Well, at least the bunny didn’t ask them what they wanted in their Easter baskets…
(And it must be awful hot for that bunny, under all that fur.)
Ho, Ho, Ho, Merry…Easter?!?
Month: March 2009
Strong Museum
Carrie had today off from school, and Denis had the day off from work, so we took a family trip to the Strong Museum. After a quick carousel ride (for Carrie and Denis) we headed to the butterfly garden, where Carrie got to hold a butterfly on the back of her hand and Anna had one land right on her stroller tray.
And then we met Lisa, Henry and Sammy there. The older kids spent a lot of time in the Mr. Potato Head exhibit, and I let Anna crawl around the infant/toddler area. She definitely had a good time!
Carrie loves the museum so much. I need to find a way to get her there more often – since we’re members, we may as well use our membership as much as possible!
(More pictures of our trip are here. Kodak Gallery, requires sign-in.)
My Two Cuties
Who could possibly resist these sweet faces?
Wear Your PJs to School Day
Today was “Wear Your PJs to School Day” at the preschool. Last year, Carrie and I had plans to meet Uncle Michael for lunch, and she refused to entertain the notion of changing into daytime clothes after school. So, wisely knowing when to pick my battles, I let her spend the entire day in her pajamas. We met for lunch, and in the process she got honey and peanut butter all down her front. After, we went for ice cream, and she got blue cotton candy ice cream all down her front. Finally, we went to the bookstore, and I couldn’t figure out why I was getting all these dirty looks from everyone else there…until I realized that my 3.5 year old was walking around in food stained pajamas at 3:30 in the afternoon!
So, we decided to make it a tradition. :)
We met Uncle Michael for lunch again today, but no food was spilled. The only odd looks we got were when we were shopping in the clothing store – maybe the people there thought all our clothes were dirty so I took my kid shopping in her pjs for new, clean clothes?
Oh, and then we went to a bike shop and Carrie tried out some bikes for size (we’re thinking of getting her a two-wheeler with training wheels this spring)…in her pajamas. And a helmet, of course!
4.5 Years Old!
Dear Carolyn,
You’re just a little closer to being 4 and a half. Now you tell everyone: “I’m four. Soon I’ll be four and a half. And in October I’ll be five!” Then you follow it up with “My mommy’s name is Sarah and my daddy’s name is Denis. And we have a baby and her name is Anna. My name is Carolyn and my middle name is Sylvia. And my last name is…” Pretty soon you’re going to be sharing our phone number and address!
Speaking of sharing, Anna has become mobile enough that she can get to whatever you are playing with if you’re playing on the floor. So I get to spend a fair amount of time moderating. But for the most part you’re really tolerant of her getting into your space and “messing up” whatever you’re doing.
You still can’t get enough of books and reading. Lately you’ve been reading a series of books about the weather fairies, and you are just so excited whenever you get a new one. One day when we went to pick out the next one at the bookstore, Anna fell asleep in her stroller. So we hung out for a little while in the store and you were just finishing up the last page of the book when it came time to check out – I had to steer you around while you walked with your nose stuck in the book!
You are still loving dance. Last week at the studio we were unexpectedly treated to a preview of one of the dances you’ll be doing at your first recital, and you were so serious and professional. I can tell you’ve really been working hard in class!
The other things you like to do right now include riding your tricycle, drawing and coloring on your easel, and playing with your dollhouse and ponies. Actually, there’s not a whole lot you don’t like to do, except sleep – you might miss something!
At this point you’ve decided you want to be a dancer, chef, mommy and fire fighter when you grow up. Last year around this time you were only planning to be a dancer and a chef, so you’ve expanded your plans a bit. I have no doubt that no matter what you want to be, if you put your mind to it you’ll be able to do it! Though I reserve the right to worry about you if you do decide to be a fire fighter…
Love, Mommy
Happy St. Patrick’s Day!
Sort of anti-climactic after having the party a couple of days ago, but we managed to scrape together a little more green to wear today – between Sunday’s party and the preschool theme yesterday, there wasn’t much left! Carrie had her last swimming lesson of the session and we got her hair cut again after.
I feel like I should pick out a green project to take with me to work on at the shop tonight. Everything I’m knitting lately is pink or purple…
Kindergarten Registration
I know there’s 6 months before she actually goes to Kindergarten, but I can’t believe my baby is old enough to be going to Kindergarten! And riding the bus! And eating her lunch away from me every day…
Good thing she’s excited about it!
This is in front of the building where she’ll be going to Kindergarten…the same building her great-grandmother and grandmother went to for high school, and her uncle went to for junior high. (I couldn’t get the actual building in the picture without standing halfway across the parking lot. I need to bring a wide-angle lens next time.)
St. Patty’s Day Party
This is the 8th year we’ve had this party, and the 3rd year we’ve asked people to wear silly hats. (Silly hat pictures on Kodak Gallery – requires sign in.) It’s fun seeing how everyone has changed from year to year – especially the children! Somehow we had 32 people in the house and it hardly felt crowded at all. I think it helped that the kids who were Carrie’s age and older all disappeared up to her room for most of the party (and somehow wound up not completely trashing it even!) Now I just have to remember for next year that 6 pounds of corned beef was barely enough and 10 pounds of potatoes was way more than plenty. :)
Happy Pi Day!
We’ve decided that in 2015, we’re going to have to celebrate Pi day by eating lots of pie!
Eight Months Old!
Dear Anna,
Yesterday you turned eight months old. Time is just flying by around here! I think it’s just that you’re learning or trying new things every day now and you’re changing so quickly that I can barely keep up.
You are now quite proficient at crawling – you went from commando crawling to hands and knees in a couple of weeks, and now here a couple of weeks later you’re crawling after your sister like you’ve been doing it your whole life!
You also started babbling. We’re treated to endless streams of “ma-ma-ma-ma”, “da-da-da-da” and “ba-ba-ba-ba”. You’re also definitely signing “milk” and “more”, though you prefer to screech and bang your tray for more food.
Speaking of food… You’ve tried so many new ones this month, and most of them are table foods: wheat (puffed wheat and cheerios), apricots, yogurt, black beans, cherries, cheese and (white) potatoes. The challenge now is that you’re eating like a much older baby, but you’re still not allowed to eat certain foods – if you were older I’d be able to give you a bite of a muffin in a restaurant, or some plain pasta off my plate, but since there could potentially be eggs in those things I can’t. One of these days I’m going to slip up and give you something with eggs without realizing it, so I think we’ll have to do it intentionally sometime soon!
Just like with your sister, whichever age you’re at is my favorite so far. You are so much fun to be around right now, giggling over the simplest things (like grabbing my nose) and it’s just wonderful to watch you learn and experience new things. It’s just that I wish some days would slow down a bit so I could enjoy them more…
Love, Mommy