Wednesday, February 21, 2007

I sniff spring coming




How lovely that the crocuses are poking their brave little heads up. Although it's still way too cold out, we have been enjoying getting outdoors a little more to play in the parks and work in our garden. We have great hope that some of our plants and flowers will revive themselves after the brutalities of our tenants past. Rob has begun his comical feeding of the finches as he seeds and reseeds the grass almost daily. You can almost see the smirk of those birdies' beaks as he heads out to feed their and his obsession.

My quest for preschool has not been solved as I find myself in quite a dilemma between choosing a reasonably priced play-based program that offers little more than what he already has at home, and a unreasonably-priced Montessori program that offers an excellent program but will deny us the choice of doing other activities in the fall. I suspect that we are leaning towards play-based and will supplement learning at home. Any feedback or opinions from my much wiser and more experienced peers would be appreciated!

I have just finished reading "La Prisonniere" by Malika Oufkir and Michle Fitoussi. It was quite an interesting read. Based on her real-life experiences, Oufkir describes her early upbringing by the King of Morocco, her father's assassination and then her and her family's horrific imprisonment for nearly twenty years. I am always sucked in by true stories that illuminate the injustices of human rights, and this book was no exception.


A photo for you of Lucas learning to ride his bike. All fun and no tears so far... we'll keep our fingers crossed.


Monday, February 12, 2007

Rojo Towels

Lucas loves all things "rojo" (red) and much to our amusement he was elated to find a display of rojo towels at IKEA last week. So we are now the proud owners of two red towels that prompt Lucas to go running into the tub and then flying out of it so as to be enveloped in rojo. One is Mia's of course, but Lucas lets himself use it when he can. (Can you tell who is in charge around here?!)


"Why am I wrapped up in a fire engine red towel again?"


The boys have been working intermittently to patch up our wall after removing the hideous fireplace the house came with. We were thrilled to find hardwood floors underneath the concrete hearth. Lucas has really enjoyed banging away at the tiles, scraping the floors, sanding the walls, and the many trips to Home Depot with his dad. We hope to have the new electric fireplace and baseboards done in the next month or so, but it's slow work in this very busy family.


Here's a super cute pic of Julia and Jeff's baby Ava, born two weeks before Mia. Lucas was thrilled to be able to give her a bottle.
Hope you're all having a great week. This week I continue my search for the perfect preschool, a sunny day, and a long nap after a cup of tea while both children slumber quietly. Aahhhh.


Saturday, February 03, 2007

Miracles Happen...


What a great half hour I've had! Lucas is playing playdough quietly at his new kid-sized table, Mia is sleeping in her bassinett, a total stranger has agreed to burn me a copy of this season's first six episodes of LOST, and I am using the computer. Wow. To top it off, the house is spanking clean. I love it! Anyways, just thought I'd share my elation while I could, as well as to post this picture of Lucas on ice skates for the second time in his life. Too funny.

Have a great weekend everyone! Ting