rainy sunday play date

Since the start of the school year, NHV has seen less and less of her favorite friends.  It's nearly impossible to align schedules, especially with PM kindergarten as well as music class and dance class for each girl.  I feel like we run from one activity to the next all.week.long.  So much so that I find myself less motivated to make commitments on the weekend.

However, I have also grown weary of pretend play.  I partake in plenty of dress-up and restaurant and store and princess. At this point NHV needs time in fantasy land with someone her own age ... as much as I need to get the heck out of fantasy land!

Which is why a Sunday Play Date was absolutely perfect.  Natalie met her friend Ali when she was just six weeks old at our Newborn and You class.  Their birthdays are just days apart, and they are both tall for their age.  While we don't get to see each other more than a few times a year, the girls have always played well together.  Today was no different.  They bounced from one activity to the next.  They had no less than a dozen outfit changes.  They giggled and shrieked and twirled. 

And they played outside - despite the rainy, soggy conditions.  I keep finding more reasons to love our new property, including the grove of large evergreens and tree house nestled in between.  It all but blocks out the rain giving us access to swings, a slide, and a special place to play.

and a great view of the gorgeous fall foilage in the front of our house!

A big thanks to Ali for coming to play, hanging out with Natalie in fantasy land, and helping us discover our rain day hideaway!

dirt. i choose dirt.

at an award-winning local festival.
on an insanely beautiful day.
surrounded by face painting, pony rides, bounce houses, ...

where is cjv happiest?

under the shade of a tree
digging in a pile of dirt
with a spoon from the ice cream we all shared

that's my girl!

make like a tree and leave

The sunshine here in the NW has been unstoppable.  The mornings are chilly but the afternoons are warm and delightful.  The leaves are starting to change colors and make their way to the ground.

With our much larger property and plethora of trees, we are starting to realize there is going to be a lot of raking in our near future!  In fact, I just looked on Craigslist for a leaf blower!

But today I grabbed a rake and treated the girls to a roll down the hill through a leaf pile!

Charlotte is fascinated by the crunchiness. She could've walked through that pile and picked up handfuls of dry leaves all day.

Big sister demonstrating the fine art of rolling down the hill ... and then popping up for a pose-ready photo op.

Charlotte making her way back up the hill through the leaf pile!

As much fun as the brown, crunchy pile of leaves proved to be, I couldn't wait to turn my attention (and camera) back toward the trees where the leaves are vibrant and the sky which is blue and clear.

 This profile.  This thoughtful expression.  I cherish it.

This is Natalie.  Everything about it.  Her out-stretched ballerina arms.  Her gleeful, slightly mischievous expression.

 And this is me ... trying out the macro setting on my camera from afar.  And I kinda like it.

While I was taking pictures of the tree, Charlotte found a rock inside that pink bucket and had to bring it to me, saying, "rock-Y."   {How cute are her little fingers around that rock?} 

And while I was busy taking a picture of Charlotte's rock, Natalie started climbing the tree ...

The rock was quickly abandoned.  I love how Charlotte is reaching up.  Wanting to do whatever her big sister is doing.

a day in the life of cjv

One benefit of having a two year old who doesn't nap  (even though her five year old sister is in afternoon Kindergarten and mommy could really use an hour to get some work done - just sayin') is having the chance to spend a little one-on-one quality time with my baby girl. 

One benefit of living in the Pacific Northwest during this time of year is the amazing weather!  True story, folks, it doesn't always rain in Seattle!  And when the sky is clear, I would wager there isn't a more beautiful place in the USA.

Anyway, when those two benefits combine, there's no place I'd rather be than at the park ... chasing after my Charlotte Jane.

We started at the playground where CJV climbed every imaginable surface - stairs, ladders, slides ... all in about a five minute span.  Then she chased birds into a huge open field.  She soon gave up on the birds and just took off running with reckless abandon - this is her happy place.  A place that gets even happier as she scoops up handfuls of dirt.

Eventually I managed to trick her into racing me back to the playground.  I love that about this age ... my ability to make doing what I want her to do seem fun!

Back at the playground it was time to go underneath everything in her path.  Don't you know "climbing over" was so 30 minutes ago!

Soon enough she made her way to the bench where she promptly explained, "Hun-gee." and requested a  "nack, peas."

I struck a deal with her.  Come give mommy a hug and take one more picture ...

reunited with a childhood nemisis

My parents tell the story of this toy cow. That I hated. I was terrified of its mooooo. The mere sight of it sent me running. My uncle and cousins loved to torture me with it. Everyone got a good laugh at my expense. At least that's how the story goes. I have a vague memory of The Cow from when I was about two years old.

I was recently at my parents' house for a visit, and once again The Cow story was told.  Everyone got a good laugh.  Ha. Ha.

And then yesterday we were visiting with good friends who happen to have a collection of vintage toys from childhood.  So cool! 

Amongst those toys ... The Cow.

I couldn't resist posing with the source of some toddler angst.  And I can't imagine why I was afraid of this cute little cow ... except maybe the horns; those are a bit evil-looking!

Now I Know My ABC's

The past month has been huge for Charlotte's language development.  She is talking and singing and pointing out letters - everywhere!  Pretty exciting stuff considering she was diagnosed with a language delay just a year ago and receives speech services twice a month.

Not only does she sing the Alphabet Song, but she also recognizes all 26 letters.  Charlotte loves her Melissa & Doug puzzle (thanks, Aunt Laura).  And we have been playing with a set of foam letters - I swear those things are responsible for my girls knowing their ABC's at relatively young ages!

We play games with those foam letters.  Her personal favorite is "Find Mommy and the Letter."  I grab a letter from the basket, run and hide behind something, she finds me and names the letter I am holding, and then takes it to the rug.  I run back to the basket, grab another letter, and repeat!  She also loves to pull a letter from the basket, name it, and then throw it across the room.  After she's emptied the basket and there are letters all over the floor, I call out a letter and she tries to find it and puts it back in the basket {it's clean-up disguised as fun}.

While she definitely knows the letters, I really love that she's still figuring it all out ... an I is always an H because she turns it sideways.  M and W continue to confuse her - rightfully so!  E and F trick her, too!  She says "L" with her tongue sticking out.  And X is "ek."  When she says, "U" it's followed by "umbrella" and "Z" is for "zipper" - but those are the only two that get words.

From A-Z, I love this little girl!

Happy {Early} Birthday, NHV!

Speaking of birthdays, NHV had the chance to celebrate her summer birthday with her preschool class. 

She held a model of the earth and walked around the sun.  Each rotation marked a year, and I was asked to tell something special that happened during that year.  After five trips around the sun, we sang Happy Birthday and she blew out a candle.  Then the real fun began ... I got to read a book to the class, and - if you know me at all - you know I was loving every minute!  Right back in my role as a teacher - it felt so good and so natural!

Natalie and I chose the book Betty Bunny Loves Chocolate Cake by Michael Kaplan - a gift from Chitown Momma - because you can't celebrate a birthday without cake!  Plus that is one FUNNY book, and her classmates laughed at all the right parts :)

Clearly, CJV doesn't appreciate good bunny humor ;)