Three tots and a blanket

They were being dogs. On a leash. If one were to suggest that since there were three of them on the same leash, they were sled dogs, one would receive the blank stare indicative of the "What IS this adult going on about?" mindset. You see it now, you'll see it again in ten years or so.

(A piece of parental advice? They may think what they like, but never, ever, let the blank stare be accompanied by eye-rolling. )At one point, Eliana fell down.
"Josh! Josh you have to stop pulling when I fall down onto the floor!"
"Oh, sorry!"
He is, too. Sincerely sorry, as he should be. There are, however, two aspects to this little problem.
"Eliana, you could always let go of the blanket when you fall."
"Oh."

But who can remember teeny details like that when you're having this kind of fun??

Winter is here.

Angels

As you will know by now, today we made angels from silver doilies. Much of the construction was done by me, of course, but they drew their own faces.

"What's that thing that angels wear on their head?" Ella wanted to know, as she bent over her pink angel face, marker swirling industriously
.
"You mean the halo?"

"Yes! I'm drawing her halo!"

Which inspired me to make halos from metallic twist-ties. Joshua, it turns out, was quite adept at making them, and Ella, who'd found that part a little frustrating, was more than happy to let him make a halo for her angels, too.

If that picture had a caption, it would be this: "Twist, twist, twist, twist, twist, twist...", which is what Josh was whispering under his breath as he worked.

They drew their faces, Joshua crafted the halos, Ella taped the wings together, and I assembled the bits. The result? Beautiful angels through Teamwork. (But let's not all break into that song, okay?)

Silver bells, silver bells

I've had that song running through my head since we did this craft. I shall not be teaching it to the children.

We all had fun making silver bells from tin foil and egg cartons. All but Milan, that is, who on this day at any rate did not share his buddy's interest in crafts. Owen, however, was quite willing to try this one. Tin foil is fun. It's shiny, and it crinkles. It feels nice, it has an interesting sound.

And hey, guess what? It even feels good in the mouth! (Of course it does.) When you sog it up some, the bell goes all squooshity. It's very cool. But for some reason, Ilona wouldn't let him do more than one...

This is a great craft for three-year-olds. It's simple, tactile, and yields great results in a short time. They were all quite engrossed, making about six or so each.

Engrossed and VERY proud!

Birds of a feather

I don't tend to call it "friendship" this early, but Owen and Milan sure do enjoy each other's company. Is Milan giving Owen a hug, or just using him as a prop? Unsure, but they both seem to be liking it!

They share a lot of interests, too. They're both into footwear...

And they like playing "human cushion".

They're even pretty good at taking turns being the cushion!

Bootlaces are fascinating, too. Did you know that if you lead a boot by its laces, it will follow you everywhere?

And one or the other of them's usually good for a hug.

Hm. Maybe you could call it friendship, after all!

Someone will make a great husband one day...

Or a great hairdresser.

It's a Drive-by Petting!

Climb every mountain, v. 2

It's a struggle.


It's an exercise in persistance.

But the rewards?

Incalculable!

Behind the Glittering Scenes...

... is a whole lot of glitter...

You all received your share of our creative largesse, and I'm sure you spent a little time marvelling over the ability of even a small amount of glitter to spread itself throughout a home.


Now, consider the amount you received via those cards,


and multiply it by oh, fifty...






Festive, isn't it??

Beading is a Serious business

I know it doesn't look that way...

But they WERE having fun...

Honest!

Climb every Mountain!

He's so proud.

The more dirt...

the more fun, right?

Which means that Owen had a FABULOUS time today!

Craftiness

All it takes is a little TLC

When Ella declared herself tired and in need of a rest, Josh was most solicitous of her comfort. He tucked her in... (Don't you just love that little blue eye at the bottom of the frame? PEEK!)



He tried to convince Owen to fork over the "pretty pillow", but Owen, who's quite taken by the pretty pillow's teeny little mirrored bits, was not amenable...



So Josh decided the next best thing was to join Ella in her cosy comfort! It wasn't long before the cuddling presence of a healthy friend restored her energy levels to near-normal!


Friends are fun!

Nothing fancy, just the park

Three little faces at the park. Can you tell which one is your beloved wee nose?

I was calling him Mr. One-Eye, but Josh decided "Milan's a PIRATE!!"
Which, really, has far more panache, no?
Though I think he has to work a little harder on the "ferocious" aspect of the persona...

"Okay, this fresh air and exercise has been great, and all, but don't you think it's about time we all had a nap?"

And so we did. Home for macaroni and cheese (home-made, from scratch) and "peas and beans and carrots" as per group consensus, a diaper/potty parade, and then naps for all.

Jack o'lantern!

Remember that old and disgusting camp song about eating worms? "First you bite the heads off, then you suck the guts out..."?

Don't know it? Don't worry! You won't be learning from your child, for I would never teach it to your impressionable children! Because I am a Tasteful and Responsible Adult. For all you parents of the other variety, ask me after hours and I can tell you how it goes.

Today kind of reminded me of that song. First we chopped the head open.

"What's in there?"
"There are seeds in there!"
"It is dark in there. Move your head, I can't see."

(If you click on any of the pictures, you'll get a larger image.)

Then we scooped the guts out...

The guts were fun! They were also wet, cold, slimy, slippery, and slithery. We learned some great words at daycare today!

Owen wasn't interested in scooping too much, but he did try to nab one of the seeds. Thus learning the concept, long before he can say the word, of "slithery". Sneaky little things, wet pumpkin seeds!

Here we are: implements, pumpkin, and bowl of pumpkin guts! We are Very Proud.

Four smiling faces!
Happy Hallowe'en!