Shoe

Today's mail just arrived at my house. I wanted to get it from the mailbox, but didn't want to open the squeaky door to the closet that houses my shoes because my dear little one is napping, and her naps have been of questionable quality lately (too short, no nap at all, etc.). I knew I had a pair of shoes in the living room. Looking, looking. Oh, there's one shoe, in the middle of that pile of blocks. Good. Now, where's the other? Looking, looking. Oh. Of course. There it is...on the coffee table. Why wouldn't it be on the coffee table? Doesn't everyone keep their stray shoes on the coffee table?

Tell me, o ye parents whose toddlers are no longer toddlers: Will my house ever be clean again?

Quiet Happenings

If you were a 12 year old girl, would you like this bag? I'm helping with an event for 5th-8th grade girls, a day where they (and their moms) can ask questions and learn about all sorts of things that girls just entering their teen years might wonder about. Skin and hair care, makeup, what's happening to their bodies as they hit puberty, etc. We're hoping to clear up some myths, assure girls that what's happening is normal and okay, and open the lines of communication between mothers and daughters who might need a little help.

Our goal is to make it a really fun day. We'd like the girls to walk away feeling grown up and a bit pampered, so we're giving them each a "goodie bag". The contents of the bag have yet to be determined, but I'm working on prototypes for the bag itself. This is the drawstring version. A zippered version will be next. The fabric is from Deb Strain's Daydreams line for Moda.


I love having a toddler. It's such a great excuse for doing things like hanging 8-foot paper heart garlands...and egg carton hearts...and pipe cleaner hearts. The others are Hardanger and pewter, so no excuse needed.

I love this girl.

(The coloring of the egg carton cups used in the aforementioned egg carton heart.)

Hope you're all having a great weekend!

Saturday

We spent the weekend with Andy's folks.

Feeding the birds with Grandpa.

Girl time with Cousin A.

Cousin L.'s birthday party. Cupcakes, hamburgers, and lots and lots of dogs (real and play).

Friday

Friday was a fun day. We played with the rice box, a new favorite pastime.

This, apparently, is how one makes a "snowy mountain".

We practiced showing our emotions through facial expressions.

This is "Surprise".

"Happy".

"Sad".

Fun mail. This is a sort of craft challenge package.

New fabric. I'll be making about 30 small bags for an event I'm helping with, and we've chosen black/white damask with hot pink accents as the color scheme. Should be fun!

Family movie night. We each get a pillow, a blanket, and a stuffed animal. Good times.

Thursday

Thursday was a day of little picture-taking. We were invited to a lovely visit at the home of my friend Beth, whose daughters are some of my daughter's best friends. I love watching my girl play with other children. I'm from a large family and was never without a playmate, so it's a bit sad for me to see my daughter get older and older as an only child.

A regular afternoon nap just didn't happen. The nap pictured above happened around 6:00 in the evening. Yes, that made for a very late bedtime. She napped on my bed, which is a treat for her. It was very dark in there when this picture was taken; I was mean and used a bright flash. When my daughter woke up (at 7:30 pm!), she climbed into my lap and said, "I sleeped in Mommy's bed for a whole week!" I'd love to figure out her understanding of the word "week".

This book is one of my favorites right now. It is a collection of lullabies, and there is a famous work of art to correspond with each lullaby. It is a beautiful book. I like looking at it with my daughter. She sees things in the art that I wouldn't notice, like cats hiding in corners, yellow shoes, shadows.

We do a lot of singing at my house during the day. I really enjoy the way we learn new songs around here. When we're learning a new song, we will sing it every which way - loudly, then quietly, quickly, then slowly. Repetition aids learning, but can be boring if it doesn't include any variation. Once we've learned the song pretty well, we move on to mixing up words. For example, I'll sing, "Twinkle, twinkle, little cupcake...", and my daughter will immediately jump in and say, "No, not cupcake! Star!" I reply, "Ooooh! Star!", and thank her for helping me learn the correct words. This works remarkably well. It's fun when we read, too. When we're reading a familiar story, I'll stop a few words short of the end of the line. My daughter finishes the line for me. She takes great pride in this, and I love hearing how she emulates the intonations she has heard me use.

Two is a very challenging age, it's true. I don't think it would be entirely out of line to give parents of two year olds (and three and four year olds, I'm told) prescription steroids so they can keep up with the 28 pounds of perpetual energy. (Yes, I'm kidding. Sort of.) But at the same time, it's such a fun age! It is amazing how quickly they learn, how much they understand, how many discoveries they make. My daughter amazes me with her perception. If I say "ow", she'll ask I'm okay. If I'm being quiet or I seem distracted, she'll say, "Mommy, are you having a sad day?" She's so innocent and sweet and wonderful. She wears me out, yes, but I wouldn't trade this time for anything.