the lake...

We went to Lake Murray today. We walked around and "found" the lake. As soon as we got to the water we were inundated with ducks coming for food-that we didn't have for them. As we watched other moms and their kids throw food to the ducks we found out that we could buy food for the ducks in the little store. We didn't buy any today, but that would be fun next time. We walked down the lake and found a bench to take a rest on. We sat down and slowly, one by one, out creeped squirrels. They were fat and busy gathering all of the duck food they could before the ducks showed up. Someone had left peanuts for them. Benjamin loved seeing "the squirrels cracking nuts crunch, crunch" because that is what happens in one of our books! Hannah loved the ducks and didn't want to stop watching them...quack quack quack! Every time we go to the lake we experience something new and different!

new shoes...

We shop for new shoes every few months as these little monkeys grow. We don't mind and it is actually very exciting for them to get new ones. We measure their feet and pick out some different styles of shoes from the display. The kids love to run around the store while we frantically search for the styles and sizes (which are inevitably typed in shoesalesman code & in mini print) on the sides of the boxes. When we finally do find the shoes we have to find the kids to put them on. Luckily they find it very interesting to put the new shoes on and sit still while we do it. Once they have the new pair on they walk or run around and they forget altogether that they have some new shoes on. We pay and leave the store quickly because they get restless! They love their new shoes and usually don't ask us to put the old ones on again.

avocados...

We went to Granny and GranDad's house today. Auntie Heather and Marissa are leaving for Mexico tomorrow and we wanted to see them. Nobody was there when we got to their house so we went to pick some avocados. Benjamin and Hannah really like to go hiking (good thing because their parents do too!) Anyway, we have to climb over a wall and jump to another and then we go through the gate and down a steep hill to the avocado trees... We needed to avocado picker to reach up in the trees for us. Benjamin searched the trees and found some. He carried the bag so that he could bring the ones we pick back to the house. The bag got too heavy with the 5 avocados that we found...the ground is not easy to walk on but we didn't stay long... Now we are waiting for the avocados to ripen so that the little monkeys can gobble them up! Benjamin is so excited about them! yum!!

naps...

Marissa came to the zoo with us today. When we got home it was time for our naps. She is older and usually just rests but... anything that Benjamin does, she does. Everyone got into their beds and settled down for their naps and we made Marissa a bed in the playroom. She had a blanket from home (that she just happened to bring with her to the zoo) and used it on her bed. That made it a little more comfy for her to have a blanket from home! It turns out that she wasn't very tired so she just rested for a while!
Benjamin loved that Marissa took a nap at our house so when we went to the store we bought a mat for her to sleep on when she needs to nap at our house again, or spend the night!

hide & seek...

Benjamin and Corey sometimes play hide & seek with a blanket. They use it to hide from each other and also to hide from Hannah and I under the blanket. Sometimes Corey holds the blanket up so that he is hiding behind the blanket and tells Benjamin to look at something, then drops the blanket and runs to hide in another room. Benjamin can't figure out where he disappeared to. He hunts for Corey and gets all nervous and giggly while he searches. Corey comes out of hiding and Benjamin really gets laughing louder...what fun!!

hugs...

Benjamin loves to give Hannah hugs. He gives them to her at any time of the day. She loves to get them too. The only problem (if you can call it a problem) is that Benjamin's hugs last a long time and they almost knock her over! She starts to grunt and squeal (like a piglet) trying to get away from him. Sometimes he hugs so strong that she can't get away from him. It is so sweet to watch...but we need to be there to help her escape from his clutches!

Marissa...

Benjamin and Hannah LOVE their older cousin, Marissa! They can't wait to see her! They wait for her to come over and jump around in the car when we are on our way to see her. They play for hours. Benjamin learns a lot from her (how to play, clean up, pretend play, draw, all sorts of stuff!) Hannah watches everything they do. They seem to just move from one thing to the next all day long! Marissa is going to spend a good part of the summer in Mexico with her Mom so Benjamin and Hannah will miss her terribly!!! She will meet some new friends and learn Spanish. Benjamin and Hannah will meet up with her again at Lundy Lake where we spend our summer vacation! They will run and play in the mountains together!! Like they were never apart!

cards...

Ever since we made our Christmas cards last year, Benjamin wants to do more cards! He loves to draw pictures on them and "write". He wants to know what to write on the cards and as he "writes" he will say what he is writing. Hannah will do anything with us and loves to work with crayons, so she did her part for her fathers' day cards. They are so proud of their work... and when they are done, they hand their homemade card to their Daddy, GrandDad or Grandpa, or whomever it is for and they know that they are the ones that made the cards for them... The kids (Benjamin especially) love to see them open their cards and read them. So proud!

popcorn...

Recently after bath we got in the habit of having some popcorn for a snack. Hannah loves it (so does Benjamin). They run from the bedroom all clean and sing "pop pop pop" until we get the popcorn into the microwave to pop. They dance around the kitchen until it is ready, they sing a song that we made up ~ it goes like this (to the tune of The Wheels on the Bus): The popcorn in the microwave goes pop pop pop, pop pop pop, pop pop pop, the popcorn in the microwave goes pop pop pop, all through the town...sometimes they jump like popcorn popping around. Benjamin picks out different bowls each night for us to eat our popcorn out of. They munch on it until it is gone or until they lose interest in it...until of course the next night...

books...

Hannah loves to stick right next to me all day (seriously, like GLUE!). However, she will disappear every once in a while from my side and I find her with her nose buried in books. She loves to read books! It is such a wonderful feeling to know that she is a beginning reader--already! She has her favorites, too. She picks out the ones she wants to read or wants us to read to her...so smart!

coffee...

Every morning Corey and Benjamin make a pot of coffee. Benjamin loves to help with this. Scooping the grounds into the filter and pouring the water into the coffee machine.... Then while we waiting for our coffee we do other things (watch the news or a show for Benjamin). When the coffee is ready we all have coffee. Benjamin likes his "coffee" (his is really just milk!) in a blue teacup and we have ours in our regular mugs. Benjamin loves to share coffee time with us and he is so proud to tell Hannah that he had "coffee" with us yumm!

sports...

Last summer, when Benjamin was close to turning 2 he was very interested in basketball...shooting the ball through the hoop and running and dribbling it down the court. We would watch the big boys play at the park. He would find things to shoot his balls through at home... over the grill, the clothes line, the table outside, the TV inside the house... His interest in basketball was huge so... for his birthday, we bought him a hoop designed to grow with him as he gets taller. It seems that from the moment he started to walk and follow a ball he started to kick it (soccer?) At his Nanny's house he started to play a game that they called "stick ball" and loved that as well! He would hit a small ball on the ground with a stick (sounds like golf to me!) We haven't bought him a set of golf clubs yet... His older cousin Marissa introduced baseball to him...and he talks about it all the time. Ya gotta love the beginnings of sports playing!

dinner...

There are 2 things that Benjamin always wants to do as we sit at the dinner table: say grace and clink glasses and say "cheers". Because this could take all night we allow us to do these 2 things only once each night. Hannah has figured out what we are doing and picks her glasses up for us to clink hers and she puts her hands together as we say grace...she is almost 14 months and amazing! (Of course I would say that about my own child, right?) Benjamin is so wonderful and attentive too. We always wait for him to say each little phrase of grace after us before we go on to the next phrase, otherwise he gets upset and has a total meltdown at the table because we didn't wait for him... So last night we started to say our prayers and he just said the grace with us...no waiting! Amazing! He is just 2 1/2!! WOW! We were impressed and pretty much speechless!

ice...

Corey found that a huge bag of ice in our freezer was taking up too much room! He took it out and got a bucket and started to break it up...the kids found that bucket of ice so interesting! They took measuring scoops from the kitchen and filled them and dumped them...it was cold so they took breaks but they always came back to ice bucket for more fun. The best thing that they discovered that they could do was suck on it. They understood that it was OK to put it in their mouths, it melted and they would pop another piece in! Finally we had to come in for the night...we left the bucket of ice outside...we will see what it looks like in the morning! (I'm sure they will want their ice back!)

beans...

First it was Benjamin who would eat them straight from the can...now Hannah does the same! It was amazing then and it continues to amaze me... I have worked with many children and none have loved kidney beans as much as these two! It is great and very healthy for them! But they aren't just "beans"...they are "purple beans from the can". Believe me we have tried other beans but none have had quite the appeal as the kidney beans. They gobble them up...and sometimes I find that Benjamin has finished those on his plate and he has moved on to "help Hannah" with hers. I am constantly re-stocking the cans in the pantry because they are quickly eaten!

blocks...

Oh boy... blocks are always a winner when it comes to toys and kids. Benjamin and Hannah can play with blocks for a long period of time before moving on to something else, depending on their moods of course. We have several different kinds of blocks to choose from (mega blocks, wood blocks and other makeshift blocks like toilet paper rolls, cups or paper towel rolls) They love to put things together and play and figure out how to get the tower bigger. Of course the biggest thrill is in knocking it down when it is really tall.

water...

Kids love water! We washed the car today. Benjamin loves to help wet the car with the hose. He has moved on from using the sponge to wash the car. He has grown fond of squirting everyone with the hose on the 'jet' setting (like the fire fighters' hoses). He gets a big laugh when we are trying to get the hose from him while he has it aimed right at us with the water on full blast and spraying us. Hannah also loves water, but she is more fond of finding the puddles and splashing in them with her feet (or hands). She also follows the trail of water down the sidewalk as it trickles into the street. We run after her to keep her safe and she giggles as we try to catch her.

bare feet...

For some reason Benjamin and Hannah love to walk around barefoot! I know it has something to do with their senses and liking free feet. We really don't force them to wear shoes...putting them on has just been a daily habit. Today we wanted to go for a walk around the block. Benjamin looked like he was going to have a meltdown when I suggested getting their shoes on. I don't mind them going without shoes. I warned them about getting little stickers or rocks in their feet. So off we went on our walk and...they were barefoot and loved it!

water...

The power and fun of a bucket of water is endless. The hours that my children will play with it. Filling, pouring, splashing, wiping, dunking, spilling, dumping... and so many more uses and activities that they come up with. Hannah gets right into the big bucket (even with her shoes on!) and Benjamin bends over, dunks his head in and gets himself all wet. It's a nice (and different) way to cool off since it is so hot in our back yard! And they love it!

pens...

When we sit at the computer Hannah loves to sit on our lap and work with a big mug of pens, pencils and markers. She takes them out. She puts them back in. She drops some on the floor. She picks them up real quick and gets back onto our lap to work some more. She tries to fit them all into her tiny fists. She calls them "bee"s and gets louder if we don't hear her the first time she calls for them. Sometimes she will take them to the small table and play with them there... it's amazing what will keep her attention- it's never any of the baby toys we have bought for her!

Nanny's house...

Benjamin gets to spend time at his Nanny's house every week. He loves it! Today they went swimming and had so much fun! He loves to jump from the edge into the pool. He also loves to splash and swim and kick in the water (what kid doesn't?). Today he had a toy dragon in the pool. He was having fun with it and Nanny kept telling him to be careful of the drain because the dragon might go down it... Well, sadly the dragon went down the drain "Where did the dragon go?" he asked all the rest of the day. If I asked him where it went he'd say "I don't know where the dragon went!" So I would have to tell him again that "It went down the drain." He seemed to like the game of asking where the dragon went today...over and over and over... I wonder if we will play the same game tomorrow...