Bubble Trouble

Maeve took her first bubble bath this week.

She was thrilled, but unsure of what she should do with all that white stuff. Eat it? Splash it?

No worries! Big sister to the rescue. She knows exactly what to do with bubbles.

Upcycled Tutu

We are all happy to be home! Except Maeve, who is wishing for more people to smile at and dance with. She is quite the extrovert.

Eva made this skirt at the conference and was showing it off today. You can tell she is still a bit worn out from the trip.

Switched

Eva is my wave swimming, in the ocean, over her head, without a fear, girl. Since she could crawl she would just head right for the nearest body of water and go in. Waves, no problem. So I asked her if she would like to surf at the conference(showing her pictures of the last conference surf lesson). Surprise...the answer was a resounding "No." Okay, fine...and in pipes Elias, "I want to."

What? My son who spends all his time building and digging on the shore. Who rarely can be coaxed into the waves at all. Elias wants a surfing lesson. "You sure?" Yes, he was sure. We signed him and Craig up for the lesson. Up until a couple minutes into the lesson I was pretty sure he wouldn't do much with it. Maybe go out a few feet and sit on the board while the waves lapped at him. Stand on the sand.

Kids love twisting your world around. I love that they do!

Heading out.

Heading in. Upright and happy.

I asked how he liked his lesson. His response, "It is the most awesome thing ever!" His smile muscles were sore. Love this life!

Time Out

Being at a conference with lots of other parents and kids for five days is amazing! It can also be a bit overwhelming. We decided we needed to take a break and spend a couple hours at the beach.

We think it was a good decision.

Community and Ideas

Part of the reason we go to a conference is to meet up with others doing the same types of things we are doing. I think as the kids get older this view of other kids, in other places, with similar life leanings will give them a broader sense of community.

Another reason we go is to share and explore the ideas and inspiration that other people bring into their lives. This art room was full of that needed inspiration and my kids spent quite a bit of time in here painting, drawing, and exploring with friends and on their own. I really appreciated this room as it gave me ideas as well.

Ocean Observations

It is hard to pick just one picture of the beach. We take hundreds on every trip there and the kids have so much fun they are all great! This picture reminds me of some of the "moments" that happen. We just were able to stop and focus on what was going on around us. Love these moments.

Domino Tower

Elias has always liked to build. He built numerous domino trains with his grandma and after becoming frustrated that they kept falling over, before he was done, he switched to building towers. These were a bit more stable. Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures of some of the more elaborate ones.

I find that these moments are flashes of his personality and growth. In previous times the frustration would have led to a huge meltdown. He had several outbursts, but then figured out he could switch to something different that was less likely to cause frustration. I can't wait to see what eight looks like.

Round and Round

I picked up some dollar hula hoops to go along with my not dollar ones. :) Eva has been diving through them and playing with them in the pool. This is tons of fun and I have no worries about my good hoop becoming water logged.

We are off to GV conference this week and I am gathering items to take...I hope these fit into the van with all the rest of the hobby stuff.

Magnetic Personality

Eva floating a paperclip!

We played with magnets today.  I had a bunch of paperclips, iron filings, numerous small magnets and one powerful neodymium magnet.  We moved the filings around, made different lines of force, chased them, and floated them with our hands.

Five Minutes, Tops

I always stack these cool blocks. Numerous times a day. Over and over and over. I just can't help it and all of my kids get such enjoyment out of knocking down the tower. You would think it would get old and the tower would just stay there for a while (even an hour or two), nope. It sits there for around 7 hours in the dark and is immediately toppled when Maeve enters the living room first thing in the morning.

I love the simple enjoyment of my kids!

Angry Bird

Okay, not the best picture I've taken. I find Elias with a different stuffy on different days. He isn't necessarily attached to any of them and sometimes they make an appearance for weeks at a time, sometimes for a day. Quite often there isn't one about at all.

This particular creature came from his Tatik. She brought each of the kids a bird from the Angry Birds iPod game that has been such a hit. He calls it his bomb birds and they have been role playing Angry Birds all week. Thanks for the fun, Cheryl!

Hanging Out

Eva NEEDS to hang. She has since she was old enough to crawl. She does it everyday and when she has had a stressful time, needs to do it even more. When we are on a trip, one of the first things she does is find a spot that will work for hanging. We have found that couches tend to work the best.

I keep hoping I can get her to try a trapeze class. She used to hang off the car, in a full pike, through an entire TV show. She outgrew the car last year and it was with sadness she moved to the couch to hang. A bar doesn't work as she likes to brace herself, not just hang down. I love watching her face get calmer as she holds herself up!

Unexpected Audience

Eva felt the kitty would want to watch her swim, but wouldn't be comfortable near the water. Craig's reaction, "Why is there a kitten staring at me through the window?" I think he thought I put it there.

Oasis

This is a little bit of our paradise. We have clocked numerous hours in this pool during the few months of living here. The sunlight streams through the windows at 6 am, making mornings golden. We have yet to water that green lawn. The kids will spend lots of time on the play set during the winter months and with the addition of a zip line and trampoline in the future, I can't think of why you wouldn't want to hang out here.

Oh, and let's not forget the great people watching!

Glow Memo

Eva discovered the glow-in-the-dark letters yesterday and after we found a black light she spent part of today closed in the laundry room. We figured out we could open the closet door over the kitchen opening and make it dark. It also has what a closet doesn't, a metal washer and dryer to stick magnets to. I left some messages when she left the room and she would go "glow" them. I love the learning fun!

You Have to Crawl

Elias pulled out the tunnel today and had it immediately usurped by his baby sister. I don't think she had seen it since learning to crawl/walk. She was thrilled by the rolling structure and kept picking up an end and looking down it. She didn't want to go in it because that involved crawling! After several demonstrations by Eva and some encouragement from the camera, she decide to give it a go. She made sure to stop and give me a good picture. She then came over to the camera to take a look at herself. What a ham!