Green and More

It's St. Patrick's Day.  I'm not a big celebrator of the day, but with this morning's two hour delay for Meghan and Derek, I made some green eggs.  Appetizing, huh?  It was my first time making them.

This is the leprechaun trap Meghan made.  I thought it was very clever, with the rainbows on the outside to lure the leprechauns.  They can also see the gold inside through the tube.  Be sure to check out the video of her explaining it.  I'm still amazed that Derek bought a can of spray paint for the box.  It's a box.  (But now it's a pretty box.)

Little Bits...

Meghan sneaked to the fruit bowl.  When I asked her what she was doing, she showed me a small plastic banana.  She placed it in the fruit bowl with the two bunches of bananas, and exclaimed, "Now I'm a prankster."
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As Derek continues to paint in Meghan's bedroom, it is apparent that she has too much stuff.  As we cleaned (and cleaned) today I asked Meghan to help me label her bins.  Dolls and Accessories was the first.  Useless Items was the second.   We discussed the need to label things.  I started a list for the labels.  You might guess how well it was going when she suggested a label for “Useless Stuff.”
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Last week I wrote about Esther asking if we were going to "one more store."  I thought she knew the routine...until today when we were at the grocery store and she asked for "one more store" and then at the library and still asked for "one more store."  Maybe she's a bit of a social girl like her big sister.
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I'm pretty sure that most two year olds do not have a grasp of the word cuckoo.  However, Esther uses it regularly, thanks to her siblings.  Lucy, our cat just went flying by Esther.  She commented on it.  I asked her if Lucy was crazy.  She responded.  "Yeah, Meow cuckoo."  Not my favorite word (to describe people), but at least she is using it correctly.
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I'm really enjoying my magazine writing class.  Do you know any editors that hire freelance?

Videos

Yesterday at preschool Evan made a structure from toothpicks and mini marshmallows.  It made me think of my days at Nature's Classroom.  One of my favorite classes to teach was Mini Structures.  We used gumdrops and toothpicks to create strong structures after a little lesson in geometry.
This is a video of Evan talking of his structure.  He didn't mention his doubled toothpicks in the video, but I thought it was very smart of him to provide extra sturdiness in that manner.  It was incredibly windy today, and he had to hold the structure carefully so it would not blow away.

I had to have Evan begin the video a second time because someone was interrupting him.  I believe you can overhear Derek playing with Esther.

Last week Meghan brought home a school assignment to make a leprechaun trap.  I was less than thrilled about it for various reasons.  However, Meghan was eager to make a trap that would work.  She had a great plan.  Meghan is rather animated, as usual in this video.  If you hear beeps toward the end of the video, it's not your timer, but ours.  It was nearly time for dinner, but it wasn't urgent, so it waited.

If you wonder about Derek interrupting, it was because he came home from work and opened the door.  Horrifying, I know!  Just so you know, I just asked Meghan to explain her trap to me.  The rest is all her.  I have no idea where she came up with her little ending to the video.  Maybe she saw something like that on a commercial during the Olympics?  I don't know.

The two videos are distinctly different, showing the two very different personalities of Meghan and Evan.  I love them!

Around the House...

Esther and I were reading a book.  It labeled body parts on an animal.
Annette: Do you have a tail?
Esther: Yes.
Then she lifted her bottom and felt her backside to "show" me her tail.
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Meghan asked for my cell phone number.  She wrote it down.  Then she asked if they could play in our bedroom closet where we keep Derek's childhood LEGO's.
As soon as they were upstairs, my purse rang.  I answered.  They were shocked I knew who it was.
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Esther loves to play baby and be all wrapped up and cuddled.  Not only that, but it seems that she likes play "Baby Jesus" with her doll babies and to pretend to be baby Jesus swaddled in a blanket.
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This morning at 5:45 a.m. Esther yelled through the crack at the bottom of her bedroom door, "Oh no, baby Jesus!"  Repeatedly.  Apparently her stuffed dog that talks is no longer called Violet.  It wasn't working properly.  Oh yes, she likes that crack in the door to get our attention.
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I really appreciate the way that Evan LEAPS into my arms to say goodbye to me when I drop him off at preschool.  He often does the same thing at the end of the day when I pick him up from school.
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New Esther phrase: "I love you, Mommy."  She'll say it twenty times in a row.  It does not get old!  It does sound a lot like her other favorite phrase, "I'm hungry."  That phrase does get old.  Fast.
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After running errands, upon coming home I checked email.  Surprisingly, there was an email from MEGHAN.  She does not have an email account, but she had earned enough teacher "dollars" to choose an activity.  She opted to write an email to Mommy.  My heart swelled.  Her teacher let her know of my reply.
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Esther and I were out running errands.  We went to the dairy to buy milk.  As I was buckling her in the van, she asked, "One more store?"  Why yes, Esther, after the dairy, we always go to the Amish store for yogurt.  Smart cookie...or maybe she was just hoping for another store.
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Evan is beginning to read.  He memorizes books easily, but we have worked through a few of the BOB Books.  He is eager to read more, though it is not always easy.  I really enjoy hearing him sound out short words without any prompting from me since that tells me he IS ready for reading.

The other day, Meghan dragged a big box to the top of the stairs.  I knew with a two year old involved, it had the potential for danger.  I intervened and asked that they not slide from the top of the stairs.  As it turns out, even from a short distance, there can still be pain involved...but they did have fun.