Six little monkeys jumping on the bed

Franny's playgroup had a great time testing the springs on her friend's new bed. The "jumping on knees only" rule was a tough one for the kids to adhere to, but they did a good job.

My favorite monkey

Fancy Franny

Fancy Daddy reading Fancy Nancy to Fancy Franny

Given to her by her Auntie two weeks ago, Fancy Nancy is Franny's newest favorite book. She is constantly telling us Daddy is fancy!, Cole is fancy! , as well as anyone else who comes to mind. And if there was any doubt about her favoring this book, she took it to Show and Tell at school, and her teacher later remarked how much she enjoyed sharing it with all the other kids. That's our Fancy Franny!

To build a snowman

With Cole napping the morning away, Franny and I ventured out into the morning snow. After taking some time to explore our yard transformed, we decided to build a snowman--Franny's first. She has been quite fixated on snowmen this winter, so she was quite excited about the whole process--right down to choosing his accessories! The noon sun quickly made our efforts somewhat short-lived, but it was definitely a fun activity for us to do this morning.

Row, row, row your boat

This week, the laundry basket became a great boat for Franny and Cole. Ah, such fun on a weekday afternoon!

A new chapter

Cole is fascinated with everything Franny. Her books, puzzles, toys, and food are all first on his list to get to anyway he can. And while there is no question that Franny loves her little brother, as Cole becomes increasingly more mobile and actually able to reach these things, the sibling relationship is reaching one of it's early challenges. It doesn't seem to be so much about sharing as it is about communicating nicely when Cole has invaded her space, so to speak. And, she really is doing a good job. So now, when Cole grabs for Franny, doll, or her breakfast, instead of No, no, no! (emphasis on the exclamation point, here) a frequent phrase heard at the breakfast counter is No thank you, Cole! followed by I need a scoot, mommy! And, while I'd like to say, can't you just let Cole touch Doll? I have to respect the fact that the concept of community property is an unfair request of a toddler and she needs things that are just hers. And, since she really is very sweet with Cole and shares with him so well, being sympathetic to her frustration is not hard to do.

Toddler art appreciation

Today, Franny's playgroup attended an art class at My Masterpiece Art Studio. Although they do have open studio, where you can try your hand at pretty much any variety of art media, we opted for this fun class. For this session, the teacher introduced the kids to the art of Wayne Thiebaud. Very appropriate for kids, since much of his art is of cakes and pies! Then, they gave the kids the opportunity to create their own Thiebaud-inspired "cake art".

Cakes (1963)

For the hands-on part of the class, the kids first used colored pencils to draw their cakes; next, they used bright primary colors to coat the picture, followed by a coat of white to give it the pastel look of Thiebaud's art; then, they used tissue paper cut-outs for plates, cakes, and toppings; and they finished by giving it a dusting of sugar. Mixed media for toddlers--I was quite impressed! I love going places with Franny that introduce her to great ideas and activities that I would never think of. It was great fun!

Cakes (2008)

Unconditional love

Doll has been Franny's dearest friend and playmate for a year now. Especially over this last year, the two have been through a lot, and there is virtually nothing that Franny has experienced that Doll has not, whether it be in reality or Franny's imagination. Although her body is permanently stained from a rub-down with diaper cream (sun screen last summer), her hair is ratty and beyond repair, and her stitching that distinguishes her toes is nearly gone, I firmly believe that Franny sees Doll as new and perfect. I don't know how long Doll will remain Franny's beloved, but I do know that when her time has passed there will be a very special place for her in my Franny memory box.

2008: High hopes

Zoo Lights

Hippos at Zoo Lights

Because Franny has been so interested in Christmas lights this year, not to mention her constant interest with visiting the zoo, we were really looking forward to taking her to the Zoo Lights. This is the second year we've gone after Christmas and benefited from wide-open parking, the absence of long lines for both admission and the train, and just a general relaxed feel that only comes with the passing of the holidays. Both Franny and Cole enjoyed the lights and Franny really enjoyed the train ride. All in all, just a fun family night.


The train ride


Franny and Cole checking out the lights


Walking through the blue glow of lights

Through the eyes of a child

Christmas morning we learned the hard way that some sweet moments are too easily missed. Although we thought Franny was not really absorbing any of our Santa talk, Christmas morning we were still in bed when we heard her yelling Daddy! Daddy! from downstairs. Until then, Franny had never even left her room, much left traversed downstairs, before we've gone in to get her in the morning. Yet, Christmas morning, as we looked over the landing to see Franny gripping her giraffe blanket and staring at her new pink stroller, I knew we missed the sweet wide-eyed wonderment she must of had when she went downstairs to see if Santa had come. And while I know it's not what Christmas is all about, I still feel sad we missed that moment.

Tree un-trimming

Yesterday, we concluded the holiday season by taking down the Christmas tree and the few other decorations that we put up this year. While we enjoyed all the festivities (which spanned multiple days) and spending time with dear friends and family, we were definitely exhausted by the time we arrived back home on Christmas day. After removing the tree, Franny helped with our clean-up by pulling out her vacuum and getting all the needles that her daddy missed. It's nice to have the tree down and enjoy the last few lazy days before the New Year throws us back into the rat race. 2008 is going to be a wonderful year!

Last morning for matching jammies (sigh)

Franny's favorite perch

This is Franny's new favorite spot to check out deer, squirrels, snow...

Little joys

On Monday, I took Franny to the doctor for her flu mist--a much more humane alternative to the dreaded flu vaccine. While painless, I still expected the process to be a bit of a challenge. Franny communicates quite clearly--not to mention loudly--regarding her feelings about these kind of things. But, while she did wrinkle her brow and pull her head back a bit, she didn't resist and allowed the nurse to give her the mist in both sides of her nose. I was so relieved and impressed with Franny's handling of the situation, that I treated Franny to a "hot-chocolate milk" as she calls it, and a Marionberry muffin from Starbucks. Although it took her all day to finish the muffin, and a couple of hours to finish her hot chocolate, there was no question that she was pleased. She would take a sip, set it down next to my coffee, give me a quick grin, and be off again. And, she was also quite pleased with the Thomas the Train sticker they gave her.

Choo choo!!

There is something about kids and trains. Franny absolutely loves them and is constantly talking about going for a ride on a train. One of her favorite games to play with her daddy is pretending the couch is a train, and bounce up and down while yelling "chugga chugga chugga chugga choo choo". Yesterday, while performing her daily raid on Cole's closet, she found this train shirt. It is one of many great hand-me-downs from Cole's older cousin. Except being a little short in the arms, it did fit her--to her absolute delight. She wore it bed last night and to school this morning. I have a feeling Cole isn't getting this one back.

Our wild world

Franny loves the frequent visits we receive from the neighborhood deer residents. Needless to say, I've had to temper my frustration with these garden-eating beasts, so that Franny is able to see and enjoy them. After all, it's not every toddler who gets to see deer up-close, not to mention sleeping and eating in their backyard! They are most often does and fawns, and usually the same groups, but today we were visited by three stags with antlers--this was very exciting. When the last had finally passed through (and finished his breakfast) Franny turned to me and very seriously said "the deer left. We'll see them next week". To which, I say "we will?" And she enthusiastically tells me "Yep! We'll see them on Tuesday!" and then bounds off to find Doll. Maybe she knows something I don't...

One more of Franny's sleep quirks

Franny has a habit of removing her diaper after she is tucked in for the night. While I realize this is bordering on the inappropriate, it was just too darn funny not to share.

Bouncing off the walls

Playgroup is always great fun for Franny, but today was even more exciting because we all met at the Inflatable Kingdom for some bounce-house fun. After an hour and a half of non-stop bouncing, we walked next door to the local McMenamins for lunch. And by "we" I mean five adults, five toddlers, and three babies. To their credit, the toddlers were very well behaved and ate their grilled cheese, veggies, and tater tots with very little mess. It was the perfect wind down to a high energy morning. The kids all left with very tired eyes and the moms all left hoping for very long naps.

Bounce house #1

The big slide ascent


The big slide descent


Franny and her friend Caden walking to the pub


Onslaught of chaos

If its not one thing...

Several months ago, Franny went through a phase where she insisted on sleeping on the floor. I found it all very irritating, but as long as she slept I didn't fight it. And, one day she just decided to get back into bed. At the time, I thought to myself Thank goodness that phase is over! But now, Franny has decided that she wants to sleep in her chair. This has been going on for several weeks, and is to the point where her chair is beginning to resemble a chaise lounge. It is probably nothing that a wash and dry of the slip cover won't cure, but it drives me crazy. I know it will pass eventually. But what will come next, I don't even want to speculate!

Trimming the tree

This year Franny and Cole trimmed the tree in matching jammies. Some may think it a bit corny, but we think they're darn cute!


First Christmas as siblings


Hanging with Daddy


Playing with bells


Checking out the tree