I Am Brooke

For most of her life, Brooke has worn her hair in cute pigtails.  The red pigtails are her signature look.  Lately, however, she has been exerting her 3-year old sense of independence regarding her hair style.  Most days when I get out the bows and try to put them in her hair, she refuses to wear them saying “I will not wear bows today!”  She also refuses a ponytail and insists that she wants to just wear her hair down.  A headband does seem like an acceptable middle ground, so we are off in search of some headbands this weekend.

This weekend at the grocery store, Brooke found the perfect soap for her bathroom.  It is pink, sparkly, and has Hello Kitty on it.  Soap just doesn’t get much better than that.  Every time she uses the soap, she says “look at my hands, they are so sparkly”.

Several interesting stories to tell when Brooke came home from school on Friday.

• She said that Speed punched her in the stomach.  This is not the first time something like this has happened.  One day she came home and said that Speed bit her.  The teachers have never said anything to me about it, so I have not made a big deal about it.  From what she tells me about Speed, he is a frequent visitor to timeout and even has to sit in a highchair at lunch while the other kids sit at tables.  Clearly he has behavior issues unrelated to Brooke, but as this has now happened more than once I am wondering if I should say something to her teachers.
• A substitute teacher brought Brooke out to the car during carpool and told me that Brooke is really just so great and such a joy to have in class.  She said that she wonders what Brooke will turn out to be like and what she will be when she grows up because she is just so mature, sure of herself, and doesn’t let anything really get to her (evidently she is not crying at the drop of a hat during school).  The teacher said she thinks a doctor, and I told her that Brooke either responds to that question with “firefighter” or “Dr. Pettit” (our pediatrician).
• While we were driving home from school, Brooke said to me, “Momma, Ms. Wanda said I need a bucket under my nose.”  She was completely perplexed by this remark.  I had to explain to her that it just meant that she had a very runny nose, and Ms. Wanda was joking with her telling her there were enough boogers to fill a bucket.

Brooke had a very fun Valentine’s Day.  She took in handmade valentines and little stuffed puppy dogs to all the kids in her class.  At school she celebrated with a fun party, and when she got home from school got to open all the cards and gifties from her friends and teachers.  There were lots of cards and lots of candy.  The most unique gift was an orange, which was actually a really nice addition to all the chocolate and lollipops.  Between all of this candy and the big chocolate monkeys from Grandma and Papa, we have enough candy to take us through Easter without a problem.  Brooke also got a stuffed bear and balloon from Daddy and a baby doll highchair and bath tub from Mommy and Luke.  She was so thankful and gave us big hugs and kisses this morning.  Brooke is one of the sweetest Valentines that a Mommy or Daddy could hope to have.

Lately Brooke has been singing a lot, very loudly, and some rather unique tunes.  I try to catch the words and write them down when I can.  Here are two of her recent tunes that I suggested Scott lend to his band (provided, of course, that Brooke gets publishing royalties).

Song 1: This is my Chance

This is my chance

And I’m passing the garden

This is my last chance 

And I’m not going to feel brave 

Song 2: Go to Sleep

Go to sleep, Baby Jesus

You love me, and at night

A happy family…my imagination.