"it 's always tea-time" -alice in wonderland

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Ah yes, tea-time.  In this house, it is always tea-time or maybe I should say, one must always be ready for tea-time.  Without a moment's notice, tea attire has been donned and the "real" tea set must be ready for a tea-party.  Odd combinations of clothing and dress-up clothes appear on this child of mine and she announces, we must have a tea-party.  Some days, tea is for me but most days it is for the royalty that will join us (princesses, kings and her-majesty, of course).

The care she takes in preparing the table with old dish rags, special treats and snagging the flowers off the kitchen table is delightful to watch.

Thank you for the most-royal tea today!

on the move?

It all started with this goofy little side pose...

Then the little goofy pose turned into a scoot-ch.

A scoot-ch that began with a reach and a little kick of her right leg.

Yes, today you moved yourself across the room on your belly.

A funny little army crawl of sorts.

You couldn't be happier....

I spent the entire day sorting toys and finally truly baby-proofing the room.

Your little face lit up when you made it to the castle.  You rummaged through all the Little People Princesses and claimed it as your own, that is until your older sister arrived home.

I am delighted to get down all the baby gates again!  They will most-definitely complete our room of bright colored plastic.  

hooked

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A few months ago, a dear friend mentioned Downton Abbey to me.  She thought I might like and promptly loaned me the DVDs.  Well, after watching all of Season 1 and Season 2, I am completely hooked.  I get lost in the wonderful costumes, story, scandals and scenery each time I see it.  I have fallen in love.

I believe Season 3 just ended.  I am madly catching up on PBS.com before the episodes are taking offline in early March.

Has the Downton bug caught you yet?  It is an amazing show and quite possibly one of my all-time favorite series along with Anne of Green Gables!

Thanks, dear friend, for mentioning it to me.  

time on the porch

Time outside on the porch is most important for these two.  Sharing an afternoon snack, playing an imaginary game, riding bikes or just painting the house (with water) are favorite activities out there most afternoons.  The unstructured time together without my ideas, suggestions or opinions does wonders for them.  Stepping back to let them discover and explore together has become an essential part of their day...

 

until the bickering becomes so loud I am afraid the neighbors might complain!

could you make those cookies with the pink frosting

When I was young, my grandmother always baked sugar cookies and frosted them pink this time of year.  She carefully packaged them up and sent them across the country to us for Valentine's Day.  Each year my siblings and I could hardly wait for that package to arrive in early February.

It has been quite some time since my grandmother's cookies have been made.
These eager little ones were ready to recreate the cookies we loved so much as children.

They rolled out dough and enjoyed stamping old cookie cutters.

When it was time to frost the delectable treats, we found no food coloring in the pantry.  We hunted for something to make the frosting pink {and purple--a request from this generation of cookie bakers and eaters}.  We ended up using jam mixed with the homemade frosting to make an ever-so-slight hue of pink.  My eldest thought blueberries would make a great purple color so we smashed and strained blueberries until we were left with a darker pink hued paste.  We mixed that with the frosting and came up with two very Valentine-inspired frosting colors. 

What will you be baking this Valentine's Day?

thirty something years ago...

"Thirty something years ago you sat there in that same high-chair, eating those same peas with that same look on your face."

And thirty something years before that, she sat there in that same high-chair, eating those same peas with that same look on her face.

There is something so wonderfully familiar and warm about heirloom things passed down through the generations.  I love placing my baby in the high-chair that has held so many babies in our family.  I love that it is solid wood.  Plain and simple yet so special to us all.

almost

Almost seems to be her destiny these days.  

She is almost able to reach the toys she screams for.  

She is almost ready to eat fingers foods but doesn't really have the chewing thing down too well.

She is almost ready to move to the big car-seat but Momma really likes being able to tote her around while she sleeps in the little bucket.

She is almost ready to sit-up unassisted but still falls uncontrollably to the side after a few solid minutes.

She is almost ready for 12 month clothing but isn't quite big enough for it yet.

She is almost sleeping through the night but those achy gums and new teeth coming up prevent it most nights.

She has almost cemented her nap schedule but the numerous pick-ups in the afternoon have her goofed up.

She is almost able to find her binkies in her bed at night but most times gets too frustrated looking.

Oh dear little one, your almost days will soon be done and we will miss them...

we will forge ahead as you scream and grunt through this funny little time.