Brian's Girls

What to do with stained shirts.

2011-06-28T18:15:00.000-07:00

Someday I might learn my lesson and not buy the girls white shirts. In the mean time I am figuring out what to do with stained shirts. I got a tie dye kit and the girls and I each made two shirts, one new and one old stained one. Since this was a project that could easily become a disaster we did this outside and enforced the only one person at a time rule. It worked out great. No other clothes were stained in the process.

We had so much fun I could make tie die shirts all the time. Watch out relatives, you might get tie dyed sweaters and socksfor Christmas presents.

Here are one set of results.

Fun on Purpose

2011-06-20T10:49:00.000-07:00

I was reading an article about fun and thinking about what your 10 year old self liked to do. Other than read I don't really remember what I liked. It did get me thinking of something fun to do with the girls. Both of them love to paint and often paint their bodies instead of paper. It was a beautiful day so we all put on our swimsuits and had fun painting our bodies.

Edith was totally shocked that we were doing this. She has heard from me many times "paint the paper not yourself." She finally got into it and painted herself orange. Immediately after she was done she was ready to wash it off.

Addie immediately loved this idea. I spotted her back with all colors and she went to work on her arms and legs. She really got into the activity and didn't worry about drips, or spatter, her swimsuit, or washing herself off.

I enjoyed giving myself polka-dot legs. They might be the next fad, you never know. Of course we all had just as much fun washing it off in the hose.

note: purple "washable" tempera paint leaves behind a pink shadow immune to soap and sugar scrubs for several days

Art Projects and Ecotarium

2011-06-06T10:20:00.000-07:00

The girls and I had fun creating our own fashion pictures. I tore out a bunch of pictures of glamorous gals from magazines and we started stamping mustaches on them. Then we gave them crazy clothes and tattoos with markers. Best use of a fashion magazine yet.

Last week we headed to the Ecotarium in Worcester. As usual the kids enjoyed themselves. Sarah was the most pleased as they had an exhibit on turtles. The kids enjoyed playing on the outside climbing structures. The highlight was the otters. The last few times we have been the otters had been hiding so it was lots of fun seeing them swim and play.

Preschool Graduation

2011-05-27T16:01:00.000-07:00

Addie's graduation ceremony was lovely. The kids all sang their songs and recited their rhymes. All the kids were confident and projected their voices. I even managed not to cry. Get ready Kindergarten here they come.

Easter Fun

2011-04-25T04:29:00.000-07:00

The girls woke up and put on their new Easter dresses before coming down stairs. They looked beautiful and their little faces glowed with happiness. Edith immediately saw her basket and carefully took out each item and inspected it. Addie happily looked on. Edith proceeded to find one egg and then Addie wandered off and made us an Easter card. Edith spotted Addie's basket across the room and then Addie finally ran to get it. She also carefully took out each item and studied it. The girls tried wandering off to play. Brian kept suggesting that they should look for their eggs. After they each found a few they stopped looking. We had to keep telling them over and over to keep looking. A half and hour later with some hints to Edith the eggs were finally all found. Nothing like the two minute mad dash we expected. Everything was slow, peaceful and filled with giggles. (and Brian threatening to go back to bed because it took so long.) I am sure it will change as they get older so it was nice to see their attitude to be content with just a few eggs. No competition, just enjoying the moment.

Here Edie shows off some of her loot. New crocs, new socks, and new shades.

After a quiet morning we headed over to Sarah and Jesse's and enjoyed a nice Easter dinner.

Tea Party

2011-03-01T05:03:00.000-08:00

We invited some of our friends over for a fancy tea party. Addie had a fabulous time helping to get everything ready. We laid out the lace table cloth and got out some fancy teacups for everyone to use. Addie and I had fun creating place cards for everyone and then Addie spent quite a bit of time choosing where each person would sit.

Once everyone arrived we decided to have juice tea. I think the girls just guzzled down their juice, chomped their muffins, and then ran off to play. The mothers had a more leisurely time. Overall a nice afternoon with friends.

Snow Fun

2011-01-15T05:14:00.000-08:00

How exciting to have a snow day. Over 18 inches of snow. Both girls had a fabulous time playing and trying out their new shovels. Lots of snow was eaten and lots of fun was had. Edith did have some trouble walking as the snow is up to her waist.

Creativity and Stuff!

2010-12-07T04:39:00.000-08:00

The girls have spent the past two days just playing. Playing, playing, playing. What this means is that they take most of their toys and mix them all up and make things (piles) out of them. It is lots of fun for them but a little maddening to clean up when they are finished. What is the most fun for me is seeing how vast their imaginations are.
Here is how Edith dressed herself today. Can you guess who she is dressed up as?
Answer: Mary. I think she looks just like Mary traveling to Bethlehem. Didn't Mary wear a sequined top hat, silver robe, and a cowboy boot bandanna? The girls love pretending to be Mary. They each put their baby in a bin and listen to O Come all ye Faithful. I have to be one of the wise men and bring the baby a present every time the chorus comes on. Presents can be anything I find. After all, with a good imagination anything can become gold, frankincense, or myrrh.

After we cleaned up the giant pile of stuff (see behind Edith), the girls started up again. This time Addie built a tree house in the living room. Lots of kid furniture, some bins, a cradle, and a boot tray roof finish the project off. Her creations are always all lined up, neat and orderly. Future architect?
And it looks like she has made sure to use plenty of bolts so nothing falls apart.

Before and After

2010-11-09T11:06:00.000-08:00

I am crabby because Mom makes me have my hair brushed.

Edith has been getting more and more resistant about having her hair brushed. It gets quite tangled and because she hates having it put up she gets a lot of gross crud in it. Today after she moaned through having her hair brushed, it was time to chop it off. I was disappointed because she had such lovely blonde locks. I did the preliminary cut today and will even it out tomorrow. She requested "short like Addie's, not bald." She is pleased with the new look even though I don't think she looked in a mirror. She reminds me of Ramona.

DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park

2010-10-12T07:06:00.000-07:00

After a very crabby morning the girls headed out to DeCordova Sculpture Museum. The museum always has interesting exhibits that change regularly and walking around the grounds on a warm fall day is quite relaxing. One of the exhibits was sculptures made out of rubber. The girls loved exploring the texture of the ginat rubber bands and huge tongue. They also enjoyed the recycled room.

Open Farm Day

2010-09-28T14:14:00.000-07:00

We have enjoyed eating loads and loads of fresh veggies this summer as we participated in a local CSA. We tried some new ones to us and ate more lettuce than we could have imagined. We will miss our weekly bounty, but now our Tuesdays will be free again.
Today being the last day was open garden. We could walk around the farm and harvest what we wished. At first the girls were not enthusiastic. They munched on cherry tomatoes while I picked beans. Then I looked for eggplant, broccoli and squash. We finally managed to find 2 pumpkins so each girl could have one.
The highlight, other than the goats and chickens as usual, were the carrots. Addie had a blast using the pitchfork to loosen the soil and then picking out the carrots. If I let her she would have harvested them all. She also searched for the very few remaining onions left behind after the tractors had gone through.
Edith of course enjoyed munching her way through the farm. Cherry tomatoes, then a bell pepper, some chives and a carrot, dirt and all. She managed to soak her shoes, socks and coat and shed them all at some point.
Both girls were covered with mud, dirt, and veggies by the time we left. Messy but fun.
Now I have to get busy getting everything washed and stored.

Storyland and Caves

2010-08-04T04:38:00.000-07:00

The Haynes clan headed up to the White Mountains for a weekend of camping. Unfortunately Brian had a fever and a cough so he did not come with us.

We had a great time exploring Storyland on Saturday and then visiting Lost River Gorge glacial caves on Sunday.

At Storyland the big kids were very into lots of the story props. They enjoyed the Three Bears House, seeing the three little pigs and the black sheep. Addie missed Cinderella because she was at lunch but still tried out her throne. Edith was just big enough to go on all the wild rides. She is 36 1/4 inches tall. She tried out the roller coaster, crazy barn and the raft ride. The poor girl fell asleep in my arms while waiting for the raft ride but didn't seem to mind at all being woken up by spinning and water splashes.

At Lost River Gorge we hiked down many stairs into boulder strewn caves. Each little cave had an entrance and an exit. We had to crawl, twist and squirm our way through. Only the Matterns made it through the lemon squeezer though. I wasn't quite comfortable going through a cave that had a clearance of only 18 inches. Edith was really funny in the caves because she was so happy at being the "littlest" and not having to crawl and bend like the rest of us.

More pictures on facebook.

Sculpture Park with Nathan and Casey

2010-07-26T12:50:00.001-07:00

Nathan and Casey made one last visit from Vermont before they move back to Michigan. We enjoyed a nice weekend trying not to melt. We went to Andres Sculpture park not far from us on Route 13. We enjoyed a nice albeit humid walk through the woods finding the sculptures. There were many different trails so I am sure that we will go back again.

Addie is riding on the back of some giant monster's spine. She was quite fascinated by this sculpture that had several parts peeking up from the ground.

Addie and Edith are holding hands with the mostly invisible person. Look carefully or you might miss some of the sculptures strategically placed in the woods.

Puddles!

2010-07-15T11:46:00.000-07:00

An afternoon playing in puddles. Run, splash, swim and laugh.

Independence Day

2010-07-12T05:15:00.000-07:00

On Independence Day Brian put on a great fireworks show for his girls. First the girls had fun with the throwing snappers. Then Brian set to work with the light show. It was great, although a little strange to be so close. The girls in their pj's and Dora chairs inched closer and closer to me as the show went on. Rather than oohing and aahing at the fireworks they would burst out giggling at their favorite ones.

Who is that girl?

2010-06-24T12:18:00.000-07:00

Here is little Edie on a visit with Gramma and Grampa. Both of them repeatedly said, "She looks just like Sarah" Well here is a picture of Sarah. Same cuteness, same hairdo, even the same outfit. I guess she did look just like Sarah.

Matterns Vow Renewal

2010-06-23T06:06:00.000-07:00

We are still recovering from an awesome party held to honor Sarah and Jesse's 10th anniversary. They had a lovely and very touching vow renewal ceremony with the pastor who married them. Girls in sundresses, boys in hawaiian shirts, and great company made for a fabulous time. And here is a picture of what the kids were doing during the ceremony. I guess the adults didn't know the proper seating etiquette for such an occasion.

Flowers

2010-05-25T11:53:00.000-07:00

The girls absolutely love picking flowers. I told them they could pick anything not in the flowerbed. This is the bouquet they came back with. Edith especially enjoyed cramming the flowers down into the vase.

I do need to amend my flower picking instructions though. Pick anything not in the flowerbed that is not an endangered species. The girls each got a lady slipper. Luckily we found one more in the woods so that I could show them and say "don't pick this!"

Grouchy Girl

2010-05-18T10:16:00.000-07:00

Well I figured out why Edith is a little grouchy and only wants to snuggle most of the time. She is finally starting on her 2 year molars. Right on schedule for her (6 months beyond the average) she is getting the lower on one side and the upper on the other side.

Fashion Design

2010-05-17T18:16:00.000-07:00

I was inspired by a blog I read (who was inspired by a blog she reads) to have Addie draw some clothes she would like to have and then make something. At first she just recreated her favorite shirt. It has grown too small and she is sad that she can't wear it anymore. After a few more drawings including Mary and Joseph costumes I finally found something I thought I could tackle. A gray skirt with purple ruffles along the bottom.

We went downstairs to look at the fabric stash. Addie picked out her favorite purple, but I didn't have any gray. So she picked out camouflage. I didn't think camoflauge matched with delicate purple flowers so I just used the back side which looks gray! I traced one of her skirts and improvised on a ruffle. An hour or so later she had a new skirt. Not too bad. No one was injured in its making either considering both girls were simultaneously trying to help me pin the ruffle on.

Addie was super excited grabbing it out of my hands and putting it on as soon as it was done. Perhaps tomorrow I can make something with Edith. And I do have to say sewing without a pattern is lots of fun. What a time saver to not have to do all that extra and exact cutting and marking.

SEE Science Center

2010-05-04T08:07:00.000-07:00

I took the girls to the SEE Science center in Manchester. They had a good time. Their favorites were the submarine and periscope, the gear table, lego exhibit and toys, and the pulley chairs. They spent quite a bit of time in the pulley chairs. Addie loved lifting herself up and then dropping down. Then she pulled Edith up over and over. Edith happily rode up and down. Overall a nice day.
Addie is very impressed with the Statue of Liberty made of legos as well as the "whole country of Manchester" made of legos. It was pretty neat. We'll probably head back here again. It was pretty empty when we arrived although it did fill up with field trips later on. That was a little too loud and chaotic so we hit the road then.

Look Familiar

2010-04-24T04:47:00.000-07:00

Edith is now big enough to wear this lovely dress. The best part is the matching dress for a doll. Addie thought it was fantastic and Edith agrees. Nothing beats wearing matching outfits with your doll.

Lower Purgatory Falls

2010-04-13T05:57:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we wandered out to Milford's lower purgatory falls. It was a short walk in and the falls were beautiful. Both girls did great on the hike. Edith and Addie repeatedly reminded me and themselves not to jump over the edge. They were a little disappointed that they couldn't really get in the water. I had had them bring their flip flops, but the water level was much too high for them to play safely.

Little Clown

2010-04-08T16:26:00.000-07:00

Edith now talks in full sentences and amazes us with all the things she has to say. Many of them are quite funny.

"I ate so much I have to pick my nose"

Edith: There is something in my seat (wiggling and squirning)

Edith There is something in my seat! (more wiggling and squirming)

Me: What? What is in your seat?

Edith: A big butt.

Kaleidoscope Children's Museum

2010-03-20T10:24:00.000-07:00

On Wednesday we headed out to Kaleidoscope Children's museum in Manchester. It was a nice open play space for the girls. The girls liked the fire truck quite a bit. They also enjoyed the car that they could fix themselves. It had a whole bunch of wires under the hood that they could take out and move around. I enjoyed playing with the girls but realized I am too tall for structures built for the pre-school crowd. I hit my head several times and had to drive the car with my upper half out the windshield. This of course cracked the girls up.

Little Chef

2010-03-16T14:46:00.000-07:00

While Addie was at school this morning I decided it was time for Edith to have fun instead of being dragged on errands like usual. We started off the morning with a bath and then painted our fingernails and toenails. Then Edith got a chance to cook all by herself. Usually she and Addie have to take turns with what we are making so this is the first time she got to do everything herself. We made one of my favorites, S'more Bars.

I usually don't walk down the cereal aisle when I shop but Brian had requested some Cracklin' Oat Bran. Of course when I walked by the Golden Grahams I thought of one of my favorite treats and decided we would have to make them. Anyways here is the recipe I used adjusted from a few I found online using ingredients I had on hand. I don't always cook with random measurements, but sometimes its ok to just eyeball it.

S'more Bars

1/2 large bag of chocolate chips

3 handfuls of mini marshmallows

3/4 large box of Golden Grahams cereal

1/2 cup agave nectar

3 tablespoons butter

1. Melt butter and chocolate chips. Stir together and add agave nectar.

2. Add golden grahams and marshmallows.

3. Grease 9 x 13 pan with butter. Smash mixture into pan.

4. Cool in fridge until set and enjoy.

Now I am trying not to eat all of these at once. They are delicious.

Quote of the day.

2010-03-09T17:36:00.001-08:00

Addie: You know, I don't drink bathtub coffee anymore.

Imagination

2010-03-04T06:38:00.000-08:00

Addie really loves Cinderella. When asked to get dressed yesterday she put on her fanciest blue dress and then put some blue ski socks on as long gloves. Cinderella also needs a tiara so she found her Indian crown that she had made at school and put on her crown. What a beautiful Cinderella. Here she is playing with cars and blocks.

We all got some delicious Maple sugar treats in the mail from Brian's parents. The girls' treats were once shaped like moose but got broken in transit. I tried to explain that to Addie but I guess I didn't do a very good job. According to her, "This was a piece of a moose that fell off. Then they picked it up and put some sugar on it so it would taste so yummy." Well she loved eating her piece of moose. Hopefully she won't be disappointed if someone tries to serve her a piece of moose steak.

Tea Party

2010-02-26T09:59:00.000-08:00

The girls have been keeping me busy, busy, busy because they were sick for a week. They were finally starting to get mostly better but a little stir crazy so I set up a little tea party for them while they napped. When they woke up we each donned a fun hat and sat down to a nice tea party. Well lemonade and cupcakes. Addie was a pirate and Edith and I each wore one of my Gramma Haynes' hats. Fun. Addie has already asked if we can do it again.

What's wrong with this picture?

2010-02-20T08:39:00.001-08:00

After a morning of school Addie and Trekker were given free time. Usually they run around and make lots of noise. Today both were not feeling great and this is what they did. Snuggle and read together.

Our topic of the day was water. Here are the girls trying out their ice skaters. Everyone colored a craft stick. Then we froze it in some water and pushed the skaters around the floor. It was fun. Although a little gross when Edith decided hers was a Popsicle and started licking it.

Toaster Heads

2010-02-17T10:19:00.000-08:00

This morning I was just coming downstairs and I was hearing lots of giggles and laughter. Here is why. Apparently I had two little "toasters" running around toasting hotdogs.

Ski Weekend

2010-02-09T16:26:00.000-08:00

This past weekend we headed out to Vermont for a ski weekend with Brian's family. We had an awesome time. The rental shop had skis small enough for Edith even though she is a tad small for skiing. So we all got to hit the slopes or should I say bunny hill.
Addie did great skiing between Brian's and Uncle Nathan's skis. She even got to experience the big chair lift and head down a big hill with Brian. She laughed the entire way down. The biggest obstacle is that Addie absolutely hates the wind and when it gets a little blustery she gets panicky. So the second day she just wanted to stay inside.
Edith was very excited about her boots. She was racing all around in them. Then we put her skis on. After being slid across the snow for about 6 feet she yelled, "take them off." Not a good start. The boots were fabulous, but I guess skis were quite scary. The following day we thought we would have her try the magic carpet. She did like going up that and then Grandma just skied down carrying Edith. Edith liked that so we tried again with her skis on. Success. Skiing is actually fun. We think the problem was that she just didn't really know what skiing was. She had all the adults taking turns taking her down the bunny hill and had a blast.
Brian and I even got in a few runs ourselves and the fresh air and exercise felt wonderful. We had a wonderful time enjoying our family. The girls also got to enjoy the splash pool each day. Needless to say they were exhausted from swimming and skiing each night.
Unfortunately I forgot my camera! So no pictures!
And we must not forget one of the highlights of the trip. Grampa Leith introduced the girls to the word "scumbag". So the girls happily chatter and sing about scumbags now.

Picture Posers

2010-02-01T12:55:00.000-08:00

Today I wanted to take a nice picture of the girls to make a Valentine with. Addie is great at posing, cute looks, nice smiles and all of that. Edith on the other hand wiggles about and only shows her cheesy squinty eyed camera grin. I do have a trick for Edith to actually have a normal face which is to have the girls yell Grandma or Grandpa because that always makes them smile.
Here is one of the pictures. Addie is trying to make Edie pose with teddy bears and smile. Edith has other ideas and is elbowing the bears away from her. We did get a nice picture but you will have to wait for your Valentine to see it.

Little Tenderheart

2010-01-16T04:11:00.000-08:00

Brian took Addie on a little outing to pick up coffee yesterday and relayed this story to me. Addie is usually very close mouthed about school so it was wonderful to hear about it, especially such a sweet story.

There are two girls in Addie's class that are best friends and do everything together. One of them was sick so she wasn't at school. The other girl was then sad and playing by herself. Addie said that she went over to her and said she would be her friend and play with her. In Addie's own words, "My heart said she needed a friend."

And in Edith land...

Now that Edith has realized that everyone has eyes, heads, arms, etc. she is moving on to gender. She loves to tell me about whether everyone she knows is a girl or a boy. Often times this comes with skipping. To Brian, "you're a boy, you're a boy!" Skip Skip Skip. She is also working on other opposites as well.

Holiday Fun

2010-01-06T16:15:00.000-08:00

Christmas Day Smiles. Look at those stockings almost as big as the girls!

Yesterday we completed our big drive back from Michigan. Leaving at about 5:30 am and arriving home at a little before 3:00 am we were quite tired. We got some rest and are feeling refreshed after a day of laziness. The kids were great passengers for the most part and Brian said the portable DVD player we gave them for Christmas was the best present ever.

We had a wonderful time visiting Brian's family. We even got to sneak in an evening out with one of Brian's high school friends. All the cousins had a blast together.

Events included the train festival, sledding, taking a 5 minute walk to the beach on New Years day and lots of game playing. Lots of fun. We did stop at Niagara Falls on the drive back so the girls could walk around and enjoy the falls.

December Fun

2009-12-21T07:46:00.000-08:00

We have been having a wonderful December. We are mostly settled into our new house. The girls enjoyed their annual gingerbread house making with Gramma and Trekker. Edith had to be watched carefully because she likes to nibble on the gingerbread pieces as you help build her house. Addie and Trekker showed a little more restraint.

On Saturday we went to the Old Sturbridge Village 12 nights of Christmas celebration. We had a nice time finding neat things in each of the houses. We tried gingerbread, fruit cake and some cider. The cider was warmed with a hot poker dipped in the pitcher. The girls had a fabulous time leaving Brian and I behind to have fun exploring with Gramma and Grampa. One of the buildings had a bunch of gingerbread houses to look at. Gramma was showing them to Edith and then realized Edith had leaned over and started gnawing on one of the displays. Oh my!

Addie has been enthralled with the story of Jesus' birth and one of her new favorite games is to play "Mary and Joseph." Here she has the whole family set up with my nativity set along with a few extras, a sheep and some beads (cookies according to Addie).

Perfume

2009-12-14T11:26:00.000-08:00

Well the people who lived in this house before us shopped a lot. Or at least I guess they did from the huge amount of catalogs and fliers we receive. Today we got a set of fliers with about 10 different little perfume inserts. I set them out so Addie could play with them. The funniest thing is how Addie describes the so called perfumes.

1: Stinky bathroom ick
2: Orange stink
3: Strawberry ickys

"They all smell bad."

An untrained and honest nose.

This reminds me of the last time we went in a port-a-potty. Addie opened up the door and went inside. Then she said something about how it smelled so wonderful. It was overly deodorized rather than stinky, but I just cracked up.

Sisterly Love

2009-12-09T14:49:00.001-08:00

This evening while I am making dinner the girls are playing rather wildly. Then I notice it is awfully quiet. This makes me wonder what are they into that they are not supposed to be. I knew I had left a bunch of buttons and such out for a sewing project I am working on. Well what did I discover but the girls snuggled on the couch peacefully looking at a book together. Awww.

And another scene of love. Edith had fallen asleep in the car. Addie was then holding her hand and decided to pretend to be asleep herself. What a wonderful thing it is to have a sister. I know I will always treasure my own and I see that these two girls will have lots of memories together as well.

Little Shopper and The Best Doll

2009-12-02T12:36:00.001-08:00

Addie continues to be an amazing shopper. I took her with me while I shopped for a new pair of jeans. She loved helping me pick out which ones to try on and telling me which pair looked the best. Then she wanted to keep shopping and shopping when I was ready to go home. She did complain that the kids' clothing store was boring and wanted to go look at more Mom clothes.

We went again today, this time with Edith. She had the best time and did not want to go home. "Let's keep shopping, Mom." The funniest thing was that she scolded me for taking too long in the toy store.

In other news, Addie has discovered that she can dress Mabel. Mabel is not thrilled with this but has learned to listen to Addie's commands and tolerate being made beautiful. What a sweet dog she is. I am so glad the two are such buddies.

Thanksgiving

2009-11-28T05:27:00.000-08:00

We had a nice day out at my parents celebrating both Thanksgiving and my sister's birthday. The girls were absolutely tuckered out the next day. Edith enjoyed her pie sampler and both girls ate a lot of food.

The Lord has blessed us in so many ways. My favorite is our wonderful families.

There be tall pirates here.

2009-11-17T04:29:00.000-08:00

We have noticed that Addie has had a huge growth spurt. Her ankles are getting cold hanging out of her pants. Here she is wearing(for the last time) her favorite hoodie she got this summer. Just look at her wrists poking out! That is a lot of growth in a few months.

Addie is delighted with her face paints that she got for her birthday. She asks to use them almost everyday. We all had fun painting our own faces. Addie made herself a pirate (I helped with the bandanna), Edith had fun making herself a rainbow person (?), and I even gave myself a little crown (with a few green accents from Edith). Addie is showing off her best pirate face, Arr. Face painting also demonstrates how Edith is obviously right handed as she basically just paints the right side of herself.

Artist Addie

2009-11-11T06:36:00.000-08:00

Today Addie decided she would draw one of her favorite babies. She tried to trace her head and then had me come help her. Then she colored her in. It was real cute to see her keep picking up Baby Ann to look at her to see what she should draw next. She did struggle with the eyes because brown marker does not show up well on top of brown marker or the same color. The black ring around the eyes is the mouth. Impressive, Addie! What was great is that Addie did all of this without any prompting from me. All I did is supply the requested white pencil for the eyes.

Two Birthdays and Halloween

2009-11-04T12:16:00.000-08:00

Well Birthday Bonanza has come and gone. We enjoyed a great visit with all of Brian's family. Lots of fun and a little bit of work getting our house in an unpacked state. Thank you to Gloria and Leith for all of their help unpacking, shopping, and driving our stuff around. I made 4 cakes in 6 days and surprisingly enough we only have a half cake left.

On Halloween morning the entire Butler family went to the Davis Megamaze in Sterling, MA. We had a great time solving the maze and enjoying the various activities within. We ended up leaving at the halfway point because Addie and Lily were plumb tired. After a nice lunch we headed home and started carving pumpkins. We had to work in shifts because 12 pumpkins cannot be carved simultaneously. Then it was time for trick or treating. We went to a small subdivision next to us and hit about 8 houses, the perfect number for our little ones. Edith wore her Thomas costume for the picture only and then wore a Santa hat for collecting candy. Addie was Dora the Explorer. She was funny because she was confused about how her costume could possibly be made from her real clothes. I had to explain that Dora is a girl just like her and wears normal clothes. We spray painted her hair black and she was ready to go. It was fun to have the cousins to go along with the girls.

Grandma and Grandpa had a cousins sleepover at their hotel. The three girls had a blast, staying up late and giggling. I had fun going to bed early.

The grand finale was Addie's first concert, The Wiggles. We dressed her up in a pink shirt that read "I'm the Pink Wiggle." Addie asked that morning if she had to go on stage because she was the pink wiggle. Very cute. She did great at the concert although was a little nervous for the first half. She was in total disbelief when the first Wiggle came on stage. She seemed surprised that they were actually real people not just people in the computer. All in all a great concert although Addie complained it was a little long. We came home and had one of Addie's favorite foods for her birthday dinner, Campbell's Dora soup. Addie was exhausted and insisted on finishing her second bowl of soup before blowing out her candle. Then she didn't even finish her cake and just wanted to go to bed.

Another full week

2009-10-26T11:06:00.000-07:00

How much can happen in a week? Quite a lot. Here it goes.

Sarah and I celebrated my birthday by visiting my favorite museum, De Cordova, in Lincoln. It was quite chilly so we tried to keep the kiddos bundled up. Unfortunately the museum was between exhibits so there wasn't a whole lot open inside. I was inspired by the childrens area and may try to replicate it for the girls room. Luckily my favorite part, the sculpture gardens, can not be closed. We wandered around outside and had a great time. Edith was quite the character, not wanting to stop her rest on the tower sculpture and calling both this head and the red man, "Daddy."

Then we celebrated my birthday with my parents and Sarah's family with a nice dinner at my moms.

Then we did some packing and more packing and more packing. Then the packers came and packed up the rest of the house. I had taken the girls to church and then came back to help after leaving them with my parents. They had already packed my spare shoes so I spent the day packing in my heels. The next day the movers came and moved all day long. I was greatful that I didn't have to move any heavy boxes. Addie was real cute saying as one of the movers went by, "Wow. He has big strong muscles."

We are now starting to enjoy our new house. Hurrah. Lots of space. We still have a lot of work to do unpacking but I already feel that I am home. Our first full day in the house was my birthday. Couldn't have had a better present. The girls also survived dinner out through dessert which was also especially nice. Now we just need to locate the hardware for Edith's bed, the girls' socks, and a few other essentials.

Addie and Edith are thrilled to have Grandma and Grandpa visiting us. All yesterday morning Edith was chanting "want Grandma Gloria" over and over again. We are looking forward to the rest of the Butler clan arriving this weekend to celebrate the girls' birthdays.

And a very Happy Birthday to Aunt Casey, today.

Catch Up Post

2009-10-14T17:55:00.000-07:00

So I have forgotten to post about many things as I have been busy with moving related tasks. (move date Oct. 19) I will start off with today and go backwards.

1. I love the mannequin game. When we are at the mall, I have Addie look around for certain kinds of mannequins to buy me a few more minutes or to keep her moving. I ask her to look for ones with no heads, or no feet, or her favorite, kid mannequins. Since she likes mannequins so much, one day when I wanted some peace and quiet I created the mannequin game. Here is how it works. I tell loud wiggly kids something like "be a running mannequin or be a swimming mannequin." Said kids freeze into the required mannequin pose. After a while I request something else and then kids start naming their own and I can get something done. Always a crowd pleaser and today Addie requested it.

2. My best buddy was up visiting her family and we actually managed to squeeze in a nice morning walk at the reservoir. We even got to hop the fence because the gate was closed. Addie took this picture of Bess and Beth, dynamic duo. Also featured is Bess's nephew, Austin, and Edith's pigtails.

3. Scarecrow Festival: We headed out to Leominster to the scarecrow festival. I wanted to be there early before it got too crowded. This was a bad idea because how the festival works is people bring their old clothes and then make scarecrows with the provided frames and hay. This meant there were only 6 finished scarecrows to look at. Not wanting to just leave I bought the girls a pumpkin and we made a jack-o-lantern. The girls scooped it out and gave input to how it should be cut. (While Addie complained continuously about how windy it was). And again Addie decided to name her pumpkin diarrhea. Lovely. (that is also what she named her pumpkin last year and of course it made everyone crack up)

4. Celebrating Dad's Birthday: We had lunch and cake to celebrate my Dad's birthday. Edith wore her new I love Grandpa t-shirt. She loves this shirt and has since asked to wear it everyday. Cute. I guess the elmo shirt is now in second place for favorite. Dad was happy to have parsnips as part of lunch as he really likes them and doesn't get them at home, and I was happy to have someone be pleased that we were eating parsnips. He turned 1 year old. (I only had one candle that wasn't an inacurrate numeral)

She'll be coming round the mountain

2009-10-01T13:17:00.000-07:00

Today's lyrics to "she'll be coming around the mountain" courtesy of Addie

She'll be bending all the jewelry when she comes....

She'll be blowing up the anchor when she comes...

She'll be poking all the trees when she comes...

She'll be eating cake on the lawn...

Who knows where all this stuff comes from. Al1though I suspect blowing up the anchor is taken from a pirate song about pulling up the anchor.

Sweet Addie

2009-09-27T09:44:00.001-07:00

Hurrah, we have bought our new home. We will be living in Brookline, New Hampshire and hopefully this will be our forever home. Addie has some funny thoughts about the whole home and moving thing. The funny one is that she tells us that she will be moving out when she's 17 to get her own house. I guess if she can afford to buy her own house at 17 that's ok.

The sweetest thing Addie said was yesterday when we were driving there.
Me: We are going to our new house.
Addie: Don't call it that. Call it home.
Me: Ok, we are going to our new home.
Addie: No just call it home not new home.

And anyone who wants to visit is more than welcome. We have lots of space. No pictures yet because I forgot my camera yesterday.

Apple Picking

2009-09-21T10:55:00.000-07:00

Friday morning we had a nice day apple picking in Berlin. The weather was beautiful. The kids enjoyed the crooked little houses and running in the orchard. We sampled 4 kinds of apples and are still working on eating them all up.

Edith was very silly with her apple. It had a long stem which she decided was perfect for carrying the apple in her teeth. "Look Ma, no hands."

Funnies

2009-09-15T16:24:00.001-07:00

Addie has really gotten into drawing actual things. The one that made me laugh was when she described her drawing as, "this is the policeman. He is putting out the fire with his sword. He is crashing the house down." This just made me giggle because policemen don't carry swords and a sword can't put out a fire.

Yesterday we were hanging out in the girls' room. Addie said to me, " I want my room to look like a grocery store." I answered, "How does a grocery store look?" She replies, "well there isn't food lying all around the floor everywhere." Quite true. Grocery stores are probably one of the most consistently tidy and organized places. Addie and Edie's room is not tidy very often, partly because they don't have any shelves. This should all change (crossing fingers) when we move next month. We're not expecting grocery store tidiness, but maybe a few less toys on the floor with some storage shelves. So all you mothers out there, if you want to describe what a clean room looks like just say, "a grocery store."

And now for Edith's antics...

Today my mom and I were at the storage unit sorting through all my paraphernalia from high school. Edith was happily playing in our cars. Climbing all around. I went to check on her and the door started beeping when I opened it! Edith had dug around and found my keys and then stuck one in the ignition! Luckily just the mailbox key. Brian and I had already been talking about how Edith will be one of those kids who tries to take the car for a spin around the age of 5 or 6. We didn't think she would start her attempts so early. Lesson learned: always leave the keys in my pocket when I let Edith explore the car.

Addie being silly in Brian's alien mask and a pacifier.

First Day of School

2009-09-01T10:55:00.000-07:00

Today was Addie's first day of preschool. The moms got to go too to help with the transition. Addie was a bit slow to warm up, but enjoyed playing with all the toys.

Before we left to go to school she was dancing around and singing in excitement. She picked out what she wanted to wear and requested that I curl her hair. I guess she knew it was a big day and wanted to look her best.

What a bittersweet moment for her to be off to school. I didn't even cry even though I wanted to. No guarantees on Thursday when she goes without me.

Eric Carle Picture Book Museum

2009-09-01T10:51:00.000-07:00

Saturday the whole family headed out to Amherst to see the Eric Carle picture book museum. Addie really enjoyed seeing all the pictures. She especially enjoyed the artwork from Winnie the Pooh. Edith just ran around while I followed her. She only liked the 4 foot tall cake sculpture and that was the only thing that could console her when I took Addie to the bathroom. All of us each made our own painting in the studio. Brian snuck off to the gift shop and bought each of the girls a book while they were playing with the toys. Overall a great visit. Not so great listening to Edith cry and wail on the way home though.

A Post by Addie and Edith

2009-08-31T05:08:00.000-07:00

Addie says:
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzxccccccvbnmasdfghjklqwertyiop

Edith says:
g b g mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmbb
k

Southwick Zoo

2009-08-31T05:02:00.000-07:00

We finally made it to the zoo. Both girls really enjoyed themselves. We got to get amazingly close to the tigers because they were pacing right next to the fence. There was also a quite energetic baby mandrill baboon that entertained us for quite some time. And of course we all enjoyed the elephant show.

Love and Marriage

2009-08-29T04:16:00.001-07:00

This morning when Addie and Edith came to snuggle we had the following conversation.

Addie: "Edith and I are going to get married when we are bigger."

Me: Oh. Who are you going to marry?

Addie: Each other. Sometimes when the parents have two girls or two boys they marry each other. Like me and Edith, and Ross and Josh. Ross and Josh will get married when they are bigger. Me and Edith will get married.

Me: Dad and I don't have the same parents, why are we married?

Addie: Because you love each other. People get married because they love each other.

So I guess this was Addie's way of telling me she loves Edith. So sweet.

Maine Trip

2009-08-27T11:25:00.000-07:00

All the girls headed to Maine last week while Brian was in Seattle for work. We had a great time and much fun was had playing in the sand. The weather was quite cooperative, but the water was mighty cold for swimming (for the adults anyways). We also enjoyed visiting a touch tank, blueberry picking, and of course ice cream.

Touch a Truck

2009-08-14T10:39:00.000-07:00

Wednesday evening we headed out to Lancaster where the library was hosting a touch a truck event. The kids got to climb on and explore all the giant trucks. Addie's favorite was the giant army vehicle. Edith liked the tractor the best. Addie was real good about taking turns driving and even tried to lift Edith up into the trucks for her turn. It was quite cute.

Thursday afternoon we went for ice cream. Edith enjoyed it wholeheartedly and was covered almost from head to toe in it.

Blueberry Picking

2009-08-12T05:14:00.000-07:00

As you know this summer has been very rainy. We haven't had the opportunity to go pick our own fruit because of this. And we have spent a lot of time house hunting as well. We finally heading out blueberry picking yesterday. It was bright and sunny, until we got out of the car. Then it started to pour down. I decided we could just pick in the rain. It only rained for a few minutes and the sun dried us off before we were done. Edith put several berries in her bucket and then feasted. She found an Edith sized bush and pretty well cleaned it off of all berries, blue and green. Addie picked quite a few more berries but did have quite a feast. Perhaps I shouldn't have taken them right before lunch.

Michigan Trip

2009-08-06T16:57:00.001-07:00

We all had a great time in Michigan visiting Grandma and Grandpa. We had a great time even though the weather did not cooperate as much as we would have liked. We didn't get a boat ride in or a campfire. We did get to ride an antique firetruck in the pouring rain, go swimming almost every day, visit a museum, visit a playground, got o Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes, and attend the Traverse City Film Festival. Not too bad. Here are a few of the pictures.

Addie imitating Grandpa asleep in the chair.

Some funny moments...

Addie: Why is Grandma's house so small?

note: Grandma's house is about 3 times the size of ours just with a third of the "stuff" strewn about.

When we arrived home the girls were super snuggly towards Brian. It was like they hadn't seen him in a week. I guess they were so busy with their cousins and Grandparents they missed him a little.

Addie was swimming and she says to Grandpa "Come on in Superman."

Halfway through walking up the sand dunes Edith sat down. She just was in love with the sand and could not bear to not be playing with it any longer. We tried to move her along, but she just returned to the original spot she sat in and played and played.

Addie trying out bike riding.

Edith enjoying the kids music set up at the Friday Night Live street fair.

Addie's first jet-ski ride.
Sleeping bear sand dunes.

Lily and Addie concentrating together.

Happy 400th Brian

2009-08-03T18:29:00.001-07:00

Today Brian turned 400 months old. We celebrated with a few friends and enjoyed food and a yummy Coldstone cake. I had the kids shuck the corn which they absolutely loved. It was well worth it even though there were a few minor dents in the corn and a little more silk than usual.

We came back from Michigan yesterday and I will post all about our trip later this week. Lots of fun.

Busy Busy Busy

2009-07-21T04:24:00.000-07:00

Our July is jam packed. Last week we met up with my great Aunt Mary and cousin Betsy. We enjoyed a beautiful day at a state park in Rutland. Edith and Addie had a blast playing in the sand and swimming.

Over the weekend we went camping with my family in NH and took the kids to Storyland. It was so much fun. I was very impressed with how the park made everything enjoyable for the entire family. The big hit was Loopy Labs in which everyone could shoot foam balls, vacuum them up, and shoot them some more. Addie enjoyed exploring all the nursery rhymes and playing in the tree house. Both girls loved the ball pit. I enjoyed the roller coaster and the circus. Poor Addie did not really care for the circus. She hid her eyes during the clown show because she didn't like watching him falling repeatedly. I think part of the problem was he didn't have any make-up on so she didn't identify him as a clown. She also hid her eyes during the daredevil show. It just shows what a sweet little girl she is. Here are a lot of pictures because I can't just pick a few.

A New Blog

2009-07-12T18:28:00.001-07:00

We have been busy doing lots of art projects lately. I decided to create a separate blog for all of the girls creations. Check it out.

http://addieandediestable.blogspot.com/

In other news we have been busy house hunting. Fun, exciting, tiring, and stressful all at once.

Independence Day

2009-07-05T10:35:00.000-07:00

After nap time we headed up to Pepperell to partake in the July 4th festivities with Amelia and Eric. We enjoyed a nice relaxing time at the playground and chatting while we waited. Brian and I had repeatedly warned Addie that both girls had to stay cheerful and well behaved if we were to see fireworks. Both girls did amazing and we enjoyed some fireworks. Edith was a little stunned with the loud booms. Brian taught her to say "boom" and "oooh" which helped. Addie of course thought Amelia was her special play partner and had a grand time playing with her and sharing cotton candy with her. Overall a nice day and great to see friends.

Happy Birthday America

Old Friends

2009-07-04T09:41:00.000-07:00

This Friday I was very excited to see some of my college friends, April and Shannon, and their two girls. I don't think I have seen them since, well, college. We met up at the Boston Museum of Science, however it was a nuthouse there as it was free admission day. We decided to just take the kids outside where there was some air. Then the adults could talk and the kids had fun playing on the various hunks of rock from around the world. We had a nice time and hopefully we will see them again in less than the 9 years it took us to get together this time.

A Broken Heart

2009-06-30T10:36:00.001-07:00

Today Addie asked for some candy. We then made up a song about candy. It goes like this.

I want candy. clap, clap clap clap clap (fast)

repeat a bunch

No, candy. clap clap clap (slowly and sadly)

repeat some more

Well Edith was quite excited throughout the first part of our song, dancing and clapping along. Then she heard the second verse. She was brokenhearted and started crying. It was so sad. She was upset and cried for quite some time. Addie was very comforting bringing her stuffed animals and blankets, and telling her "its just a song" and "its over now." So please don't let Edith think she is going to get candy when there is none.

This picture is the little darling showing off her camera smile, squinty eyes and all.

Little Miss Potato Head

2009-06-22T09:58:00.001-07:00

We were all having fun playing with Mr. Potato Head and his friends. Edith decided that the glasses were perfect for her. She put them on and refused to take them off. She probably had them on for at least an hour and was so delighted with them. She is our very own little Miss Potato Head.

As I was taking Mabel outside the other day I saw a little tree frog on the inside of the screen door. It was a gorgeous bronze color and so cute. Edith and Brian had fun looking at him from both sides of the window. Then I got him to hop off the door and he found a new perch on the outlets. He actually was still there when I went outside several hours later. We see toads hopping through the grass all the time, but seeing a frog was a special treat.

Davis Farmland and The Butterfly Place

2009-06-15T10:45:00.000-07:00

On Friday we headed out to Davis Farmland. It was a perfect day. The girls had a fabulous time. All of the baby animals run free. The girls had a great time feeding them. Addie liked any animal that was shorter than her. The baby alpaca was a little intimidating because it was slighter taller than Addie and had big, big eyes.

Edith really enjoyed milking the pretend cow. She probably would have sat underneath it the entire day. Addie's favorite part was the hayride, where we saw lots of exotic farm animals that were pastured. She also enjoyed the face painting station. Carefully adding all colored lines to her face and finally declaring she was a cat.

Saturday, we enjoyed a nice morning at the Butterfly Place, a small privately owned butterfly garden. Addie absolutely loved being among all the fluttering butterflies and discovering them all around her. Edith also enjoyed the butterflies, but was frustrated because under 3's were not allowed to roam free.

I picked out my own clothes today.

2009-06-09T19:08:00.000-07:00

Addie apparently thought it was clashing day. Lets mix and match all patterns, colors, and styles at once. Camo fleece pants, hello kitty tank top, christmas bow frilled blouse, red socks with big white hearts, and her Mary Jane shoes. At least she got dressed by herself.

We got a book out of the library about face painting, so Addie has enjoyed picking things out. Here she is as a pink-eyed purple alien.

Art Projects

2009-05-30T10:55:00.001-07:00

Today we went to the Annual Shirley Early Childhood Art Fair. There were a bunch of projects for the young set to work on. Addie had fun making marble painting, stamping, and her favorite (and Edith's) making a mask. Edith really enjoyed looking at all the art the pre-schoolers had made. She proudly told Dad what all of the animals were. Then she ran around crazily in her mask.

A few days ago Addie was wondering how paper was made. We watched a video on the computer and then we made our own. Here is a picture of our homemade paper. It was a lot easier and mess free than I anticipated so we will probably do it again.

Last week we headed over to Gramma and Grampa's on a warm day. The pool was filled and waiting for them. Edith got so excited just looking at her swimsuit that she insisted on wearing it over her clothes until we got there. It was a beautiful day and the girls had a blast. Gramma looks pretty happy, too.

Translation Anyone?

2009-05-29T14:38:00.000-07:00

I remember when Addie was about Edith's age she said one word all the time. The problem was no one could figure out what she was trying to say. I think it was something like "ziggy." Well we now have Edith's mystery word. It is something like "notchoo." Kind of a cross between "not you" and "nacho." Anyone have any ideas what this means? Edith is quite patient and says it over and over to us while we guess what she is trying to tell us.

A Name!

2009-05-26T16:56:00.000-07:00

Today is the first day Edith has said her own name. Previously she has referred to herself as "you" or can say "I do it" or "I want." This evening she proudly pointed to herself and said Edie. Hooray!

She has developed some other amazing talents as well. One is that she is a little rascal about her hair. I constantly put up her hair so it is not in her face. She happily leaves it in as long as I am in the room. However, as soon as I leave the room out is comes.

The other thing she can do is find the duck in Usborne books. There is a little duck hidden on each page and Edith can find it and say duck. I was pretty impressed.

Observations and Gardens

2009-05-14T18:36:00.000-07:00

Brian relayed this story to me.

Addie: Do you like our new door decorations. Aunt Sarah has some at her house. Mom likes them so she got some for our house too.

Well our new door decorations are actually the door knob safety covers. I am getting tired of Mabel accidentally getting out when Addie opens the door. And sometimes Addie likes to leave before I am quite ready. And Edith reaches on her tiptoes to try to turn the knob. It was time.

Another story Addie told Brian.

Addie: Edith kept saying "I want cake, I want cake over and over so Mom made her one."

Well actually today my sister and I were celebrating Mother's Day with our Mom. The cake was for my Mom not Edith, although we all enjoyed it together. If I made a cake every time Edith said "I want cake" we would be up to our eyeballs in it.

This picture is part of the garden Addie and I have planted. We have quite a few plants going and will later transplant them into Gramma's garden as we are not allowed to plant anything outside. We have dog and cat grass heads, snowdrop flowers, 3 beans, a bunch of pumpkins, a bunch of peppers, and a potato. Addie has quite the green thumb. We enjoy cutting our grass animals' hair together. I guess it is time for another trim.

Sisterly Love

2009-05-13T17:25:00.000-07:00

Both girls are getting better and better at playing together every day. Finally. Now sometimes I can accomplish small task without having to referee every 10 seconds. Addie enjoys reading Edith books and helps her point to things in the I Spy books. Edith loves to whisper "Hi" and have Addie whisper it back to her over and over. Quite cute. Addie has also been helping get Edith dressed some days which all three of us find quite hilarious. Edith also says "I want Addie" over and over again if she feels Addie is not paying attention to her at dinner time. The two are becoming such a loving team. I do wonder what mischief they will enjoy together in a few years though.

Here Addie is making sure Edith has her sunscreen on. The top picture is what I call the "Earth and Moon dance." Edith is the earth spinning in a circle and Addie is the moon running around her in a nice orbit.

sentences

2009-05-05T14:15:00.000-07:00

Here are Edith's favorite sentences and words.

10. More

9. Mabel

8. Milk

7. Hello

6. I do it

5. Mama

4. Blastoff

3. No!

2. I want cake.

1. I want Addie.

Carnival

2009-04-23T16:42:00.000-07:00

Brian saw a carnival in the mall parking lot and thought Addie would enjoy it. Indeed she did. She had a blast and we had a blast watching her. Her favorite was the dragon ride. Brian took her on the Ferris Wheel even though he absolutely hates heights. What a wonderful Dad he is.

Phone calls

2009-04-17T18:43:00.000-07:00

Addie LOVES to talk on the phone. Brian has been away for the week and she really enjoys calling him. She and Trekker can also talk for quite a while. Addie was grilling Trekker about what he found at an Easter egg hunt. Although she likes to talk on the phone herself she does not like the lack of attention while I am on the phone. Usually I am being climbed on, or licked, or just barraged with repeated "can I talk, can I talks?"
I have been working on getting Edith to at least say hi or make any noise at all on the phone. She is very insistent on holding the phone but just smiles while the person on the other end talks. (She also plays phone with anything with buttons, i.e. remotes, calculators, electric timers, etc) My strategy is to whisper in her non-phone ear things like "what does a cow say? and "what does a monkey say?" She complies and then whoever is talking to her doesn't think the phone has been put down and Edith wandered away.
Today I was trying to talk with my father about something. Its hard to remember what because Edith was climbing on me and Addie was being loud. Addie then starts talking in my ear. I end my conversation how I always do "I need to go. The kids are getting antsy/crazy/wild. Bye." After I hang up Addie asks, "Why didn't you tell Grampa what a chicken says?" I guess she was following my lead and encouraging me to make animal noises into the phone. As usual she doesn't miss a thing. So if I cluck or moo while I am in the middle of a conversation, now you know why.

Oh and now some pictures of Easter Egg Hunting.

Edith got the most eggs because she was allowed to pick up any egg she wanted. Addie's and Trekker's were labeled with their names. All of them had a good time and loved checking out their loot.

Dog School

2009-04-10T11:51:00.000-07:00

Addie has gone with my mom to dog class several times. She loves to hold her own dog class with Mabel. She does all the commands especially sit and stay. Addie had me make her a little treat bag. Mabel is quite obedient and especially enjoys all the extra tidbits.

April Fool's

2009-04-01T05:43:00.001-07:00

This morning I tried to think of an April Fool's joke to play on Dad that Addie would understand and could help with. Together we replaced all of the clothes in Brian's dresser with Addie's. Addie made sure to make sure all of her clothes were folded properly and in the right spots. Addie was so excited and we laughed and laughed after yelling April Fools. Brian opened several drawers before realizing all of his clothes were gone. Addie is really excited and wants to play more jokes, mostly hiding more stuff in Daddy's dresser.

Crazy Camels and a "New" Toy

2009-03-22T16:13:00.000-07:00

Saturday morning we visited Overlook Farm in Rutland for a pancake breakfast fundraiser. They had the most delicious sausage made from their grass fed animals. This is a farm run by Heifer Project to demonstrate what it is like to live in some of the various parts of the world that they serve. There is lots of livestock and several houses. Addie thought the bamboo house from Thailand was a playground.

One of the highlights for Addie was that her Sunday school teacher also went. She liked the animals alright, but continually asked, "Where is Mrs. Chaplis?" Addie is definitely a people person. Edith enjoyed getting to pet the baby goats, one only 4 days old. We all enjoyed watching the rather silly camel. He was standing by his fence and just wagged his whole neck and head back and forth repeatedly. He continued doing this for the entire time we were observing him.

We also visited the Sugar Shack to see the maple syrup being boiled. We all listened to the talk about the whole process. The volunteer asked if there were any questions. Addie wondered, "Why is the floor gravel?" The two student volunteers were stumped. I guess that was outside their expertise of maple syrup information.

Addie and Edith have a "new" toy. It seems that they have discovered Mabel. They take her for walks around the house together. Luckily we have two leashes so they each can hold one. Edith really enjoys feed her as well. I think Mabel is still undecided on all this attention. On one side it is nice to actually get attention and be played with, but it isn't always fun to be dragged around all day.

Amazing

2009-03-18T17:21:00.000-07:00

I am always impressed by Addie's amazing powers of observation. I am going to share two recent examples. First, we were heading into a restaurant and Addie pointed out a hanging tree. She was very excited about the hanging tree. None of the rest of us would have even noticed because we were so busy with shuttling everybody inside.

Today we went to the library and I got out Country Mouse Town Mouse by Jan Brett. When I got it out to read Addie says "This is the armadillo book." This only makes sense if you know that we have previously gotten out another book by Jan Brett that stars an armadillo. Addie immediately recognized the style of the drawings. Wow. Even more amazing is that we got out the armadillo book back when we were living in Issaquah over 9 months ago. Double Wow!

On the Edith front she is quite excited about the new shoes that she picked out. She grabbed a pair of Trekker's old work boots (size 8) and absolutely loves them. I had to hide them because it is probably not so good to wear shoes 2 sizes too big. She also now has Trekker's old leather jacket. She looks pretty cool in it. Here she is sweeping up the driveway with the shop broom.

Higgins Armoury

2009-03-06T13:48:00.000-08:00

We spent a nice morning at Higgins Armory. Both girls really enjoyed the kids room. Edith practiced being both a knight and Alice (playing chess). The actual museum itself was kind of boring for the girls although they did enjoy stretching their legs. The interior structure of the museum has a sort of tunnel of archways made into a hallway with a line of colored tiles in the center. Of course this made a fabulous path to run on. I had lots of fun chasing the girls and reminding them "we don't run in museums."

And Edith now has 6 teeth! That pesky second tooth on the bottom has finally popped through. Hurrah!

Puzzles and Silverware

2009-03-05T04:11:00.000-08:00

Can you believe, Addie has started solving crossword puzzles? She is pretty good at them and almost finished one. Check it out.

Little Edith is observing every little detail around her. I was asking Addie for help picking up and Edith was really excited to answer. (Addie not so much) Edith helped empty the silverware tray in the dishwasher. One by one she would take a piece out and walk over to the drawer. She would open the drawer and then reach up and drop the piece in. The drawer is high enough that she had to stretch really far and just slide the silverware in. She worked quite hard and got all of the pieces put away. It was adorable. I didn't have the heart to tell her she was putting everything in the wrong drawer.

Two Sillies

2009-02-16T17:36:00.000-08:00

We took Addie skiing. Hurrah. We met Brian's family at Okemo in VT and had a great time. Here is the little one with Aunt Casey. She absolutely loves her Aunt. Casey was fabulous teaching Addie especially since she is a beginner skier herself. Next year Edith will get to go too.
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So I uploaded my pictures today and had a few laughs. Apparently February has had some interesting moments or I am tired of photographing cute and instead choose reality.

First is one of my favorites. The girls were having a great time snuggling, giggling, and sharing a snack. Note the messy faces. The funny thing about it is that they were having so much fun because they were sitting on the garbage. They thought it was a fabulous seat (beanbag like I suppose). Nothing beats sharing snacks on the garbage.

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This beauty is a failed preschool project. I had found the idea of letting the kids play with cooked noodles and sticking them together with colored glue. I was impressed that I had the foresight to cook the noodles ahead of time and was ready for some tactile fun. Well Trekker didn't want to touch the noodles, much less dip them in sticky glue. I finally convinced him to use a paintbrush to paint the noodles with the glue but after a minute he asked to wash his hands and do something else. Addie was slightly more impressed, but apparently could not get creative because I had used two sizes of noodles (angel hair and fettecine). She sorted her noodles out by size and then because Trekker had wandered off decided she was done too. So much for tactile fun.

On the up side Addie loved the snow and water experiment. I filled up one cup with water and one with snow. We kept checking water levels throughout the day. It was very exciting for both of us to see how small the snow became. Hurrah for science!
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And here is Edith. She has decided that clothes are no fun. When I change her she runs away, streaking throughout the house. She giggles and laughs while I chase her. Of course she throws a fit when I catch her and dress her. Here is the little rascal.

My picture a day for January

2009-02-13T10:49:00.000-08:00

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Here is my compilation of my picture a day for January. They are not really in any order. And in reality I think I took over 300 pictures, although on several days I actually took only 1 or 2. Enjoy.

Yesterday we went roller skating again. Veggies Tales was playing and I commented to Addie about it. She says, "No, Mom, thats the Meat Tales not the Veggie Tales. I like both though, Meat Tales and Veggie Tales."

So I guess you should check out the Meat Tales if you enjoy Veggie Tales. Ha ha.

Say what?!

2009-02-03T14:47:00.000-08:00

This morning Addie was playing quietly and she said this. "When you put a frog on your head it will pee on you. That was the first thing I said when I was a baby."

How strange. There were no frogs around and I don't have any idea how she came up with that statement. The wonders of a 3 year old mind.

And now here is Adde's blog post.

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaasssssddddffffffffffffffffffflllllllllllllllllllllll;llllttttttrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyqaasaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

Hard Work Pays Off

2009-02-02T10:43:00.000-08:00

Addie has been working very hard with Daddy on making a Lite Brite picture. At first it was very difficult for her, but now she is a pro at matching the colors with the letters and pushing the pegs in. This project took a few weeks to complete. One section each evening before bedtime.

I love Addie's grin of accomplishment. Look at what hard work and patience can create.

Old Sturbridge Village

2009-01-28T05:30:00.000-08:00

This week Brian's parents and brother and sister in law came to visit us. We had a wonderful time. We enjoyed a nice trip to Old Sturbridge Village. The kids all made candles and candle holders. We all enjoyed sledding on the old style sleds. Especially Edith. Here are some highlight pictures.

I asked Addie what she liked best about OSV and here is what she said. "I liked seeing all the animals." Then about 10 minutes later. "I liked seeing all the horse poop at Old Sturbridge Village."

Skating...Take 2

2009-01-16T18:05:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we hit the roller skating rink during "homeschool afternoons". This was a lot busier than when we went this fall and had the place to ourselves. It was great to see so many families having a skatin' good time. Addie did great. Skating without holding my hands and rarely falling. She also imitated the other skaters trying to pump her arms really fast. She even skated backward because she was holding Edith's hands. We (yes all three of us) also had fun in the jumpy house and on the mats.

The most exciting thing was that Edith got to roller skate. They had little skates that go over shoes. She was awesome. She just skated away, albeit a little slowly. Check out this adorable video.

No Title

2009-01-13T17:28:00.001-08:00

I am trying to take a picture a day for the entire year. So far I have not missed a day. I will be satisfied however if I make it through January There was a close call when Edith hid my camera in her bucket. I have taken a plethora of pictures. Here are a few featuring the girls antics.
Today Addie and Trekker became cowboy and cowgirls at school Here is a big yeehaw.

Edith thought it was hilarious when I would throw snow in the air. Then she took off her mittens to try it herself, so we had to go inside.

Addie's depiction of a whale. Oh and that blue splotch on the bottom is Grandma Gloria. Addie has started drawing things rather than just coloring. It is pretty cool. She makes awesome spiky flowers.

Edith really wanted to go outside. She went and found her coat and hat and mittens. We all laughed because you can't go out in the snow with a dress and naked legs. Eventually we suited her up and let her play.

Today's funny quotes

Addie "Grandma Gloria can turn people into mannequins."

Trekker: "When I am 91 I am going to push Edith..." long pause "on the swing.....the baby swing"

Sledding Adventures

2009-01-03T04:47:00.000-08:00

We got a fresh batch of snow this week. In total about 4 inches or so. This is the perfect amount for small ones to play in and still be able to walk. We headed over to Gramma and Grampa's where we took the girls sledding. They both had a great time. Edith was grinning from ear to ear as she went down the hill. Addie wanted to keep going and going.

Two Smiles

2008-12-31T16:55:00.000-08:00

I am on an eternal quest to get a picture of both girls smiling at the same time. I might even be satisfied if I could get a picture where neither is acting goofy. I am hoping to accomplish this sometime soon, but think possibly I might acheive my goal in 5 years. Here are some attempts at a trio self portrait. I had the girls on my lap and the camera so I thought I would give it a try.

It is impossible to get both girls to smile at the same time. I was hoping to get a good picture to use for a holiday card over the past month. I had absolutely no luck. I am hoping I can catch a special moment and send out Happy New Year cards. Hopefully we don't have to wait until Valentines for simultaneous smiles.

Christmas Pictures

2008-12-29T18:06:00.001-08:00

When Edith opened her new pajamas she grabbed them into a big hug for a snuggle. She hugged them for for about 10 minutes. She loves soft things. She also enjoys getting in boxes. She is enjoying the box for the new cutting food. Addie modelling her new bath robe.

Brian opening a gift.

Me helping Edith open a gift.

A Christmas Wish Granted

2008-12-23T04:26:00.000-08:00

Hurrah. At just shy of 14 months old Edith's first tooth has finally poked through yesterday morning. She had been teething for months. Of course now she wants something different from Santa, a toothbrush.

Snow Snow Snow

2008-12-21T10:00:00.000-08:00

The snow has been falling since Friday. It is beautiful and fluffy. The perfect snow for playing in (and to shovel). The snow is almost as tall as Edith and definitely towers over Mabel. Addie has been loving going outside and playing in it. She had a great time while Dad shovelled. I got Edith all dressed up and she got to experience snow for the first time. She was adorable wearing her bear suit from last winter. She is such a tiny girl to be able to fit in something sized 3-6 months! I am glad it fit her because I have looked everywhere for Addie's old snow pants with no luck.

Spicy...cookies and blocks

2008-12-19T16:56:00.000-08:00

Edith's favorite thing to do when we are downstairs is to empty out the spice cupboard. She carries the spices around and scatters them around the house. Her favorite spice is sage. Occasionally she might even put one back. I am hoping one of Brian's weekend projects will be childproofing the kitchen cupboards.

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Today Addie and I made cookies. I didn't have any colored sugar to decorate with so I made my own. I just used a bit of icing coloring with a quarter teaspoon of water to dissolve in a random amount of sugar in a custard cup. It worked well although the colors are super bright neon. Addie had a lot of fun making the sugar on top almost as thick as the cookies themselves. Then she took a surprise plate up to Dad so he could have a cookie break. This was quite exciting for her as she was allowed to carry the cookies up the whole way and visit Dad during working hours. I think the picture shows a star, some pigs, a church, and a tree or two.

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While I put Edith to bed, Addie has quiet time. She usually spends this time building with blocks. Some nights Addie has to go to bed before I come back down to view her creations. Tonight when I went to upload pictures I noticed that her block fortress had been photographed so I wouldn't miss it. A cute surprise to find on my camera. I am always amazed at the versatility of her architectural designs. She makes buildings in all varieties. The top picture is last night's "kitty house" The bottom is tonight's creation.

Holiday Dance

2008-12-17T17:18:00.001-08:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Gingerbread Houses

2008-12-15T17:46:00.001-08:00

Today Addie and Trekker had a lot of fun helping Gramma make a gingerbread house. Addie tried so hard to put the candy on the house instead of in her mouth. She was pretty pleased when she was allowed to finally eat some of the candy.

We finally have power again. There was an ice storm and we lost power Thursday night. We finally got it back Sunday evening. Although we had no heat, it felt luxurious (for a power outage) because we still had hot water and could cook because we have propane. This was a step up from our house in Issaquah when we would have no water of any kind during a power outage. Hot showers in the dark are not so bad. One challenge we faced was dressing Edith for sleep. She hates pajamas with feet, hates wearing socks to bed, and hates blankets. So for bed I put her in leg warmers and fleece pajamas. Then we add the finishing touch of Brian's ski socks. They were cozy and she couldn't get them off. She looked silly, but she stayed warm.

A contest celebrating Etsy

2008-12-04T11:06:00.000-08:00

If you have never shopped at etsy.com before now would be a nice time to try. It is like a giant store of people selling their own handmade items. I always have a great time browsing. Here is a sampling.

ChildrenThis and That - $20 gift cardRed Pajamas - Little Man's Tie ($8)Baby Luv Gifts - Cute Custom Beanie ($15)Baby Bears - $25 gift cardMy Custom Baby Boutique - $25 gift cardBaby Goin Places - PocketChanger Diaper Changing Pad ($25)Layla Legs - $15 gift card & free shippingSecond Story Window - $10 gift cardInspiring Color Tie Dye - Youth pullover hoodie rainbow diagonal or swirl ($30)Baby Peas - boy or girl cloth play blocks- set of 4 ($18)Abby Chase Designs - Lotus Hair Flower ($13.50)Tadpoles and Tutus - $20 gift cardMake it and Love It - onesie/bootie set of choice (14.99)
PiggyTails Boutique - Christmas tutu and snowman wand with a matching personalized bow ($26)

JewelryFour Dog Day - Cute Pink Key Ring ($8)Jupita - $20 gift cardZeba - Coin Pearl Earrings ($20)Jodi Horgan - $25 gift cardOne of a Kind Custom Jewelry - $20 gift cardAcross The Pond - choice of any vintage button ring ($14)Kerstin Hanson - $20 gift card

Yummy TreatsA Sugar Affair - $10 gift cardCakebox Cookies - $20 gift cardA Thyme 2 B Comforted - $25 gift cardDouble Dipped Sweets - $20 gift cardKE Cookies - One dozen chocolate chip cookies ($8)AngelPie Cookies and Cakes - One dozen decorated sugar cookies ($18)Meg's Creations - 2 pack of cookie and brownie mix ($24 including shipping)Cookie Art by Sarah - One dozen sugar cookie snowflakes and $25 gift certificate ($53)

Paper CraftsPaper Treasures 4 U - 2 page 12''x12'' Christmas layout ($9)Inkspot Workshop - 1 Set of 6 Snowman Gift Enclosures 1 Set of 6 Tree Bird Gift Enclosures ($12)Take Note - 1 set of personalized notecards ($15)Articulations - 6 lunchbox love mini cards ($5)

Bath and BodyKrug's Eco-Logic - $15 gift cardIndulgent Creations - Soy candle travel tin, soap and lotion ($16.50)koko candles - holiday brownie cupcake candles ($25)Dazzle Dott - $20 gift certificate
Especially for MomMary Zoom - Pink Polka Dot Glam Cleaning Gloves ($10)Maggie Sue Designs -A cup cozy and coordinating set of Tame Your Mane ponytail holders ($12)Gaia Conceptions - "My Everything" piece (clothing, $40)BoojiBoo - apron of winners choice (only ones in stock, $28.75)
Stones of Healing - $20 gift certificate

This is all a part of a contest seen on this http://www.busy-mommy.com/2008/12/etsy-christmas-contest-over-75000-in.html blog. Fun. Hope I win and can share all the goodies.

Here are my favorites from each category.
Children: Layla Legs--these look wonderful for potty training
Jewelry: Zeba--I am a sucker for pearls and there are lots in her jewelry
Bath and Body: Dazzle Dott--check out the yummy looking body frosting
Especially for Mom: Maggie Sure Designs---these cup cozies are too cute
Yummy Treats: A Sugar Affair--well I am drooling after looking at all the candy barks and sweets
Paper Crafts: Inkspot Workshop--I love her bold colors and designs

Words

2008-11-28T18:02:00.001-08:00

So Edith has been "talking" for some time now. She has convinced me that her vocabulary has increased in the past couple of days. She has a limited amount of phonemes at her disposal. So here are the words that she says that I can remember. The actual pronunciation in parenthesis.

I am just happy she said "Mama" before "shoes" unlike my other little lady.

old words:
Mama (mama)
more (ma)
nurse (na)
Mabel (bull)
ball (ba)
book (bo)
bottle (baba)

new words:
Grampa (bapa)
popcorn (papa)
banana (nana)

Thanksgiving and Family Pictures

2008-11-28T17:55:00.000-08:00

We had a peaceful Thanksgiving at my parents yesterday along with my mom's good friend Sheila. Edith packed away an amazing amount of squash and pie. I was pleased that my cornbread and cranberry stuffing came out well because I am always skeptical of magazine recipes. I thought it would be a good opportunity to get a good family picture. Seeing the results I like Brian's idea of each of us posing separately and then photoshopping to get a group pose. Check out these fabulous shots not to be seen on any Christmas cards.

First Simile

2008-11-28T17:51:00.000-08:00

I am always noticing particular words or phrases that Addie adds to her vocabulary. Today she was practicing "wide", "fritatta" (guess what we had for dinner), and "oohh, man"(apparently I say this phrase frequently). She also told me "Mom, you were as quiet as a mouse when you put Edith for her nap and I was upstairs." I thought, "cool her first simile." I guess I am a nerd.