Wow. It's Thursday already. What a fun week we have had this week! Monday was a blur - I really should keep a copy of a Daily Report for myself because I can't seem to remember much about Monday! 
Tuesday we picked our first Zinnias of the Summer. The seeds came from Grandma Z (next door) a couple of months ago. She had taken them from dried flower heads she had grown last year. She explained to the kids that they may not come up, but if they did, they would be spectacular - she was so right! We planted them in one of our Butterfly Garden Areas and have been watering, weeding, and watching them come up for about 6 weeks. We had some "dirt play" and some "leaf picking" but Zinnias are the best flowers (that's just my opinion) for kids and the plants took the abuse in stride and bloomed anyway! So here are the Big Kids, posing with their first arrangement of the season:
We also had a "new food" on Tuesday: Garbanzo Beans. Yes, I told the kids they were "peanuts", and No, it did not help. But those that did try the beans loved them. It usually takes a few times serving something new before it gets accepted into the Menu - and beans seem to be the toughest New Food unless you are Smiley (whose Mommy says he hasn't met a bean he didn't like) or Baby Cakes (who is happy to eat anything she can feed herself - especially when the Big Kids are having it too).
Wednesday. Just two words - Blissful Morning. How many people can describe their jobs as blissful? Sometimes everything just falls into place and We-Are-As-One around here. The weather this week has been so great - yesterday was the best! Zucchini Bread & Bananas with Milk for Breakfast. "Drive-Up-Circle-Time", just back up when you are done! A shady deck filled with Pack-N-Plays which are filled with either smiling, playing, or sleeping Babies - does it get any better than this? Yes. Bubble-Machine on steroids. Stick Horses and a Hula- Hoop-Work-Out.
And then, as if all the above isn't good enough to kill you. As I am sitting in a kid-sized chair parked in the middle of the back yard, looking at 2 Beautiful Sleeping Babies on the deck, with 3 Big Kids buzzing happily around me, and rocking Sweetie Pie in the "spilling-off-your-lap-but-oh-so-cuddly-cradle-position" - thinking this is the best job in the whole wide world and these are the best kids in the whole wide world - I hear a little voice counting "One-Two-Three-Four-Five" and feel a little finger gently poking my ear (on 1), my eye (on 2), my nose (on 3), my mouth (on 4), my cheek (on 5) - and then repeat that a few more times. How can you love someone(s) so much, even when they are not "yours"? Makes me want to cry with joy - and I think I will. Thank You Very Much. And they are "Mine" - kind of anyway.
Thursday, so here we are today. Cheesy Egg Thursday - and everyone can appreciate that. Even Baby Cakes - who can hold as much as the first serving I give each of the Big Kids (but just not the 2nds, 3rds, and sometimes 4ths). And today we are camping in the back yard. Here is from our Daily Sheet today, because I'm just running out of time this evening...
"As the kids ate, I began to work on our surprise for the day. I did not tell them what I was doing, and they ate with all eyes on me. I pulled out the first tent and laid it all across the ground. Notice that word “first”? - after I worked up a sweat lining it up there were no “spine pieces” – the kids were not impressed by my sweaty efforts at Whatever-In-The-Heck-Is-Marty-Up-To-Game. But never fear, we have two tents – one actually has almost all the parts too! I passed out 2nds on the eggs and set to the next tent. NOW I was getting somewhere. With the two big spines in and a dome blowing in the breeze, I really caught their attention. They finished up quickly and came to assist! We zipped it up (they didn’t seem to catch on that they could climb inside at first) and I cleaned up breakfast while they rode their stick horses and pushed around the cars around the outside of the tent. Then I hauled out the big quilt and the Book Bucket from inside – unzipped the tent – crawled in and set up an outside library – everyone piled in without hesitation (well, once they figured out the threshold thing). After reading Trashy Town and our signing books we heard the familiar Thursday sound of the Trash Truck coming down the street and rushed to the front yard to watch the trash man “Dump it in, smash it down”. After that we went back to our camp site and built a “campfire” – they all helped pick up little sticks from the yard and put them in our make believe fire pit. We “cleaned” our picnic table with wet wipes, and had some more “Free-Story-Time” in the tent. Even Baby Cakes joined in our camping activities. I really have to get to our blog – fun stuff and great pictures this week! "
Have a safe and wonderful Holiday Weekend!
