"Do you know my list?"

"Do you know my list?" is a question we answer many, many times a day. Every time Andrew goes into a room by himself, the bathroom, bed or even runs into the kitchen for one quick second, we have to answer the question.

So what is this list?? It's a list of who he's afraid of. As long as we know his list then those bad guys (and girl) won't bother him. I'm so grateful for the list and being able to just answer "Yes" because otherwise Keith and I would be full-time ghost busters. On our list is Bobugah (he came home from Russia with Andrew, but Keith has since sent him back and told him he had to stay there), the Big Bad Wolf (who he saw in a parade at Disney), ghosts (all ghosts - we don't discriminate), the witch (from Dora the Explorer), the ogre (from the Little Einsteins), Swiper (from Dora) and Big Jet (from The Little Einsteins). It's been a while since we've added any offenders which is a good thing because I'm not sure I'll be able to remember anyone else.

It's too cute to hear Andrew's little voice at the top of the stairs saying "Do you remember my list?". It's definitely become part of the bedtime ritual.

As a little side story, we decided to have family night on Saturday night. We usually watch a movie and eat popcorn but Andrew wanted to switch it up a bit and have ice cream. I went to the store and got everything needed to make a yummy sundae, we came home, put on our jammies and started making our sundaes. I made Andrew's and then asked Keith what he wanted. Andrew leaned over, put his hand on mine and said "Mommy? You're not just an orderer. You're part of the family too." Good to know that at least one person knows I'm not just a short order chef! :-)

Andrew is at such a fun age right now. He's so witty, expressive and entertaining. Keith and I have noticed an explosion is his sentence structure and the ability to put many big words together. He asks a ton of questions and not just the typical "why" like kids go through, but real questions. It's fun to try to explain things to him.

In teenage land, Alex is off on a family vacation with his mom's family. This year they are cruising through Costa Rica and the Panama Canal. He did get his letter from Vandy and, unfortunately, he didn't get in. He totally took it in stride and after getting the scholarship from Auburn I think he was starting to second guess his decision to apply binding to Vanderbilt. We are still awaiting Clemson's decision which we won't have until mid-February. In the meantime, Alex is going to reserve his spot in Auburn's Honors College. It's not binding, but if you don't reserve your spot by January 29, you will be placed on the waiting list. Just because you accept the Honors College invite doesn't mean you've officially accepted the offer from the school. Confusing, I know.

In other news, Alex turns 18 on Thursday. 18. Can you believe it? Makes me feel old and I didn't even birth the child! I fear we're going to have many "But I'm an adult now..." battles in this house and I'll be repeating something I heard my mother say very frequently... "As long as you live under my roof.....". :-) Only 8 months left with 4 of us in this house. I know it's going to totally fly bye.

Well, time to sign-off. I'm off from work for the next 6 days. On the schedule - the Alvin and the Chipmunk movie, clean my bedroom from head to toe, finish all laundry and take every single pair of pants I own to the tailor to get hemmed, lining fixed, etc.... Oh, and to make my first standing rib roast. And maybe even stay up until midnight to ring in the New Year. Or maybe not.

Hugs!
Becky