Calm before the storm...

A beautiful, but cold, day today!It would be nice if nature would give us a warm day here and there but I can't complain--- especially since we are due for a nor'easter this Friday!  We decided to enjoy our sunny day by bundling up and heading to the lake in town to throw rocks in the water.  I can't think of a better way to spend the day!

Sailboats on the lake, courtesy of the sailing club at the high school

I didn't realize she had climbed up on the railing, Grandmas!

Willow has been asking me to make a sandwich like this for weeks.

Today we made rice crispy treats from Isa's Vegan Cookies Invade the Cookie Jar.  Awesome that they are made with brown rice syrup and maple syrup instead of marshmallow!

Willow worked hard on this list for me to take to the grocery store.  It is a list of things that Indigo is and is not allergic to.  Notice that only (wheat-free) noodles are on the "can eat" column-- it's her favorite food!

Another cold weekend!  The wind was brutal and made the days feel like midwinter instead of Spring.  We are looking ahead, though, and have lots of exciting plans made for Summer!  We now have camping reservations in June, tickets for a trip to Oregon in late June (while our kitchen is being remodeled  WOOT!!), tickets to the Gathering of the Vibes (a big outdoor music festival in Connecticut, headlined by Further-- the remaining Grateful Dead members) in July, and lots of other ideas in the works.  Now to get through the last of this chilly weather....

Thursday was art day.  We looked at art by Gustav Klimt and created some mixed media inspired by his Golden Period.

Willow had her piano lesson on Friday and Indigo insisted on practicing at home while Willow was gone.  She really is pretty good for a two year-old!

At the park

Getting the planting beds ready for our garden!

On Sunday we visited Wellesley College.  The campus is beautiful and includes several lakes.

There is also an amazing Gothic tower in the center of campus!  Can't wait to come back when the trees leaf out!

Scenes from the day

Today...

Willow's list of potential gifts for my birthday (1. Art, 2. Plants)

Playing at the park on a chilly day

Playing farmer

Not so fast....

Spring is such a tease...

So, we stayed in and painted...

 

Created self portraits with ink and bleeding tissue paper...

Willow

 

Indigo

 

Baked cinnamon bun cookies...

 

And did lots of playing....

Happy Spring!!

Illness has come again to our little family, but we are excited to welcome Spring and are looking forward to the adventures that are soon to come!  Here is what we have been up to lately...

First stroller walk of the year!

Willow working on her self portrait during our little Thursday art class.

Willow testing a hypothesis during our solubility science experiment.

Willow biking on a 65 degree day!!

Crocuses!

Kids are funny

A few funny things Indigo has said lately:

"I am so demanding" (said often, usually to herself )

"Delectible!!"  Always said enthusiastically in response to my baking.

"How bizarre!!" Said in respone to anything that doesn't make sense to her.

"I'm afraid"  As in..."I'm afraid I am the ice cream man today" (an actual sentence I heard this morning).  She uses this one a lot these always and always sounds like a little professor.


And our personal favorite... "Hi.  I am a new girl.  They call me New Orleans"  She says this one ALL the time and it never ceases to entertain Jay and I.  I have to record her saying this because her inflection is just priceless.


Of course, Willow says lots of funny things too!  I'll have to confer with Jay and make a funny Willow sayings post next!

Indigo's current treasured possessions (she plays with them, pushes them in her baby stroller and they even come grocery shopping with us)--her Charlie Card (ticket for the Boston subway system) and a peso that she found in a parking lot (she calls it her lucky penny)

Willow's Amaryllis finally bloomed, much to her delight.

This girl loves stripes-- the more the merrier!

Look at all that glorious grass!! After two months of only seeing snow, the green reminds us that Spring is almost here!

Weekend Fun

Happy Sunday!
On Friday our little family attended Family Night at Willow's school.  There was a great storyteller who the girls loved and Indigo had a ball hanging with the big kids.

On Saturday, Jay took the kids to Harvard's Museum of Natural History with friends. 

Willow is very in to dinosaurs and was excited to find that the museum housed real dinosaur bones.

 

 

The kids also loved taking the subway from South Station to Harvard Square.

Today was a nice family day.  We all had a chilly morning at the park and then Willow and I went out for her special day-- earned by getting up once or less per night for a week (versus the 5 or more times that had become the norm).  She requested a shopping trip for a dress .  She is such a girlie girl (and I am so not) so she was thrilled for the rare chance to hit the mall with Mama for lunch and to choose "a very fancy dress".  She was just beaming the whole time!

Later, we visited our favorite farm-- the Natick Community Organic Farm, a teaching farm owned by the city and we were happy to find 4 day old piglets and newborn goat kids and lambs.  So cute!

Willow loved following around the friendly resident barn cat.

Indigo patiently tried to feed the lovely cow.

Pictures.....

Willow playing with branch blocks salvaged from a local park and made by her Daddy

Working on a little watercolor art project.

The finished mixed media (glue, watercolor, collage and ink) projects. 

This turned out even more awesome than I imagined!  Willow would have to tell the whole story, but suffice to say that there is a bird flying over a knitting M&M vendor while, on the left, a woman stands in high heels, holding aloft a glass of milk.  There are so many other details  This one is a keeper!

Sorry for the blurriness but this is one of my favorite of Indigo's games.  She grabs the horse (upside down) to be used as a broomstick and puts a Dr tool in her mouth (we still can't figure out what that one is supposed to be for) to stand in for a corn cob pipe, and waltzes around the house being Frosty the Snowman-- song sung at the top of her lungs.

Willow is always the traffic cop who hollers "STOP!"

It is finally warm enough that we can visit our local park without snow pants on-- though we found part of the park submerged in a lake of melted snow.

Indigo taking advantage of the lake to perform some scientific experiments.  What will float vs. sink??

In the last few days....

Thursday was our little art class.  Love seeing how the kids of different ages created their still life drawings-- Julia's drawing is first, Willow's second and Caroline's (she is 7) is third.

The snow has melted so much in the last few days of Springlike weather !  Willow went out back to enjoy the day and drew a welcome sign for Daddy on the back fence chalk board.

 On Friday, the girls and I attended the little monthly concert at our library, performed by the great Fran Friedman.  The girls loved singing, dancing and playing along.

 Then we came home and we made lemon sandwich cookies to share with our neighbors.

On Saturday, we had lunch at our favorite (and only) restaurant after a stroll through the Winter Farmer's Market

Yay, the seed catalog has arrived.  Planning our garden....

And today, Jay took the kids hiking at a local nature preserve while I made all sorts of fun things (pictures to come!  It was nearly 60 degrees today!