of course.  We had such a fun time
decorating mirrors, playing "Kiss the Beast," and dancing.  The
expression on Annie's face when Belle rang the doorbell was priceless.
 Belle sang with all of the girls and helped in hosting the tea party.
 We had borrowed a silver coffee server from a friend and it was a
hit.  The girls loved taking turns filling the small tea cups with
pink lemonade.  As we sang "Happy Birthday" to her, Annie had the
cutest look on her face - a combination of shyness and joy.  She was
delighted with the day!  Happy Birthday, sweet Annie.  I wish you many
more years of joy, love, and laughter.    SGJ

Annie's best friend since birth has been her bobby (or pacifier).
Bobby has been her security, her comfort, her bedtime buddy. She
loves it. As parent, Eric and I realized that we let this little love
affair go on much too long. But how do you take away something that
she craves so much? She would play all day at school without bobby,
but as soon as she got in the car she was asking for it. And the
disappointment if you were the one to pick her up and bobby was in the
other car. There was just no consoling her.

For months, we have all been trying to convince Annie that four year
olds do not have a bobby. Eric, Ella, and I would constantly remind
her that big girls do not need a bobby. So, when her birthday arrived
- we said so long to bobby. It was a very hard first night. She
cried for 2 hours, "give me bobby." I tried every trick to try and
comfort her. We walked around outside, we took a drive, I cried with
her, we discussed the Bobby Fairy - you name it, I tried it. Mimi was
in town and tried to tell me that all of Annie's tears were simply a
power struggle. However, I knew better. I knew that Annie desired to
be big - but it hurt to say goodbye to her comfort. I hurt for her.
And I hated being the one telling her that she could no longer have
it. She finally gave in to exhaustion, only to wake in the middle of
the night looking for her friend.

When she woke the next morning, we praised her for being big. She
asked if the Bobby Fairy had come - and was thrilled to find $5 under
her pillow ($1 for each bobby that she gave up). We took her to the
toy store to celebrate her new accomplishment. She survived until
nightfall. And, then again, cried for her comfort.

However, after two sad nights, Annie was able to let bobby go. She
now falls to sleep without needing her friend. I am so proud of my
big girl. SGJ

On June 5th, Annie Elaine turned four years old. I am amazed at how
quickly time has passed since the very first time that I gazed into
her sweet face. We celebrated her big day on Saturday, June 4th with a
Belle Tea Party. Annie invited a few of her close friends...
Lexie Holliday, Sadie and Hannah Rector, Elzie Baker (from school),
Caroline (from school), and Ella, of course. We had such a fun time
decorating mirrors, playing "Kiss the Beast," and dancing. The
expression on Annie's face when Belle rang the doorbell was priceless.
Belle sang with all of the girls and helped in hosting the tea party.
We had borrowed a silver coffee server from a friend and it was a
hit. The girls loved taking turns filling the small tea cups with
pink lemonade. As we sang "Happy Birthday" to her, Annie had the
cutest look on her face - a combination of shyness and joy. She was
delighted with the day! Happy Birthday, sweet Annie. I wish you many
more years of joy, love, and laughter. SJG

Ella changed her look on Sunday, May 15th by losing one of her top front teeth. This was Ella's fourth tooth to turn over to the Tooth Fairy. Here is her story on how it came out...

SJG

Sent from my iPhone

Shanna shot this brief video of Ella dancing to "Who Let The Dogs Out?" at her school's field day this morning. You'll see the snow cone didn't leave her hand or mouth: