Grumpy Daddy

Matt's newest game with the girls is "grumpy daddy". They think it is is absolutely hilarious. I think it is pretty funny too. Because honestly, when is Matt ever grumpy? Never! When I first listened to him playing it I was actually more than a little worried that he had some real-life-inspiration for the game from seeing grumpy Leah.

So here is how it goes: he pretends to be grumpy and a little mean. They sit in the pretend car (a couple of chairs pulled away from the table) and pretend to drive somewhere. They ask for things and he grumbles and says no. "No snack." "No music". "We will go to the park but you will just have to sit and watch the other kids play" "No laughing. No smiling" "Because I am grumpy". Then during one episode of this game, they all went home and grumpy dad took a nap and then he was back to his cheerful, kind self again.

It is funny. But it also makes me cringe a little. Because I get grumpy with the girls sometimes. I may not be so extreme, but I do get snappy and short-tempered. Grumpy dad was right about one thing, a nap truly does make it better :)

Addie is 3 1/2

Saturday was Addie's half birthday. She had a good day but seemed slightly disappointed that her half birthday was not an even bigger deal with more presents and candles and a party with friends. I had to explain that most families don't even celebrate half birthdays. Maybe next year we will need to change things around to make full birthdays and half birthdays more distinct. But she does not get to do all the special things she likes on her actual birthday since on Christmas Day we are usually out of town and everyone is getting gifts & special attention, not just her.

Anyways, Sat started off with bacon and blueberry pancakes. Then I went to the toy store with her to get something to send in the mail to friends. [Have I mentioned that our favorite neighbors moved to CA? The family with twin girls and a boy all around Addie's age moved earlier this week. We chose some stickers and things to send to their new house.We will miss them!] From there we met up with Matt & Etta and walked through the Greenwood car show. Addie saw a friend there and got to go on a bouncy slide, see some cute kittens,  climb on an old firetruck and old bus, hear street music, look at old cars, people watch, etc plus we got to go down the middle of the street where cars usually go! We also happened upon a sale at the shoe store and got a new pair of purple shoes for her growing feet! The whole time she was on her tricycle. She was pedaling, but it also has a push-bar for me to steer with. No ankles were damaged, but there were some close calls. We got food from a local cafe for lunch. After naps we went to an ice cream shop. Addie loved her chocolate ice cream and cone. Etta liked the waffle cone but not the ice cream.

Then we had fun playtime in the yard while Matt grilled dinner. After dinner Addie got to open her presents. She got some Zoo themed Duplo Legos and a pajama dress set (one for her, one for Lion).

Did I mention that she wanted us to put 3 candles in her ice cream cone?! Have I also mentioned that her absolute favorite thing to wear is her jean overall shorts? The other morning when Etta said "me", Addie said to her "Etta when you say "me" then you go to the speech therapist and you learn to say "I" !  She makes us laugh!

My Grandma Mary visited

Addie calls the great-grandma she sees all the time GG, and to be more precise she is GG Mary. 

Well, Addie has another GG Mary (MaryEtta who goes by Mary) and she came to Vancouver from MI for a visit. This will probably by her last visit due to her age, so it was a big family gathering. 

Too bad the weather did not take a hint and give us a brilliant sunny day. 

Instead it rained all day Sat so there was a large, noisy crowd of us inside. 

But the weather did not stop my girls from getting some spurts of outside play time.

 Addie, Lauren, Etta, Anna, Asa, Aubree

(we have what we call "the A team")

These are not all of the great-grandkids, but it is all of them living in the Pacific Northwest.

 My cousin Elizabeth's little girl Anna who is about a month older than Etta. 

She is very cute times three for this picture :)

First Day of Summer

Summer has arrived!

We were graced with lovely warm weather today so decided to celebrate

 by slathering ourselves with sunscreen and playing in the water of course.

I decided filling our pool with water would not be worth it unless

 I wanted to add boiling water to the pool to bring it to a tepid temperature. 

So we went to the fountain park in Ballard instead.

You can't really see the fountains in these pictures because for the most part the girls avoided them 

(and I don't blame them because the water felt shockingly cold).

Instead they played in the water that was bubbling up, trickling down and pooling around.

Empty snack cups make great water-collection-devices.

End of the school year

Addie has one day of class let this week then we are done for the summer.

Things are winding down. 

Most of the kids from Etta's class are coming back next year plus 

she will have the same teacher so it should be an easy transition. 

But not many kids from Addie's class are returning and 

her new class will be combined ages and with a different teacher. 

Here is Etta with Teacher Gwen

Addie with Teacher Jennifer

Soundview Park is about a block away from school so we walked there today since the weather was decent. 

Addie's class had snack at the park, played some, then got a story before we walked back. 

Mine was not the only camera snapping pictures, it is so cute when they all sit in a row!

Me & Mine

Etta has been having a big burst of language lately. She is picking up new words and some old words are getting easier to understand. Two of her new words are "me" and "Mine". Now from a developmental and self-awareness standpoint this is great. But from a sibling rivalry standpoint it has changed the conflict. It is wonderful that she has these words, but she is putting them to use when playing with her sister. The conflicts might not be getting any more intense, but they sound more escalated since there are these new words.

Some silly time with Aunt May

Last Sunday Matt played tennis with his brother Myron & sister May. 

After the game May came home to have dinner with us. 

The girls really enjoyed having some fun time with Aunt May.

I love the way Etta is looking at Matt in this one.

She sure does love her daddy.

She has been giving great big strong hugs to both of us lately and they are so wonderful!

Together Time

Here are some pictures since my last few posts have been mostly words, words, words.

They do ok sharing the bike trailer together, but not great.

Etta loves it because it is still new to her.

Addie liked it better when it was just her riding in it.

Matt got a new coat and the girls decided to try it on. Together.

The girls had some good play time together today. 

And it was while I was making dinner.

Those two events never seem to overlap. 

They were doing great sharing and pretending.

Etta either really understands Addie's scenarios and the imaginary play concept,

or she does a good job pretending and says "yes" (technically "yeh") at the appropriate time.

Looking out the window

Addie is currently staring out the window. The rain is slowly drizzling down which means no trip to the park. But she is glum and grumpy for a different reason. I told her that our renters JJ & Heather are coming home today. They have been in Europe since May 19. She does not understand why I do not know every detail of their travel itinerary. I guess it was a mistake to tell her they were coming back today because even though I said I don't know what time and it could be late at night, she is disappointed that they have not already arrived. My feelings are more mixed. I really really like them as people. Heather is a wonderful babysitter. They are great renters. They are fun to talk and play games with. But I liked having the house to ourselves. I liked not worrying about leaving a load of laundry in overnight. I liked walking down our inside staircase at any time of night and not feeling like I should tiptoe. I liked not having to usher Addie out of her bedroom in the morning because I did not want the girls doing their noisy play & talk right above Heather & JJ's bedroom. I liked parking on the street right in front of our house since there is a big load of barkchips covering our parking spot in back. But yet I look forward to seeing them again. And not only because it will stop the endless questions from Addie.

A lovely day

Matt made breakfast this morning (bacon & dutch babies). Then he took the girls to Golden Gardens to play in the sand. Meanwhile I cleaned the house then went to get my haircut. There is just something about a new haircut that makes the day seem nicer. The weather here was gorgeous today (maybe 77) with a slight breeze; just enough of a breeze to ruffle my skirt and my hair but not enough to be obnoxious.

After the girls' naps we dropped them off at school. The teachers were hosting a "parents night out" so we dropped the kids off and they got to play and eat a dinner the teachers made (and ice cream) while the parents went out on a date. Matt and I went to a favorite local spot and sat outside enjoying the weather and the ability to have a long uninterrupted adult conversation about his work.

When we went to pick the girls up we were told that they think Etta had the most fun of any of the kids there. She found a buddy who she was reluctant to part with even when she saw us. There is just something special about the short but trusting bond between a little one Etta's age and a "big" elementary school age girl who dotes on little ones. Etta was walking around holding her hand and loving the attention. Addie did good as well, she played the big sister role and told the teachers when she thought it was the appropriate time for them to change Etta's diaper :)

Now I am at home and about to pop in a chick-flick and Matt is out playing games with some guys. It has been a lovely day!