Our Very Merry Christmas Card for 2009

Make a Smilebox greeting

Look What I Found...

I follow the sweetest little blog called cakies and got completely lucky when clicking through some of her old posts tonight!

She has this 52 Weeks of Polaroids Project - where she posts a new polaroid every week (which, are always the cutest pictures you'll ever see, by the way). As soon as I saw her first little polaroid, I knew it was a project for me. On tinesy problem: No polaroid camera and with the price of polaroid film a wee bit high, no real plans to make a polaroid purchase in the near future. What's a girl to do?

Well, check out this little gem I found on her blog! It made me such a happy girl! Oh, the hours I will now spend converting my pictures to polaroids. Seriously, Ruby...I could just hug you!

Fishing for Big Girls

I asked the kids to bring down their dirty clothes this morning so I could get started on the laundry. They decided the best way to go about it was to throw everything off of the balcony upstairs. Completely fine with me. They have fun - and I get the laundry downstairs.

One small hiccup, though. A pair of Eden's "big girls" and one of Levi's shirts got stuck on the the wall across from the balcony. Eden is up for the challenge and has developed a contraption to "fish" for the panties. Her tool of choice is made up of the following: one Star Wars light saber, tied to one Batman belt, tied to one telescope, tied to two bandannas (one pirate themed and one basic blue western wear). So far the panties elude her...but I am certain she will not give up until she is successful. Love that girl.

Project Wreath

I saw a post on alpha+mom last week and have been dreaming about making a similar wreath ever since! Yesterday, we finally made it out to the craft store to pick up the necessary supplies and today we set to work! What started as a group effort, quickly turned into a one-mom show. When the kids decided it was more fun to paint themselves than it was to paint the wreaths - I sent them off to the bath and finished up the painting myself. There is something oddly therapeutic about slapping paint on little foam balls. A tiny moment of quiet bliss for mommy.

Here is the progression of our wreath project. Oh, how I love them. They just make us feel merry and bright!

Two Cute Things...

Today's Tiny Treasures...

Eden is doing all of her pointing with two fingers (like a flight attendant showing you the way to the exits). And, she's doing a lot of pointing. Yesterday she was explaining to me how Santa comes down the chimney - pointing the entire time. Too cute.

Levi is still insisting on wearing a swimsuit just about every day. Usually his requirements also include: "with no shirt". I'm not sure what that boy has against being dressed. Such my California boy. Two Cute.

Sweet Singing

Scott and I woke this morning to Eden's sweet little voice singing upstairs. She had gone into Levi's room and was singing to him (over and over), "You better watch out, You better not cry, You better not pout, I'm telling you why. Santa Claus is coming to town." Such a good big sister.

Perfect.

I kept thinking yesterday was Saturday. Scott stayed home from work and it totally threw me off. It was such a perfect day. Just having Scott at the house made the day somehow peaceful and calm! The kids and I crafted away while Daddy worked in the next room.

We made Fall leaves, pretend pumpkin pie and a cinnamon spice batch of play dough that kept them occupied for most of the day. When we weren't inside working on our Fall projects, we were out enjoying the amazing weather! Fall in Austin is absolutely beautiful - sunny and 70! We spent the late afternoon at the park with some of our friends trying to catch minnows from the pond.



In the evening we had family movie night - one of my very favorite things. It really was a perfect day.

Today's Tiny Treasures: The kids came down the stairs this morning giggling. I could heard Eden's say, "Let's go show Mommy how silly we look." They rounded the corner of the kitchen and jumped out at me...with pull-ups on their heads. Zany kids. Oh, how I love them.



By the way, Levi would not pose for the picture. His 3-year old self, must have somehow spoken with his 16-year old self and they agreed it would be in his best interest to not document the pull-up on the head moment. Just a story I'll have to save for his girlfriend (minus the photographic evidence.)

P.S.

Only because I have been away from the blog for so long and have been meaning to write this down, here are two other tiny treasures:

I know that one day Scott and I will likely pay thousands of dollars in dentist bills to correct the damage Levi is doing by sucking his thumb. Despite that, I honestly love the little noise he makes when he is holding his dot, sucking his thumb and falling asleep. I hope I never for get the sound of it.

Eden is starting to read! All stages of development are fun with your kids, but this one seems to be exceptionally fun! She gets so proud of herself when she figures out a word. Last week she read her biggest word yet: DINOSAUR. Wow!

I did have a smile over one of her attempts to read, though. She was playing with a new toy she got for her birthday. It is called a Wobble Deck. I thought she was trying to sound out the name of the toy as she was balancing on it the other day and was confused to hear her making the "T" and "M" sounds. Just as I was about to offer some "parental guidance", I realized what she was doing. She was reading the trademark sign, TM. Good job, Eden. You sounded it out perfectly!

Thomas the Tank Engine and Barbie Cargo

Tonight I was picking up the house and was not very happy about it. This wasn't just your run of the mill mess - this was hurricane force. I think every toy in the play room had some how found its way to another part of the house. As I was feeling frustrated by the dent I didn't seem to be making in the piles of toys, something stopped me in my tracks.

Thomas the Tank Engine was pulling three cargo loads of Barbie shoes and accessories on the trampoline. I took a break from my grumpy attitude to remember how sweet Eden and Levi were being this afternoon as they played some kind of a game involving both brands of toys. They were making up a little story together and acting it all out. I can't remember or maybe wasn't paying attention to the script of their story. But, I do remember the giggles and the simple joy they seemed to share as they played together. It was a sweet moment.

Then this thought crossed my mind: My Thomas and Barbie days are numbered. One day Eden will be more interested in what shade of nail polish to wear and Levi will actually want to watch the football game that was on TV, instead of playing with his sister. It will happen before I know it - so a little perspective would be nice, Heather. Don't get so worked up about the mess that you forget to notice the little tiny treasures that are hiding all around you.

I Want You in My Tummy!

Tonight when I was tucking Levi into bed he didn't want me to leave. I explained to him that Mommy is always with him; that I am in his heart wherever he goes. He thought about that a minute and then replied, "I want you in my tummy."

Picnic at the Park

The kids and I spent the morning at the park. We enjoyed an early picnic before the real playing began. Our dump trucks, buckets and shovels were a little harder to share today for some reason, but we managed to play nicely with others without too much persuasion. When they had their toys to themselves, Eden and Levi made roads for the trucks, ice cream sundaes (with rock sprinkles on top) and a giant birthday cake for me - complete with many, many stick candles and a singing of "Happy Birthday dear Mommy."

When we were sufficiently dirty, we loaded up the car for a trip to Daddy's office to bring cookies and lemonade. Eden loved passing cookies out to everyone and it seemed a nice "pick-me-up" for all involved.

And now, I'm home typing this post to a very quiet house. Levi is crashed out in his room and Eden is sleeping in a tent we have set up in the living room for her camp out. I can't remember the last time both of them went for naps. Oh, I spoke too soon. I just heard the zipper on the tent and Eden is heading this way.

Today's Tiny Treasure: When Eden was passing out my pretend cake at the sandbox today, Levi warned me not to eat the sand. "People don't eat sand.", he said. "Only camels eat sand."

Wood Chuck, Wood Chuck...

Today has been such a fun day with the kids. I have been very intentional about making myself available to them and when I'm invited, joining in on some playtime. We have crammed so much into today that I feel compelled to document everything my little monkeys came up with...

We started the day making homemade stationary: pushing pieces of paper into trays of shaving cream and food coloring, mixed together with popsicle sticks. Then they disappeared upstairs to play. After about 30 minutes they called me up to watch "The Show". They had propped Levi's mattress against the wall and were banging on a xylophone and bowls. Levi was playing a mean harmonica and Eden was making up a song - singing it at the top of her lungs. I wish I could remember the words - I think it was some kind of an Ode to Shamu.

Then it was on to water play outside. We filled up the little pool and they started running cups of water over to the slide to make it super fast. They were perched on top of a slip and slide raft heading down the slide as fast as the water would carry them. Once they were sufficiently grassy, they headed into our bath for some "swimming".

A brief break for lunch and then Eden decorated an envelope for letter we need to send to her friend in California while Levi ran his paint cars over paper. He requested blue and green paint - a departure from his normal demand for orange. Eden, of course, had to get in on the car action as well - but quickly moved on when Levi suggested scuba diving.

So, back to the bath tub they went - snorkels in hand. After they had explored the depths of the master bath, we played a couple of quick games of Sequence, colored some Hello Kitty pictures and read a few books on the couch. I wonder what they will come up with between now and dinner...

Today's Tiny Treasure: We have been working on tongue twisters the past couple of weeks. Eden finally has, "How much wood could a wood chuck, chuck..." down. Not too shabby. Levi's version had me cracking up this afternoon. He says, "Wood Chuck, Wood Chuck" as fast as he can and then looks at me and smiles. Close Levi, Close.

A Good Find

This is an article I wrote for a MOPS newsletter when Eden and Levi were younger. I came across it this morning and have decided to take my own advice...

I'm Such A Mom!

As my daughter wiped her nose on my shoulder yesterday I couldn’t help but think, “Wow, I am such a mom!” Don’t we all have moments like that? Something as tiny as your child crawling up onto your lap can make your heart skip a beat. Something as complicated as determining the “punishment that fits the crime” can break your heart into pieces. A hundred things happen each day that remind us of our awesome responsibility of being someone’s mommy. Sometimes the enormity of it can be a bit overwhelming!

If you’re anything like me you (no doubt) go through days when you wish you could throw in the burp cloth and take a sick day from mommy duties. When I feel this attitude creeping in, I try very hard to put life in perspective. I remind myself how fleeting these precious young years are for my children and how fortunate I am to share in them. Soon my daughter will be more interested in playing with friends than with me. She will eventually become too big to hold and will some day no longer require 3 stories and 5 lullabies before going to bed. Even though motherhood offers many trials and frustrations, I know it also offers great rewards. Hearing your child tell you that they love you, listening to them say their prayers at night, watching them share their treasured “blankie” with baby brother and so many other sweet moments make me realize how incredibly thankful I am that God chose me to be my children’s mommy. My hope for you is that you truly cherish all the joys of mothering young children…snotty shoulders and all!

Ho-Hum

I should totally be picking up the house, but have managed to talk myself out of it. After all, I haven't posted anything on the blog in about a month and have convinced myself that recording our family history is way more important than taking out the trash (even though it is a bit stinky).



Mid-Summer Check-In:

We've had mostly good days. Busy hunting for "beautiful" rocks, making messes, playing at the pool with friends, a trip or two to Sea World, weekends at Grandmother and Granddaddy's and lots and lots of together time. To be honest, I have gotten a tiny bit lazy with my activities over the past few weeks and have turned on the TV more than I care to admit. So, I have decided to declare random "No TV" days for the rest of the summer (complete with an official sign) - in order to get our creative juices flowing again! I see lots of water colors and make shift forts in my future. All in all, the kids have played well together this summer. They build off of each other's imagination and although Eden generally runs the show - Levi is able to contribute an idea or two from time to time.

I can hear them playing together upstairs as I type this. I'm pretty sure Levi is standing on the toy chest and jumping off and Eden seems to be providing pointers on how best to jump. Still, there is giggling, freedom and fun. Really, what else could a kid ask for in the middle of summer?

Today's Tiny Treasures: The wonder of silly putty is a magical thing! Today Eden and Levi got to pick out their own egg! Eden picked pink (which also glows in the dark) and Levi picked orange (which changes to yellow when you hold it). Although silly putty is much fancier than when I was little, it's still captures a kid's heart...and because of that...a Mommy's heart, too.

Life with Boys

Life with boys is a crack up. Today I found my first rock in the dryer. I have a feeling it will be the first of many.

Play with your Food

Two days into summer and I already had to use one of my "reserve" crafts in order to entertain my monkeys! Yep, I encouraged my children to play with their food! We used celery bunches and potatoes to do a little stamping. I loved watching the difference in design between my 4-year old and 3-year old. Eden was very meticulous about where each little stamp would go - while Levi just wanted to smear around the paint. Of course, I (in my always biased mommy opinion) thought the paintings turned out beautiful!





Today's Tiny Treasures: As I sat down to write this, I saw Levi sprint across the top of the stairs wearing nothing by his construction vehicle big boys and purple fairy wings. Precious!

The Smell of Summer

I love the smell of summer on my kids. It is the mixture of sunscreen and chlorine that just makes my heart leap. I imagine it is a scent that will be burned in my memory forever - and will always bring me back to these precious days with Eden and Levi - when they still ask me to carry them in from the car after an especially long afternoon at the pool.

Busy "Becca"

Today was a crazy busy day! After a brief stand-off on who would clean the playroom (mom vs. tots), we headed out to a pool party at a friend's house. After the party we came home to finish up our end of the year gifts for Eden's classmates and teachers. She made little wooden necklaces for her friends and we baked cookies and painted a picture frame for her teachers. Eden even provided the art work for the gift tags! I was so proud of her for being so thoughtful and sweet!

Our chores were quickly interrupted by a very necessary game of Cowgirl! Eden came down the stairs dressed the part, asked for black freckles on her cheeks and told me I should call her "Cowgirl Becca". And because no respectable cowgirl can be without a horse - we rummaged through the craft closet to see what we could come up with. About an hour later - Becca and LuLu were galloping through the house! Although we are a bit concerned that LuLu's head may fall off at any moment - she seems to be holding up fairly well and is resting for the night in the corner of Eden's bedroom.


Today's Tiny Treasure: Levi moved to a big boy bed two weeks ago, but all of the nursery furniture is still in his room. Tonight, Levi asked if I could rock with him and I couldn't help but wonder if that might be one of the last times I will rock my little boy to sleep in his bedroom. I imagine the rocking chair will find a new home in the house very soon and some how it moves me a little further away from holding my tiny babies and rocking them to sleep.

But, even as I tear up a bit just typing that thought - I know that as my kids grow we find new night-time loves. Tonight, it was as if Levi knew my thoughts. After we had rocked for a while, he asked me to come "sleep" with him for a minute in his big boy bed. I snuggled up with him and was scratching his back, when he reached over and gave my hand a squeeze as if to say, "We'll be ok, mommy...we'll be ok."

Squishy Shoes and Other Things

I'm not sure if I've mentioned this yet in the blog, but Eden is my little Craft Queen! Not a day goes by that she doesn't ask me if we can do some type of project. Today we used pipe cleaners to attach sponges to her feet. Add a little purple and green paint, and you have "squishy shoes". She loved it and we got some pretty cool wrapping paper out of it as well. My very favorite part of today's project was that her "shoes" didn't fit her feet, so her little toes hung over the edge. I don't think there is anything sweeter in all God's Earth than tiny toe prints...


Today's Tiny Treasures: We had a family day: Lunch at P. Terry's followed by a round of mini-golf at Peter Pan. Something tells me we don't have the next Tiger Woods in our family, but we all had fun regardless. Levi lasted about 9 holes before he gave up on the club and just started to throw the ball. The course has a bunch of "magic holes" where the ball goes in one place and then pops out some where else. My boy was completely fascinated! Scott coached Eden on the proper way to hold the club for about 12 holes before she finally grasped the concept. Her very favorite part of putt-putt, "Golfing it into the whale's mouth."

I Love You More Than...

It's somewhat of a silly competition in our house. It usually goes something like this:

Eden: "I love you all the way around my bed room, up to the moon, around the universe, over the light, around the universe (that one usually appears at least twice) and around the sun and back."

Mommy or Daddy: "Oh yeah, well, I love you around the universe, up to the moon, out to Pluto, around the sun, all through the house and back and more. Enormous Love."

Then we will stretch our arms out as far as possible to show how enormous the love is. It's a fun little game, but this morning Eden said the sweetest I Love You More Than to me. She said, "I love you more than any of my friends. I really do." My sweet, sweet Eden.

Cookie Shop and a Cardboard Box

We were home all morning on Monday as the A/C guys made some repairs. The kids and I were playing a game of Toss the Cookies when we decided to set up shop! Eden made our sign - complete with five little cut out cookies with sprinkles and a "shape chain". At first we just used our playing card cookies and pretend milk - but quickly learned that the real deal would be much more exciting. So we grabbed my stand-by tub of cookie dough and made a quick batch. The kids had so much fun taking turns being customer, then server, then working the cash register. When the A/C guys finished their work, they came down to make a "purchase" from the shop! It was precious!



I guess you could say we were paid very handsomely by the A/C guys for their two cookies! They left us two giant cardboard boxes. 2 kids under the age of 5 + 2 giant cardboard boxes = 2 hours of uninterrupted play! They were all squeals and giggles!



My kids were so happy this morning! A great reminder that it really is the simple things in life that count the most!

A Date with Daddy

At 7:30 this morning Eden came down to wake up Daddy. She was completely dressed with a bow in her hair and ready for their date. She had been talking about ever since Scott mentioned he had something planned about a week ago. Every morning at breakfast she would give me the count down, "Only 3 more days until my date with daddy."

Scott surprised her with a trip to the Scottish Rite Children's Theatre to see Hansel and Gretel. The play was followed by lunch at P. Terry's Burger Stand - which turned into P. Terry's in the back of Scott's truck since it was pouring down rain - followed by ice cream at Amy's. I later learned that Scott switched his ice cream with Eden's at Amy's when she realized he had ordered the better option. I hope she remembers that forever.

Eden's date with Daddy meant I got to spend the day with my little man! We spent the morning at the Children's Museum and then headed to Mighty Fine Burgers for lunch. Levi is a salsa lover, so when he saw the "hot sauce" on the table he would not take no for an answer. So, I splashed a little tabasco sauce on his wrapper and he dipped his burger. God love him - he complained about his lip burning for the next 30 minutes. He finally met his match.

Today's Tiny Treasures: When I told Levi we were going to Mighty Fine Burgers for lunch he apparently thought I said Mighty Fine Boogers. His reply, "Mighty Fine Boogers? What? No." And since I was laughing every time he said it, we had a full minute or two of Levi repeating himself. In his defense, boogers really are pretty funny.

We All Live in a Yellow Submarine

I recently found a website full of fun, easy and quick little crafts to do with your kids. If you haven't stumbled upon No Time for Flash Cards yet, you really should check it out. My kids have been eating it up! We've made Albert the Alligator to learn our letter A and Ziggy the Zebra for the letter Z. Today's creation: A Yellow Submarine. We, of course, had the appropriate background music. Nothing better than sticky glue, tissue paper sun catchers and a little Beatles playing in the background. Now if I could only get my coffee to kick in - it might just be the perfect little morning!

Beautiful

That is the word I heard coming from the kitchen this morning. I was in the laundry room pulling clothes out of the dryer and little Levi was commenting on his masterpiece in the next room. I had left him alone with three small dishes of paint to work on a "snap" painting. I naively thought he was talking about his painting - so I called from the laundry room, "I can't wait to see it." Not three seconds later my little man rounds the corner and asks, "Isn't it beautiful, mommy?" Yes. In a strange way, it really is. I only wish I could figure out how to load more than one picture on this blog - so I could also show you what he did to his toes too.

A through Zeek

Did you know the last letter of the alphabet is "Zeek" not "Z"? Levi is walking around the house this morning singing his ABC's in his little baritone voice. When I mentioned that I thought the last letter of the alphabet was "Z" not "Zeek" - he looked at me with his eyebrows wrinkled and said, "No, it's Zeek". He started to sing again, just to prove his point.
And, as if that's not cute enough, the other completely adorable thing about Levi's version of the ABC's is that his song never ends. When he gets to the part that usually goes, "Now I know my ABC's..." he just starts again, "Now I know my ABCDEFG..." As he sings this morning, he is carrying his entire Cars collection around with him in a little bag. My sweet, sweet boy!

Did you say St. Nick?

I was cracking up walking through Academy with the kids this afternoon. Eden was singing "This Little Light of Mine" - except she kept singing, "Won't let St. Nick 'phfff' it out. No! I'm gonna let it shine." When I asked her who St. Nick was - she correctly replied Santa. I told her I thought the song was actually talking about Satan - not St. Nick. Santa wouldn't want to blow her light out. When she asked who Satan was - I told her he was a really bad guy. This got Levi very excited, since he's all about shooting the bad guys these days. My kids are hilarious!

That's Just Silly

Today was a very important day for my children. It was the day they were introduced to Silly String! All that joy and pure happiness all safely contained in a metal bottle. It is an amazing invention. As a matter of fact, as I type up this little entry, I can hear Eden in the kitchen explaining the whole thing to Scott! Such fun.

This Week's Tiny Treasures: Scott was fishing with his dad this weekend so the kids and I had a night at the house by ourselves. It was the perfect excuse for a slumber party in mommy and daddy's room. The plan was to watch Wall-E until we fell asleep. It didn't take Eden long to fall asleep and I would have been right behind her - but it turns out that Levi can't sleep with the TV on. After chasing that little wiggle worm around the bed for 30 minutes, I turned the movie off and snuggled up with both my kiddos for the night. Complete Mommy Bliss.

A Worm Called Flower-Flower

The much needed rain we received this week brought us an unexpected gift this morning. Eden and Levi went out to play in the back yard and came across the biggest worm I have seen in quite some time. The kids were so excited and I am not exaggerating when I say that they watched that little guy wiggle across the yard for a good 30 minutes. They touched him lightly on the back and watched him do "his tricks" which included forward rolls and an exceptional back flip, they pretended to be completely grossed out by the trail of slime he was leaving on the grass behind him and eventually they even worked up the nerve to pick him up on a flower stem for a closer look. A little worm as playful and fun as that one, could not go nameless. So, Eden thought Flower-Flower was the perfect name for our slimy friend. Thank you, Flower-Flower for 30 minutes of fascination and fun. We won't forget you!

Today's Tiny Treasure: I love how Eden gives everything two names. The worm couldn't just be Flower. He had to be Flower-Flower. She does this with her stuffed animals as well.

Springtime Treats

This week we are soaking up all the springtime we can! We spent two hours at the park on Monday morning - searching for dinosaur teeth. We didn't come across any teeth, but did find lots and lots of mud on our adventure. Tuesday we headed to Zilker with friends to soak up the sun and go for a ride on the Zilker Zephyr. The train slowed around a bend and a sweet man with a guitar called Levi "red". I loved it. Today we had friends over for a "pancake party" complete with all the fixins, pancake races and a reading of "If You Give a Pig a Pancake." All in all - it has been one of the best Spring Breaks I can remember.

Today's Tiny Treasures: Eden "read" Goodnight Gorrilla to me this afternoon. When she came to the page where the Zookeeper's wife had turned off the lights - she made different voices for each of the animals as they all said "goodnight". Absolutely adorable. She is also doing this little fake laugh these days that I can't help but find completely endearing. I also wonder if it might be the beginnings of her take on the nervous laugh habit that seems to run in our family.
Levi is doing this little shrug that I wish I could describe perfectly in writing. Basically he just shrugs with his hands, not his shoulders. But, he keeps them low - down by his hips and gives a sweet sideways grin when he does it. He usually does this gesture when he has just proved something really fantastic - like his ability to jump over something - "without it touching his toes." That boy knows how to steal my heart.

Blocking Bad Guys

On our way home from MOPS yesterday Levi told me, "We have to buy one." I was curious. "Buy one what, Levi?" He then went on to explain that Eden, Levi, Daddy and Mommy all needed shields to "block the bad guys". So as soon as possible, Levi and I were cutting up pizza boxes, decorating them and adding a pipe cleaner handle to make the perfect little shields for my two munchkins. He was so proud of the finished product and couldn't wait to show Eden her shield. It was fun for me - since this is the first time Levi has specifically asked for a prop to support his imagination. He's getting so big!

This Week's Tiny Treasures: Scott took Eden to school yesterday, so when Levi and I got into the car to go to MOPS, he looked over at her car seat and asked where she was. When I told him Daddy had taken Eden to school, Levi said: "But, I love Eden." Such a sweet boy!

Eden collected a Rolly Polly village from the backyard on Monday. She had about 20 in an old coffee can on the back porch - with some dead leaves for their beds. The next morning the village was wiped out. Turns out rolly pollys can't live on dead leaves alone. But she handled it all in stride - dumping out her village and making a note to add grass instead next time.

Good-bye Zephie Boy

Yesterday Scott and I said good-bye to our very first baby. Our 14-year old Australian Shepard mutt that we bought from a family with a teepee in their front yard - somewhere outside of College Station. Zephaniah had a huge heart for those that he loved.
Before Zephie, I had never met a dog that smiled at you when you came home. He loved to rock climb, swim, roll in the grass on his back, snuggle up with me on the floor, and perform a multitude of tricks. He was a good dog and an even better friend. Becuase he was my first dog, he will always hold a very special place in my heart. I will miss him.
We told Eden and Levi that Zephie had to go up to doggie heaven, where God would feed him and take care of him. In doggie heaven, Zephie would be well again and he would be able to run and play forever. I hope that's true, Zephie. I hope you are chasing bunnies again. Good-bye, Zephie boy. I will always love you.

How Fast Can You Eat Eggs?

I sometimes wonder if I am putting too much pressure on my kids to be little future athletes! Today they are practicing their swimming in the bath tub. And, just this morning I was telling a friend that Levi has some serious ball control (I'm convinced he will one day play in the MLS - no one is that good at age 2). Eden is quite possibly the most competitive 4-year old I have ever met. Everything is a race to her. She challenged Levi to an egg eating competition at breakfast, "I bet I can finish my eggs before you can." But, both of them seem to really enjoy sports and as long as they are the ones initiating the interest...I'm all for it and will certainly encourage it! That said, I might need to play down the egg eating competitions. Seems a tiny bit excessive!

Call Me Crazy

If you can believe it, today was the first time Eden and Levi watched an entire episode of Sesame Street. It's not because I don't let them watch TV. We have been big Disney Playhouse fans for many years. But, for some reason I never turned on Sesame Street.

I think in my days before kids I was a bit turned off by the crazy mob of parents at the Toys R Us - in search of the last of two Tickle Me Elmo dolls in the entire universe. From that point on I drew a correlation between crazy parents and Elmo. And who wants to be a crazy parent, right? (Although I am learning that you can't really have one without the other.)

But as the three of us sat on the couch this afternoon and watched a show that was brought to us by the letter "R" and the number 12, Sesame Street won me over again. I say again because I'm pretty sure I once loved the show. Even today, after a near 25 year absence, I knew all the words to the theme song, giggled at the Cookie Monster and got really excited when Ernie sang about his Rubber Ducky. What can I say, it was a sunny day. Everything's A-OK!

Today's Tiny Treasures: Levi's Cookie Monster impersonation and Eden's cute little voice singing, "Can you tell me how to go to Sesame Street?"

We're Havin' a Heat Wave

One day left in February and it's near 90 degrees! We spent the morning at the park, made a quick stop at Little Gym (where Eden did her first unassisted grip change) and then back home to play in the "pool". All this sunshine made me realize why Texas and I are so perfect for each other.

Today's Tiny Treasures: Having Eden do a high knee jog with me at the park. That girl loves to get her exercise. It was too cute. Later, Levi really wanted to play peek-a-boo with Eden (she was lying in the grass and hiding under the little pool), but kept getting distracted by my apple. He would start to move towards the pool and then stop quickly, turn to me and ask for a bite. That boy never met a piece of fruit he didn't like. He never did make it under the pool.

My Basketball Blessings

Eden came running in this afternoon and informed me that she and Levi were playing a game of basketball. "Would I like to watch?" Absolutely. I grabbed my camera and headed out to the garage.

All the joys of watching the Kings nearly steal the Western Conference from those horrible Lakers (back when the Kings were actually good) don't even come close to the joy I found watching my sweet kiddos show me their latest basketball abilities. I was impressed by their dribbling, their "double shots" (where they both shot the ball at the same time) and especially impressed when they turned the basketball hoop on its side and "drove their car to Sea World".

Basketball quickly turned to circles on their plasma cars. They would zoom by me and smile up as they went by. Delighted that I was watching. Such a simple, happy life today. Who knew that such a blessing could be found in a basketball game!