We Be Jammin'

Etta has been taking guitar lessons from me. She is pretty good about practicing every day - some days with a gentle reminder. Yesterday Mae decided to join her and add a little back beat.

Photo op for daddy.

Back to the music.

Sick Boy

For the last couple of days Russell has just been in a kind of a funk. Mopey, kind of whiny, just wanting to be held. Tired. Hungry but not hungry. Hard for a mom to watch.

He just lays around. Wherever.

But he is just about the happiest sick kid you'll ever meet.

Riding Bikes

The bikes have been living on our porch for about two weeks now. Every day when we get home from school Etta & Mae ride while I get their lunches together. Normally they just go up and down our block. Our neighbor has a "turn around" so they don't even need to get off their bikes. And our block is flat which is a bonus.

But the most fun happens when Jackie has some free time to come over and ride. As she did yesterday. She took them across the street and taught them how to ride around that block (which is flat) and then showed Etta how to ride around our block (two sides of which are hills).

So much fun for them. Mae can even put her own helmet on this year and get started without a push! What a big kid.

A little slow for Jackie, but she just keeps going. 

Discussing crossing the street. 

Cheese!

Russell loves being out in the backpack. His hair is a fright though!

So proud of her big bike!

Yes, it is spring here!

Coming up the hill.

And headed back down to do it again ...
and again ... and again ...

Playful

What I wanted to be able to call this post was, "A Boy and His Sunbeam". Russell has always loved playing in a sunbeam since he was just mobile, rolling to wherever the sun was shining in a window, studying his hands, the shadows cast, dust motes, enjoying the heat. Simple pleasures for this simple kid. Yesterday morning he had found a "new" patch of sunshine that I don't think he'd ever seen before. I tried to sneak to get my camera and take some pictures without him noticing, but of course he did, and turned the picture taking into a game.

Ha! I see you mom!

Peek-a-boo!

I will come and get you!

Oooo! There's my ball! I'm gonna get it!

Maybe some more smiles just for you!

Hen-Hen Day!

Yesterday we had Henry over to our house to play. Mae loves her "Hen-Hen" and plans on marrying him someday. She already has a whole menagerie of animals she is planning on them raising. But since Henry is ... wary ... of dogs, the five dogs she has planned may be a deal breaker.

Packing up food for the day.

Henry was a firefighter. And the dad. Mae was the kid. They played "wedding", "birthday" and who knows what else.

Pink bag? What pink bag? I wasn't holding a pink bag!

This picture just makes me giggle a little. They both don't mind hamming it up posing for the camera.

Mae: "Mommy? Henry's hungry. He needs a snack." Really? Are you sure you don't want a snack?
[And - I was going to put them in different chairs. Mae said, "No, I want to sit right there with Henry."]

Hen-Hen Day

Today we are going to have our good friend Henry over for a visit. Henry is an almost-three-year-old from our church. Mae loves Hen-Hen.

Last month, when I went to Moscow for Jazz Festival, Hen-Hen's mother watched Mae all day. Etta got to stay at school the entire day. They both really enjoyed themselves and played hard. Henry lives about a mile from our house. Bob picked up the girls and this is what happened before they made it all the way home. It was a good day.

Friends

Russell and Lena are pretty good friends. He likes her because ... well, I'm not really sure, but he really likes her. She likes him because he drools a lot and drops food for her to eat. He is always trying to get at her, pet her, trying to get her to play peek-a-boo ... she isn't super keen on his advances unless there is drool or food involved. After his nap yesterday she was at the window watching the world go by, just like she always has. (and Etta too! Check it out!) So I decided to try to get a couple of pics.

Hi! What? Aren't we cute?

What do you see? I see Pete in his car with his mom!

Oops, must have been leaking a bit. (Don't worry, he didn't fall off of the couch.)

Spring time

Yesterday Bob & the girls got outside and started some seeds. Bob has been really itching to plant this year and so he is starting some stuff inside. The girls are always ready and willing to dig in the dirt.

Jail Bird!

Etta has been wearing a lot of orange this week. On Thursday she wore a shirt that my mom had gotten her during our summer visit to Deer Lodge almost three(!) years ago.

It says, "Doing Time at Old Montana Prison".

If you look carefully at the picture, Etta is handcuffed to the chair.

*cough* *cough*

Etta's teacher is not really sure what game they have been playing during recess.

The aide decided this photo op was too priceless to pass up.

Real Kids Wear Orange

Thanks for the Syracuse gear Aunt Molly and Uncle Jim!

New Flock

A few months ago Grandpa Steve got rid of all his chickens. But now he has 16 new chicks! The kids and I had some extra time yesterday so we swung by for a visit. 

[I said, "Mae, Grandpa might not be there". She replied, "Yes he will. Grandpa Steve doesn't go anywhere".]

We headed into the garage to visit the flock.

Grandpa getting one close for Russell's inspection.

Some of the girls.

Mae's new chicken, Mary Louise. She named her herself based on this book. (But then we found out that one of our favorite friends is named Mary Louise. We just know her as Marz.) There is a marking on her head so that we know which one she is. Etta is going to name one Queen Elizabeth. She hasn't been officially selected, but if the chicken that is growing the fastest and is the biggest is truly a chicken and not a rooster, she may be it.

Imitation

 Mae has been wanting to wear Etta's sunglasses the last few days. Etta has been quite generous in her sharing. I have a feeling that when we are in Montana in a couple of weeks Mae will be using some of her spending money to get some "just like sister's".

And if you didn't know, this is the way all the cool kids wear their sunglasses. My kids learned from the coolest kid on the block. Uncle Erik.

"I wear dem like dis mommy. Like Uncle."

Isn't she just growing up right in front of my eyes? Be still my heart.

And this is an illustrating pic from February 17th, 2013 when Erik and Grandpa were in town visiting before Russell arrived. What cool kids!

Bike Ride

 We have been walking to our Tuesday evening community group for a while now. I sometimes carry Russell in the back pack but the girls usually walk. It is about one mile to our friend's house. Etta does very well, but Mae is usually done at about the high school. (Which is one block away from our house...)

The weather has been nice so the girls have been riding their bikes a ton. Etta learned how to ride last summer without her training wheels and can "ride faster than cars drive" (according to her). [As a side note: Jackie told me that teaching Etta how to ride her bike is one of the proudest accomplishments of her life to date. Love, love, love our village.] And this spring Mae has figured out how to get going without a push from mom. Makes me life way easier!

It was very pleasant last night so I decided to let them ride their bikes the mile to group. Good idea in theory, way more bending over to push Mae's bike than was comfortable for me. But it worked. We got there safely and it took about the same amount of time that it would have if we walked. I think it will get faster as they get more comfortable on their bikes and more aware of watching at corners etc. We walk the bikes across all streets and they have to get off to get down off of curbs and back up. But they love it and I am glad they like to do it.

Good Russell pic. Mae, "The sun is hurting my eyes mommy!" Etta is a trooper and is starting to look at the camera more - when she is supposed to.

Mae finally bit the bullet and squeezed her eyes shut. I had to include this picture even if it is similar to the one above.

It felt like Russell was trying to climb out of the backpack the whole way. His face was just about even with mine. He loves being outside. I keep telling him if he learns how to walk he can spend MORE time out with his sisters.

They are so cute and my heart is bursting with love for the little people they are becoming.

Problem Solving

Russell is very interested in how things work. How they go together. How they fit in to the world around him. The girls might have been like this, but I don't remember them being quite so interested in the actual mechanical workings of things. Russell will sit for a long time trying to figures things out. He gets a serious look on his face and works things over until .... until he gets bored and moves on to something else. :)

How. Does. This. Fit. On. Here?

I see you peeking on me mommy.

Okay, I can take a break for the paparazzi.
(The smile? It makes me melt btw.)

Safe!

We took a trip to Costco yesterday with Grandma Cathy and Grandpa Steve. Mae found a life jacket for this summer. Now she can go boating and be safe!

Day #5

Lent

 Again this year I am abstaining from Face Book for Lent. It is a good break for me and refocuses my time and energies.

I decided though, that it is also good for me to get a snap shot each day. Gets my camera out and requires that I really observe the world around me and pay closer attention to my children. So I am going to get a pic a day. I may not update the blog daily, but I will do my best to get pictures on for every single day.

Since Etta is at school half days now, there may be a lot more pictures of Mae & Russell. What can you do?

Day 2: March 6th

Playing tea party/kitchen/food toys. Mae likes to pretend and Russell likes to put stuff in baskets and take it out again. They really enjoy playing together. (And yes, the two of them really have the exact some hair coloring.)

Day 3: March 7th

Okay, maybe they don't always like to play with each other. Mae often prefers to play solo. She will go in the music room to look at books and doesn't want Russell in there ruining reading them too.

But they usually fall into a game of peek-a-boo. It's Russell's favorite activity and he will play it any time, any where with anything.

Cheese mom!

Day 4: March 8th

Russell has been waking up earlier and earlier every day. I was actually very excited for the time change because it bumps him back to his "normal" wake up time. But yesterday (Saturday) he woke up with the sun. So while I was making breakfast he got to go on his first official dog walk. A habit with our family. Etta now walks a dog, Lena, but still refuses to pick up dog stinkies. [BTW ... it's totally spring here!]