Marin Bloomer Simons

Since Marin is really a little girl and her funnies are different from my other younger children's I am going to do her post a little different. Marin is blessed with some very distinct virtues and I wanted to write those down first and then talk about her little quirky habits.

Marin is an excellent older sister

I probably shouldn't, but I rely a lot on Marin. I need her to do things for me all the time. She will still complains, but Marin will always do what I ask. She is a very obedient child. She has been telling us the past few weeks that being an older sister is "no fun" and "hard work" and the million other things that come out of her mouth as I ask her to strip the sheets, make her bed, start a bath for Ben, read to Samantha, take out the trash or feed the horse in the mornings that Steven is already gone. I love her and she is an awesome blessing as my first and oldest child!

Jiminy Cricket

Marin is a Jiminy Cricket. She definitely has (or should I saw is) a conscience and knows how to use it. She is my child who would never lie, cheat, or steal. She wouldn't do anything wrong and on the occasion that she does, she comes to me crying and tells me what she has done. She immediately feels bad upon doing something she is told is wrong. It is a battle to correct her and not have her cry. So when I determine there IS something the matter I always have to think, "Is is worth the tears to tell her?"

SENSITIVE

There are sensitive children and than there is Marin. I went to Marin's parent teacher conference in October. Marin has the best 1st grade teacher in the world who loves Marin and Marin loves her. Before I even sat down with Mrs. Allen, Mrs. Allen proceeds to tell me what a kind hearted and sensitive child Marin is and how she handles Marin's crying in class. Marin cries in class I asked? Oh all the time she replied. What? I had not idea. Then in the middle of the year I called to talk to the testing teacher to see how Marin did on her last set of test. The nicest woman answered and told me how great Marin was doing and how she has really improved in all areas of school and wasn't crying as often. So I guess everyone knew that Marin was crying all the time. It has become the family dinner question to ask Marin if she cried at school that day.
Last week was teacher appreciation week and Marin wanted to write her teacher a poem and she finally came up with one which went like this;

Mrs. Allen is so nice

Mrs. Allen is so kind

She helps me when I cry

Which I happens all the time

(We all laughed when we read it because it was so true!)

The Funnies

Animal Lover

Marin loves animals! When Marin was very little my dad had this little lamb around his farm. For whatever reason the lamb loved Marin, in fact he loved her so much that my dad convinced us to take the lamb home for the summer. This lamb was Marin's best friend and since she wasn't in school then she would wake up in the morning and go out to find her lamb all the time. It followed her around like a little puppy and bid for her affection. It was pretty much the cutest thing I ever saw! Anything that needs to be taken care of Marin loves. Horses, dogs, cats, chickens, and even her little lamb. The other day as I was on the web Marin saw a picture of Bambie in the corner and asked me to click on it. I should have thought twice because it brought us to this web site, The Saddest Childrens' Movies. All of these movies were about animals dying, Bambie, Old Yeller, Where the Red Firn Grows, etc. I looked over my shoulder and Marin wasn't there. I asked Sam to go check on her in her room and sure enough Sam came and asked me why Marin was crying?

Bad Hair Days

Marin doesn't like to do her hair. This is the major reason we have kept it short for so long. I really do do her hair in the morning before she leaves for school. I always make sure that all of my children look nice, neat, and presentable to go somewhere. I don't know what happens in between the time I drop Marin off in the mornings and when I pick her up. Because this is what her hair looks like at the end of the day. And I will ask her what happened to your hair. It was bugging me is the most often reply. Really? I ask, because wouldn't you think it would drive her more crazy with it looking like this and in her face all day???!!! Needless to say around February, I just stopped asking and just accepting this appearance at the end of the day (Some days are better than others!)

Notes To Marin

At the beginning of the year Marin had a hard time at school so I would write her little notes everyday for lunch. It got to be that she was very upset when I forgot. So she now leaves the paper and pen out for me to write her one.:)

Stuffed Animals

Who's bed could this be??? I have never liked stuffed animals. I remember not really liking them as a kid and not understanding why anyone would want to collect them. Marin of course loves stuffed animals! About twice a year I make her weed through them and give some away. This is the latest collect she has going on her bed!! They drive me crazy!!! The big duck, which you can only see the leg in this picture, is so big, I can't recall why I bought it for her for Easter!

Jeans/shorts and T-Shirt Kinda Girl

Marin is my very laid back child. She is pretty easy going about most things, this is so true with her cloths. I buy most of Marin's stuff, alone, by myself, because Marin hates shopping even for herself! I don't mind, she just tells me what she needs and then I will show her what I bought and she normally loves it; which is fun for me! (This is something I would never do for Samantha, she must be present at shopping trips.)

Rules I follow when shopping for Marin!

1. NO PINK!

2. No ruffles!

3. Anything that has a horse on it will be loved!

4. She loves a good t-shirt, she is like her mother!

5. Jeans in the winter and shorts in the summer!

6. I try and find plan Jane dresses for church.

How easy is that?

Expensive Shoe Connoisseur

Marin has expensive taste in shoes. Where did she get this from? It is probably my fault, but I would also blame Steven for this one. Steven likes the really outdoor stores around here in Colorado so when we go to them Marin can always find a pair of shoes she just loves. She loves Meralls, Keens, Crocos, J-41s and a few others I have never even heard of. They look really cute on her and I must say that she will wear them for the entire school year, so I try and think that I do get my money out of them.

French Toast and Honey

This is Marin's morning staple. She wakes up and asks for, "French toast with honey." Which translates into just plan toast with honey. She loves it. She eats it every morning, every morning! She is a creature of habit.


The Kitchen