A bug hunting she will go

I can see it on my neighbors faces. They think I am absolutely freaking nuts to let my "girl" do this. Not even the little boys in our 'hood get away with this.... But the little girls aren't even allowed to play in our sandbox, let alone dig in the mud for bug friends. Some of the Neighbor dads will exclaim "That's GREAT! that you let her do that!!", but the Mom's are all nervous and twitchy, and lunge for their kids when they look to be thinking of digging in.

Kenzie is fascinated by bugs and nature, and I enjoy that very much. I do have some ground rules for hunts like this:
1. NO spiders
2. NO pretty clothing
3. NO touching Mama
And, that's pretty much it.



My neighbors are horrified, and it is awkward when other kids are around misunderstanding why I won't allow them to do the same. (their parents would kill me). I try to contain this kind of thing to when it's just us -- lonely in the yard, with bugs as our only playmates.



This was an especially good distraction yesterday, after our Cousins from "Cago" (Chicago) departed. We had a week-long visit with them which was especially wonderful for us, although we also weathered some challenges as well. Kenzie was absolutely heartbroken when their van drove away. Although she'd much rather play with the cousins, the bugs were a nice distraction from her longing for them...



P.S. Cousins, Aunt Wori & Uncle Don: We miss you!!

Clouds

Today, is another cloud filled sky day. This morning while cuddled up on Kenzie's bed, we read a Ladybug magazine filled with seaside stories which incorporated a story about finding the shapes in the clouds. Cloud spotting was one of Kenzie's most favorite activities while swinging last year - calling out shapes she saw within the puffy clouds. Oddly, most clouds looked like camels, donuts, or dinosaurs to her.

When we came downstairs, we stood at the window and she tried to find shapes in the clouds. The sky was just too murky and hazy. No shapes to be found there.

So, we made our own.



This project is not for the squeamish about handing kiddos mass quantities of paint. I am one of those parents who freaks about my child getting paint all over my nicely refinished table (which I've only recently accomplished). But, I handled it {kinda} well. :) Fortunately, I fully believe in the paint we use. It has proven absolutely washable and worth the extra bucks (Adica Washable paint in bear shaped squeezable containers).

Squirt paint, glitter glue, etc. into puddles on the paper... fold... smoosh, and Voila!!



Kenzie enjoyed this project very much. 10 paintings worth of enjoyment!!
At the onset of each folding, she'd exclaim:
"Let me see WHO this is!!!"
and then...
"Oh MY GoSh...it's":

"...a potato chip...a pig...a snowman...a camel..a shooting star WITH a hat...a funny kinda scary man...a crab..a mermaid...a fire engine...a clown...a tuba...an elephant WITH a trunk...a mickey mouse..."

It was amazing to hear what she came up with, and only well into the project did I think to write all the guesses down. Doug called about that time, and we had some good giggles about her guesses. He suggested we do a black ink project this same way -- writing the names of the creations at the bottom of each, and framing them into a wall art. Maybe even do three Kenzie ink creations, three mama, and three dad..all framed together. Love that man's ideas!! What a conversation piece that would be.

Lucky weekend

We had quite the St. Patty's day weekend. Decked out in green, we visited our friends new home for breakfast and then walked to the City's St. Patty's day parade. The gal ate her weight in Lucky Charms, and her parents partook in some coffee and Irish Creme(s).

Kenzie was the only one who could witness much of the parade, sitting atop her daddy's shoulders (I saw only the back of people's heads). After a portion of the parade - we, and some friends headed back to our house to continue the day of celebrating the Irish.



Kenzie and Mia took naps like good little girls, while their parents continued the celebration and then got ambitious. The boys did some demolition on our fireplace, the gals visited a store and bought some wall art. The girls then coaxed the boys into bringing a large armoire that has been sitting in the garage into the dining room, where it is now home. The babes took long naps, and then awoke to play like cooperative little chums. We spent the whole day lounging about.



Who knew the weekend would be so lucky??

Ozzzzz

When we lived in San Diego, my mother purchased a snow globe for Kenzie. She thought the Wizard of Oz theme would be a nice connector to happy memories of Nana, living in Kansas. She forgot to send it, and she finally gave it to us -- well after we'd moved back to.... Kansas.

Long story - but part of Kenzie's nightly bedtime routine was to hear this crazy "Chicken Elmo" sing his song. Doug and I thought he was creepy & too loud sounding for a wee little girl to be listening to in the dark...so Doug came up with the idea of listening to a musicbox instead. Now, every night before Kenzie goes to bed...she chooses one of two music boxes to listen to. We have this snow globe that my mom gave her, and another ballerina one that Doug's mom gave us. Both play music. So, she picks which one she wants to listen to...we wind it up, kiss goodnight, and turn the lights off.

Every night and naptime, except ONE she has chosen this one.
She always says "What's it called?? The Ozzzzz thing?????"
We tell her Wizard of Oz, and she says:
Oh yeah.. Right, right, right, play the Ozzzzzz thing my Nana gave me. Nana's you're mommy, mommy.




I think she just likes saying: Ozzzzzz...
{before catching some ZzzZzzzZzzz's}....

Hammock Time

And, this is how we spent our morning. (putting together & enjoying)

There is nothing better than a hammock for relaxing!

Is it Spring yet???

The weather has made a miraculous recovery, and is now very springlike. We've been spending a good amount of time outdoors appreciating it...



Yesterday was 74. Today is rumored for 80. The windows are open, a breeze wafts through and the music is serenading us both inside and out. It's days like today that Kenzie and I fully appreciate Doug's like for speakers EVERYWHERE. The "mood" is wonderful, rejuvenated, and completely refreshed.



A few things the past week has found us doing:



:: nut collecting :: bug hunting :: wagon riding :: "knocking bird" listening :: dog walking :: music listening :: silly girl dancing :: rock hopping :: nature trailing :: swimming pool dreaming :: food grilling :: yard cleaning :: chair painting :: neighborhood socializing :: jungle gym climbing :: & picture taking ::



Thank goodness, it seems that Spring is finally here.

Extreme Bubble Bath

And, THIS would be one of the reasons why you shouldn't use bubbles in a tub with jets. It quickly buries the child in bubbles.



But, we've done this before.



And, we'll do it AGAIN.



Jets in a bathtub, take bubble baths to whole new levels...

Being aeroplanes

Yesterday, was lovely. Sunny & toasty warm.



All the kids in the neighborhood were out enjoying the day. Some little crazies were even in shorts and tanks. Barefoot.



It was a taste of spring. & we enjoyed it.



Then at 5:00 sharp, the clouds rolled over and it started to hail.



At 11:00 it was hailing again.

Today, is blustery and worthless outside. Snow flurries and misery. We stayed in.



Can't wait for Spring to be sprung. Looking forward to many more aeroplanes, as Kenzie calls them. Even those with emergency landings.