What's happenin' with the Milligans?

Rachel...still thinks she's Trent's mommy. And, this is usually good and a big help. He loves it. And her heart is in the right place.
She's doing great in school. She's a wonderful student...very smart, very enthusiastic, and usually VERY compliant.
She's letting her bangs grow out. She doesn't want them anymore. She wants to be as pretty as her cousin Julia. I've tried to tell her that she already is as pretty as her cousin Julia. I love her bangs, but I'm letting her grow them out if that's what she wants. She'll be gorgeous either way.
She misses Bradley a bunch while he's at school. Even though we're at home doing homeschool, she talks about him and misses him. She's VERY protective of him and quizzes him like a mom when we pick him up. She was not happy when she learned that a boy had kicked him (we think)on the playground. She wanted to know his name and what he looked like. Lucky for the other boy, Bradley didn't remember any details. :)
She starts back at Learning Grove next week and is SO excited! She can't wait to see her friends and actually change classes this year.
She has started (we think) sleepwalking. We shouldn't be surprised. Nick did/does it. Joe did it. It's in her genes. She definitely woke up and came to our room 3 times the other night. She wouldn't talk to us, she just grunted and then even got into our bed once. (It was before we had fallen asleep...we were watching tv.) She was agitated and kicking the covers. The 3rd time, I took her back to her room and laid in her bed. It only took her about a minute for her to fall asleep. The next morning, we asked her about it and she had no recollection of it. Maybe she's a sleepwalker. ?? When we told her we thought she sleepwalked, she got scared and didn't like that she had been sleepwalking. So, now we downplay it and tell her not to worry because she's not going to do it very often.
She still loves riding horses. She's doing great and learning to trot, gallop and also make Barney do things while he's standing still: move backwards, etc...
Rachel Jane is growing into a sweet, beautiful young lady!

Bradley...is really enjoying pre-k! He has told us several things that Ms. Jan tells the class and they are verbatim directions. He occasionally shares a detail about class, but he has a very hard time remembering other kid's names. He loves the artwork he creates and is so proud to share it with us. He misses us while he's gone. Today he was a little sad while we were getting into the car to leave. (The newness has worn off.) But, he was fine once we got there and dropped him off. However, when we picked him up, Ms. Jan said he had been sad today and really missed us. She had given him lots of hugs when he cried to make him feel better. The first thing he said when he saw us was, "I missed you guys today." Sweet boy.
He still adores his sister. And his brother. He loves to play rough with Trent. He loves when Nick plays monster or hide and seek or whatever other exciting game where they run around or hide or roar or scream. He still has to win. We usually hear alot of: "wait a minute, daddy...pretend I'm over here" (as he's about to be tagged, found, etc...). It's funny, but he has to learn that he can't always win! Nick's working on this one with him.
He's branching out a little bit with food and drink. He only gets water at snack time at school and from what we can gather, we think he's drinking it. This is great since he hasn't been a fan of water much at all at home. He's also tried a couple of new, healthy snacks at school. Even though he said he didn't like them, at least he tried them.
He's finally gotten interested in writing letters. He loves finding the letter "B" on everything and he loves trying to write letters. This is a HUGE improvement over this time last year when he didn't care one iota about writing.
He loves reading books with us. He loves listening to the stories and hearing them over and over. His favorites still include dinosaurs, but he likes them all.
He's still a great sleeper...thankfully! Even though his baby bro is sometimes loud during the night. And, unfortunately, he does wake up early sometimes because of his baby brother waking up and getting up. Otherwise, I think we'd have a late sleeper in the family.
He thinks he wants to take karate. Will he? Maybe. We'll have to see if we can fit that into our schedule. I think he'd be really good at it. All that intensity channeled into one direction.
Bradley Franklin is growing into a smart, sweet, handsome little boy.

Trent...acts like a 1 year old ALL the time! :) He is constantly into everything. He doesn't stop getting into things unless he's asleep! And, even then, he sometimes pulls the nightlight out of the wall when you think he's asleep in his bed. (Real safe, huh?!)
He likes to put things into other things. And, we don't know he's done it. The other day I found a toy phone in the utensil drawer. And another toy with the pots and pans.
He won't stop eating crayons. It doesn't matter that we keep them out of his reach. If one is accidentally dropped or left out, he will take a bite out of it. And, he loves to color. He's so proud of his little scribbles. They just don't stay on any paper...they end up on the chair or the desk and then in his mouth.
He LOVES his big sister and big brother. He loves how Rachel hugs him and comforts him and takes care of him. He loves how Bradley is loud and silly and sometimes wild. He thinks he's funny.
He has a temper. Sometimes he stomps his foot at us. It's funny even though it isn't. He likes to get mad, throw a fit and stomp out of a room, in hopes that we will follow. If we don't, he comes back, makes a loud noise so we notice him and then exits again. He really can put on a show.
He loves reading books...over and over again. He loves pictures of babies or baby animals. He likes to point at them and have me make the noises over and over again.
He thinks he's a big boy. He wants to do whatever Rachel and Bradley are doing.
He loves going outside. It doesn't matter what the weather is like. He'd rather be outside than inside ANY time ANY day. He'll push his lawn mower or ride-on car up and down the driveway as fast as he can. Even though he falls and gets scrapes on the asphalt...he won't stop for long. He's a little explorer.
He's a lovey-dovey boy. He loves hugs and kisses and especially wants to be consoled and hugged if he's hurt. Sometimes he makes everyone give him a hug or kiss.
He loves shoes. He likes trying on everyone's shoes and trying to walk in the really big ones like mommy's and daddy's.
He likes toothbrushes. He'll chew on one for an hour. I guess it feels good. I use this alot while I'm trying to get ready in the morning. He'll get a toothbrush and it keeps him happy so I can get dressed.
He's become a better sleeper. Still not completely sound, but MUCH better than a couple of months ago. He sleeps through the night (most nights) although he still stirs and cries out at least once every single night.
Trent Nicholas is growing up into a precious little boy!!