Another use for Kindermusik scarves

Turning them into a Baby Bjorn, of course.

Hmmm...where I have seen this before?

This looks familiar...but where could she have gotten the idea that the best way to read books is when surrounded by them???

From her big sister, of course.  (Pic from Feb. of 2011).

1st Horseshoe Lake Picnic of Season

It's been so warm here...honestly, way too warm for March, but we'll take it.  So we decided to have our first evening of fun and picnic at Horseshoe Lake.  A family favorite.  (Heather, if you read this, Addy packed her pretend cell phone to take with her and told us it was so she could talk to Makayla while we were there.  I guess there are some memories you just never forgot...Horseshoe Lake = fun with the Rinas family).  

Climbing the spider web.

As always, what Addy does, Cora must try.

"Don't look down, Cora."

Cleveland Aquarium

Made our first visit to the new Cleveland Aquarium.  Very, very cool.  Addy just about cried when we told her we were going because she's been waiting so long to see it and "pet a shark."  

The Aquarium is in an old, historic building in the Flats area of downtown.  And I have to say that I was most impressed by the way they used the architecture to their advantage.  For example, the building has two large old smokestacks. They turned the bottom of one into the lobster display, so as you walk under it you, you look up and see bunches of lobsters scurrying around above your head. Here's Cora and Daddy checking out the lobsters.

The shark tank with the tunnel you walk through was amazing, but by far the girls favorite exhibit were the touch tanks.  On one half they have crabs, urchins, starfish, etc. that they pull up into a basket for you to touch.

And on the other, they had rays and sharks.  Yes, you do in fact get to pet a shark.  We read in the newspaper when they were building the Aquarium that this was going to be a feature.  Almost immediately after telling Addy, we were worried we made a mistake because she was so excited to pet a shark and we had our doubts about how they were going to pull this off.  But the Aquarium did not disappoint.  Graham actually did pet one of the two sharks in the touch tank.  Addy pet a ray, which they describe as a "flat shark," good enough for Addy.  

Here's Graham petting a ray.

Coming up to say hi to Addy.

And Addy petting her "shark."

Cora really wanted in on the action, too.

The Aquarium got our "fish face" seal of approval.

Personality Through Artwork

I will probably sound sappy by saying this, but I just love seeing how Addy expresses herself through her artwork.  She gets so focused, and brings out her "Addy face" (the intense, muscles-clenched, mouth open, shake), and comes up with some amazing stuff.  

Rainbows have always been a thing for her.  Singing along with Rachel Coleman or the Cat in the Hat's Rainbow songs, she's just had a fascination for this display of colors.  And so they're a frequent component of her projects. Here's a rainbow with clouds.

And another rainbow.

This is a project she did at school, but the title that she asked her teachers to write on it couldn't be more Addy!

Maps,  maps, and more maps...we draw lots of maps.  This particular one is a treasure map that she then turned into a game.  We each had to take turns following the path, stopping at each "spot" marked by a pink circle, and make it to the treasure at the end. "Don't get lost in the twists and turns, Mommy!"  Then we had to each sign our names to show we completed it.

And books.  At our first parent teacher conference, Ms. Cheryl commented on some things we already knew about Addy - that she loves looking at books, and that she loves to write.  And then Ms. Cheryl set a goal for Addy.  She wanted to see her being able to journal by the end of the year.  And so at the writing center, she made paper books and was hoping Addy would be intrigued.  For nearly two weeks, Addy came home everyday with a new book she had illustrated and "written" (she asks her teachers to write the words for her to go along with the pictures.  There's always a picture on every page, and what amazes us is that quite frequently, there are actual stories with characters or adventures throughout the pages.  Here are just a few - "Babies Climb", "The Adventures of In the Rain" and "Columbus to the Zoo."

And last but not least...I have to admit that selfishly, one afternoon, I was trying to get some work done.  So I said to Addy, I've got a challenge for you.  Addy's been writing her own name for a little while now, thanks again to preschool, so I said, "Addy, do you think you can write all your ABC's?"  I could hear her singing each letter "A,B, C...pause...A, B, C, D....pause...A, B, C, D, E....pause, and so on...."And then she brought me this -

 It's rough, but if you look, you can find every letter on the page.  I was stunned.  I gave Addy a little congratulatory surprise, and she made me document that on the bottom of the page "Afterward, Addy ate chocolate."

Artwork, Part I

Both girls really love to color, paint, write, really anything that involves letting their creative juice turn a piece of paper into a masterpiece.  The credit for this project also goes to Graham, who found some old styrofoam sheets in the basement and put them to good use.  Addy did the coloring on her self portrait all one her own.  She helped Cora a bit with hers.

Safest Dinner Ever

Safety first :)  Cora made it clear that taking off the bike helmet was not an option.

Working hard...

...taking Mommy's Constitutional Law Exam.

Ring Around the Rosie with Sydney

Addy, Cora and Sydney - Ringing Around the Rosie.

Yes, I also got it on video.  Be prepared for cute.