my morning thus far...

one broken cupboard door...check

one overflowing, leaking washer...check
a load of towels and rugs needed to soak up all the water....check

a 1 1/2 year old that may or may not be the cause of most of this mornings trauma...check

Simply...

love how she pages through photo books again and again and again.
pointing to those she knows and saying their names (or her version of their name)
love how those little toes curl up when she is focused on what she is doing.

Happy Valentine's Day!

warm weather

and melting snow results in children looking like they fell into a puddle, which they most likely did...
so much laughter and fun as the ventured outside for the first warm day this year...

Chinese New Year

Yahaira went with her friend Emma to a Chinese New Year Celebration on Sunday.
They had their faces painted, how cool do they look?
played games, ate amazing food and had a blast!
I had one very tired but happy little girl Sunday evening. Even when she was almost asleep she was
still trying to tell me about one more thing she did during the day.

Freeze your Caboose off run...

Beckie and Cassandra along with Gracie and Olivia participated in this 4 mile run.
Held yearly in February, this past Sunday was the day, a beautiful day to be outdoors
41 wonderful degrees, last year the temp was around 6 degrees. I know this because I walked it.
We watched from various points cheering them on..so proud of all of them....especially Olivia and Gracie who finished ran for the first time and finished the race.

He

called out to me as I snapped photos of the melting snow...
"mom...take my picture I am as tall as the tree"
and he was...

Her handprints...

she made this in sunday school for valentine's day.
I know all to well that soon those little fingers will no longer be small
wish I could freeze time and keep her 5 for always.
She is such a fun 5 year old.

made by gracie...

enjoyed by Reyna.
Gracie has been taking a cake decorating class
and we benefited when she brought us some cupcakes for valentine's day.

melting snow

brings this...a clear driveway.
love that!

and melting snow uncovers yucky stuff
like dog poop
really don't love that!

Signs that spring...

may soon come?
snow melting off the roof,
the sun shining
temps in the 40's
no need for layer upon layer...
it sure helps make winter more tolerable when we get a day like this every now and again.

finally

a day nice enough to venture outdoors.
she quickly began to follow the paths, exploring these surroundings that have been unexplored by her for months.
I couldn't help but notice that even with the sun shining, and the sound of melting snow dripping from the roofs, compared to her there is still a lot! of snow out there...

when I find them...

like this, snuggled close, content to share their space,for this moment enjoying each others presence, it gives me strength for
the other moments when I find them nose to nose, toe to toe, determined to take the other out.

dancing...

at the basketball game..
the girls dance group performed Friday night both girls were quite excited to be dancing.
a glitch in sizes for both their costumes had them dancing in t-shirts and black pants, neither minded just happy to be
performing.

Mama may I.....

a shop I discovered on Etsy...yes etsy.
(I do love etsy)
loved these toys as soon as I stumbled across one in a search I did.
the simple, basic design. the open ended play.
the bright colorful pieces and the natural components.
I love that each set is interchangeable and can be used with other sets.
The first set I discovered was the family box, intrigued I sent an email to the shop owner
asking if it would be possible to add a few more figures to bring it to a family of 9. She responded with a yes!
and suggested coordinating the colors to match the Sensory Color Sorting set I had already ordered, perfect!
A work from home mom who always dreamed of making toys, she created this shop out of her love to have quality, unique, educational
toys for her daughter to play with....love that. Rosie and Reyna helped me unpack the box when it arrived today and judging by the laughs and squeals of excitement it was a hit. love that even hours later I found Reyna sitting and playing with the bowls and acorns
creating a game all her own. Love when a toy challenges them to be creative and to think outside the box...love that!
this is where you can go to check out this Etsy shop...have fun browsing...I certainly did.

*edited to add link to etsy shop.