crib

 Almost 8 years ago he set it up for the first time...

and now he's taking it down for the last

No more crib...

no more babies...

but many, many sweet memories.

On the first day...

 Guess what?

 Ellie is a officially a kindergartener!

And Brooklyn is a big Second Grader!

After much begging and pleading they simply refuse to stop growing.  

(And apparently I refuse to stop changing out my patio cushions!)

 

Brooklyn and Ellie,

May you girls be greatly blessed this school year.  My prayer for you is that you will grow in understanding and knowledge, not only of the world around you, but more importantly of God's great love for you.  May you always do your best, be a good friend, and shine your light for Jesus. I love you and will miss you every second you are away. 

Mom

Wet and Wild Mall?

We have an incredibly nice mall minutes from our house.  You may find me in H&M or Anthopologie drooling every so often.  And the kids love the toy store, the ice cream shop, and Build a Bear (more drooling).  Anyway, one really strange feature of this mall is the water fountains.  You know the ones that sporadically shoot water in the air from underground spouts..  Sometimes just an inch of water and other times 4 feet of the wet stuff.  Not sure what the mall planners had in mind though.  No shopping is done with sopping wet children in tow.  And no shopping is done when all they can think about is getting to those fountains.  But the place is always hopping and very popular with the kiddos.  We have gone for fountain entertainment alone before.  The girls wore their suits and we brought towels, sunscreen, snacks, the whole bit. This week however, the only plan was the library.  The fountains were an afterthought.  We were just going to "watch".  There is no "watch" for kids when it comes to water.

Ellie and Leighton completely soaked themselves and loved every minute of it.  

So much that I had to drag Leighton away screaming, wet, and with no towel.

Brooklyn however, preferred a shady spot to read and didn't even bother getting near the water.  

She had her own kind of fun.

Li-berry Books

 We just got a new library in our hood.  

And get this...its in the mall!  

Kids get restless shopping, head to the library for story time, then hit up Nestle for some snacks.  

Genius.

The girls spent time puzzling...

sharing and sucking...(I've got to get that girl to stop with the thumb!  Ideas?)

 and reading like a lady.

And I managed to find some treasures of my own.  

Now if I can find the time to read them...

before they are due..

not that I'm the queen of overdue books or anything.

babies in blankies

 

Most days we run a nursery around here. Leighton and Ellie are constantly caring for their babies.  They have been known to be mommies to Woody, a stuffed cheetah, barbies, numerous stuffed animals and and even an actual doll.  They prop them in the high chairs and feed them bananas.  They nurse them under a blanket.  They change their diapers.  They push them in the shopping cart and strollers.  They take them to the doctor for a check up.  They throw them in the crib for a nap.  And now thanks to Grandma Judy they have new blankies to swaddle them in. Love the prints (must have come from Judy's secret stash!).

flower power

The girls and I got to spend some time this weekend welcoming spring and beautifying our church for Easter Sunday.  The girls had a blast digging, placing, and planting.  

Now I've got to get them working on our own yard!

Dancing with Daddy

Could a daddy love his daughters more?

Could any girls love their daddy more?

One of the highlights of the girls' young lives has been the father daughter dance.  Getting all dolled up...new fancy dresses and shoes...curls in their hair...dancing the night away... and having all of Daddy's attention on them. Who wouldn't love such a special night?  This year Brett braved the dance floor with all three of his little ladies.  I don't know if he ever pictured himself being the father of three girls (or wearing a matching pink striped tie), but I'm pretty sure he wouldn't change things for the world.  I love how he loves them.

change

Some changes in life happen so slowly, 

we don't even realize they've taken place. 

Other changes happen right before our eyes, 

allowing us to observe metamorphosis first hand.  

From tiny larvae sent in the mail,

 

to hairy caterpillars spinning silk 

and growing plump overnight,

to iridescent hanging chrysilides,

gently paced in a new home 

 to leave behind what they once were 

and take on a completely new identity,

emerging as  new creatures 

far more amazing and beautiful 

than they ever were before.

fly little butterfly, fly

and the one we worried about, 

thought might not make it,

the one with the misshapen cocoon, 

 the bent antennae, 

was the fastest flyer of all.

Princess and the Pea

I always tease my girls that they are the Princess and the Pea.  Especially when it comes to their socks.  The slightest wrinkle will send them into a complete tizzy.  Then can feel a grain of sand or splinter of a woodchip as soon as they slide their shoes on.  Its real patience building for mom who isn't bothered by things like that in the slightest.  Anyway, Check this out...from P.O.S.H. I am in love!  Already crafting my own version (in my head for now).

There was once a prince, and he wanted a princess, but then she must be a real Princess. He travelled right around the world to find one, but there was always something wrong. There were plenty of princesses, but whether they were real princesses he had great difficulty in discovering; there was always something which was not quite right about them. So at last he had come home again, and he was very sad because he wanted a real princess so badly.
One evening there was a terrible storm; it thundered and lightninged and the rain poured down in torrents; indeed it was a fearful night.  In the middle of the storm somebody knocked at the town gate, and the old King himself went to open it.

It was a princess who stood outside, but she was in a terrible state from the rain and the storm. The water streamed out of her hair and her clothes; it ran in at the top of her shoes and out at the heel, but she said that she was a real princess.
'Well we shall soon see if that is true,' thought the old Queen, but she said nothing. She went into the bedroom, took all the bed clothes off and laid a pea on the bedstead: then she took twenty mattresses and piled them on top of the pea, and then twenty feather beds on top of the mattresses. This was where the princess was to sleep that night. In the morning they asked her how she slept.
'Oh terribly bad!' said the princess. 'I have hardly closed my eyes the whole night! Heaven knows what was in the bed. I seemed to be lying upon some hard thing, and my whole body is black and blue this morning. It is terrible!'
They saw at once that she must be a real princess when she had felt the pea through twenty mattresses and twenty feather beds. Nobody but a real princess could have such a delicate skin.
So the prince took her to be his wife, for now he was sure that he had found a real princess, and the pea was put into the Museum, where it may still be seen if no one has stolen it.
Now this is a true story.

Easy as A, B, C,

 

We're four weeks into our "cram for the kindergarten readiness test" program.  And doing quite well.  I could take credit for the fact that both girls (Ellie and even Leighton!)  know all their alphabet sounds.  Or I could give credit where its due, and thank Leap Frog and their genius, child captivating Letter Factory Video.  I don't know what it is about this thing, but they've done it right.  They should give a money back guarantee or something.  I'm telling you it works like a charm.  Any parent I've ever talk to about it, raves.   I've also been having fun with letter crafts from the Totally Tots website.  After taking major pressure off myself to have a rigorous home preschool curriculum, and just slipping in little things here and there, I've seen lots of growth and had fun too.    

Pressure off self...new motto that seems to be ebbing it way into several areas of my life.  And its a very good thing.  Especially for a girl who has had to live the last month without her stress releasers, my ex-bffs diet coke and coffee.  Week E... here we come.

my girls

Could they be more gorgeous?  

FYI the online photo editing site Picnik is shutting down on April 19 but is offering premium editing for free until then.  So use it while you can!

oh the weather outside is frightful...

I guess us southern Californians need to make up our own Christmas songs.  82 degrees and super sunny today.  Hot enough for these girlies to take a dip in the pool.  That's why they sell bathing suits year round down here. 

Halloween 2011

 Rapunzel

 Pinkalicious

Ragggedy Ann

As expected, we went girly girl this Halloween.  Brooklyn left the tower as Rapunzel, Ellie stepped out of the popular picture book as Pinkalicious and Leighton crawled off the toy shelf as Raggedy Ann.  I typically like to make my own costumes, but had to go with the purchased ones this year (actually more cost effective if you can believe it).  You (along with everyone at the Fall Festival) are asking, "Is that Brooklyn's real hair?"  and the answer is...not completely.  She does have pretty long hair, but it got even longer with the genius find of a wad clump skein head (what on earth do you call that?) of hair for only $2.50 from a beauty supply store.  Sure beats the $20 Disney wig right?!.  Anyway, we spent the evening at the church/school fall festival playing games, eating yummy food- like cotton candy and snow cones, and consuming large amounts of candy.  Okay, when I say we, I really mean Brett, Grandma, Grandma Judy and the girls.  I spent the entire evening here...

selling almost 500 slices of pizza pizza at the cutest booth on the block.

And that will pretty much wrap up our Halloween celebrations this year. Considering Ellie is deathly afraid of something as harmless as the Chick-Fil-A cow costume, we don't want to risk scaring her socks off with the spooky sights and sounds that come along with trick or treating.

tv trays

Nearly 30 years ago (yikes), this was my TV tray.  Okay, this is one from etsy, but mine looked just like it.  And I guess technically it could be mine.  Lots of memories of this guy.  Birthday breakfast in bed... tea and toast when I was sick...  And I've been on the hunt for trays for my girls.  Of course I would prefer vintage trays like the one I had, but sensibility tells me to look elsewhere.  Like Walmart elsewhere.  And thrift stores elsewhere.  And our collection is now complete.  And I think the girls would actually prefer ones that say "Pretty Princess" and "You Go Girl" as opposed to Sesame Street, Cabbage Patch Kids, and E.T..

 

Not quite brave enough to to breakfast in bed but we do dinner on the floor quite well!

after school art

Every couple months Brooklyn brings home a flyer in her backpack.  A flyer she is sure she wants me to see immediately.  And read immediately.  No, its not a progress report, or even a field tip permission slip.  Its an after school art class flyer.  And to a very arts-and-crafty little girl, its a dream come true.  The thought of creating something out of clay, or sand, or Tye-dyeing a shirt thrills her little soul.  Unfortunately the price never thrills mine.  So as to not completely crush her little artistic spirit, I convince her we can do our own art project just like the one at school, only better, and more, and cheaper.  Enter Michael's... her dream store (other than Dollar Tree of course).  Our latest "art classes" have been sand art and clay.  Thank you Michael's 40% coupon, and thank you still-easily-convincible-age daughter.

new way to paint

We're always looking for new craft activities around here.  Not that we don't have an entire closet filled with supplies and unfinished projects (like mother like daughters).  But we found this great painting book at Michael's in the Dollar Bin (which I love by the way).   The girls love painting with q-tips and their own paper paint set.  A perfect activity for a group of kids at a party, VBS, or Sunday School.  So head on over to Michael's to get your own (and probably spend a heck of a lot more than a dollar while you're there- I always do.)

rub a dub dub...

...three girls in the tub.  Okay they aren't usually quite this scrunched...I had them scooch together for the picture, but I have noticed there is less and less room in the tub these days.  I have been bathing all three of them at the same time since Leighton was a newborn.  Partly to contain them all, partly to get the job done quickly, and partly because of all the fun they have together.  Bubble snowcones, Santa's beard, tea parties, birthday presents wrapped in washcloths, get the bubbly-est contests, silly hair-dos, squirt gun fights, and occasional immediate evacuations due to floating poo poos (not so fun for the one who has to fish them out though). 

snails aint just for boys

I guess this is what you do when you live in the city and have a 6 by 6 foot yard.  No tadpolin', fishin' or crawdaddin' for these city girls.  It's just snailin'.  And you've got to get out early so you can beat the heat.  So its okay if you're still in your jammies.  Totally acceptable snailin' attire.  They like to hide in the bushes so you've got to get low to find 'em. And you should have a bucket handy to keep 'em in.  And be careful, they may be slow, but they're known to sneak out unexpectedly.  And whatever you do, don't let your little sister get the salt, no matter how she begs for it, or your snailin' days may be over.

art

Down a sunny dirt road...

My girls are on a real Berenstain Bears kick lately.  We've gone through our collection multiple times this week.  These are the classics I grew up reading and I love sharing them with the girls.  I have noticed however (as has Brett), that there is quite a misconstrued view of a father's role in the family in many of these books.  It seems as though Papa Bear is always playing a shouting, immature, "dumb dad" role (much like the majority of sitcoms these days).  Mama Bear is always the smarter, wiser, more self-controlled leader of the family, mending all the mistakes Papa, Brother, and Sister Bear make.  Kinda makes you think Jan Berenstein may have had the final edit in this series... But we'll continue to enjoy them anyway, making a point to tell our girls that our Daddy is just as wise, smart, and self-controlled as their Mama ;)