So we have had about a million play dates. I worked Tue, Wed, Thu full days for this entire year. But several months ago we got so busy in the office that my boss asked me to work more hours if I was able. So I worked Mondays but left early enough to get the kids from school. So Mondays and Fridays have become free days where we are done with our work by 3 pm and I can invite people over or drop them off at a friends house. Our house seems to be the popular destination, and that's okay by me. I enjoy seeing the kids grow friendships and navigate play dates.
Logan's friends like to play video games in his room- especially Skylanders. They dig into a toy box of weapons- swords and shields or those silly nerd blasters or guns that make sounds. I put a shelf together of his lego creations and they will pull the ships out and run around making sound effects. I have had several moms say they love that the kids don't just play video games here. Swords and such may be a bit babyish, but I love that it keeps them having fun and being silly and actually looking at one another! They also love cards so they will pull out decks and compare or play against one another. Pokemon was a big thing for awhile, but Yu-gi-oh seem to have taken over. And randomly Logan has been telling me he plays chess with one friend at indoor recess at school. Which is just cool because I personally do not know how to play, but I think it's a great life skill.
Recently Sylvie and her friend dragged out ALL of the American Girl stuff. Her entire room was set up as an American Girl apartment with beds, closets, bathroom furniture, a sink, the works. I did grow tired of tripping over it on my way to getting Venice to bed, but I love the effort she put in to set up little miniatures and special things like a baby bassinet under this loft bed. She is my creative soul. She tears through the house on days off going from one project to another. She will check youtube for "how to make" and design herself braces, or a cast for her american dolls, or just sketch. It's fun to see her so happy with it all. She has also jumped on the Frozen song "Let it Go" bandwagon and I'll catch her singing. Not as much dancing or gymnastics as before, but she's still likely to randomly climb and jump all over the house. I'm hoping to start gymnastics back up soon once the Polar Vortex's leave for good! Logan can't wait for soccer to start again.
I met up with some moms from my meet up.com moms group and we did a "toddler busy bag" exchange. Basically all those awesome things you see on Pintrest that you want to make the idea was to buy the supplies to make 10 of one thing so it's a bit cheaper, and then exchange them so you get 10 different bags. Venice has been having fun with them. She is much more like a preschooler, able to sort, use fine motor skills, etc. She also adores her My Gym days with my in-laws and though she won't tell everyone her name, she's brave enough to try balance beams and flips on the barre. She also like Sofia the First and this costume was a Valentine's Day gift.
Venice is also mastering all the kids songs - this is her dancing the hokey pokey with Elmo. As I type she is tearing apart Sylvie's Barbie Dollhouse and I hear her speaking in voices for the dolls. She is setting the house up properly, and has an extremely fastidious personality when it comes to how things should look and be done. She has called me over 10 times to get the doll sitting just right on the chair or swing.
Venice is a grazer. She doesn't put away huge amounts of food. But she reminds me of a sophisticated European. She would like a divided plate, with several options, cut equally into appealing pieces and arrangements. She will hunt through the pantry to find the perfect thing to accommodate her banana for example. Or each bite of yogurt must contain a raspberry as well. She eats somewhat slowly, avoids any imperfect bites. And uses her silverware and napkin. I often leave her at the table still eating while the rest of us are done and moved on. She will also go back for seconds. I gave her a snack because she couldn't wait at 4:45. Ate dinner with her at 5:10. It's 6:00 and she just asked for more steak and potato and sat and ate another serving. She'll be begging off my husband's plate at 7:00. And she'll join in for a late night snack at 8:00.
"If you're happy and you know it, give a smile....." The girls definitely butt heads, but Sylvie has more patience with Venice than I do!
Carly is 8 months old now. She's definitely still part puppy and settling into "Dog." She jumps, she's little and cute, she's springy. She looooooooves the snow, but not the cold. She gets big balls of ice on her fur, but will charge through discomfort to play with us all outside. Her poor side yard has been piled high with mounds of snow for 2 months now. We've cleared some areas for her, but she'll also climb right on top of the piles of snow and run around creating a "mote". We had one rainy day and she was not a fan. I'll be curious how spring goes for her, but I'm guessing she's going to love up those warm days and we'll be exploring the neighborhood beyond the immediate areas in no time.
Well that's February/March for now. Can't wait for spring to come!
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