Shadow Magic

At the front of our house gleams a big picture window (circa 1966, oh yeah) that spills glorious morning sunlight into our empty living room.

The kids love watching their shadows.

"My shadow is bigger than your shadow!" is a common boast.

"My shadow is the coooooooolest!" is another.

And then, suddenly, the shadow dancing competition begins.

Form is important.

Grace, well, no one cares much about that.

Acrobatics,

Flexibility,

Alignment,

Strength. . .

You might say we have our own mini-olympic event. Ten points! I shout, to the kids' great pride.

And then we start the magic all over again.

Score!

Sometimes it's hard to know what kind of presents my kids will really use. I always try to remember what a pediatrician my mom liked always said: The best toys are 90% kid and 10% toy. Usually I try for only one big toy at Christmas, because they get enough toys from other people. I don't feel offended if the kids don't like it, but I try my best to find something they will use.

This Christmas, we got the perfect gift for Ashley. To be honest, we should have just gotten extra and given them to Everett too, because his present didn't end up being as well-liked. And no one has used William's little five dollar bowling set. I guess that means we were 1/3 successful this year!

These horses are from the fisher price doll house set. Ebay is a wonderful thing--I was lucky enough to find a good deal.

It probably would have even been worth it to pay full price. Ashley sleeps with these horses (sometimes all twenty, sometimes just a few). She names them after us. She carries them everywhere. They are practically a part of our family.

Sometimes Everett asks Ashley if he can sleep with one of her horses. She usually picks out one she thinks he will love and happily hands it over.

Everett especially likes the people. Right here the boy is beating up his father. I know what Freud would say, but you can interpret that however you want.

Fair Weather Friends, Part II (or, This is What You Call a Glut of Pictures)

(Alternate alternate title: A Test for Your Attention Span)

Remember how I said today was going to be 62 degrees? It was woooooonderful. My heavens, was it wonderful. Everett came home from preschool and after gulping down some string cheese, the kids left for the back yard.

I decided that since it was such a lovely day, I would try to get a picture of the kids with the bright sunshine behind them.

"Smile and say, SUUUUN!!!" I suggested earnestly. This is what I got.

Ok, point taken. No more cutesy posed pictures for us. It works much better when I follow the kids around with the camera pointed their direction. However, if I utter a certain phrase (it may or may not sound something like "look at me, please") the kids turn their backs on me quicker than a reflex. So, I have to turn invisible and shut my pie hole.

And then, when she thought I wasn't looking, I discovered that our resident fairy princess learned how to take flight.

And then Everett discovered. . .a water fountain.

So that's what was under all fifteen feet of snow? Sweet. And it was filled with water from that giant melted snow pile.

Pool of water + kids = let's put stuff in and make giant splashes!

Hey, it's warm outside. I'm not going to be bothered by it.

Ashley quickly found herself a magic splashing stick.

What else to put in. . .what else. . .

Rocks. Shiny, smooth, large, rocks.

I didn't want to break it to them that the rocks belonged on the ground below the fountain as decoration.

I don't think the kids would have listened, anyway. They had too much fun getting splashed by those shiny rocks.

Poking around.

Yes, poking. That is exactly what these sticks are for.

Notice what Everett is doing?

Fortunately that is our Bishop's yard. I don't imagine he is about to chase the kids away with a walking stick.

Even so, I made the kids stay in our yard. (I have no problem being lame.)

Good weather +Toys + Our screened in porch = A baby-friendly place to play = A happy mama.

Everett was a fan, too. The only issue is keeping William from pushing on the screens, but they are very secure and so far they haven't been a draw for him.

This weather was perfect fairy princess weather.

We ended the day with homemade rolls, chicken, and oranges after meeting Papa at a fun playground. Tomorrow won't live up to today, but that's okay with me. Somehow now I have the energy to face another blizzard.

Fair Weather Friends

We, like many of you, have been having great weather. It was over 50 degrees today so there was no way I was staying indoors all day. Are you kidding? We've been cooped up for what seems like forever!

We decided to go for a walk down by the river and visit the river front playground. It was really fun.

The kids enjoyed the slushy snow in weather that didn't turn their noses to ice.

The kids also enjoy counting ducks. The males and females are already paired up. We also saw geese, seagulls, and. . .

A bald eagle! Did you know we have bald eagles here? We went over the bridge a couple of weeks ago to see some by the lock and dam, but I haven't seen one closer to town before. It swooped down for fish and the kids had a great time watching it.

William was content to suck his thumb in the stroller. It has been long enough since our last trip to the playground that swinging felt new to him. He laughed and laughed and laughed with each forward swing, and growled back at me when I roared and attacked his knees.

Since tomorrow it is supposed to be a whopping 62 degrees, maybe we'll come back. What a fun break before our next (inevitable) cold spell.

Dinner with my Valentines

I have always admired the moms who have enough energy and desire to make holidays fun. Traditions are a great part of being a child and so this year I decided to be like those fun moms and start our very own valentine dinner tradition.

The dollar store offered some cute balloons, so I decided it would be fun to start tradition number one: a balloon tied to the back of each child's chair. Easy peasy, and it is actually a big wow moment for the kids.

Next tradition: a simple gift from me to my valentines. Everett got a batman figurine.

Ashley got a princess fairy dress-up set. The clearance section at Walmart was very good to me yesterday.

The kids loved their balloons and slept with them tied to their headboards.

William got a balloon too, and was especially fascinated with it after I tied it around his little wrist.

(Yes, I'm in the process of repainting my house. Why do you ask?)

Tradition number three: a heart-shaped pizza, heart-shaped bread sticks, and raspberry jello topped with whipped cream and a chocolate heart (thanks to my friend Camille for the idea). The only thing I would have added is freshly-sliced pineapple hearts.

Oh, also, tradition number four: eating by candlelight.

I think this should also be a tradition. . .

Kisses from my baby!

What a sweetie. William and I played around while the kids watched a movie with Joel. Then Joel cleaned up the kitchen while I relaxed in bed with a good book. What a valentine!

Here, Have a Valentine

We actually made Valentine's cookies over a week ago. Everett requested them one day, and since it was a nasty day outside, I decided I would rather have a controlled mess in the kitchen than bickering and chaos through the entire house. It was pretty fun!

First, you have the doughy floury mess. The kids love rolling out their own cookies and every two seconds they can't resist asking, "I'm just gonna have this one liiiiiiittle piece, okay Mommy?"

Everett very painstakingly decorated quite a collection. I kept asking him if he wanted to eat one, but he kept refusing. I think he didn't want to mess anything up.

Ashley loved the frosting. I'm sure you can't tell.

The only way to eat a frosted sugar cookie if you're 2 1/2: bury your face in it.

Everett thought Ashley's frosting beard was pretty silly. He made sure to point out that he didn't make a big mess.

And he was very proud of how his cookies looked. It's a good thing, too, because the sugar cookie recipe I used was awful!