Can you tell what conversation we’ve had recently?

Charlie says to me very seriously as he holds a piece of paper I was using as a bookmark that he just removed from my book.

“Weally fwagile.  Don’t bweak it.  On (only)  Tali (Charlie) hold it”

Hmmmm…..not sure how I feel about the conversation when the shoe is on the other foot!  =)

On Painting with a Toddler for the first time…

SUPPLIES:

1. Crayola Washable Finger Paint
2. Plastic drop cloth, cut to appropriate sizes, covering table and carpet under table
3. lots of paper
4. painters tape to hold the paper down and come off easily later—and to use to hang on the walls, above the toddler’s reach while the paintings dry!
5. 1 eager toddler
6. 1 game mama
7. shower, soap, washcloth

Do choose a time when you are refreshed, slept well the night before and have a little space in your life for a messy adventure—It will be an adventure!Start small.  Try one color of paint at a time, as your toddler may not be sure what to think about the whole thing. 

If they get upset about getting their hands dirty, distract them with a new color.

In no time at all they will be demanding more paint. 

(It will be helpful if your toddler can follow commands, such as “Stay on the chair. ”) But just in case, cover all accessible areas in plastic.    This will become necessary when your toddler moves through the tentative stage and into the crazy stage.Watch the fun bloom….And DO take time to enjoy the squeals of enjoyment….Be amazed at the transformation 15 minutes can make to a toddler with access to paint!

When the fun is done, DO go straight to the shower! DON’T touch anything on the way!Do take pictures….you never know when you might get some good blackmail material for later!

Cravings….

So this is what I had to have for breakfast…..it harkens back to the comfort food of my growing up years in the Philippines.And, I am happy to report, my first trimester cravings of clear glazed donuts, potato chips and chocolate have been replaced by third trimester cravings of raw spinach, oranges and grapefruit.  (Charlie has decided he loves grapefruit too, so I have to share, much to my dismay (silly mama!))  Oh and ice cream…but that has calcium, right?  

Yarn Love =Baby Love….

Sometimes everything just comes together in the world of crafting.  My dear friend Stacey gave me some handspun, hand dyed merino wool in this luscious color.  There are two little baby boys coming into the world in the next few cold months before true spring comes.  Two little baby boys being born to mothers I absolutely adore.  And then I found this pattern on Ravelry.   And let’s just say a little love and obsession (and a lot of pattern adjusting for my fat yummy yarn) went round and round until these little man vests were created.  I love them!  I love their recipients and I can’t wait to meet the sweet baby chests that will soon be filling them up! 

Happy TWO, Charlie!

Charlie’s Birthday week is finally winding down around here, i.e. we finally opened Charlie’s last birthday package this afternoon. Since we have to pick up all our packages at the apartment complex office, Charlie’s largess has even elicited comments from the dear ladies who work there. It has been ‘hard work’ slogging through all those presents and we had to pace him!  He is one well-loved boy!    We had his party last Sunday afternoon.  While Charlie napped, Jonathan put together his new table and chairs from Nana and Papa so that the kiddos would have a place of their own to eat Birthday Cake.   I decorated the cake.  We decided to do a Blue’s Clues theme (loosely) party because he is so enamored with that show right now.  He loved it, as I hoped he would, and greeted it right after his nap with, “cluuuuue!”In fact, it was hard work to convince him to leave the cake and go anywhere else in the house.  He just camped out there for a while.  Pretty soon it was time for our first guest to arrive.  We had been talking for the last couple days about the fact that he was going to have a party.  Charlie requested a ‘brown cake’ and had been talking about which friends were coming to see him.  Charlie was SO excited he was bouncing and dancing all over the living room.   Then, just as the first guest was walking in the door, Charlie pulled a classic birthday party move and tripped and face-planted, hard,  into our speaker stand--the only sharp corner in the living room.  The rest of our guests came in the next 5 to 10 minutes and were greeted by a frazzled Mama and hysterical shrieking and sobbing coming from the next room.   It took a bit to recover, but recover we all did and the party went on!  

First on the agenda was making our very own silly party hats!  Some were invented with ear loops, bobbles and curlicues ….…and some were just too precious for words…(Thank you, Miss Debbie, for the Birthday Crown!)The Blue’s Clues Scavenger Hunt came next.   Now, if you have never tried to send three two-year olds on a scavenger hunt, it is really something you don’t want to miss.   Not only was it impossible to get all three toddlers interested in the same thing at once, there were also 9 adults hovering about, shouting conflicting, “helpful” suggestions.  Complete mayhem, hilariousness and, I hope, enjoyed by all!   ….if you dare to participate in the full experience, here are the unedited videos!

     

After the scavenger hunt it was time to eat. Homemade pizza, salad and fruit were on the menu.  Toddler friendly, yes, but who can eat much food when you are having a BIRTHDAY PARTY with….…brown cake and ice cream to come!?!!   Make a wish, Charlie!“Mmmmmm, delicious!”And suddenly, for inexplicable reasons, they were intent on eating…

After cake, we had a little story time.  Miss Ashley is sooo fun!  (You can see Charlie’s beat-up face pretty well in this one!)And then onto the presents!   Charlie specialized in removing about two square inches of wrapping paper at a time.  Whew!  (I think its time for bed now!)  Thank you all, for your gifts!  This picture about sums it up!  Our dear guests made the party so fun and celebrated Charlie so well!Happy Birthday Charlie!

You are a delight to your friends and family, you remind your mama and dada of how loved they are by God, just through your existence in their life, you are a blessing and daily joy! We love you!

p.s.  a little view of the post-party party—brought to you by the sustainable bio-fuel ‘brown cake’ and ice cream!

….its really too bad Mr. Kaybn and Miss Alyssa are no fun…no fun at all!

“Just like Dada”

This morning it was the red hooded sweater and the book…At dinner it looks like this:

Last Sunday it was the shirt with buttons and a belt…

…and of course Dada can’t go anywhere near the tools without handing Charlie a wrench or screw driver of his own to use too!

….The apple just does not fall far from the tree…

Give the father (or grandfather for that matter) a vacuum and Do NOT expect to see them for the next three hours-- DO expect they will eliminate dust and dirt from places you didn’t even know to look for it!Give the son a vacuum for the first time. Show him how it sucks up pine needles. Watch the intense fervor spread across his face as he is busy for the next hour--even meticulously noticing and picking out red pieces of lint from the needles before vacuuming them because Mama had said (when he went after the leaves on the fichus and the soot in the fireplace) to only vacuum up the needles!I find I heartily agree with the Psalmist:

Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,
the fruit of the womb a reward.
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior
are the children of one's youth.
Blessed is the man
who fills his quiver with them!

Psalm 127:3-5

First Hair Cut!

Before: It was getting a little scraggily….though we love, love, love the curls!

After: His hair still hasn’t come in all the way in front, so I just trimmed a little off the back and neck. Now he looks somehow both more polished and grown up.

I’m resigning myself—little boys do grow up, and I guess 23 months is longer than most go before getting their first cut!