Caps for sale

Kennedy loves the book Caps for Sale. When our friends, Paul and Sara, suggested that she see how many hats she could get on her head, I could tell that she was thinking of the peddler and the monkeys. The answer, by the way, is six.

Visiting Grandpa Brent

Grandpa Brent has been in the hospital recovering from double knee replacement surgery last Wednesday. We went to visit him at the hospital and then at the rehab center where he will be spending the next few weeks. Kennedy had fun riding around with dad in the wheelchair, and Macy was happy to view the new surroundings. I think we'll be visiting often because he's just around the corner from our house (and right next to the farm!)

Party at the zoo

Last night we attended the annual zoo fundraiser. It's for adults only, so the kids went to Grandma Sue's. We love going to this event because we love the zoo, of course, and it's just a fun party with great food, interesting silent auction items, and the animals on display without the crowds. The best part of the night this year was the debut of the baby elephant. She is so adorable, and at 300 pounds looks both tiny and huge at the same time. She was chasing around the enclosure, trying to push a cement curb, chewing on some wood, all while keeping an eye on her mom. We took a golf cart ride around the grounds to see the three tiger cubs, the snow leopard cub, and the baby giraffe. Kennedy would be so jealous if she knew what we were doing - and we rode the carousel, too!

We also consulted with a psychic. It was an interesting experience. First we asked her several questions. Will Kennedy's kidney condition clear up on its own, or will it require surgery? The crystal said it will clear up, but we should trust our parental instincts about the surgery. Am I in the right career? The crystal was neutral at first, but then said yes. Jake asked if he will finish the living room. The crystal said yes. Thank goodness! Then I had my cards read. Psychic Lilli called me an angel and said I have many blessings - I guess I got the best card in the deck in some important position. I am an earth mother goddess, and that card also had something about a fertility rabbit (I was told to be careful unless I wanted a brood of children.) I tend to be my own worst enemy, and can be indecisive about things. I'm also too judgmental at times, both of myself and others. I was also warned to stay out of any bickering or politics at work. There were two cards that pointed to learning. She said something about my wheels are always spinning and that I'm creative and constantly thinking about new ideas. I'd say she was pretty accurate on most of it, and it was entertaining. My favorite thing that she said to us was that Jake and I have a great relationship - she called it interdependent, which I think is a great way to describe what we have.

We were interested in some animal artwork, but were outbid at the very last minute. The same thing has happened to us all three years we've attended. We left just with the memories of a great night and the goody bag, no stuffed elephant or monkey for the girls. Instead I took them to the zoo today to see the public debut of the baby elephant. We were there waiting in line for the zoo to open, and Kennedy loved it!

Home Improvement

In honor of Labor Day, we decided to start a new house project. The home ownership to do list is never ending, but so far we have painted the bedrooms, replaced the windows, updated the bathrooms, and put on new siding. We've been planning to paint the living room since we moved in five years ago, and especially since we removed the curtains and were left with several large holes in the ceiling. Because of the layout of our house that means we'll also be painting the hallway too. We started to prep the room for painting, and then Jake decided that now is as good a time as any to replace the carpet. And, I want to paint the kitchen walls and cabinets while we're at it. So we moved all the furniture into the dining room, tore up the carpet, taped the walls, picked our paint color (Mississippi Mud) and just jumped right in. Here are a few "before" shots. Unfortunately I forgot to get some pictures with the furniture all in place.

We can live in chaos for a few weeks, and Kennedy thinks it's very fun to have a couch in the dining room. She's also been great about putting on her shoes to walk in the living room and keeping Macy entertained. Macy played with some toys in the booster seat and then Kennedy read her some stories.

Last night I was watching TV after the kids had gone to bed, and Kennedy came downstairs. I asked her why she was out of bed and after she told me that her Bingo CD had ended she said, "I put my shoes on to walk in the living room!"

We love the zoo

Friday we went to the zoo with Pamp. We saw two of the three new tiger cubs and the baby giraffe. Kennedy and I rode the carousel. Macy tried out her big sister's sunglasses, and I think she liked wearing them. We'll have to find her a pair of her own.

Kennedy has been wearing sunglasses since she was about this same age.

I only have one more week of maternity leave left. I set up my leave as intermittent hours, meaning that I came back to work much earlier, but I've had more flexibility setting my time in the office. It's been so nice working just 12 and 16 hours a week and having Fridays off. The girls and I have had lots of fun this summer, and I will miss spending so much time with them. Going back to my regular 8:00am-2:00pm schedule will be a shock, but we'll still be able to have some adventures together in the afternoons.

What a night

Who would have ever guessed that the girl who loves animals so much would be afraid to milk a cow? We went to the farm tonight and were watching the cow in the barn. Kennedy has seen them milked before and been interested, but when we offered to let her try, she was terrified - even after seeing other kids do it. I dragged her up there with me anyway to take a turn. She wanted nothing to do with the experience.

Macy had no such issues at the farm. She is such a happy baby. She loves to roll around on her blanket and grab at her toys. She's even working on sitting up (with help, but she can balance for a minute). Here's one of her great big smiles.

Kennedy recovered quickly from the trauma at the farm. She was just fine as soon as we stood up from the milking stool. After dinner we had a fun evening playing games and reading books. Here she is all ready for bed.


And here's someone else ready for bed. Does this count as helping with the kids?

Little Chef

Kennedy loves to help out in the kitchen. She gets out her ladder to reach everything on the counter. Whenever there is a job that involves measuring, pouring, mixing or cracking eggs, she wants to be involved! Monday we made a pie for dinner - with a cracker crust, eggplant, onion, tomato and cheese. And we got out the bread machine and made some wheat bread. Kennedy was in heaven! I tried to suggest that she should be Remy from Ratatoulle for Halloween, but she thought it was too silly to dress up like a rat. I think I'll keep my eye out for costume possibilities.