Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Brilyn Likes Her Tea!

 I found this cute set of little tea cups. They are about the same
size as the little expresso cups - only they really look
like TEA CUPS! Brilyn loves them.
She's even started setting them out
and asking for tea!
 Which means we must have a tea party!
And look - she's even got the pinky finger mastered!
How's that for a one year old?
Isn't she just darling?
I think I'll be doing a lot more
partying with this little girl!

Monday, July 30, 2012

Eating OCTOPUS!!!!

 I got this idea from Nana Diana over at

Isn't it cute!
She called it Octopus on the Rocks!
I call it Octopus in Paradise!
Because it looks like a meal you might be served at
some fancy resort or something.
A place with cloth napkins folded to look
like some sort of animal!

Anyway - it's easy to make.
Just steam some brocolli,
cook up some mac & cheese
and cut up some OCTOPUS!
(aka hotdogs)
I had all three girls try it out!
 Brilyn liked the cheesy brocolli!
Olivia liked the OCTOPUS!

And Gracie gobbled hers up before I could get a
picture and asked for MORE!
This might be something you want to try
if you have picky eaters.

Friday, July 27, 2012

Someone's A Daddy's Girl!

 Just look at this little girl having fun with
her Daddy!
 He helps her up the slide!
 And he catches her as she comes down!
 Over and over again!
 I love watching the two of them together!
Brilyn loves her Daddy! And her Daddy loves her!
Brilyn's Daddy - Andrew - is my youngest
and I am so proud of the man
he has grown up to be.
Although, at times, I have to admit,
I kind of miss the little boy
that he once was.

Thursday, July 26, 2012

A New Friend for Gracie

 When Grace was climbing Mudpie Mountain
she made a new friend!
 Her name is Paisley!
 Paisley's owner stepped out for a moment and
Paisley ran out, too!
Out and across the street to see Gracie!
I think Gracie enjoyed playing with Paisley
as much as Paisley enjoyed playing with her!

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Climbing Mudpie Mountain!

 We live in a new neighborhood and there
is almost always a pile of dirt SOMEWHERE!
This pile is just two lots from our house.
Grace calls it Mudpie Mountain!
And she loves playing King of the Hill!
 She loves mountain climbing!
(even though this mountain is only about 10 feet tall)
And she's pretty good at it!
Look! She made it all the way to the top!

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Brilyn Helping Abby With Her Bath!

 Brilyn is a good helper!
 She can hold the hose and rinse the
bubbles out of Abby's coat!
 She had so much fun giving her doggy a bath!
But - when Abby decided to shake and she
threw water all over and got Brilyn
all wet, Brilyn threw up her hands
as if to say, "That's enough!"
She was done!
But - the dog was still pretty soapy!

Monday, July 23, 2012

Letting Go

 Learning about the snake was fun!
Grace looked him up in our little book and
had me read all about him.
He is a Rough Green Snake and he likes
to eat bugs, catipillers, crickets and spiders.
He can get up to 32 inches long.
And he lives on land but likes water.
So Grace let him go in the flower bed near the pool!
 There are lots of crickets and spiders in the
flower bed.
 And he seems to like the flowers!
He also blends in with the butterfly bush so well
that you can hardly see him!
It's hard letting go....
But we know that the best place for a
wild creature is in the wild. It would not be
nice to keep him.
However, we were very grateful for the
opportunity we had to observe him
for a little while!

Friday, July 20, 2012

Olivia and the Snake!

 I don't think Olivia knew what to think
about the snake. But then, when we had
the snake Olivia wasn't feeling well.
 She was interested in checking him out. She seemed
to like the way he felt and it was funny to watch
him get away. But really, snakes just
aren't her thing.
But, at least she got the opportunity to explore!
Here at Grandma's house we like
to explore... to discover... and
to check things out!
Life is an education and the world
is our classroom and observing is
how we learn!
And now we know a little
about snakes!


Thursday, July 19, 2012

Brilyn and the Snake

 Brilyn liked the snake almost as much as
Grace did. But - the snake was not
wild about Brilyn!
 Although Brilyn thought she was being
loving and kind....
 The snake did not want to share
her chocolate...

And it did not enjoy being treated
like a lariat rope! So, we ended up encouraging
Brilyn to LOOK but not TOUCH!
The snake bit her once in self defense.
And she laughed!
I guess he doesn't bite very hard.

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Grace and the Snake!

 Grace actually loved the snake!
 She likes the way he tickles when he moves
across her hands.
 She likes handling him.
 Observing him.
 And scaring people with him.
 She's not the least bit afraid of snakes,
but she knows when she sees one outside she
needs to ask if it's safe to play with before doing so.
And yes.... this one is perfectly safe.
Even though he bites!
(He doesn't bite Grace)

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

We Caught A Snake!

 I found the cutest little snake slithering
across the road so I had to catch it and bring
it home for the girls to observe.
 Isn't it the cutest thing?
 What will the girls think of it?
Will it bite?
Over the next few days we'll be finding out!

Monday, July 16, 2012

Cousins Are So Much FUN!

 These cousins get along so well!
 Grace helped Brilyn climb up the climber....
 And then caught her when she went down the slide.
 She took such good care of her.
She was so careful "helping" Brilyn
do things that Brilyn is really quite
capable of doing all by herself.
 But... it is nice for big girls to look
after little girls!
 She's watching carefully while Brilyn
climbs up!
 She'll be right there just in case!
And then when Brilyn decides to slide down, she'll
slide down, too!
It's either that or she'll
get ran over!