Once Upon a Time it Rained In Palo Alto...

Not pictured: Lunch, Making Peanut Butter Balls and Movie Time.

4 kids under the age of 4 in a 36-square-feet play area for 7 hours = creativity.

After our friends went home, we got out of the house and went to the library then played outside for as long as we could until we got all wet, about 10 minutes.

Time to snuggle inside, pants-less, under 2 big blankets and read all the new library books and count the minutes until Daddy comes home.

blueberries, I love you

I know this isn't a food blog but I have to dedicate a post to blueberries because they are that good. Each time I have them in something I always think, "oh! this is so good, I love blueberries" like its a surprise or something. Over the summer, I bought them fresh whenever they were on sale, but the season is really short. Costco sells them frozen in a huge bag and we actually prefer them frozen for a lot of things. Here are our favorites (we usually make/eat any of these at least 3 times a week):

• Blueberry Muffins, Pancakes, or Scones
• Toppings for cereal (my favorite is with plain Bran Flakes or Granola... the frozen berries make the milk super cold, its so good)
• Blueberries and yogurt (if you thaw the berries in the microwave real quick, there is a lot of liquid juice in the bowl that mixes in/flavors the plain yogurt really well)
• Toppings for pancakes/German pancakes etc... (again the whole microwave thaw gives good juice)
• Cup of milk with blueberries (and a dash of sugar if you need it extra sweet)... the milk gets slushy-esque when the frozen berries sit in it for a while.
• Blueberry, can of pears, banana (optional), ice, vanilla ice cream-or-yogurt smoothie (really light and great accompaniment to cinnamon toast)
  

Its the end of the world

Well, not really. Alec is just not wanting to take his nap. Instead of sleeping, he'll jump up and down, make lots of noise until Charlie wakes up and then he'll climb in/around Charlie's crib playing with him. Ahhhh! So is this the end of my personal time? Luckily the answer is no. My friend, Amy, shared a brilliant space-saving-nap-trick with me. I have a linen closet at the top of my stairs that, with the door open, transforms into a cozy cubby when sectioned off by a baby gate. I've cleaned out the bottom floor and shelf of the closet and filled it with some toys and books. So now, if Alec acts up, I can transfer him to his cubbie where he can just play quietly (inevitably falling asleep) in a small space, apart from "my space" downstairs. Its wonderfully non-apocalyptic around here.

Climbing Machine

Charlie is a climbing machine! His favorite feats are: the kitchen stool, Alec's trike, the bike trailer, the bathroom stool, and any kid chair. I have to be so careful because he is so fast! If I've forgotten to fold up and put away the kitchen stool RIGHT after I'm done using it, I'll usually be reminded 30 seconds later when I hear Charlie whining/grunting because he's stuck at the top. When I rescue him and put him back on the ground he throws a fit because I took him off. Silly, cute, kid. He is growing up too fast.

caterpillars

We learned about caterpillars last week. Here are the kids finding out what it's like in a cocoon.

Here they're painting a caterpillar ( 1/2 an egg carton) on a leaf (paper).


I LOVE PLAYSCHOOL.

Fun with Friends

There are lots of parties, now that our Courtyard Events are in full swing, plus I'm watching my good friend's little girl, one day a week. Alec absolutely LOVES it when Eliza comes to play for the whole day. He usually sobs when she has to go home.

Below is Alec on his first day of playschool this year. He was so excited and loved every minute of it. He can hardly wait for Mom to be his teacher next time.

Walking Charlie

He's been taking steps for a month or so now, but just this past week has he tried to walk more than 2 feet. Check out his moves: