Cones

What a great find! Corinne and I went on a hunt for some cones of our own since she had such a blast doing an obstacle course at her cousin's house the other day. And Target came through -- 4 cones for under 4 bucks. We got two sets. And let's just say, all three girls have already gotten our money's worth. We've done obstacle courses, running races and crab walks around them. Plus they're fun to stack and they make great party hats...if you're into imaginative play. We're definitely enjoying them indoors and I think we've only scratched the surface of the endless ways we might use them. And they'll be a lot of fun outside, too. I love when we find new ways to play. That's Ellen running at full speed.

Valentine Stickers

I found some really fun foam heart stickers for Valentine's Day and knew the girls would love them. We broke them out early and we've been making Valentine cards for family and friends lately. Or just using them as body art! (Ellen learned this from Corinne, I'm pretty sure.) Here Ellen's just put some in a cluster on her knee and is pointing them out to me in the bottom picture. And that's E's Valentine "card" she made, too. Do you like the orange paper?!

We're way into arts and crafts these days. The problem: it's gets out of control and chaotic fairly quickly if Corinne is painting, gluing or using anything more involved than stickers and crayons...because Ellen and Sophie want to do it, too. And I've found that I just can't monitor that for all three kids in a way that ensures safety (E & S not eating the paint or glue) and order (E & S not tipping over the paint, fighting over it, painting on things other than paper, etc). So Corinne and I save the "good stuff" for times when Ellen and Sophie aren't around. It works pretty well that way for everyone. Sophie has been interested in crayons lately, including eating them.

Stickers = Quiet

I don't remember what I was doing...probably cleaning up breakfast or lunch...but just as I was really enjoying the quiet I realized that it was too quiet. When I checked on the girls they were concentrating on these random stickers. (Or in Sophie's case, the leftover sticky part when you've used all the stickers!) Terrific. They pulled them out of somewhere and went to town, without a peep. All three were happy and completely stickered up when they were finished!

Copying Corinne

Only about half the time do Ellen and Sophie do what Corinne wants/invites/tells them to do. But anytime they happen to see her doing something that looks fun (mostly when she doesn't know they're watching), they are on it, too. (So I guess it's true, the most powerful way to lead is by example -- for good or for bad.) Corinne started playing with this silly train box and once Ellen saw how fun it could be from watching Corinne, she did it too. And actually, most of the time they were riding them, not pushing them, and then Ellen figured out that sliding down the front was super fun! Ha. (But there were only two train boxes, so Sophie was pushing her baby stroller to join the parade). Needless to say, this is a perfect example of why we talk to Corinne all the time about "setting a good example" for her sisters and being a good role model...except that talk is usually given on the heels of a not- so- good decision about something.

Pink toes

I was shocked that Ellen and Sophie held still long enough for me to paint their toenails! Probably because they saw me do Corinne's first and decided they wanted to try it. Again, the big sister example at work.

Ellen and Sophie

Not too much is new with Ellen and Sophie...but I got out my camera while they were nicely playing, snacking, fist-bumping, high-fiving, and telling me they are one. Do you know who's who? Do I need to write it? (I never know anymore if I need to be telling you...but Ellen is in red, Soph in pink).

Birthday Treats

Corinne picked peanut butter blossoms to take to school for her birthday this week. Thankfully there are no allergies in her classroom (hard to believe, I know)! So we made her birthday cookies together the day before and I got to join her in her classroom for the big celebration. For her special day at school she chose "Fancy Nancy" and "The True Princess" for me to read to the class (sorry, boys!). And the class sang to her while she got her birthday crown. She was thrilled and so excited to head back to school to celebrate with her class! I loved seeing her in action at school, too.

C's birthday

Hooray that we got everyone in the photo. So much for looking at the camera! This was on Corinne's actual birthday (the party wasn't until later in the week to allow for recovery from the holidays). We went out for pizza and then drove through the Holiday in Lights at Sharon Woods. Aunt Marcey went with us and Brett's parents joined us, too. A fun evening for everyone, most of all Corinne.

Christmas Eve

Our family plus Aunt Marcey spent the morning of Christmas Eve at Krohn Conservatory, visiting the live Nativity outside and the all new train display inside. It turned out to be a really wonderful morning and it was the perfect activity to kick off the celebration of Christmas. The girls really enjoyed everything that Krohn had to offer and it was a beautiful -- and not too cold -- day for being out and about. I think this will be one of several holiday traditions for our family. Later that day a lamb was born right there at the live Nativity...we missed it by a few hours! (Maybe Ellen and Sophie knew something was up because they were definitely into the sheep that day). It was a morning well spent...and it was just the beginning of several fun days with family!