Pig tails and a Sharp-shinned hawk

 My little girl has hair long enough to wear pigtails now. I smile every time I look at her. This is her saying, "Mom, I wanna draw." (See the markers in her hands?) She will write something and then say "A! A!" I think she already understands that print has meaning. It's so incredible to witness a child's mind learning and growing.

Unlike my boys, Tessa plays with her "babies" all day long. She feeds them, takes them for walks, reads to them, puts them down for a nap, and gives them lots of kisses and hugs. Oh, and she also draws on them. Thank goodness for washable markers. 

 This is Tessa's first experience with paint. It was quite the colorful masterpiece. And below is Tessa in a silly mood, trying to put on glasses that belong to Mr. Potato Head.

But the funniest thing Tessa does is say, "Pop" in a very nonchalant way whenever someone farts. It still cracks the brothers up every time she does it. Fart. Pop. We can't even remember what life was like before this little girl. What would we do without her? We just love her so much.

Collin traded in his skis for a snowboard recently. He went snowboarding for the first time last weekend and loved it. He can't wait to get back on the mountain, just him and his dad. Luke also tried skiing for the first time. Merritt eventually wants us all up on the mountain together. 

Little Owen has shingles right now if you can believe it. He was immunized for chickenpox but no matter. I didn't even know kids could get shingles. I thought it was an adult disease. Poor kid. 

And I just can't resist posting a picture of this cool hawk that attacked the birds at my feeder the other day. I had never seen a Sharp-shinned hawk in the wild before...until now. It's the smallest hawk in North America, not much bigger than a robin. But it swooped in like a predator, from out of nowhere. It was incredible. Birds are so awesome. It's the bird sightings that get me through the winter. I'm already aching for spring.