If all the disney princesses...

Nov 29, 2013

collaborated to create the most obnoxious piece of transportation...this would be it.

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My mom and dad bought Scarlett a bike. We recommended something gender neutral, but they know Scarlett better than we do and went straight to the princess aisle.  They did a great job because this girl truly LOVES everything about this bike, mostly the fact that it is a combination of sparkles, jewels, and a overwhelming rainbow of pink and purple.

Birthday party...

Nov 27, 2013

We decided this year to have a combined birthday party for the kids.  After spending all week expecting it to rain and not planning anything, Friday came with clear skies and I was racing around trying to throw something together.  We ordered a bounce house, put a couple of crafts together, baked a cake, shopped for food and made it work.

The kids ran around like crazy monkeys and the parents just tried to keep track of which part of the house their littles were currently destroying.  While cleaning up the aftermath, Chris and I declared the party a success.

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Boys...

Nov 26, 2013

I left for a minute and came back into the kitchen to find this -

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Dominic had found Scarlett's left over breakfast and was determined to finish it. And so I let him.

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Also, that same morning, he found his way into the bathtub and was immediately soaking wet.   And while at the store he squirmed his way out of the cart buckle and was seconds from toppling over the edge, if not for the attentive woman actually paying attention to him at the end of the aisle.   By his morning nap I was feeling a little overwhelmed by this sneaky little boy.

You can't stop Him...

Nov 22, 2013

Almost daily I look at Scarlett and tell her to stop growing.  I remind her that she is my little girl and that I want her to always be exactly that.  Yesterday, in a rousing game of pretend, titled "talking blanket", Scarlett was pretending to be my blanket (Scarlett: "mom, pretend I am your blanket...that talks", and so the pretending began).  As she was laying on me cuddled into a ball, I once again proceeded to ask her to stay this size forever:

Me - Scarlett, I want you to always be this size and always cuddle with me.
Scarlett - Mom, I just can't do that.  God made me so that I would grow.
Me - Uh...why God, why? (said with dramatic sarcasm)
Scarlett - You just can't stop God








Send a hug...

Nov 19, 2013

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We are sending a hug to the kids Great Grandparents in Idaho.  What started as a project to entertain a antsy little girl will hopefully end with a smile on the faces of her Greats. 

And it goes without saying that 1) we love to send and receive mail and 2) we totally recommend this project.

What you need:

A large piece of butcher paper
Pens/markers/crayons
Envelope for mailing

How to send a hug:
Roll out your paper, have your child lie down with arms spread wide and trace.  Using crayons, markers or pencils, let your little one add detail to their figure.  Roll (or fold) paper, stick it in an envelope and send.

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What boy doesn't like getting dirty...

Nov 12, 2013

This boy...

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In an effort to pacify the 30 minutes before nap time, I threw Dominic in his high chair, stripped him down and stuck his fingers into a cup of finger paint.  I expected him to squish the paint onto the paper, rub it into his hair and smear it all over his naked chest, instead he cried, looked desperately between me and Scarlett, so deeply worried about this foreign object stuck between his fingers.  Scarlett gave a demonstration, I tried helping him dirty his little hands, but nothing worked.  He continued in 5 minutes of perplexed  facial expressions before I decided he was not into this. Much different than Scarlett's first impression of finger paints


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Mix and match blocks...

Nov 6, 2013

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I hesitate to post this because 1) the recipient of these blocks hasn't actually seen them yet, 2) I totally copied the images from here.  In my cheap, let's do this homemade style form, I found the images for these blocks online and copied them onto my own blocks.  This obviously took way more time than just paying $10 and printing them out...but on the other hand, I learned something about myself.  I can copy and paint better than I thought.  After cutting the blocks into symmetrical shapes (4''x4''), sanding them down and rounding the edges, I grabbed a pencil and got to work.  The only one I winged was the turtle, and that is the reason why he is the only one with a lack of creative detailing.

Anyway, these are being shipped to Chicago for a special little girl who is turning two today.  I will deeply miss them, but I know that they are going to a good home.  So, happy birthday sweet Geneva. Hope you enjoy mixing and matching these lovely little critters.   

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On the day you turn one...

Nov 5, 2013

Dear Dominic,

Just because today is your birthday do not think you get a break from the tormenting habits of your older sister.  Your dad and I held her off as long as we could this morning, but she barged in with high pitch happy birthday squeals before you could even open your eyes. True to the traits we have seen in you this far, you responded with grace, storing this memory with the others, piling them up in a trough for future revenge. 

Dominic, you spend all day every day testing your limits, and doing it with a smile.  Being number two has unfortunately limited the amount of time your dad and I get to just sit and watch you grow.  But you are still doing it and we are still trying.  I feel like I might know you less than I knew your sister on her first birthday, but I think this is because you are still experimenting, and not willing to put yourself into a box before picking one that fits just right.

You learn things quickly and then take a few days to decide whether they are worth the energy to apply to memory.  Your sign language comes and goes, and you usually resort to a high pitched squeal and no one can seem to convince you of its unnecessary use.  This is the one habit you have held on to tightly since November 5, 2012.  Your cries were and still are so different from your sister, so desperate and shrill.  You are always happy, until the moment when you are not.  There is never an in between.  Just happy and frantic.  But I love this about you because I can understand it.  Where your sister weighs her options and uses her emotional outbursts to exert her power and will, you use your emotions for a need.  You are independent, but when you need, you need deeply, a need that reverberates from your soul.

Baby boy, you are a light in our lives. You are mysterious and strong, curious and oh so handsome.

So happy one year to a boy who is joyful and clever, happy day, happy year, happy always and ever. 

Love,
Mom (and Dad)

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