Kaio and Josefine: Agosto

I am so sad I have only been able to update the blog once a month. There are so many great stories and almost daily I think - "oh, I need to put that in the blog!!" but then busy life takes over and I don´t get the time for it.
This blog, besides being a way to tell our kids story to everyone interested, I also invision printing it and making a book for my kids. I see them reading it when they are older, to their kids.. my grandchildren... So, I am going to keep it up (maybe only once a month, but I really want this!)
It has been a long winter. Very cold, rainy and humid. Kaio has had some coughing but has not needed any medical attention. Little Josefine, on the other hand, has been very sick. From stomatitis (mouth infection where she had painful blisters) to bronchitis and even a yeast infection! At one point I was giving her 7 diferent medicines. She has been a trooper and it´s amazing how well she takes her medicines.
Josefine:
Besides the many doctor visits she has been developing really well. She is a very happy little girl, she loves to roll around on the ground with her brother and giggle (Kaio also loves it), she also plays by herself really well. She looks up to her brother and imitates him. She eats really well although does not eat as healthy as her brother. She wants to eat by herself, which she is doing really well. (although we always need to change her cloths after a meal) Josefine is running, loves to take baths, says many words (in both English and Portugues), loves music (and sings along to a couple of songs), likes to dance and give hugs and kisses. She is very opinionated and when she wants something it is dificult to make her change her mind. She is sleeping well but still likes her bottle of milk at 6am! She is doing really well at school and loves her carers and classmates. Josefine gets bright red cheeks when she is hot. She is starting to show interest in using the potty (not sure if I am looking fwd to the potty training!) Josefine continues to be a bit above the average for her height and weight. Her hair is getting long and we can make several piggy tails! (which looks ADORABLE!) She likes to draw and have us draw "happy faces", "birds", "cars" for her. She ADORES to read and on our trip back and fort to our house she reads books and is opinionated about which book she wants. She says "pokoto" when she sees a horse, she "mamarelo" (=amarelo=yellow) when she points at any color, "uptaires" (when she wants to go upstairs)! She loves to hug and say - "abraço" which always needs to be followed by "Beijo" (kiss)
Kaio:
Is such a sweet boy. Can be very shy in certain (new) situations. Can run fast, jump and loves any kind of physical activities. Kaio likes books and can look at them for hours. He can also create his own game and play, by himself, for hours! He is speaking really well and we are currently working on his "Rs". He likes to sing along and does a great job in both english and portugues. He continues to test his limits but he accepts well he can loose his TV if he doesn´t listen. He really likes going to school and talk about his friends when he comes home. He loves to watch TV and can completely disconect when he is watching a movie. Kaio eats healthy (he always eats his vegetables or fruit before anything else) but takes forever to finish. He normally takes more then double the time to eat the same amount of food then Josefine! (he already said he does not like and does not want to play the "who finishes first" game anymore)He likes to help me when I clean or cook (and does a great job at it). He helps his sister with activities and when she doesn´t say the words correctly. Kaio´s drawings are very nice and he can draw people (with big alien eyes), aurplanes, houses, etc. He continues to hug and kiss people he loves and also says nice things like - you are the love of my life, you are my princess, etc He continues asking the explanation about everything and anything - Why is it raining? Why is the sky blue? Why is that dog small? Why does mommy go to school? Why can´t Josefine use the toilet? (we have been very creative with our answers).

The other day, I gave both kids a comic book for the ride to school. They both read nicely their books (as they LOVE to). After 15mins they were both done and were starting to get bored and complaining a bit... suddenly Josefine says - "Ô" (which is like - hey). She Kaio´s attention, extended her book to him, they exchanged books and were both very happy with their new reading material!

As you can see, the kids are developing really well and are just amazing! We have lot´s of moments of laughter and joy. They surprise us daily with how smart, loving, funny and adorable they can be! We have moments of "less fun" when they are tired or testing their limits, but that is just part of the "ride"!

- "Yes, my hair is long and I like to draw.. anywhere...!"