vintage treasure

I found a basement sale online this past week and was giddy at all the amazing vintage treasures. I bought this little beauty for Simon's room. It's an old piece of painted glass from a pinball machine, circa 1950(ish). So excited to hang this in his room!

a note to ella: thunderstorms

Ella Dear,
There is a thunderstorm tonight. As I sat on the couch in the dim light with your daddy after you had already been tucked in your bed, I watched the flashes of light outside the window and wondered which rumble might wake you up. You are a heavy sleeper, but when there is a thunderstorm, it is sure to wake you. The thunder startles you when you are alone and you need a little snuggle and the comfort of your daddy or me to let you know you are safe. Once you finally awoke tonight as the storm moved in closer, I charged up the stairs at the sound of your whimper, and I must admit, I was happy you finally woke up because it gave me a chance to hold you close while you were sleepy and scratch your back which you are always willing to lie still for. You are my sweet girl and I love you. One day, you won't be afraid of thunderstorms anymore...you might even get a little excited at the sound of one just like your mommy! But until then, I don't mind you waking up in the night for a little bit of snuggling. I don't mind one bit.

All my love,
Mommy

silhouettes

I've been getting all kinds of creative urges and ideas over the last couple of months and have just felt all out inspired lately! I find myself noticing beauty in all kinds of objects and places and feeling a real urge to DO something. Life is crazy busy right now and I've got lots of design work going on, but I just had to do something with this creative compulsion! So I found these frames on clearance at tj maxx and liked the shape and detail...I've been wanting to do some silhouettes of the kids so here's what I came up with.



Nothing beats the sweet profile of little kids noses and lips! Now, if I just had a decent color of paint on the wall to do these little red beauties justice!

knock knock...what the HECK?

Ella loves telling knock knock jokes. I don't quite know where she picked it up from, but for her, the ultimate fun is telling a good knock knock joke. And now that Simon is really speaking more clearly, he has now started telling jokes too. Today's lunchtime was a solid fifteen minutes of knock knock joking.

Ella's jokes sound like this:
E: Knock knock.
Me: Who's there?
E: Refrigerator.
Me: Refrigerator who?
E: Cup. Cup.Cup.

Simon's are the same every time:
S: Not not.
Me: Who's there?
S: Boo.
Me: Boo who?
S: sshwhwshshsww whwhshshs..... (with a big grin and a giggle.)

In further news, we were playing in the back yard after dinner and Simon and Ella were happily digging in the sandbox together. It was a serene moment where they were engaged in a game together without fighting and I was contemplating the value of that sandbox and it's simple entertainment. All of a sudden I hear Ella say, "What the HECK??!" She sniffs her hands. "This sand smells like POOP!!"

I ran over to inspect the conditions, and, yes it's true, some foul animal has been using our sandbox as a litter box. And the worst thing about it is, I'll bet it's a possum. Ughhhhhh....Our serene moment came to a screeching halt and we all sanitized ourselves in the kitchen sink and promptly headed for a bath. A very gross way to end the evening.

kids' faves

Some of the kids favorite things right now:

~ being chased around the house
~ pretending to do kung fu
~ tomato soup in a coffee mug with grilled cheese
~ visiting the three outside cats down the street (who are almost always sleeping and won't let us pet them)
~ pretending to BE kitty cats (lots of meowing and crawling around)
~ band aids (even if there is no blood present)
~ baths (Simon calls it "bots" and basically asks for one every time he poops...think it's time to potty train?)
~ watering anything outdoors, even if it's dead
~ rain boots

Just a handful of fun tidbits that make the days interesting.

Addendum:
How could I have possibly forgotten the most recurring favorite??
~ Gum. Gum. And more gum. Or as Simon requests all day long: "Mo num pees" (More gum, please)

beach babes

Well, we can say we've done it. We've loaded our kids up in a van and driven all the way to Florida! It was my dad's birthday celebration (his 60th) and the whole family traveled down to St. George Island, Florida for a week together in a beautiful, three story, beach front home with a private pool and a deck on every level! (Sounds pretty snazzy, right?! Thanks to my step mamma who did most the work to make it happen!)

After our last trip down south, I told Bryan I didn't think I'd be able to make a drive like that until Simon was at least five. Ha. That was only a year ago! Our children AMAZED and DAZZLED us with their patience and understanding of what we were out to accomplish, and with a few special snacks, some new movies and comfy pillows, they made the trip without a hitch. (We did have a goody bag full of wrapped gifts to break up the monotony if a meltdown loomed. I highly recommend this tactic. It's amazing how intriguing a one dollar coloring book can be when its hidden under wrapping paper!)

Here is a pic of Simon and Ella breaking the law by resting, er, watching Kung Fu Panda, outside their cars seats (hey, we all survived road trips this way, right?)

We had such a great time with the family and made memories that will last us forever.

bicycle breakthrough!

I've been searching for the perfect trike for Simon on craigslist, and, lo and behold, I finally found it! It's a rockin' retro style schwinn trike, cherry red with real wood and leather details! And it even has a working bell on the handle bars! He's pretty proud of the thing and whenever sis tries to ride it, or even perch on the back, he protests. We took it out for a ride today on our front sidewalk. He was into it as long as I pushed him along. He's not so cool with peddling himself. But knowing him, he'll get the hang of it and be off in no time!

In related news, we took Ella out on her bike today for the first time this season. She received a new bike for her birthday last August (she complained that it was pink and not red...but that's a whole different story). She's always been excited about the bike, in theory, (I think it's because of the accessories...knee and elbow pads and a matching Barbie helmet) but after a couple of minutes of trying to ride, she wants to quit. She's not been able to figure out how to slow the bike down or make it stop and that has really intimidated her. Well folks, today was the day for breakthrough!! All of a sudden, she just caught on! And the fear is gone. She was up and down the sidewalk like a pro. Yipee for her!