Flying High

Thanks to the lady down the street who texted Mommy to let her know that they'd just upgraded their trampoline and wondered if we'd like their old one (for free!!!), we've got a trampoline! And now there's just no hiding that Elliot and I are two of the most spoiledest little kiddles on the street.

Elliot is amazing with his super big star jumps and knee drops and bum drops and running-in-the-air jumps. Me, I'm a bit more reserved at this whole trampolining thing. I'd rather not be in there with Elliot because he jumps me all over the place, and to be honest, I have nearly as much fun smooshing my face against the net and making monster noises as I do jumping.

Mostly, Elliot and I just feel pretty lucky to have another awesome toy in the yard. And no, Mommy and Daddy do not run a day care (they've been asked that a couple of times by folks walking by the house), they just love El and me an awful lot. ~ Ollie

My Little Men

Things haven't been easy this year, but these little guys (when they're not whining, arguing or fighting with each other) sure can make this mom smile. 

One Direction

I see a super-star future for Elliot!! (Thanks, by the way, Elliot for humouring your mom and posing for this picture. I know encouraging you to stand on the seat of the shopping cart was probably not my best mother moment, but damn, this photo made my morning!)

Happy (American) Father's Day!

Whatcha Think of my New Do?

 

The Great Celery Experiment

Since pulling Elliot out of school (more about this in a later post), I've tried to dedicate at least a portion of the days I'm at home doing educational things with Elliot. Usually this consists of reading or doing activity books or doing Reading Eggs on the ipad while Ollie is asleep, but occasionally inspiration hits and I do something a bit more exciting like the Great Celery Experiment (which my neighbour Sam shared on Facebook and I thought it genius). What a fun way to learn about capillary action (or the four-year-old terminology how plants get the water we put in the ground all the way to the tips of their leaves)! And a day or two after these photos, our celery stalks were so beautiful and vibrant, we even made a delightful bouquet of them (which I neglected to photograph--drats!)

Apparently you can also do it with flowers, and I've heard that if you take a white rose and split the stem and put each section in a different cup of coloured water the petals will come out multi-coloured. Pretty cool, huh!

Enchanting

Elliot has been getting more and more creative when he helps me hang the laundry lately, imaginatively looping bras and splaying socks around and across on our handy little octopus laundry hanger. And then the other day ingenuity struck, and before I knew it, our little octopuses had become art. Elliot looked at me beaming and said, "Isn't it enchanting?!?" I stifled the chuckle that sprung to my lips at hearing Elliot's choice of words (one I'd never heard him use, in fact), and as seriously as I could, agreed that his delightful sculpture was indeed enchanting. I'm sure that you'll concur.