A Little of This and That...

Alex's nursery school sends one child each week home with a special teddy to love and take care of for one whole week. In the course of that week, you are supposed to take pictures of the teddy doing whatever you do that week. This is Bella Bear having a tea party with Alex on her second visit to our house. We have also had Barty Bear visit us. I must say, the first time each bear came, it was fun. We took pictures and put them in the little book that comes with the bear. Alex dressed up as Wonder Woman when Bella Bear made her first visit to our house. She pretended to rescue her from the Nazis over and over again all day long. It was very fun.  However, when the bears then get put on Alex's peg to take home a second and a third time each, Mommy starts getting a little bit annoyed!

I didn't mention that each bear comes with a backpack full of little clothes to dress them in as well as the book with pictures of all your classmates and what they did with the bears at their house. Those little clothes and shoes become scattered all over your house. I am always finding them after we give Bella or Barty back. Also, when was the last time these bears were washed? All the children in her class sleeping with the same bears night after night, coughing and throwing up all over them...they probably just serve in passing germs from one house to the next...

Sammy's homework one weekend was to listen to classical music and draw what she imagined while listening. It was such a fun exercise. All the girls ended up doing it. We listened to "Eine Kleine Nachtmusik" by Mozart. This made them think of a thief sneaking around a castle.We also listened to "In the Hall of the Mountain King" by Grieg.  I can't remember all the songs we listened to but on one of them, I couldn't think of anything it reminded me of but dancers. I was so surprised when Abby said the music made her imagine she was flying up in the mountains and looking at the beauty and then Sammy chimed in, "yes, on a train up in the mountains!" I loved hearing what they were  imagining especially since I was so un-imaginative!  Sammy finally decided on "William Tell Overture" by Rossini since it reminded her of a horse race. They were listening to it full blast riding their stick horses around the dining room and living room. Abby plays it on both the piano and violin very well now too. I told Sammy that horses are really difficult to draw and that perhaps she should pick a different song. Nope. She was determined to draw a horse and that she did! Wow! I was so impressed with her determination, focus and attention to detail. Well done!

So proud of her work!

The following Saturday, Abby and Sammy got to go with friends into London's West End and see "Wicked." They were so excited and absolutely loved the show. They had fantastic seats and were mesmerized by the costumes, singing and stage production. Sammy is now an expert on the witches from the Wizard of Oz and will spend a great deal of time analysing them to anyone who will listen. In the meantime, Alex was home with Charles and I trying to keep herself entertained. She kept busy painting her hand for a while and stamping it on paper. She also wrote her name with her finger. So clever... 



She sure does find getting messy lots of fun.



Next she kept herself busy blowing bubbles in a pan in the kitchen. She got more excited the higher they got. She was also quite pleased to have the entire trampoline to herself as a canvas for her chalk art. She drew pictures of the entire family including the new baby and a treasure map for us to find some pirate treasure. (Unfortunately, I did not get pictures of the trampoline.) This girl is so imaginative.