Playtime Outside!

We've had great weather recently ... so, we've been spending tons of time outside on the playset!

Daylight Savings Time.

Falling back.

It used to be so wonderful.  An extra hour. 

But today. 

Olive woke up at her usual time, without regard for the clock.  She raced full speed all day.

By the end of the day, we were struggling to keep up ... and to keep her up until her standard bedtime.

So that maybe, just maybe, her standard waking time will coincide with a more appealing hour of the morning.

Who knew that one little hour could make such a difference?!

Yum.

Yesterday, I stepped away from my desk around lunchtime.

I decided to visit a local grocery store (1) to pick up some muffins for Saturday breakfast and (2) to find a quick bite for lunch.

Near my office, there is a giant HEB.  The selection is great, they have tons of prepared food, and they have a great bakery. 

I figured I would grab a salad or a cup of soup, but ...

They were sampling pot stickers.  I enjoyed the sample, but was disappointed to find the only pot stickers for sale - cooked, but cold - in a case near the vendor. 

However, I asked the vendor if she had any hot pot stickers for sale.  She got me some fresh from the steamer, and, two minutes later, I was headed to the cashier with warm pot stickers (and yummy muffins from the bakery).

Decor.

One last Halloween inspired post.  I promise. 

I followed a 'pin' to this awesome jeweled pumpkin. (Ah, Pinterest.)  Inspired, I found a few foam pumpkins on sale, convinced Kyle to wield some matte black spray paint, and hot-glued some rhinestones. 

I LOVE the results.  I think they look especially great as a centerpiece on a white table cloth.

Costumes at the Park.

Last Saturday we got gussied up and headed to the annual fall festival that our neighborhood sponsors.  Olive jumped (literally) at the opportunity to wear her Minnie Mouse costume again.  She enjoyed eating pizza and cookies, and running around the park with her friends.  She even gave the sack race a try!  (Kyle lent a hand, but our girl loves to jump.)

The weather was beautiful, and it was great to hang out with so many fun people from the neighborhood. 

A Fun Prize!

Earlier this month, one of the blogs I follow sponsored a giveaway.  The prize was a cute, ceramic, egg 'carton' from Anthropologie.  I entered because well it was worth a shot and the prize was appealing, and, then, I promptly forgot about it.  I just don't win these things.

But this time I did!  So fun!  The ceramic pretty arrived late last month, but it took me a bit to get some snaps. 

Thank you very much, Whitney!  I love it!

Halloween.

On Halloween, we took Olive to a few houses in our neighborhood.  Before we set out, she hopped around our house in anticipation.



Olive was a bit shy with her "trick or treats", but she followed up nicely with "thank you" each time.

As we walked from house to house, Olive would gaze into her bucket and whisper, "candy!"  or, sometimes, "awesome!"

Getting Ready for Halloween.

Olive recently received a Halloween-themed, Hello Kitty shirt.  Of course, she adores it.  One of her favorite things to point out is the pumpkin on Hello Kitty's bow. 

("Bow ... Punkin! .... Kitty... Bow Mamee ... Punkin!")

This morning, as she toddled around the house before school, she insisted that her Minnie Mouse ears accompany the kitty cat on her shirt.

Fabulous.

Fall Festival 2011

Olive's school puts on a fall festival each year.  Last year we skipped the festival, but this year we embraced the crazy.

Olive donned her Halloween costume and ran around with her friends while we gazed on.  There were hot dogs, games, 'train' rides, and other activities that don't come immediately to mind.  We all had a great time.

Olive showing off her Minnie Mouse costume.

Olive showing off her climbing skilz.  (I was impressed!  Mind you, she walked down the stairs each time to a small slide - not the big slide in the right of the photo - but promptly ran back to scale the climbing wall.  Bravo!)

Band Geeks.

In high school, I played in the band.  Not, a band, the band.  Polyester, military-inspired uniforms and all.

On the drive between Olive's school and our home, we pass a public high school.  Most days, as I drive the Little Miss home, we see the band outside practicing, marching along, but, recently, as we drove by, the band was dressed for that evening's game. The military-inspired uniforms were out in full force, and the fancy flag corps outfits sparkled.  My brain went flying back to my freshman year in high school, and a big grin spread across my face.

It was super geeky, but I loved it.

Light days.

So.  I haven't been in this space much lately.  I'm not sure why, but the words haven't really been popping.  I'll keep posting a few photos/videos/details of our lives, and maybe the words will come back.

If they don't, that is ok too.  Sometimes a photo is worth a thousand words.  (I think that may depend on the quality of the photo/photographer, but still - more words than you might think.)

Just a Little Braggin'

One of our neighborhood friends took her daughter, Ava, to visit Olive’s class on Monday morning. (Ava is a few months younger than Olive and is 'transitioning' into Olive's class.)

Ava’s mom sent us an email reporting that: “In the 40 minutes we were there, I saw Olive stand up and count to 10 (actually 11) and sing her ABCs in front of the group!”

It isn't like we are proud parents, or anything ...

:)

Swimming.

OK.  These are probably longer than anyone really wants to watch, but - for posterity - we took some video of Olive at her last swimming class of the season.  It was super exciting to see her skills develop.  She is definitely not a 'swimmer', but she is closer than she was when she started class ... AND she definitely learned some safety skills that make me feel better about being in or near a pool with her.


Elbow, elbow, tummy, knee.

Choo-choo.



The turtle song: "there was a tiny turtle, his name was tiny Tim, we put him in the bathtub to see if he could swim, he drank up all the water, he ate up all the SOAP, and now the tiny turtle has bubbles in his throat."  (or, ya know, something close to that)

Death of a Monkey.

Mr. Monkey did not make his way home safely after tea.  He met an unfortunate end at the hands, er, teeth, of our sweet puppy who does not understand the difference between her toys and Olive's.

A Tea Party.

Mr. and Mrs. Monkey and Cici enjoyed a tea party hosted by Miss Olive last week.  She handed out 'treats' and poured 'tea' and giggled and giggled and giggled.