little things

:: packing packing packing.  We're surrounded by boxes and every day now I'm tackling one more of those 'last minute' areas.  The girls are handling it all really well, so far, even as Avery's toys get sealed into boxes little by little.  I'm both excited and filled with tummy-knots for the insane weekend to come.

:: another two or three mini murals to keep Avery occupied while I bumble around pretending to be organized and efficient.

:: bedtime stories.  Levi's been reading the original Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi to Avery each night.  It's divided into really short chapters, each one celebrating the scamp in every child as well as providing a pretty clear lesson that not listening to your parents leaves you in a pretty big mess.  She loves it.

:: the last sewing projects have been shipped off or packed up in boxes.  One room done.  I'm already itching to get it all unpacked and start making again.

:: one little girl is gaining her balance this week.  This one is so content.  She lies on her back without much fuss, happy to lie there and tug on her toes, coo and gurgle, and watch what's going on around her.

:: and I'm seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.  It's going to be okay.  It's all going to get packed.  It's all going to get un-packed.  It's going to be lovely and warm.  It's going to smell like ponderosa pines.

favorites

{ sister squishies }

mixing it up

Levi is a learner.  A knowledge seeker.  A random fact absorber.  What he gleans, he likes to share, and I am privy to this pleasure every day.  He can gather an impressive number of things to talk about or show me in just a quick few minutes browsing the internet.   Just for kicks, I thought I'd share a little sample of the assortment of things that get thrown into my daily mix of mothering, sewing dollies, baking muffins and watching My Little Pony.  Observe ...

The hilarious/horrifying: What people's faces look like when blasted with extreme wind.

The best way to spend time stuck on a tarmac in a tiny plane: Impromptu gypsy punk band.

The heebie-jeebie: Seven of the weirdest creatures under the sea.

The curious: The science of yawning.  (It's not what I always thought, actually.)

The pursuit for trivia: Pink used to be called yellow, and other bits of color facts.

The "good to know": Ten painful insect stings, as measured by science (and described a bit like a wine tasting).

The creepy: Monster drawings on post-it notes.

I could go on, but I'll stop here with these "Hey Shell, come check this out" or "Hey Shell, did you know that ..." bits of internet information - all collected in roughly a week's time.  Enjoy!

fighting guys

Amidst all my packing and purging and cleaning out dusty closets this week, I found a bag of Levi's old action figures.  Avery's been pretty keen on them and sits and plays with them with no prompting.  She calls them her fighting guy dolls and while most of the play involves them being sick and needing tending, she is making her Daddy proud by mixing in talk about their powers and ability to fly and calling them all by name (except that one guy who hasn't gotten much celebrity time).

the hopstibal

We started another "week-long project" today - a happy hospital where sick kids come to be made all better.  I know, it's pretty accurate ... I watch a lot of Greys.  I think I'll have to start calling these "mini murals" since she blitzed through this one in less than an hour and stopped just short of dissolving the paper.  It's a day's work this time.  

The request for a drawing of a "hopstibal" was pretty directly inspired by this little book, a gift from our friend Judy (among a few other little goldens).  It's also inspired frequent requests to see my tonsils, which are in fact still with me despite my doctor threatening me when I was little that they'd be taken out if I got tonsillitis just one more time.  I got the message and ordered them to behave.  Avery's so into playing nurse or doctor.  Most of her play with her toy animals or dolls involves tending to their wounds or seeing that they're comfy when they're sick, and even lining them all up for their vaccinations a few times over one day.

Here's the finished piece of art.  I love how splashy and colorful it turned out.  She's an artist.  She's a nurturer.  She's got the whole world to choose from and I wonder what she'll be.  

little things

:: her favorite game these days is wiggling, gasping, and kicking under a blanket, followed by shrieking and giggling when she pulls it off her face.  She's a baby thrill seeker, this one.

:: the latest week long art project - neighbour castles, complete with draw bridges.

:: a favorite place to hide and play and squirrel away all of her belongings.

:: can't get enough of her cute smiles and 'begging baby bird' face, that is if I can distract her away from staring at my feet.  I think it's the blue nail polish.

:: more fort time - baby sister was invited in this time.

:: love watching her dance.  We ordered a fun video for little dancers that she's been enjoying every day this week.  I highly recommend it.  It's super cute and easy to follow along.

:: and of course, it was my b'day yesterday!  We kept it low key and decided to save our celebrations (for both our b'days) until we get to Kelowna and can head out on a real date.  32 is good.  Really good.

dramatics

{ this is her angry face }

 { stunned }

 { dubious }

 { pleased }

 { pretend sad }

 { surprised }

 { hungry }

 { loved }

{ frightened }

I was testing her to see how well she could portray a variety of emotions on the spot.  What's fun is that we get to see her dramatic skills put into action every day, all day, with or without a camera.  I forgot to get her to show you "hysterical".  She's been practicing that one.