anna has added "no" to her repertoire. she says it like she is from philadelphia--i don't know how to spell out that accent, but she really draws out the o. and today she stood unassisted for the first time. she was preoccupied with something in her hands and just let go and stood there. she did not even fall when she realized what was going on. she loves to give kisses, which are really more like head butts, and she loves to put her head down on things that are soft, like "ahhhh...i think i'll take a nap"

carter is struggling lately. complaining of not feeling well, but also playing like he is fine, and also getting terribly upset about certain things--today he asked me about the fire scene in black beauty. for those who don't know the story, a large horse barn catches fire and there is a dramatic rescue of black beauty and ginger. unfortunately, some of the other horses do not make it. carter specifically asked about those horses and if they died. hem...haw...hem...haw...finally i went with honesty and when i did he just collapsed in a puddle of tears. this was hard. his empathy is overwhelming sometimes.