A Marker is NOT Meant For the Mouth

Hudson was nicely coloring with Elle today—or so I thought—until he decided to bite off the top of the blue marker that he was holding in his hand. It was lovely. Elle was crying, Hudson was chewing and I was groaning inwardly. Will his list of things not to eat ever end? Will I forever be fishing things—mostly blue—out of his mouth? One does begin to wonder.

Say Cheese

Elle has been so sweet and kind to Hudson lately—as opposed to her usual ignore and push methods—and my heart is so happy at this change in her behavior. Don’t get me wrong, Elle has always loved Hudson; she has just been a little put out with him since he started walking and getting into and destroying her things. In this she cannot be completely blamed; Hudson loves to destroy. I cannot even begin to list the number of things that have been ruined, smashed and obliterated by him. Even still, I am so happy with the way she has started treating and taking care of Hudson.

Just yesterday she shared her chair with him at the table—something that would usually never occur—and I couldn’t resist taking a picture of the two of them sitting and sharing together. And when I asked Elle to smile, much to my surprise, Hudson smiled, too—albeit a cheesy, all-teeth-and-gum smile; but a smile nonetheless.

Bridget's Birthday

We had so much celebrating Bridget’s birthday this past week. Elle helped me shop and create the presents—surprisingly she was a big help; Elle made and decorated Bridget’s cupcakes—with My Little Ponies and bottles of sprinkles; we treated Bridget to some Argentine empanadas—these were so good that even Hudson ate them; and we attended a concert/signing with Ryan Bingham—the definite highlight. Bridget’s birthday was so much fun, and we were glad that she had the day off and could spend it with us.

Bubble Blowing

Elle is very proud of her newly acquired talent: bubble blowing. She has wanted to attain this achievement for quite some time now; and with a lot of practice and a lot of determination, she has finally done it. She is so proud.

On a side note, when I tried to take a picture of her blowing a bubble, she kept getting closer and closer to the camera. I think she thought she needed to be directly in front of it. I tried to get her to back up, but I am the Mommy, and so therefore I know nothing.

Forts

Elle LOVES to build forts. So much so, that she tends to build one, two or sometimes three a day. I do so love her creativity, but there are times when I get tired of having a constant fort in my living room. Not to mention the fact that I often get into quite a lot of trouble for taking apart one of her forts and putting it away. But mess or not, I love the way she uses her imagination.

Glass and a Fly

Hudson did not eat anything blue this week, but he did break one of my glass bowls today; and he managed to cut his finger and bleed all over himself. And not too much longer after that, I found him trying to catch a fly in our window. I watched with amusement, until he actually caught the thing between his two fingers (he’s a little Miyagi). I had to hurry over and grab it out of his hand before he actually put the filthy bug in his mouth. Gross. And again I am wondering what kinds of things Hudson will be getting into this week. With him, life is never dull—it’s interesting.

Nature Center

Since the weather has been on the warmer side—short-sleeve warm—we have been venturing out more and more. I always try to get the kids out—even in the snow—but when the weather turns warm, we seem to spend a lot more time outside.

On this particular warm-weather day, we decided to attend the Nature Center. Elle loves spending time here, and is constantly asking if we can go. I, of course, never want to attend when there is snow on the ground, or if the weather is particularly cold. So since there was no snow, and the weather was warm, we decided to go. Both kids enjoyed themselves immensely. Elle and Hudson loved running around; though Hudson was constantly walking off the trails and going in the opposite direction that we were. Other than me continuously picking him up only to chase him again, the day was really fun.

But I think the highlight of the trip was when Elle got to see a deer up close and personal.
There just happened to be a mother and her two does passing by the Nature Center, and we were lucky enough to be there when they did. The deer was not scared of us at all, and Elle was excited to get so close to it. She found it fascinating, and talked nonstop about the deer for the rest of the day.

And a trip to the Nature Center would not be complete if we did not attend the adjacent park. It turned out to be a really good day, and I’m really glad we went; because the next day we had…SNOW! That’s right. Short sleeves one day, and coats, boots and hats the next.



Kids never mind the unpredictable weather. They love it. Elle was ecstatic to don her snow gear and play. Hudson would have liked it, too; but he had a cold so he had to resign himself to a bowl of snow instead.

Valentine's Day

I love these two. Although, I do not love it when Hudson is getting his last molar and has a terrible cold on Valentine’s Day. That I do not love—especially when it makes him cry non-stop. But I do love kisses—open-mouthed ones from Hudson—hugs and I love yous from my sweet, wonderful children.

Siblings and Friends

Angry at Snow White

The other day, Elle and I had this conversation:

Elle: Mommy I’m angry!

Me: Why are you angry?

Elle: Because Snow White gets to ride horses at the Prince’s castle whenever she wants and I don’t.

Best Friends

Blue Sparkles

Everyday is interesting with children; but with Hudson, it seems like things have been very interesting lately. Last week he sucked on a permanent marker, and this week he ate…sparkles. And I think he has a thing for blue, because the permanent marker was blue, and so were the sparkles.

I really thought he was being so good that day; but when I turned around and saw sparkles on his lips, on the carpet and on the bathroom floor, I knew my thinking was way off. He is such a curious—quietly curious—boy that I am often surprised at the things he gets into. He is also an ornery boy, who loves to put things in his mouth—toys, blocks, mud, dirt, leaves, rocks, paper, stickers, garbage, markers, sparkles—just to get my reaction. Well he got my reaction that day—for sure. And I am only wondering what he will find to put in his mouth next.

Classroom Valentines

Elle—for the first time—had the opportunity to give valentines to her classmates at school. She was very excited to get to do this. She made each of her classmates, and her teachers, flower valentines. She had a lot of fun doing these, but she especially liked going to school and depositing one of her creations in each person’s Valentine’s Day bag. It was a very fun; and Elle loved every minute of it.