TGIF!

Bring on the weekend! and not just any weekend, the BIRTHDAY weekend! The official bday isn't til Monday but we're getting a head start with Murray's parents who arrived today.

Take THAT!

Well the sandbox is a HUUUUUUUUUUGE hit! They will play out there a long time with buckets, shovels & Tonkas. The first day I made the mistake of putting their swimsuits on first & then sending them out to play in the sand. ooh boy. Sand box, pool, sandbox, back to pool. They were in & out of each like little jack in the boxes and the pool wasn't long in turning into a muddy mess. I thought I was saving some time & effort, having them already dressed for the pool so when they were finished with the dirt, they could just jump in and go swimming. To quote one of my uncles "let that be a lesson to you." We won't be doing that one again!

my well dressed digger!

really liked this one, how they're lined up, same positioning, same angle of their faces etc.

Brace yourself for extreme cuteness, Lovey turned it on high this day!

and just when you thought she'd maxed it out....

trying for a nice silhouette of Sweetie but it just looks like I goofed my settings I think.
Ack! my dwess, my DWESS! my beautiful dress!!!!


Wednesday was quite a busy day with playgroup in the morning, then outside for quite awhile in the afternoon playing with the swimbox/sandpool combo. Murray had told them about the sandbox in the morning before he left for work so they were quite anxious to get out there by the time we got home & had some lunch. While she was playing in it, Honey said "Thank you for my sandbox Daddy, I love it very well!" Every day since they've been very keen to get back out there & it's easy to get them to clean up or do a chore if they think that'll get them out to the dirt faster!

Yesterday I tried to get a nice group photo, potentially as a Father's Day gift. They weren't too interested in sitting together until I told them it was for a present for daddy. Then they became much more cooperative! HOWEVER, they then felt the need to tell DADDY all about the present we were making for him in the sandbox. Without too much prompting, they filled him in all about it. Oh well! So much for that surprise! And after all that, I didn't even get any really good shots because the sun was too high & there were too many shadows on their faces. I haven't had a chance to see if I can salvage any of these but stay tuned they might turn up here yet!

Exciting discovery for me this week! I bought Photoshop Elements earlier this year & have been trying to figure out how to do more digital editing beyond cropping! I got that one neat tip from Shelley R on making duotones but I know there's way more this program can do. It annoys me to no end that the makers of the software provide next to NO INFORMATION on how to USE it BUT will sell you another book, separately on how to use their product. I'll be damned if the bastards get 10¢ out ME! So I browsed around online a bit & found that someone else has written a book too. I forwarded the link to Murray & told him to tuck that aside for future present buying reference. Then after reading more reviews I got impatient & found almost the same one (one software edition earlier). I went down there today & picked it up. There are soooooo many tools & tricks in there! Hopefully I'll be able to figure a few out. How many times can you renew a library book anyway????

New Attraction!

Our backyard just got a little bit better! Murray decided to build the girls a sandbox for their upcoming birthday. The ones you buy in the store always look so small for 3 kids! He got some lumber & put the frame together last week & the sand arrived yesterday. I did a lot of shovel and wheelbarrow work last night (at least a tonne's worth I'd say!) and got it mostly filled up and Murray finished it off.

Don't Trust Quiet Kids

or maybe I should say "don't assume the other guy's got it covered". Last night after supper, the girls wanted to use one of their presents from Boo, little plaster kitty masks and PAINT. Fun little project, quiet activity after all the excitement of the day, should be a nice way to finish things off right? Well it COULDA been! Murray was in the kitchen with them & I went downstairs to do something else when I heard "Kelly! Bring your camera!!!!!!" This is almost always an indicator mischief that has been committed and just as often, a lovely photo op. I was not disappointed. They were working away quite well so he decided to pick up the toys in the livingroom (great idea in theory right?)

They finished their masks & decided to mix allllllll the colours together (apparently this makes black!) The masks were all very well coated, Lovey's got broken and when there wasn't a scrap of space left to cover on the kitty, they decided to make new ones. THEMSELVES. Although I do have to say that the stripes are very well done, don't you agree?

Getting Through the Week

Wow, tomorrow's Wednesday! I'm pretty much halfway through the week with a really fun weekend coming up. The girls turn 3 on the 18th (Monday) so we get to have some company, cake & fun for a few days! We haven't made any big plans or decided on a menu or anything at all but we've decided to try and keep it simple. I was toying with the idea of a theme party, or having an actual 'party' with other kids as guests etc but I think they're still young enough to be happy with a few presents, cake and just us family folk around. A friend with older children mentioned that once you start with the parties, then each year the kids expect the same or better so it's best not to start any sooner than you have to. Besides, are they really going to remember anything extravagant we do at this age anyway? Why waste the effort/expense/time on something they'll have no recollection of??????

We had a GREAT Monday which was a very nice way to start off the week! We had Teena & Boo over to play and they stayed for lunch and a good portion of the afternoon so it was fun fun fun! The kids played outside and Boo gave the girls early bday presents and the fancy gymnastics twirling ribbons were a big hit (T, get ME one for MY bday please!). They also brought their new puppy who was very happy to have a large open space to zoom around in (no fence at their place yet so he's leading a tethered life). The kids played in the pool for awhile & showed off their garden and by the time they went home, the day was pretty much taken care of and they'd spent the majority of it outside playing and having a great time. Just the way we like it!

Sunday Crazy Sunday

Mum: Does that THING run 24 7 or WHAT? (referring to my CAMERA!)

Me practicing holding very still! taking a picture indoors without flash requires a verrrrry slow shutter and anything that takes longer than 1/60th of a second usually has alot of blur and a tripod is needed. Just for fun I used M&D's mirror to see what I could get and was able to get a couple that were actually somewhat clear!

The girls were all over the room, sniffing Mum's lotions, hopping on the toddler bed... they were just go go go!

When we got home they were still a little hyped up! We got them ready for bed and had tucked in Sweetie already & were in with the other 2 when Sweetie hops out of bed & comes flying around the corner: I have to say good night to my SISTERS! Such an urgent request could not be denied so we told her to go ahead.

Sweetie: Goodnight Lovey!
Lovey: say "goodnight JASMINE"
Sweetie: ok, Goodnight Jasmine!

*pause*

Sweetie: Lovey! say "goodnight Beauty" !!!
Lovey: Goodnight Beauty!
Honey: I'm not a princess today, I'm just Honey.

Ahhhh to be a princess again! LOL

Together Again at Last!

We don't get invited out for dinner often (unless you count Sunday dinner at my mum's but grandmothers have to put up with us!). Andrew & Mandy invited us over last month but the girls got the flu, then we tried to reschedule and the flu hit us again. Finally, last weekend we made it without interruption by illness!

Andrew had just gotten in from Colorado after travelling all night, only to have to drive back into town to buy the hotdogs & buns for dinner. We're not high maintenance or anything are we? : ))) Considering he'd been up all night, he didn't seem tired at all. And look at Miss Manders' belly growing, only a couple more months before my very first niece/nephew comes along!!

The girls had a great time playing at their house, got in some hide 'n' seek and he had them squealing in fine form! We enjoyed the visit & hopefully we were well behaved enough to merit another invite!

False Alarm

note use of left arm for support!

It would seem that our fears of broken limbs were unfounded. This morning at the outdoor church service, Murray took the girls over to the playground in the park & he said Lovey was hanging off the play equipment, swinging and feeling no pain, using her "bad" arm. I asked her about it & she said she was all better now. We came home & they went in their pool & she was right back to her regular antics! No cast.... for now.