summer treats

If Claire would have her way, she would have Popsicles (or as she calls them, papasicles) for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. And probably for snack too.

Last year I noticed "monkey tails" on Dairy Queen's menu. If you ask me, that sounds like a waste of a trip to DQ, but seemed like a good solution to our papasicle problem.

I sliced a banana in half, added some peanut butter, drizzled a little chocolate on top, stuck it in the freezer, and voila!

The girls were very impressed with their treats.

reasons claire won't get dressed today

1. "No, I don't want to look like a queen."

2. "That doesn't look comfortable."

3. "That dress is only for church."

4. "No, that's too big for me."

the struggle when your three year old has an excellent vocabulary

"Mommy you have a humongous tummy. An a humongous butt!"

Thanks, Claire. You know just how to brighten my day.

our favorite park

The girls and I have a new favorite park. It is about 1.5 miles from our house, so jogging there is a nice way for me to sneak in some exercise.

The best part of it is that even the "big" equipment isn't too challenging for the girls. And there are no busy roads nearby, so I can even relax a little bit.

Doing a bit of climbing.

It wasn't too crowded either- we were the only ones there for the first 20 minutes or so- which is a bonus when you are trying to keep track of two toddlers (preschoolers?!?) with a propensity to run in opposite directions.

deep thoughts with claire

As I was leaving after tucking her in...

"Wait mommy! You have to listen to me! Otherwise you will fall in the water and get eaten by dangerous sharks. Daddy didn't listen to me..."

For those concerned, Justin is at work- I don't believe he will be encountering sharks anytime in the foreseeable future.

On drinking milk...

"Babies drink milk from bottles or from those (pointing to my chest). We do not drink milk from those because we are not babies, we are big girls."

Duly noted, Claire.

safety patrol

I gave the girls grapes with their lunch. I cut the grapes in half for safety reasons. Audrey found one I missed and told me "mama, you need to cut this grape. If it is like that (whole) we choke".

on good hair days

Before we went out, I asked Claire if she wanted a braid or a clip. Her response was, "no mom. My long curly hair is perfect. See? It's perfect!".

Who am I to argue with perfection?