June Playing and Sleeping

June just flew by, didn't it?! It was really HOT and HUMID out here, so this is what we spent much of the time doing....

As well as getting dirty! The first two pictures are of peanut butter body painting, the next is of a mud bath.



And when you play hard, you sleep hard!


Even on the floor....

Or in a wrap....


Or on a lap!

All Aboard!

This week for our Resident Spouse playgroup we drove 1/2 an hour to the neighboring town of Moberly for a miniature train ride. The train runs along a real track, and was a hit with the kids. It was the PERFECT day to be outside, and I enjoyed the relaxing ride through the park.

The kids got to take turns sitting in the Engine and pushing the "whistle." Eli felt like a real Engineer!

Afterwards we had a picnic lunch, and played on the "Candyland" playground. The park was right on the banks of a large lake, surrounded by woods... very scenic! I was sure grateful for the fence though, because my boys were dieing to get near the water and throw stuff.

It was a good day!

Naked Bats

The week before last I watched a friend's little girl during the day while she was out of town. After using the potty one afternoon, Eli did not want to put his pants back on. Trying to reason with him I said, "We don't walk around naked in front of our friends... that's embarrassing." Eli responded, "Bat's fly around naked - that's embarrassing too!" I busted up laughing. I have no idea where that came from, but he agreed to put his pants back on before leaving the bathroom.

Here are a few pictures from their adventures. Eli and Ivy got along surprisingly well... alternating between boy and girl games.

Hiding from "Sharks"

Playing Butterflies

Ocean in the Tub

Pretty Princesses

Princess Cake aka. Poptarts

Sailing to the Promised Land

Watching Curious George with their Babies

More Princess Cake

Dress up... Again

Ok, so it looks like girl games won out the majority of the time, but Eli and Owen didn't seem to mind! Ivy looks like she could be related to us, so I had fun pretending to have three kids. I think these boys could use a sister... what do you think?

Butterflies

The boys and I had a playdate at a friend's house the other day who has 3 girls. Eli disappeared with the two oldest ones for a minute, and came back sporting pink fairy wings. He proudly announced, "Look, I'm a beautiful butterfly!" It was time for us to go home, and the only way I could get him to cooperate was to promise we could make some of our own butterfly wings at home.

The next day I asked Eli if he would like to do something special with me while Owen was napping, and he reminded me of my earlier promise about the butterfly wings. So, we scrounged around in the garage for some cardboard. I'll admit that I considered making the wings for some other more "manly" insect, but then I figured that there are male butterflies in nature, so what's the big deal!

Since Owen was asleep, Eli painted both sets of wings and I don't think he minded at all! I painted two smaller butterflies and attached some yarn to them so the boys could run around the yard with them like a kite. When the breeze picked up, the butterflies would lift off even without running around, and the kids were thrilled that their butterflies were flying! For the larger wings, I just taped some yarn on them and tied them on the boys' backs. I might actually punch holes in the wings and use some sturdy ribbon for a more permanent attachment if I get around to it.

After the paint dried and Owen was up, the boys were occupied for at least an hour out in the yard pretending to be butterflies! Eli even "flew" from flower to flower "helping them grow" (I had talked to him about pollination and what a butterfly does to help plants grow). The best part was when they held hands and flew around. I still crack up every time I see Eli wiggle his torso to get his wings flapping and tell me over and over "I'm a beautiful butterfly!" Yes, indeed you are Son!

All Painted Up

The Mini Kites

Beautiful Butterflies!