Monday, February 28, 2011
Two teddy bears are even better than one
According to Peter, you can never have too many snuggly bears to drag around.
Charlotte's Oscar submission
Well, I'm not going to post the actual video here, because it mostly consists of shots of the ground and up close views up Peter's nostrils, but Charlotte got the bug to use the Flip video to make another movie this afternoon. I did get some shots of the filmmaker in action, though.
Peter was not a particularly cooperative cast member and performed kind of like a toddler-sized Charlie Sheen -- trying to grab the camera himself and throwing a fit when he didn't get his way. Actually, it was remarkably like Charlie Sheen as of late. Just with less drugs and hookers, and with more teddy bears and sippy cups.
Peter was not a particularly cooperative cast member and performed kind of like a toddler-sized Charlie Sheen -- trying to grab the camera himself and throwing a fit when he didn't get his way. Actually, it was remarkably like Charlie Sheen as of late. Just with less drugs and hookers, and with more teddy bears and sippy cups.
Friday, February 25, 2011
Peter conquers the kitchen chair
I fondly remember the days when all I needed to do to keep Peter's tiny fingers off something was to put it up on the kitchen island. Now that he can climb up onto the chair that Charlotte insists we keep there so she can "help" me cook, I have lost that option. Pretty soon, I'm going to be putting everything on top of the fridge (although that reminds me of a story our friends told us of their son climbing up and retrieving a camera from the top of the fridge for the express purpose of dunking it in his cereal bowl). I finally had to push the chair away from the island so Peter wouldn't maul the pizza I was making, so he decided to just climb up there with his teddy bear and sit there grinning away at his audacity. Oh, Petey . . .
Mr. Fancy Pants
Remember Peter's strong interest in Charlotte's Mardi Gras beads? Well, he has a new love now:
He's a guy who likes accessories. Too bad he doesn't like keeping his socks on when it's 42 degrees outside.
He's a guy who likes accessories. Too bad he doesn't like keeping his socks on when it's 42 degrees outside.
An application to art school
Dear Aunt Martha --
Please please please consider accepting Charlotte and Peter into the high school art classes that you teach. I think you will find they have skills beyond compare and would fit in nicely among your colony of budding artists. I submit as their application the following evidence of their artistic aptitude:
Yesterday afternoon, Charlotte woke up from her nap in a foul mood. I pulled out a watercolor "Paint with Maisy" book that I got at the discount bookstore and dressed her in a smock courtesy of Granny & Grandpa Great. Once she got the concept of watercolors, she forged ahead on her masterpiece.
Peter got super cranky about Charlotte having all the creative fun, so I decided to introduce him to crayons for the very first time.
They were a hit! Unlike his sister, cousin Quinn, and cousin Sonia, Peter actually kept the crayons out of his mouth during his maiden voyage. His technique needs a little refinement, but he was starting to be able to make marks on the paper all by himself by the end of the session.
He liked to hold all four crayons at once. Well, at least he tried to.
Hey! This coloring thing is all right!!
Charlotte eventually moved on to coloring with markers and decorating with sparkly stickers. (I like to call this her "Popeye" smile.)
Aunt Martha, you can plainly see that Charlotte and Peter are both excellent candidates for your program. If you could also potty train them, I would be eternally grateful.
Very truly yours,
Niki
Please please please consider accepting Charlotte and Peter into the high school art classes that you teach. I think you will find they have skills beyond compare and would fit in nicely among your colony of budding artists. I submit as their application the following evidence of their artistic aptitude:
Yesterday afternoon, Charlotte woke up from her nap in a foul mood. I pulled out a watercolor "Paint with Maisy" book that I got at the discount bookstore and dressed her in a smock courtesy of Granny & Grandpa Great. Once she got the concept of watercolors, she forged ahead on her masterpiece.
Peter got super cranky about Charlotte having all the creative fun, so I decided to introduce him to crayons for the very first time.
They were a hit! Unlike his sister, cousin Quinn, and cousin Sonia, Peter actually kept the crayons out of his mouth during his maiden voyage. His technique needs a little refinement, but he was starting to be able to make marks on the paper all by himself by the end of the session.
He liked to hold all four crayons at once. Well, at least he tried to.
Hey! This coloring thing is all right!!
Charlotte eventually moved on to coloring with markers and decorating with sparkly stickers. (I like to call this her "Popeye" smile.)
Aunt Martha, you can plainly see that Charlotte and Peter are both excellent candidates for your program. If you could also potty train them, I would be eternally grateful.
Very truly yours,
Niki
Toddler pandemonium with guest star, Sonia
My sister, Erin, and her 21-month-old daughter, Sonia, came to visit this week! The three kiddos got along like three peas in a toddler-sized pod. The kids are finally old enough to really play together without super close parental supervision/direction, so we got a glimpse into the future where Erin and I can hang out and relax while our herd of kids roams around together.
It was especially fun to see them pretending together, like when Charlotte and Sonia put themselves "night-night" on the couch together not long after Erin and Sonia arrived.
The rescue center slide was a big hit with all three kids. It was surprising how well they (usually) took turns.
We did lots of exploring outside. Sonia has been cooped up inside for a long, snowy winter, so she loved romping around in the grass. The temperature got into the low 60s one of the days, so she was in heaven! She especially adored following Connie the dog around outside.
Charlotte and Sonia conquered the mall playground together.
Sonia got to hold her first ice cream cone! I think she liked it.
Then again, she also seemed to enjoy eating Peter's shoe.
Sonia tried dressing up as a fairy and decided she kind of liked it.
We must have gone outside to romp around at least once a day. Such a nice treat after the cold winter we had!
Sonia met Charlotte's friend, Madison too!
While Charlotte was at school, we took the two little ones to Peek-a-boo Playtown. Shhhh -- Charlotte still doesn't know we went without her.
Kids always put firefighter hats on backward!
At one point, Sonia grabbed a big plastic T-Rex and announced "snuggle!" She then carried him around for quite a while and took him on several adventures.
Hey! Does anyone notice that I'm drowning in a sea of plastic balls?
Such a sweet little smile on that girl!
If Peter could talk, he would have said "me too!" about a million times this week. He was always about two steps behind the girls and desperate to join in on whatever they were doing. Like here, during pants-free story time on Charlotte's bed before bath time. Poor little guy.
We had such a wonderful time with you, Erin and Sonia! We promise to come visit sometime very soon.
Friday, February 18, 2011
Peter as Dark Helmet from "Spaceballs"
My son has yet again been exploited for comedic purposes. This time, it was my friend, Lauren, who assisted me. Once Peter sees all of these goofy pictures (when he's old enough to care, that is), I'm in big trouble. Remember the 1987 movie "Spaceballs"? If not, this should jog your memory:
Too bad we didn't have any little glasses handy or else Peter's transformation into Rick Moranis would have been complete!
Too bad we didn't have any little glasses handy or else Peter's transformation into Rick Moranis would have been complete!
Thursday, February 17, 2011
The great deer rescue
Last weekend in Michigan, GrandDad took Charlotte on another adventure. This time, they were following a map to help a mommy and daddy deer find their baby deer in the woods. We brought some new resin figurines to help add some authenticity to the hunt.
As they were studying the map, Charlotte told us that she was "Diego" and that GrandDad was her "helper". Charlotte started the journey by trooping through the deep snow like a champ with the assistance of her "helper".
The intrepid explorer was thrilled when she found the baby deer sleeping in an area where she and NanaB had discovered some deer beds the day before.
They celebrated their success by sledding down the hill a few hundred times. We had to practically drag Charlotte inside for lunch. She is turning into quite the little snow bunny.
GrandDad and Charlotte make a great adventure team!
As they were studying the map, Charlotte told us that she was "Diego" and that GrandDad was her "helper". Charlotte started the journey by trooping through the deep snow like a champ with the assistance of her "helper".
The intrepid explorer was thrilled when she found the baby deer sleeping in an area where she and NanaB had discovered some deer beds the day before.
They celebrated their success by sledding down the hill a few hundred times. We had to practically drag Charlotte inside for lunch. She is turning into quite the little snow bunny.
GrandDad and Charlotte make a great adventure team!
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
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