It started with a seatbelt....

... and ended with a new appreciation for what my husband does.
We were all getting in the vehicle to leave. I waited for the last girl to climb in, then I shut the door and hopped in the front seat. Nate looked back and said, "Man, Mommy didn't even help you with your seat belt!!" And I, as I always do, immediately got defensive. "She's big enough to do it herself. I don't feel like I need to baby her and do the things she can easily do herself." His response stopped me in my tracks. He told me that, while he knows that the big girls are completely capable of that simple task, he feels he has a responsibility to show his daughters what they should expect from a man. He has the duty of showing them how a real man treats a woman and he doesn't want them to settle for less than a man that will take care of them. And, in an instant, I changed the way I viewed EVERYTHING he does as a dad. I saw it in the light of a dad instead of a mom. What a huge job he has. I have no doubt that most daddies feel this way about their daughters, but I feel completely blessed to be married to a man that loves his girls so, so much.
This also caused me to reevaluate the way I mother. Am I doing it right? Obviously we all make mistakes every day, but in the big picture am I getting it right?? Or am I failing my little girls. I decided to keep doing what I'm doing. Because, while their Daddy has the job of showing them how a real man treats a woman, I feel like I have the responsibility of teaching them the be independent women. Women who are completely capable of doing it on there own.
It's a fine line, isn't it?? Being able to do it yourself, but knowing that we have the right to have a man be our Knight in Shining Armor. To treat us as the princesses our creator intended us to be.
So I will continue to make them buckle their seat belts. I will make them fill their own water cups. I will expect them to do the simple tasks without asking for my help. But my heart will overflow with love and joy every time I see my husband step in and do the little things for them. Because now I know he is showing them what to expect from their future husbands. Because in 15/20/25 years from now, when they are falling madly in love, I pray that they are falling for a man that will treat them exactly how their Daddy does. Because they deserve nothing less.
So, dads everywhere: if you have daughters, treat them the way you would expect any other man to treat them. And if you have sons, teach them how to treat a woman! We all need to work together here, or else I'm going to start arranging marriages!!

And then it happened....

... my Kater-bug turned 2.

Dear Kate,
I don't even know where to start... You are amazing. You have taken the last 12 months to prove to me that you plan to be awesome your whole life. It has been so fun to see you grow from baby to little girl. You love playing with your big sisters and they certainly don't mind you tagging along (well... MOST of the time...)
You are a comedian. You will do whatever you need to do to get a laugh from your audience. And once you get that first laugh, you take the stage and work the crowd. I have joked about renting you out to other families for dinner time entertainment, because you make our entire family laugh, truly laugh, almost every night at dinner. You make a big mess, too, but we somehow overlook that most of the time.
You are so full of energy. You are constantly moving and talking and going, going, going. I love this about you! But, it is so opposite of your big sisters and it has definitely forced me to change the way I mother you!! You love to have your picture taken. Any time you see a camera or a phone, you stop what you are doing and ask for a "cheese". Kate, my phone and camera are FULL of pictures of you! Thanks to your persistence, I will never be accused of not taking many pictures of my third child.
As is true with all 2 year olds, you have grown and changed so much in the past year. You also experienced a big life change this year. Just a couple weeks after you turned 1, we found out you were going to be a big sister. I honestly was a bit nervous about how you would handle this change because you definitely enjoyed the role of 'baby of the family'. But, to my lovely surprise, you have totally embraced your new position in our family. When Brenna was born, it was love at first sight for you, and you instantly became an overprotective, loving big sister. Warmed this mama's heart!!
So, what are you doing these days? Talking. A lot. You have a full vocabulary and speak awesome sentences. And you are a story teller! Oh, the stories you tell. I could listen to them all day! Although you have a huge vocabulary, it is definitely spoken with a 2 year old dialect. Some of my favorites:
"Ahbies" (owies), "Shoebies" (shoes), "Mama" (drink), "Bockey" (rock me), "Moff" (off), "Kank-ku" (thank you). Animals are known by their sounds. Your favorite animals are "Foof-Foofs" and "Oo Oo -Ah Ahs".  Speaking of saying things differently, you have somehow worked some magic with your Grandpa Bontrager. From the moment he became a Grandpa, he insisted that he would be called just that. Grandpa. He wasn't going to have any silly nicknames. When E & J were learning how to talk and couldn't say it, he would just calmly say, "they'll learn" and he wouldn't respond to any other name. Then along comes Kate, calling her grandpa, "papa". And guess what? Now Grandpa refers to himself as Papa. He loves all his little girls, but you, Kate, certainly have that man wrapped around your little finger. I hope you never let him go.
You learned several weeks ago that our last name is Mauck and you use it frequently when speaking to us. You don't just call us by our names, it is Daddy Mauck, Mommy Mauck, Eden Mauck, Jada Mauck, and Brenna Mauck.  Last week you were trying to get Grammie's attention, and you yelled across the room, "GRAMMIE. MAUCK." Ok, so you still have to learn that there is more than one last name it this family, but it was hilarious! And just tonight I heard you say your middle name for the first time. Of course, you weren't referring to yourself. You were talking to your Dad. "Daddy Izabet Mauck."
You also shocked me last week when you randomly started counting. Out of nowhere, 2-6 rolled off your tongue (who needs "1", right??). I have heard it several times since then, so I know it wasn't a fluke. Man, I can't believe how fast you are growing!!
You finally got moved into your big girl bed this week. I have been wanting to move you for nearly a year, but I was pregnant and tired, so the thought of being up several times a night to put you back in bed didn't really appeal to me, so I always found excuses to put this chore off. Well, a few days ago after bedtime, Daddy and I were in the living room, and suddenly a Kate-Kate comes walking out of her room. Yep, you climbed the barricade. So, there was no getting around it any more... you had to be moved. Which is good, because your baby sister is outgrowing her bassinet, so she's going to need a new place to sleep! It's been a rough training period, but each night seems to be getting better, so hopefully in a few days we will all be sleeping through the night again.
I can't write about this year without including your love for all things "Frozen". Anna, Elsa, Olaf - the whole gang. And the music. All the time. "Yet it go, Mommy. Yet it go!" I'm definitely ready for the next big thing so we can move past this stage....
Kate, thank you for a fantastic year. I have had tons of fun with you and I am looking forward to starting your third year of life! I have no doubt that you will keep in interesting!!
Love you bunches,
Mommy