Overload

The last time I felt this crazy was in the picture above.. surrounded by boxes I was too tired to unpack... massively pregnant with the twins. 

Here's the part where I need to vent.. I was going to write a list of things I hate.. but I came up blank. Instead will you please listen to my sob story of the events this morning? 

The girls cried as soon as they woke up and saw that Daddy was again at Swim Practice. He was just there last night they reasoned.. why does he have to be there this morning too?? Took the time to shower, came downstairs and got everyone dressed and fed. Running a little behind so skipped my own breakfast and coffee while I got Frankie up and packed snacks. Trying to get everyone in coats when Frankie has a fit about something I didn't understand and coughs/screams out a whole mouthful of Cheerios onto her coat and mine. Burst into tears (for no reason?) and run to get paper towels whimpering and mumbling about my inability to do this (the things you said you'd never say in front of your children right?). Clean us up and hurry everyone to the car since we are now running late. Ice all over the windows. Well that's just great. Everyone in the car. Car is on heating up but ice still not melted. Grab baby wipes container and start scraping ice off the windows - it works! Take good care not to scrape away the "pond full of fish" that Ada has scratched into her window. Jump in car and off we go. Arrive at school. Why is the parking lot so empty? Where are the carpool people? Oh.. that's right. It's late start day today. We are an hour (AN HOUR) early. Laugh with the girls about how silly mommy is! Shall we get a breakfast treat to kill some time? Oh wait that place is full to the brim - not dragging the 4 of us in there only to have to re-pack everyone in the car. Drive around North Hills looking for other possibilities. Narrowly avoid getting into a wreck with TWO different women in Volvos who back out of the *&#^$^ parking spaces without even glancing behind them!!! The first time I slam on breaks so hard the girls say ouch! The woman sees me do this and calmly continues to back out without so much as a wave of apology. The second time I have to hit the gas to avoid some woman hitting Ada's door. What is HAPPENING PEOPLE?!?!! By now I am panting in frustration. The girls are asking me what "moronic idiot" means.. whoops. I tell them mommy needs to stop driving around and find somewhere to be still for a few minutes. We drive to the little pond and mill right across from the school. It is freezing outside this morning but I tell them it might be fun to go on a early morning nature walk. They are excited. Dear Jesus how I love those little girls. Get everyone out and take deep breaths while they blow "smoke" and examine the glistening frost on the leaves. We giggle about the pumpkin someone has tossed into the creek. We laugh at how cold the geese look in the water. We get back into the car and warm up again before heading off to school. Frankie is hungry because she didn't finish her breakfast before I forced us all out the door this morning. Ada and Margot both ask for a few of their ABC cookies from their snack bag to give to their baby sister. Their idea. Frankie munches happily and the big girls smile and tell me about how they will tell their teachers about our crazy morning. I quietly pray they have forgotten the "moronic idiot" part.

Now Frankie and I am home and I will gather my strength back and try to get something accomplished before we need to leave to pick up the girls. I am determined to laugh about this morning instead of crying. It wasn't really that bad after all .. everything just seems gigantic when you are exhausted and about to make the biggest purchase of your entire life. I have only just started to get weepy about leaving our neighborhood and our precious neighbors too... Deep breaths.

Three

Thanksgiving was a lovely blur. A blur of which I took not a single photograph. Chasing a Frances Pauline will cause you to forgot your camera. Stephen took some shots of them in the big tub at Nana and Papas house. 

We are three days away from our closing. Three. I have spent just about every single morning of the last few weeks tying up various loose ends. I have to go get the certified check for the attorney tomorrow and after that we wait until Friday at 9am. Ho-ly cow. Should I be worried that I literally have 3 boxes packed? We have until the 14th to be out of this place and the two weeks ahead are going to be slam packed with cleaning, painting, updating and moving. Mom and Dad will be here Friday and all weekend helping. Mary gets here Sunday to start watching the girls while we work away over at the new house. The plan to move one room at a time as each is completed sounds very optimistic from where I sit. I plan to move the closets first. Then everything but the furniture... and then the furniture last of all and all at once with the help of our friends with trucks and muscles. None of this, of course, can happen until we get things painted. Can't really plan too carefully, have to be super flexible. I just keep reminding myself that no matter how much we actually get done we will be spending Christmas this year in our new house. 

The girls are starting to ask questions like "Will we bring our toothbrushes to the new house?" "What about our toothpaste?" " I don't want to leave Oliver all by himself!" This is starting to get real in their little minds. I am going to try my best to take pictures and post as we make progress so stay tuned. 

Homes

More photo stalking from our hard drive. Found these images from Christmas 2010 here in Raleigh. That amazing Christmas that we had everyone here and it actually snowed. We also all got the stomach flu that year but I digress. Look how pretty these homes in our neighborhood are. I always saw myself living in an old Victorian home one day.  Then I married an artist/teacher. Ha! I kid. 

I will miss being able to take walks though this neighborhood. Particularly at night in the summer time. The girls are so big now we can't do the old after dark stroller adventures anymore anyway but that is ok. We have moved on to bigger and better things. Still I will miss this neighborhood and it's historic grandeur. Also I like to play a little game called "Wonder how much they pay to heat and cool that place?" when we pass on the humble sidewalk out front. 

My transition skills are not getting any better for anyone who is wondering. I really do suck at this. I have packed 2 boxes thus far and those are full of toys and were packed primarily to make it easier to clean up the living room on a daily basis. I don't feel guilty packing away certain toys because I know they will feel new again in 3 weeks when they are brought back out in the new house. 

I am weary but happily so tonight. Having finally ironed out another wrinkle in the buying process. We have granite chosen for our counter tops (a precious and super exciting surprise gift from Mom and Dad). We have paint colors chosen for each room (another precious and tremendous gift from Mom and Dad). We are starting with several new (to us) pieces of furniture that are actually period specific to the house and that makes my heart sing. Still every day is a battle lately. Take yesterday for instance. Stephen left for swim practice at 5:30am and Ada woke me at 5:38am. She wakes us every morning crying about her hair and how it is bothering her. I was able to settle her down (no easy feat.. can you imagine what it is like to start your day with a dear child fussing next to your head every morning over something that she won't let you fix? It is a hurdle.) and had her reading books while I showered and dressed.. was drying my hair when I head Margot's foot steps coming from her room to ours. Peaked out the door just in time to see her step on a pile of puppy poo and look up at me in horror. Oliver is feeling worse each day and has started pooping at random times in the house. I am not sure whom I felt more sorry for at the moment. Margot who was bleary eyed and shocked at what was happening. Oliver who was curled in a ball on our bed looking ashamed and shaking, or myself who was just reminding myself how productive it can be to wake up before 6am. I stopped and dealt with what needed to be dealt with. I regathered myself and began repeating the mantra my dad had told me the day before about how each day has enough trouble for itself. I didn't dare imagine what lay ahead. Just hold Margot tight and dry the confused tears as I bathed her soiled heels in warm soapy water. Next we were out of oatmeal. No matter since I wasn't that hungry anyway. Then Frankie woke up and refused to eat her breakfast in the high chair. Choosing instead to spill her Cheerios across the floor, carpet, table, couch at least 5 times before we left for school. The girls cried about their shoes. They cried about their coats. I kept my spirits up and prayed it would help theirs as we drove to school singing Shoo Fly and talking about what we were thankful for that we could see out our windows. Then I went grocery shopping at Aldi and remembered why I used to love that store so much. Spent half what I would have normally spent somewhere else. Then I came home and the house drama started. It wasn't that big of a deal but there was something we two parties needed to come to an agreement on and we just hadn't found the right scenario yet. Took the rest of the morning to find it. Then time to get the girls. Then home and so worn out my body was aching. By that point in the day I want so badly to be able to accomplish things while the girls rest but I am bone tired and can do nothing but sit and spin my wheels about where to start .. or lay on the couch and doze to the sounds of Curious George. Some days I just have to laugh. I laugh at how overwrought I get over the tiniest wrinkles. I know this is because my life is currently very wrinkly. I laugh at how I can prepare delightfully homecooked meals one week and then tonight I was so drained from the day that they got peanut butter and jelly and I just stared off into space. I laugh because I turn on the news and always wish I hadn't. Tonight I am not laughing. I am giggling. Giggling at the thought of what new wonders await me in the morning. Giggling because my husband will never EVER stay awake long enough to watch Boardwalk Empire with me. Giggling because this Christmas we will have our own door to decorate. Some things are worth feeling scattered for.

Wee Hours

Why is it so hard for me to go to bed on Sunday night? I know I will be tired tomorrow morning. Yet I can't stop rifling through photo files on the computer. Checking FB to see if there is anything new there.. making sure my email inbox is telling the truth about not having anything new in it. Sigh. I am not ready for the week to start. I am never ready for the week to start. The weekends are always too short. Tonight I even found an old picture from Stephen's trip to Greece several years ago. Look at that guy standing there in .. Corinth? Worlds away from where I was at that moment. I was here, moving us from one townhouse to this house down the street (with the help of friends and family of course). Tomorrow I go with my Dad to look at the new house one more time to see how much paint we might need and take some measurements and such. Three weeks.. the closing is in three short weeks. I have got to get it together and start accomplishing some things around here!!! And on that note I will end this achingly dull post and go to bed.

Live version

Frankie in a vest

Post bath Frankie wearing my vest. Pretty sure that is something everyone needs to see.

Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween from your friendly neighborhood Rainbow and Ariel. The girls have been waiting for this day to come since November 1st, 2011. They actually thank God in prayers some days "That it will be Halloween soon!" .. I have stifled a giggle hearing them pray this over their peanut butter and honey sandwiches.. in April. This year they were certain about their costume choices. Ada wanted to be Ariel and Margot wanted to be, and I quote, a rainbow. We talked with her and figured out that this could be successfully accomplished with a blue shirt as the sky, a rainbow (of course) and a rain cloud tutu. Et Voila! Stephen made her this costume and she has been in love with it from day one. Halloween is a fun Daddy holiday don't you think?

 Ada got lucky when one of our new teacher friends at school offered to give us her daughters Ariel costume that they didn't use any more. She was over the moon.

We did not tell them how to pose. These girls are just naturals.

Margot, the less affectionate of my twins, actually kissed Ada this afternoon because she was so excited that it was almost time to get dressed up. This might be the sweetest shot of them hugging ever taken. 

We got to party with two sets of friends tonight. The Reds came for dinner and the pre-game action and then Stephen and the girls actually went trick-or-treating with another precious family we are get to be friends with. Missed getting a picture of them which is a damn shame since the parents were dressed up too and they were the best looking zombie and David Bowie (yup! you heard it here first!) I have ever had the pleasure to meet. We are overly blessed and we know it.

Frankie stayed home with me to hand out candy and I am sorry to say that in all the excitement the girls and I did not dress her up this year. The girls wanted to put her in a tutu and a hat but it just didn't happen. She had a great time grinning at all those kids who knocked on our door and waving hello and goodbye. She will get more into the fun next year. It was kind of nice to focus on the big girls this year. After all I am pretty sure Halloween is a 4 year olds Christmas.

Farewell

I have been getting into a file of old family photos that I scanned in several years ago while working on a project for my brothers birthday. They are just so beautiful to me. Beautiful and preciously nostalgic of course. 

This is a note to say farewell to the life we have been living since school started back. Swim season is upon us and tonight was the first evening practice. Tomorrow will be the first "morning" practice, if you call 5:30am morning. I call it dark. Dark and cold and, frankly, lonely. I have been spoiled these last 2 months. I wake up to Stephen getting the girls ready for school and fixing me breakfast every morning. I get to take a shower and come down and face the day prepared. That has been our rhythm. Now I have to figure out a new rhythm as twice a week I will wake up alone when the girls come in our room at 6am and try to figure out how to shower and dress and feed and pack backpacks and get to school on time solo. There was a time that I just got up when he left at 4:45 or whatever. Maybe that's what the future holds. Not sure yet. I do know that it means that I am up way past my bedtime right now. Boo. I like being up at night. It's just about the only free time a wife and mother gets. To see that limited to two hours (maybe three if I am feeling dangerous) makes me a little sad. But I digress. The afternoon practice today went well and since they start at 5:45pm he was able to come home and eat dinner with us before heading back out. The girls and I had a pleasant evening and he came home just in time to read Frankie one last story and help get the girls out of the bath tub. I will figure out a new normal. I have just been dreading this season a little for some reason. Not sure why. It always feels like the beginning of a marathon. Once those practices start they don't stop for four months and standing at the starting line that's a long ass way off in the distance. Sigh. My way out of my dreary heart is gratitude. So! Here I go! I am grateful that coaching gives Stephen a little more $$ each month. Super grateful that the school divides it out over the entire 12 months they he is paid. I am excited to plan something fun on the evening practice days that Daddy doesn't come home for dinner. I see dessert playdates in our future and lots of story time. I am excited to have such a regulated sleep schedule. Thankful in advance for the wonders it will do for my migraine management. Thankful for the inevitable organizational systems that I will create while figuring out how to get it all done in the mornings. Here's hoping that thankful thing lasts when all 3 girls wake up tomorrow missing their Daddy : /

Sandy

Our thoughts and prayers are with our friends in New York and all along the East Coast tonight. The images coming from Facebook and Instagram are truly freaking me out. 

This is a picture of my Nanny climbing Kitty Hawk with John in the Outer Banks many years ago. Not even sure this hill is still around after so many storms have battered the area in the recent years.

Thinking of you guys up there in Manhattan and in Queens and in Brooklyn, the Bronx.. Jersey. 

Stay safe.

House

Well we have our closing date set and the due diligence runs out in 3 days so I am going to risk it and go ahead and post this picture of, dare I say it, our new house. This is it! What do you think? We think it is incredible and one of the largest (physically at least) blessings in our family to date. I mean.. it's even our style you know? It is unique in a neighborhood that was built in the 60s and has many lovely split levels and brick ranches. To be honest the first time we saw it on the site we were sure it was too good to be true. Turns out, it wasn't. 

I haven't written much about this process because it has been so new and different which, inevitably, sends me on a roller coaster ride of emotions that no one wants to be a part of.. seriously! Stephen is a saint. In a nutshell once we were under contract and had the home inspection done, there were things that needed to be fixed. Big things like the roof. Oh me of little faith lost hope right away and figured we would need to move on. Our financing is structured in such a way that the only way we could purchase the home, was if the sellers were willing to do all the repairs. All of them. Most minor things but the list was twenty some items in length. It would take a miracle and as it turns out the sellers were(are) that miracle. They agreed to make all the repairs. We have the re-inspect on Tuesday and I can't wait to see the results. The appraisal came in where it needed to be so we are well on our way to the new closing date on November 30th. We are so excited. 

Last week was apparently the week of furniture. We will have a living room and a den (with a fireplace!) in the new place and we were hoping to have a least a few things to move in with. Another couch, possibly two end tables and a credenza of some kind for the TV. A wish list since none of it was essential to life but each of which would have been a nice addition to the comfort of home. I have been looking for weeks in Craigslist - casual browsing of all things vintage (since we are so picky about appearances). Suddenly I found a vintage sleeper sofa, a credenza, a fabulous vintage lamp, and 2 end tables (one of which is Lane and worth about 5 times what I paid for it) in the space of 48 hours! For a total cost of a little over $200 since we need every penny we have for expenses related to this process. See how good God is? Not only has taken care of our every need but suddenly even our wants have come to fruition! Not just stuff we can live with.. stuff we are psyched to find! Stuff we would have paid more for but... didn't have too :)

The last thing I will say about this process is that it is taking a tremendous amount of trust. Something I am quite the novice at. This home buying thing kind of came as surprise for us. Didn't know we were even good candidates, had no idea it was even a possibility.. thus we were unprepared financially. We had our emergency fund. That was it. We were blessed with an incredibly generous check from a beloved family member and though I thought it might be extra, it has turned out to be just what we needed to make this happen. We are going to coast into this closing on grace. But His grace is sufficient and I am clinging to that promise.

Anyway, just wanted to give everyone an update from the home front. I am having trouble with all of this info backing up in my brain so I am challenging myself to write something every day from now until the closing. Hold me too it you guys! Please! I really need this outlet right now.

Eighteen months of Frankie

Our mighty toddler turned 18 months I we took no notice. In fact I have been telling people she is 16 months for several weeks now. Shameful but true. Frankie won't mind though, she is very forgiving. A few other things about our favorite baby sister... she loves that Rody Horse thing she is riding here. She carries it from room to room and then goes to town bouncing on the poor creature. But if Toy Story is any indication of how the real world of toys works (and I think it is I mean come on!) "Strawberry" is having the time of her life. Here they are playing war steed and warrior princess with the Nerf Hatchets the girls use to attack their Dad with. Admit it.. you are a little nervous. You should be. 

Our girl is also wicked smart (read "smaaaaht" to those who know their film quotes and I don't have time for the rest of ya').  You can tell her to put something in the trash and she does it. Here she is when I discovered that she had mistakenly put the girls trash in the colander by mistake.

Now you see it..

Now you don't. 

Having a job makes a girl feel good inside.
She puts her shoes on the shoe rack at the back door when we come home. She will also bring them to you when she is ready to get some fresh air. 
She loves to put her dirty clothes in the hamper in the morning and before bath at night. Woe to the man or child who puts these items in the hamper without her help for her wrath is swift and often extremely loud. 

She also says "Peese" and "Tankooo". For reals. I said "What do you say?" when the pediatrician handed her a sticker last week and she smiled and offer her thanks. That is unheard of in this house of children who scowl at "strangers". This kid is friendly. Never fusses at being left.. anywhere! Waves hello and goodbye to anyone and everyone. Says hello and goodbye to anyone and everyone. Blows kisses to passing cars. She is our little socialite.

 She hasn't mastered crayons yet but man, she is trying her hardest.

Still naps twice a day and sleeps hard when she does.  She like to sleep shoved up against the left end of the crib. With her quilt tucked in around her. She likes to put her hand in between the crib and the mattress and stroke the sheet with her fingers. Her strawberry lovey has a fuzzy side and a soft fabric side and she likes the fabric. Not the fuzzy or the silky edge like her sisters, the fabric. When you read her stories before nap and bed you have to spread the lovey over her lap with the strawberries facing up so she can touch the fabric with her right hand and suck her left thumb. She is very particular but we are used to that personality trait.

Only kid in the house who sleeps hard enough for me to be able to take a picture without waking them. Look at that little face.. doncha just wanna kiss it?!

When I go get her out of her crib in the morning, she likes to give me kisses through the bars and hang onto the rail and bouncy up and down for awhile while I try to mirror her bounces. She giggles and grins with those baby teeth of hers. She thinks everyone in her family is hilarious, particularly her sisters. Her sisters continue to adore her even though she is getting to the age she can get in their way and mess things up.. and does. She is fearless and will go up a ladder and down a slide (no matter how tall or curly) all on her own. In all honesty if you look away you might miss it and she doesn't care. She is in it to enjoy every moment and she is not gonna wait for you to catch her if she falls. When she does fall sometimes she cries a little more than her sisters did, but love on her a minute and she is back in the game. 

Favorite moment of the week. I was watching the girls play on a jungle gym and I heard Margot call out "Hey!! Don't push my baby sister!!!" Another kid waiting their turn at the slide had given Frankie a friendly nudge to get her to go ahead down the slide instead of pointing at all the birds in the trees. My heart swelled listening to Margot come to her sister's defense. Later she asked another child to stop climbing up the slide "My baby sister wants to come down right now!" I remember how it felt when my little brother would defend me to other kids. It felt so good. Like we were a team and in it together even when it didn't look like we were even playing within earshot. These girls are tight and I like that. I didn't have to teach them how to care for each other.. they are just doing it on their own. You don't wanna cross Margot either. She is one tough cookie. 

Frankie, we love you. You brighten our days with your smiles and your laughter. Your eagerness to learn reminds me of just how short these years will be. Watching you sit on the couch with Margot and read books melts my heart and causes me to do silly things like stand in the middle of the living room staring at the two of you. You are so precious to us. Our family just wouldn't be our family without you.

Happy

It's hard not to be happy these days. Somehow I manage it though. Then I look back at pictures from the last few days and the stress fades from my mind and I am just, happy. How could you not be? 

A red wagon from the city, made much happier by a smiley baby in the mountains next to her Papa in his hammock. 

Twin darlings happy to be wading in frigid water with their Grammy and Grampapa.  The contagious excitement of little girls convinced they can build a dam with their Daddy large enough to stop the entire river. And they can. And they did.

Water and rocks and sunshine and family. My family. 

You could stay forever in a place like that. I think I will. 

Or here. At the North Carolina State Fair on the busiest day. Despite Ada's forlorn look, so much happiness that day. So much wading through people and eating good (not fried.. honest!) food. So many smiles and baby screeches. Sunshine and that honest tired feeling you get after that long walk to the free lot. And it was worth it. 

No excuses. Just me. Happy.

If one of your kids is driving you to drink..

.. take them on a date.  

Margot is a carbon copy of me, emotionally. That means when I am struggling, putting the two of us together for any stretch of time will result in a load of bad attitudes, time outs, deep sighs and gritted teeth. Today was the worst so far this week. So when Stephen came home I asked him if he would mind if I took Margot out for awhile. He agreed and I packed a bag and we headed out to the art museum to go for a walk around the sculpture park. So getting one away from the pack normally results in a much calmer child who listens better and may even hug you numerous times and tell you that you are best mommy in the whole world. Other times having one girl on her own is just having that girl on her own. The attitude that was so trying at home will be just as trying in the car on the way to "someplace special". Believe it or not this was exactly what I was hoping for today. And I got it. She was the same Margot while we walked around the sculpture park at the art museum that she was fussing at Ada in the living room. Being in the fresh air meant that I had more patience with my girl and being on our own meant that I could hold her without interruption while I explained what it means to have a grateful heart. I told myself I wouldn't even bring it up unless she started whining .. I just wanted to take her out for some one on one time with no expectations and no hidden motives. No lectures or bribes. We hiked across the grass instead of staying on the trail. We walked to the top of the highest grassy hill and laughed about how far we had come. We played tag. I carried her piggyback all the way back to the car, and I enjoyed every step.. didn't even feel tired when we got there (is she just tiny or am I actually in pretty good shape right now?) After our walk we went to "Chickalay" for dinner and I didn't hound her about getting up from the table 400 times or not eating her chicken fast enough. She was waving at everyone from our table on the balcony, keeping track of how many people said hello back to her. God, that kid is cute. Then we went to the Y and went swimming together. The struggles we had today were some of the same struggles we had on our evening out. It was just so nice to be able to struggle together as mother and daughter and not as hen and brood. 

Boots

I recently went to a consignment sale and was lucky enough to find rain gear for all three girls. I didn't even know they made rain boots this small. Funny thing about Frankie .. she likes pretty much anything you put on her body. At this age the twins were already screaming in the floor about footie pajamas and forget about shoes. Shoes.. oh my god shoes. Yet, our tiny Frances just prances around the house with a giant grin. She hasn't even started trying to take them off. Personality differences never cease to amaze me. 

This consignment sale that I attended was the same sale that I posted on FB about a week or so ago. If you are not my friend there I can give you a rundown of the events that transpired. It was pretty crowded since I was a seller and got to shop early with the rest of the sellers - which is not for the faint of heart I might add... these women are beasts and by beasts I mean rabid wolves desperate to grab every incredible outfit off the racks before you can say "Is that a CrewCuts dress?". It's a bloodbath. Moving on.. I survived and made it to the checkout line just as it was wrapping around the rear of the basketball gym. Awesome. One credit card machine in use up there.. stellar. Can't complain too much since I love this sale and it's quality name brand clothing that I would never be able to afford otherwise. Waited in line for an agonizing 4 and a half days.. or 45 minutes if that seems more realistic. Got to the front, was chatted up by the check out guy (which seemed odd since he was older than my father).. got no eye contact from the rest of the female staff (poor exhausted buggers).. made my way out the door (turning down 2 offers to help me to my car). Home stretch. Oh wait I just dropped my receipt! Let me just put these bags down and readjust my OHMYGOD!!!! My shirt!! and more importantly my BRA!!! That's right dear readers.. my shirt was unbuttoned TO MY BELLY BUTTON. Black lace bra just out there for the world to see. And see they did. I was so flabbergasted that I just buttoned up and stormed to the car crying "Are you KIDDING ME?!?!" about 59 times to the parking lot at large. The take away from this experience is this.. if you see a woman.. a modestly dressed woman .. a mother perhaps at a childrens clothing consignment sale.. dressed in a plaid shirt and comfortable jeans.. if you see that HER SHIRT IS UNBUTTONED and her undergarments are on display.. say something. Say ANYTHING. If I can save one woman the embarrassment of seeing her little chrome VS heart twinkling in the lights of the parking lot I will count this one a win. Thank you.

P is for Chester

The girls go to bring home the class pet this week! (They were studying the letter "P" and Ms. P brought a pet puppy to class to share). For two girls who have never really been than into stuffed animals, Chester was one well loved overnight guest. 

He came in a little puppy backpack with a Clifford book and list of instructions (I love Pre-K!!!! It's so stinkin' cute!!). We only got to keep him for the day/night and then he went back to class to be shared with the other friends there. 

He and his puppet self were difficult for Ada and Margot to share. I am not exaggerating  when I say we spent that entire afternoon in 5 minute intervals. Set timer for 5 for Margot.. set timer for 5 more for Ada and so on.. It was still fun though. They cried when they came home that afternoon wishing that Chester had been able to stay longer.

I would say that we might need to look into getting some animal puppets at Christmas time but something tells me that it just wouldn't have the same charm.

Today in Pictures

 

We tried Frankie's baby snow suit on from last year and .. it still fits!

The girls did some painting with Daddy. They recently got a haircut but if you don't see them every day you might not notice. Ada on the left, Margot on the right. Ada's is slightly shorter because Margot loves to wear hers up so .. we left it longer so she could keep doing that. Long by like an inch I think. 

See that lovely black boot on Ada's leg? She jumped off the bed about 5 weeks ago and sprained her ankle. The pediatrician gave us instructions on how to rest it so it would get better.. but getting Ada Grey to sit still and ice her ankle while wearing a tension bandage.. it just didn't happen. So, after getting x-rays to be sure nothing was fractured in there, the docs decided to put her in this "Wee Walker" boot thing to immobilize  the area and help it rest and heal.. crossing our fingers it only lasts the week or two that they suggested.

We ate our dinner out on the porch tonight and the girls played in the dirt gathering acorns and throwing them at various targets. 

Margot spent most of the time running back and forth on the sidewalk and then coming to the porch to get hugs and a bite of her dinner. Look at the beautiful happy hearted girl. 

Frankie wondered why she didn't get a second bowl of pasta..

 

"Daddy take a picture of my boot!"

Nite nite everyone!