For Christmas, Delaney received a book of Yoga for toddlers from her California cousins. All the kids have been having fun with this book...
Delaney doing Frog and Franny doing Lion
A Trio of dogs
Two birds
And, rest…moving quickly into silliness
Franny and Cole had another ski lesson today. Everything went great—they seemed to pick right up where they left two weeks ago. Delaney had a little more difficulty accepting that she couldn’t join them on their ski adventure, but we’re trying to come up with some ways to keep her included, at least in some way. She finally calmed down when we let her stand up on Franny’s skis, but that also made it worse when Franny had to leave for her lesson. In the end, a very good day. Rumor has it that Franny will advance to the chair lift next time. Very exciting for her!
These are Cole’s “hand gloves”, as he likes to call them. He is very proud of them and his ability to get them on. He wore them for two days straight, doing everything in them. Finally, they got wet and I had an excuse to have them get lost in the laundry for a couple of days. They are now clean, but I am waiting for him to ask for them before I hand them over. Kids go through the silliest phases!
Today we met our friends at the World Forestry Center for a mid-week afternoon adventure. This wonderful museum’s focus is to learn about the sustainability of forests and trees of the Pacific Northwest and around the world; for Franny, Cole, and Delaney it was just great fun. There was simulated rides on a train, river raft, and safari jeep. There was also a Timberjack harvester where the kids could climb in the cab and experiment with the controls. The hands-on Plant a Tree exhibit was also a big favorite for the kids. I have read that the Forestry Center is a great place to take kids, but I didn’t realize to what extent until I saw it in person. It was definitely a great way to spend a rainy Portland afternoon!
Today, I took Delaney to a trial Gymboree class. I wanted to see how she would like it before we signed her up for a session. She LOVED it! All those kids just her age and all those great mats and structures to climb on. When she wasn’t exploring the different things they had set up for today, she was doing her ‘happy dance’ in the center mat with a huge smile on her face. I was so happy to see her have such a good time. She keeps up with the big kids, but this was just her pace and she finally had an activity just for her, rather than watching Franny and Cole have all the fun. It’s about time!
Today was the day we’ve tried not to think about for the past two weeks—Franny back at school, Rick back at work and actually having commitments and things that have to be done. All day, Delaney continued to walk up to me with big serious eyes and ask “Daddy?” Cole and Delaney had fun playing together, but clearly seemed a bit out of sync without their big sister and ringleader. But, after dinner they had a great time together having a camp out in the living room, complete with sleeping bags, flashlights, and a campfire. They probably would have spent the night there if they didn’t have to really go to bed in order to be rested for another big day tomorrow. Our days are fun and very full, but nothing compares to carefree vacation…just four more days until the weekend!
Today, we visited the Lan Su Chinese Gardens. Although windy and very cold, the walls surrounding the gardens blocked the weather, and with the sun, it almost felt warm. It was extremely beautiful and serene and the kids enjoyed exploring the various courtyards. They had a family guide that Franny enjoyed using to find different shapes and sculptures throughout the gardens. It was a really nice and relaxing way to spend our morning, and one that all the kids really enjoyed.
All the kids love books, so the gift cards their Grandma Lesley gave each of them for Christmas were perfect gifts for them. For weeks they have asked about when we were going to use them. Finally, today was the day, and they all took it very seriously, spending close to an hour and a half picking out the perfect books. Even Delaney had very clear preferences of which books she wanted to take home. Franny opted for three Fancy Nancy books and an Olivia book; Cole’s choices were How to Train Your Dragon, two Cars books, and a John Deere book; Delaney chose Clifford, Dora, Minnie Mouse, and Tinkerbell. None of these selections surprise me—in fact, they were all quite predictable—but watching their thought processes as they narrowed down their choices was very interesting and fun to watch. Franny was very impulsive and changed her mind close to a dozen times, while Cole was very methodical and deliberate. Either way, they all took home some great books. And, given the number of times we’ve already read these books, I think they are very happy with their choices!
Delaney, Cole, and Franny were all set to enjoy some down time this afternoon with the movie Cars. I don't know if it was just post-Christmas fatigue that got to poor little Delaney, but she barely made through the opening race scene before she succumbed to a much needed afternoon nap.
