Girls’ Weekend

Steve and Cale stayed home this past weekend to work on potty training.  So Claire and I had a girls’ weekend.  We went shopping, got cookies and Dr. Pepper, etc.  We pretty much did whatever Claire wanted to do.

Claire also just reached her next level in stickers, so she was due a prize.  She chose to go to Mall of America and get a bunny at Build A Bear Workshop.

While at the mall, we saw Jillian Michaels.

And Claire met Blue (from Blue’s Clues).

(You can see that Claire is holding her new bunny, Felicity.)

Claire and I had a great weekend and checked out a lot of new stores outside of the mall and actually walked and shopped the first and second floors of MOA.  We found some good sales and bought a few Christmas presents.  Claire got a new book, a new puzzle, some new clothes, etc.  We also bought a few new things for Cale.  We had a great time!

I love my girl and love spending time with her!

Oh Happy Day!!!

My sweet daughter asked Jesus to live in her heart and change her!  On Friday, September 20, 2013, in the basement of our house, I was talking to our kids about how Jesus can live in our hearts if we ask Him to.  I explained that when Jesus lives in our hearts, He forgives us when we mess up and helps us to do better next time.  Claire asked me if she could pray “right now.”  I said, “Of course, Baby!”  She knelt next to me on the floor, folded her hands and closed her eyes.  Then she prayed the simplest and sweetest prayer I’ve ever heard, “Jesus, I want to be a good girl.  Please come live in my heart.  Help me not to be bad or do naughty things.  Forgive me.  Help me to be good.  In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”

It is such a blessing to have witnessed this sweet, heartfelt prayer.  It is such a joy to know that my daughter has chosen to follow God!


Now when you ask Claire where Jesus lives, instead of saying “up above the clouds in Heaven,” she says “in my heart!”

Oh Happy Day!!!

Busy Girl

My girl has been working hard!  She’s doing everything she can find to help out around here so that she can earn stickers on her reward chart.

As promised, once she reached her goal of 50 stickers, we took her to the Mall of America to ride everything she wanted as many times as she wanted.  (We started at 10 stickers, and we increase the number of stickers required by 10 for the next prize.)  She had the best time!

Their first ride:

Then she rode:

Next up:

Claire with her favorite Backyardigan, Tasha

Then it was time for the coaster.  She actually rode this twice.

Then we rode the carousel, and Cale got to ride too.

Claire had the best time!  So did we!!

Claire got new “Fancy Fancy” jammies.  (Fancy Nancy is one of Claire’s favorite characters.  She fell in love with these Fancy Nancy jammies when we found them.)  She also got Hello Kitty slippers.

Claire started a new dance class this month.  (She also got a new black leotard.)

She loves to draw.  Here’s her latest masterpiece:

Claire’s becoming such a great swimmer!  Steve is now working with her on her form.  She’s doing so well!  (And she got a new swimsuit!)

Claire reached her 60-sticker goal this week.  She really wanted a copy of Disney’s The Little Mermaid on DVD, but it’s not going to be released until October 1st.  We asked her if she wanted something else or if she wanted to wait.  At first she wanted to wait, and then she decided that she wanted a Little Mermaid costume.  Fortunately, with Halloween right around the corner, the stores are stocked with them and all of the accessories.  Claire decided against the wig, but she chose a dress, a wand and “glass” slippers.

I love this girl!  And I love that she is so well behaved and so talented!  She makes me proud to be her mama!

My Gorgeous Girly!

Claire is growing more beautiful everyday.  She is such a delight!

She wanted her picture taken by her garden.

We have started a new rewards program in our house.  Claire is learning to take on some responsibilities and earns stickers for each task completed.  Once she reaches certain levels, she gets a prize.  Her chores include cleaning the playroom, clearing the table, obeying Mommy and Daddy, having a good attitude, helping out with special things (so far she’s helped Daddy wash the car, she picked up branches in the yard after a storm, she helped cook, she cleaned her room and made her bed, she vacuumed, she folded and put away laundry, etc.) and a special category that allows her to get stickers for accomplishments, i.e. swimming, riding her bike, learning new skills, etc.  Claire usually receives 4 stickers a day.  The most she has received in a single day is 10.  She received her first prize after receiving 10 stickers.  It took her almost a full week to get her prize.  The next prize she received after earning 20 more stickers, which only took her five days to earn.  She is currently working on 50 stickers (a total of 150), at which point we are taking her, at her request, to The Mall of America to ride rides and play games.  She’s already said that after she reaches her next goal of 60 stickers (a total of 210), she wants to get The Little Mermaid movie, which is being released on DVD and Blu-Ray this October.  (We may switch things up a bit and take her to Tulsa for a sleepover with Analise and Allie when she reaches 210 and save the movie for when she gets 280 stickers.  Won’t she be surprised?!)  She is so positively motivated.  She’s really so sweet and so helpful.  I love being able to reward good behavior!

Claire really wants to go to school.  We have decided to start school at home this year.  She is so smart.  I’m really looking forward to seeing her come alive with new knowledge and skills.  We have already started working on a few things, and she’s such a quick learner.  In one day, she learned to read a brand new book.  Here’s a video of Claire reading her very first book to her daddy when he got home from work today.

I do believe that this will earn her another sticker!  Great job, Sweets!

Four-Years-Old!!

Claire had her four-year checkup this week.  According to her pediatrician, she is “perfect!”

Claire is now 41 3/4” tall, putting her in the 84th percentile.  She weighs 38 1/2 lbs, putting her in the 74th percentile.  Her weight to height ratio is 67%.  She is simply perfect!

According to her pediatrician, she is apparently an anomaly because she sleeps in her own bed every night all night and is potty trained both during the day and at night.  (Really?  There are four-year-olds running around who aren’t potty trained and who sleep with their parents?  What kind of crazy parents are out there?  They really want to spend the night with a wiggly, dirty-panted four-year-old?  Insane!)

She received a clean bill of health and got her four-year vaccinations.

Claire is wearing size 5T or a girl’s small and is wearing a size 10 shoe.

She is all girl and loves to get fancy.  She loves having her nails done and her hair done.  She loves to wear dresses and jewelry.

She is such an amazing little lady.  She is polite and kind and out-going.  When a new kid comes to church, her teachers always ask her to be the new kid’s friend.  She loves people, all people. 

She’s so girly.  She loves weddings.  (I think this arises from watching so many Disney princess movies.)  While looking at my wedding photos the other day, she asked me if I still had my wedding dress.  I told her no.  With tears in her voice, she asked, “Then what am I gonna wear, Mama?  I want to get married someday.”  I assured her that she would have her very own wedding dress and that I had kept my veil if she wanted to wear it.  I also told her that I had kept my tussy mussy for her, if she wants that for her bouquet.  She said that she’s so excited to get big and get married and have a baby.  (Oh my!  While I’m excited to see all that the future holds for my baby girl, I am really enjoying these little-girl days.  I’m not quite as excited to plan her wedding today.  But I will be.  Soon enough I will be.  And it will be so much fun!  Today we will play dress up and dream about Prince Charming, and we will pray for the man who will one day make her his bride.  And she will have the happiest of ever afters!)

She loves pigs – Miss Piggy, Peppa Pig, Olivia.  She does not, however, like Babe.  I turned it on for her to watch this week and was informed that she did not like this movie at all because “real pigs shouldn’t talk.”

She can ride her scooter.  She is learning to ride her bicycle without training wheels.  She’s doing very well, but we haven’t had much time to practice lately.  She can swim 25 meters without assistance and without stopping.  She can go down the big water slides by herself and loves it!  She can skip and most often does as it is her favorite mode of transportation.  She loves putting on her “muddy puddle boots” and jumping up and down in muddy puddles.  She can do a headstand.  She can do a backbend.  She is very active and quite talented.

I am honored to be this special little girl’s mommy!  She is such a joy!

Happy 4th, Sweets!  Life with you – how sweet it is!

Ta Da!

Today Claire Elise Norton, at the ripe old age of four, passed her swim test at LifeTime Fitness!

This means that she swam a continuous 25 meters unassisted!  She is amazing!

She can now get in the pool without adult supervision and can go down the water slides!  And she, of course, rode the water slide twice today!

I am so proud of my girl!!  What an amazing accomplishment!  You totally rock, Girl!

The Finale!

On the last day of the birthday month, Claire got all of the toys on the mantle.  A few of them were previously hers, but most of them were new.

So excited she had to jump for joy!

Then Claire and I played with her new Shoestring Bracelet kit that she got from Gramps, Aunt Kasey and Aunt Dawn.  Claire LOVED making her own jewelry!

Wow!  What an incredible month May was!  We LOVED celebrating our beautiful, smart, amazingly wonderful daughter!

Happy Birthday, Sweets!  You are such a blessing!  We love you bigger muchie with smiley faces!!  Mmwah!