Earrings!

Daisy has been sucking her thumb since she discovered she had one. When she was about to turn three years old, we really started to encourage her to stop. We talked about how a three-year-old was too old to suck her thumb. We made charts, bribes, incentives, promises, the works. Didn't matter. She was a thumb sucker through and through. One day when she was three, she asked me if she could wear some of my earrings. I told her she could get her ears pierced when she stopped sucking her thumb. We made more charts. We visited the mall and talked to the clerk at the piercing store. My mom even bought her earrings. Nothing phased her. The thumb was there to stay. The older she got, the more pressure there was to stop. This year when she started school, she would come home and tell us, "I don't suck my thumb at school. When I want to, I just think it in my brain and don't do it." So, her thumb has been in her mouth less and less frequently until finally, Jeff and I rarely saw her do it. A few weeks ago she asked me, "Mom, can I get earrings since I don't suck my thumb anymore?" I thought it was a fair question, so we talked to Dad and planned a date. The next week, we loaded up after school and drove up to meet Jeff. Jamie and Rian met us at the mall for the big event.

This is her with the purple marking dot. She had told everyone she saw for several days before we went that she was getting her ears pierced. She was so excited. On the way there, she asked me if her dad could buy her dinner at a 'lunch store' if she was brave and didn't cry. We hadn't even talked about the fact that it would hurt.
Thank heavens they had two employees do it at the same time.

...And here she is! She didn't cry at all! I was so proud of her. She chose pink daisy earrings and takes very good care of them. She cleans them every morning and every night. She wants to wear her hair up to show them off.

In other news...the kids were sorely disappointed when we didn't get to build a fire when we went on our spring horse ride a few weeks ago. Dad solved that problem! He pulled his car up on the sidewalk as a wind block, told the kids to invite the cousins over, and had a weenie roast right in the back yard. It was great. When was the last time you had a real live s'more? Well, I couldn't remember how long it had been for me, but the ooey gooey stickiness was a pure joy.

Levi was proud of his perfect roasting skills. He spent a lot more time roasting than he did eating. While we missed out on the thrill(?) of camping, the camp fire part was genuine. Our clothes and hair all smelled nice and smoky.