Day Twenty Three and Counting...

Jeremy made the most of "his" time with the girls this morning.  While I was busy elsewhere, he was busy feeding Olivia, and keeping Grace busy.  Grace loves to "help" do the dishes (mostly drinking water from the dish she has just rinsed...!) and always jumps at the chance.  Today was the first time she has done the dishes with Daddy, and she could not have been happier!

 

Both my girls love to eat breakfast, and one of their favourite cereals (mine, too) is Shreddies.  Olivia started out eating mine, as she has long insisted on eating whatever I am eating..!  And she is well into eating her own bowl every day.

 

While she was eating, she was watching Grace and Daddy do the dishes.  I can only imagine the shinanigans Daddy was up to, trying to get her to grin for him!

Later, we were all in the family room for some Saturday morning cartoons, and I caught a few shots of Olivia goofing off on the floor!  The girls had been wrestling and tickling each other, and when Grace was done, Olivia just kept rolling around, enjoying herself!

This was the best one!

Day Twenty Two and Counting...

Whew.  What a long week!  And all of us are feeling just how worn out and tired we are!  Maybe just a little bit punchy, too!  Grace was very excited to see me pull the camera out after dinner.  Well, she was done eating... but, Olivia wasn't!

Livie and her spoons!

And then Grace got in on the action!

 

 

She clearly thinks she is hilarious!

More than once this week, Grace has come running to me, thrown herself into my arms and told me that she loves having me for a mommy and a teacher.  (I am a teacher in her preschool class.)  And she thinks that school is much more fun when I am there.  My heart fluttered every time she said so.  It is so challenging some days... I don't know if I am harder on her as her teacher, or as her mommy.  At the same time, it is so rewarding to be available to her all day, to see her interacting with her peers and teachers, and to see her grow and develop.  Maybe the hardest part is just staying away from Olivia's class...!

 

I feel like she is staring right into my soul...

Day Twenty-one and Counting...

Grace really loves the dollhouse that she got from her grandparents for Christmas, and I have noticed a big change in the way that she gets involved in her imaginary play.  The dolls don't hang out in the house as much as outside it, but she very carefully arranges her little family in the furniture in various dioramas.  The conversations are sometimes very revealing...
This morning, she was playing with the mommy and baby girl.  She was talking about the baby having to wait just a few minutes more, then mommy would feed her, that mommy has lots of jobs to take care of.  She was carefully balancing the baby on the mommy's arms and asking her to lay still so mommy could hold her.

"Mommy, she is trying to feed her baby, just like you feed Olivia!"

Here, she has a goofy grin because I caught her talking to her dolls again, and she was embarrassed! 

Too cute!

Olivia loves nothing better than being right in the middle of whatever Grace is doing.  And playing with the dollhouse really tops that list!  She loves peeking through the windows and around the sides, and giggling at Grace. 

Day Twenty and Counting...

Something was in the air this morning... Grace was feeling just a little wild and crazy!  Maybe it was the outfit she chose?

And shortly after breakfast, she told me she was going to dance like an "egypt" and I should take her picture!

It was really adorable to watch!

And then after school, she was still feeling the wild side, and shared these funny faces with me!

 

 

Not long after dinner (yesterday's goofy beef stew...!) Daddy came home and the girls were all about loving on him!  It really made their day to see Daddy for a while before bed!

 

 

I really think it made Daddy's day, too!

And just one other little thing I wanted to share with all you crafty folks: my marshmallow snowman!  Three large marshmallows, all on a pretzel, pretzel arms and chocolate chip eyes and buttons!  Here is a little tip, too, lick the chocolate chips until they start to melt a little, then stick them on!  Works great, and is tasty too!

Day Nineteen and Counting...

This morning, Grace was taking an especially long time in the washroom after breakfast.  Olivia got impatient waiting for her, and decided to 'knock' on the door!

She was banging away, and calling for Grace! (Sounds like Ah! Ah!)  And Grace was on the other side, giggling and encouraging her to try and find her!

Here, she is trying to pry the door open with her little fingers!

The icing on my cake today is truly hilarious!  I put in a whole lot of effort last night to prep my slow cooker beef stew so I could assemble it this morning and come home to eat it tonight... except I forgot to put the lid on when I was finished putting it together!  *sigh*  All my hard work....

So, while I whipped up some fancy french toast, the girls snacked on Cheerios and muffins...

 

Neither Livie or I could figure out why Grace felt the need to hide behind her cup for every shot I took tonight... but Grace thought that she was hilarious!

 

Day Eighteen and Counting...

Ah, Mondays.
We made it through the day.  And the girls managed to play happily for a short period of time, before the tiredness and hunger won the battle, and my girls became grumpy little ogres!

 

"I see you, Livie.  That is my family's tv!"

Livie loves the tv because it plays different tunes that she likes to dance to!

After several long minutes of Livie crying, screaming and squishing her face into my bum, it was finally time to eat!  I think Grace was just as relieved as I was!  It was one of Grace's favourite dishes: Tuna Casserole!  Observe, as she stuffs herself silly!

 

 She just couldn't get it her mouth fast enough! 

"It's awesome, Mommy!"

 

And Olivia enjoyed a meltdown after she bonked her tooth with her cup... watch the transformation from wailing, 'the pain is unbearable' baby to 'what? me cry?' happy baby!

 

 

And check out those new teeth!

Day Seventeen and Counting...

Mmmm!  Today was baking day for Grace and Mommy... and poor Grace was having a tough time waiting for the muffins to cool so she could try one.  Note the 'angry fingers', as I call them!

 

She desperately wants a taste!  Not to worry, she soon got to sample both new recipes that we tried out!

I am so happy that Olivia is feeling so much better (except for her teeth... there are two more ready to break though, poor child!) adn she is even taking an interest in Mommy's camera again, too!

 

Pointing fingers accompanied by a "Dat?" sort of noise... so exciting!

Look at that happy honey!

An over-the-counter surprise shot!

And tomorrow, the girls and I try again to re-enter the work world... I wonder how long we will last this time?  Here's hoping for an extended period of health and happiness!