Friday, June 23, 2017

Schoooooool's out, etc

Eleanor is done preschool! Forever! It is a weirdness.


'I'll never see my teachers again?' 'I mean, it's a small city, so you'll probably see them around.' 'But I'll never see my school again.'


Gymnastics wrapped up yesterday as well, with Bring A Parent day, so I dropped Geneva off with grandma and spent a few hours alone with Eleanor, who has become really funny and kind and this gets missed a lot for me because Geneva's always over here being scampy and shit-disturby and distracting. E and I went to Starbucks to pick up some gift cards for her various teachers, and to make them cards


and then to gymnastics, where she got to be my coach, and laughed uproariously the entire time.


She's just so good-natured and game. Five is an enjoyable age. Every time she bikes the 3km+ to school


or hauls a 10lb bag of library books up the stairs by herself, I'm just SO PROUD. Get on with that strong, marvelous body.

Geneva, meanwhile, is a magnificent weirdo. She is literally always trailing a rag or a blanket or a towel from her head. 'Wook at my wong hairs.'


And she's always emptying her hamper out at naptime (she has to put everything back after, otherwise she loses having-a-hamper privileges for a day, which as only happened ONCE) and then just, like, being in it.


GENEVA YOU WEIRD DUDE


Now school is done, everything is done, and the summer stretches before us.


Monday, June 19, 2017

Campapalooza

A group of our friends goes camping in Oliver every year, and we always miss it because we're always living somewhere else. We went the year Eleanor was a baby, and that's the last time we've lived in BC in June.


UNTIL NOW.


The drive is so long. This car is packed to the teats!


Pit stop hand dryers are SO HILARIOUS.


Checking in to your campsite: also hilarious.


I can't believe I didn't get a picture of Tent City. Seven families! ELEVEN CHILDREN.


Eleanor is the oldest, and we're the only family with nobody under 3, so we can just be like, Go over there and color while we set up the tent.


(This beebee is the youngest. The girls could never go to bed or come eat breakfast or anything without first going to 'check on the baby.')


Why did I even cuff your pants.


It was Geneva's first time in a sleeping bag and man she is bad at it. You aren't even on the pillow, Scrappy-Doo.


That first morning came so early.


But the weather was reasonable good, warm enough for the kids to put on suits and clamber over Party Island.


We brought this dragon (later named Tippy, for his tippy qualities) but he turned out to be a terrible water toy.


RIOTOUS land toy, though.


I went to the thrift store and blew some six dollars on new books, and when the all the children got to be too much, Geneva would just wander into the tent for some quiet time.


Hey, get back in there, this is your actual Quiet Time.


The nice thing about universally young children is that they all go down for some sort of rest in the afternoon

(rest)


(resssssst)


so the ladies went out for lunch


and for a little winery-touring.


The second day was SUNNY and WARM and SANDY and best in every way. Rinse-y rinse!


Chompy chomp!


Diggy dig!


Fishy fish!


We made banana boats for the first time. What have I been doing until now. 


And s'mores, obviously. So dainty!


So many kids, but so many adults! Always someone willing to read to the kids!


Always!


So willing!


Ughhhhhhhh camping is The Best.


Monday, June 05, 2017

Three-year-olds have many responsibilities

Eleanor comes marching down from her quiet time the other day: Mom. I have homework. Me: Ok. Her: I need a marker and some pens and also help with spelling some words. Me: Ok.


She made a list of things Geneva needs to learn to do now that she's three.


The next day, she drags Geneva down: Mom. We have some homework to do. Me: Ok. Her: You can just keep doing your mom chores. Me: Ok. Her: Except I need some paper and scissors. TWO PAIRS. Me: Ok.


So she draws Geneva a circle and shows her how to hold the scissors and coaches her on cutting it out, but it was too hard, so she draws a square, 'because that's just lines,' but THAT was too hard, so she gets another paper and just draws some straight lines for Geneva to cut along.

And then she gets some more paper and coaches Geneva through drawing a self-portrait.


'On the top is all scribbles and that's how you make hair.'


And then: Mom! We need you for this part.


Baby's first painted fingernails, she feels so glamorous.

Saturday, June 03, 2017

A smash-and-grab birthday.

Geneva had a BIRTHDAY. She is THREE. (How though.) It was, you guys, right in the middle of our move, and I was so first-trimestery, and I really had to pep-talk myself to get that birthday tree up.


UGH IT IS WORTH IT. I get ahead of myself, though. I happened to be awake and creeping her on the monitor when she woke up and saw all the balloons.


Three is SUCH A GOOD AGE.


'No it's not.'


Whatever, Geneva, you are having a (nar)whale of a time.


Presents.


More presents.


More presents.


DIS IS MY OWN DOLL DAT IS WIKE MY SISTER'S DOLL DAT IS NAMED SIDNEY WEE! (Geneva loves Sidney Lee. Now she has her own.)


Eleanor made her a card in which she drew the two of them as princesses.


Look at those SHOOOOOOOES.


And then Eleanor went to preschool and my parents came out and my dad watched Geneva while my mom and I packed up and moved my entire kitchen, which is the most demoralizing project because every time you're like, Hey I think we're done! somebody opens up two more completely full cupboards.


But we DID IT and then SORTED MY KITCHEN ON THE OTHER SIDE and it ONLY TOOK FIVE HOURS and I would occasionally entertain thoughts of what it would be like to do it myself, and laughcry. We got home to find that my dad had covered the kids in tattoos.


It's not a birthday unless somebody has Rainbow Dash on their belly.

I made Geneva an angel food cake in a fancy bundt pan and from now on, I am JUST DOING THIS everyone gets box cake mix in this fancy pan omg it's so easy.


We went to Five Guys Burgers and Fries for dinner. My children are obsessed with the peanuts. They come in a shell! You can have as many as you want!


My sister and her fam came out to join us. 'Wook at dese wong fwies!'


Then we had a cake!


Geneva loves being sung to. She does not love cake?


She DOES love Raspberry Fingers.


She also loves this doggo.


Happy birthday, squirble.