We’re all so excited that we’re entering the stage of two-syllable words with the littlest birdie! Of course she also says Mama and Papa, but they don’t really count, but “apple” certainly does. And it’s the same as Wren when she was about this age, crazy! Enjoy.
[vimeo http://www.vimeo.com/60474774 w=500&h=375]
apple from Ashlea Walter on Vimeo.
From our snowy nest to yours, we hope you are having a love-filled Valentine’s Day!
Drinking a rainbow of juice and raising a glass to Lent!
Oh man, we are in the midst of a major grey and blah winter funk. Pretty much everyone I know is either figuring out a way to get outta here or figuring out a way to eat a helluva lot of sugar, fat and caffeine before the Lenten fast begins. Oof. Speaking of funk, here’s some winter funk of a different sort for you.
Funky clouds and funky trees. And some blue skies from last weekend. Enjoy!
Although my actual birthday is today (!), I’m going to pretend that my birthday was Saturday when we got out for another sun-filled ski. Today is miserable, very March-like with lots of dripping and lots of brown and grey. Oof. Best to stay inside, make valentines and drink coffee with the wee ones. Cheers!
Dear readers, won’t you take a few minutes to click on over to Apartment Therapy and vote for Be Squirrely in the “Best Family and Kids Blog” category? Please and thank you. Happy Friday, lovelies!
Have I told you that my Dad started a blog about the winter he’s spending in Provence? Great source for photography tips! Check it out. Enjoy!
Let’s begin by sharing that I’m not a fan of mindless activities for children that simply keep them “busy” and out of our hair. Sure, I’m guilty of putting on a show from time to time so I can get something done without Wren needing something from me for twenty minutes (or two hours). But as far as our every day activities, I want them to mostly be meaningful, thoughtful, and creative. I felt I needed to preface this post because of the name of this activity book we are loving with all this indoor time on our hands these (short but LONG) winter days.
Introducing… Richard Scarry’s Big Busy Sticker & Activity Book
There are a lot of stickers (over 900!) so there are a lot of sticker-based activities, dot-to-dots, mazes, counting and letter work, etc. She loves it.
The book itself is obviously not a Montessori-inspired book. But I have to give credit to Montessori’s focus on allowing the child the time and space to immerse herself in an activity and stay focused. It’s incredible to see this develop. I think Wren spent about three hours of the morning buried in this book today. Three hours!
Anyone else have any fun indoor activities you’ve been enjoying this winter? Taking recommendations on favorite games, books, crafts…
We fell in love with winter all over again this weekend when we awoke to fresh snow and February’s promised blue skies. We all headed out for a long cross country ski together at our favorite local spot and were greeted with a glorious afternoon.
Wren usually skis for as long as she wants to then jumps in the Chariot with Phoebe for snacks and a tour of the north woods. Each time we go, her own ski time seems to get more enjoyable. She falls a lot, but she laughs a lot and can usually get back up on her own. Last winter there was a very high level of frustration and not a lot of fun for Wren on skis, but it’s encouraging to see her enjoying it more. Often she’ll take off ahead of us and play around on the first little hill before we catch up to her. It’s important to keep it fun and well, there’s always a promise of good snacks. Because why ski if you can’t have good snacks, right?
It started out cloudy and bitter cold. But by the time we were climbing the hill past the river crossing, the sun came out and everything sparkled. Grins all around. We were warmed up from the climbing and full of awe. One of those days when I felt so grateful for our health and opportunity to enjoy our lives together outside.
After our cocoa and (peanut butter and Nutella) sandwich break (hey, I said good snacks, right?) about three miles in, we got the girls bundled back up and kept on skiing. Eventually they both fell asleep and took good naps.
We made it back to the parking lot with the girls still asleep so Chris and I were able to sit together and enjoy each other’s company and more snacks without any whining or interrupting. A rare mini-date! The skies opened up with a fresh dusting of snow and we started to get cold again. Time to call it a day. A great day.
P.S. We all slept so soundly that night and we attribute it to that rare, bright spot in the sky. Thank you, sun!