Standing Simeon

11 months old today!

And so proud of himself. 

He was laughing and laughing while I took these pictures.

Love you, my Bud Bud!

Tired?

Finally.

On the way home from school on Thursday.

Reading Goals and Banana Splits

 Adley completed two reading clubs at school over the winter.  The first required reading 30 books and the second, 6 hours of reading on her own or being read to. Once they were turned in, Daddy promised banana splits as a reward. Adley entertains Simeon while they wait for dessert.

(we have a new reading goal all set - stay tuned)

 The eager reader celebrating in style. 

 Cana enjoyed the celebration and is learning how to smile for the camera.

 Sisters and splits!

Us girls 

Adley didn't want Simeon left out of the photo opp.  She is so sweet.

A New Hobby for Simeon

 Simeon loves books.

He loves to pick them up, taste them and turn the pages.

He loves to check up on what his sisters are reading (while they are reading).

He loves to pull the books off the shelves.  Now that he can stand up he holds onto the shelf with one hand and pulls the books down with the other. 

 "What's this one about?"

"Mom, I'm busy now."

Little Man

I'm a Daddy!

Snow Castles

We had enough snow to play in but it was too cold for us to all go outside so we compromised and brought a bucket of snow into the living room.     

 The girls enjoyed the snow and made several structures.

 Simeon wanted nothing to do with it.

He thought it was cold and strange and he refused to touch the snow. 

This suited the tower builders just fine.  

Bunk Beds - 2/18/2013

The last picture of the girls room with the toddler beds (and wall stickers).

A work in progress.  I checked several times to see if Daddy needed any more help.

The beds assembled with the new bedding we picked out this afternoon and two excited little girls. We have a paint job planned for this spring when the weather improves and lots of toys to find homes for in the new setup.  Lights out!

New Years Resolution 2013

February 17, 2013

Playing. Crawling. Dancing. Posing. Flying.

Cloud Dough

Due to all the illness at our house recently Cana has missed three days of preschool.  Since her class only meets once a week, that is a lot of missed opportunities to unleash some of her three year old energy.  So as one solution to her classic case of cabin fever we made cloud dough.  The recipe is as follows:

7 cups of flour

3/4 cup of olive oil

1 three year old 

plastic spoons and cups (optional)

There are several variations on this recipe online and some involved coloring the dough, or scenting the dough with essential oils.  We didn't have any coloring and I opted out of the essential oils but I was impressed with the dough which was similar to moon sand, or very soft California beach sand.  It was perfect for building sand castle like structures.  Cana had a great time measuring out the flour, pouring in the oil and mixing it all up.  We both had fun playing in it.  The online community also mentioned that it could be stored in a sealed container and used indefinitely, possibly by moistening the dough after it dries a bit.  

Our dough had a very short life span.  After about 30 minutes of squishing it around with her hands Cana needed to get a different sensory experience.  She walked through it, sat in it and continued to play in it throughout the kitchen, hallway, her bedroom and the bathroom.  

Where was mom?  

Simeon woke up.

Did I mention I am out of flour?

Bookends

My two little messmakers after a big morning and a bath for each of them.

Happy Valentines Day

Thanks for the Valentines GrandMary and GrandpAl!

Creating Valentines

Cana had scratch off rainbow hearts for her friends and suckers but she was sick the night before and missed her day of school to exchange valentines. She received valentines from her friends the following week.

Adley had heart cards that she signed and drew a picture in each one. Next we glued a piece of chocolate to the fruit (tasting a few along the way).

Valentines Homework.  We were given this pink hear to decorate with our family name, pictures and things that we love to do as a family. We included examples of each of the following that we love to:

Laugh

Dance

Play Games

Read Books

Watch Movies

Color 

Cook Together

Do Puzzles

Eat Our Favorite Foods

Visit Family

Drink Our Favorite Drinks

Sing and

Pray Our Family Devotions

Reading quietly while Adley finishes homework.  Love those Chicka Chicka Boom Boom pajamas and some milk before bed.

Birthday Party for the rest of us

Cana was able to join in most of the activities at the party with her babysitter Becca in tow.  That made things more fun for everyone.  Becca was also a great help setting up, cleaning up and with Simeon too!

Simeon spent the first half of the party finishing a nap which was perfect.  He spent the second half crawling and being passed between Becca and our additional teenage helpers, Allie and Hannah.  He was a good sport and was in a great mood.

Cana enjoyed her cupcake at the table with the big girls.

Mommy taking a rare break.

Birthday Party Cupcakes & Presents

Cupcakes for everyone: One birthday girl and eleven friends, plus one little sister Cana and three teenage helpers. The girls enjoyed pink cupcakes from scratch with cloud frosting on top.

Happy Birthday Adley!

Time for presents.

"Open mine first!"

(one of my favorite expressions)

Birthday Party Craft & Games

Adley's 6th Birthday Party at the Activity Center at church.  A carpeted gym with all her friends from school and her favorite music playing.  First thing, the girls took their shoes off and started dancing.  Then we got started splitting the group.  Half continued to play with the parachute while the other half went to paint T-shirts.

And there was plenty of Duck Duck Goose in the meantime.

Painting shirts with fabric paint and fabric stamps.  

We had LOTS of art smocks on hand and drop cloths too!

Next came the puzzle scavenger hunt. The girls found puzzle pieces hidden around the gym and when the puzzle was assembled there was a message on the back that read: Pinata Time!  Adley is finishing off the pinata.  The girls each took a turn blindfolded first.

More dancing!  

(Their favorite part?)

Sunday, February 10, 2013