he makes my heart explode!

family walk!

it was a nice night for a walk before dinner, so we ventured over to the arboretum for some rock hunting and exploring.  this was the first time ryder used the ergo on the back.  i think he liked and eventually was so relaxed he took a little snooze.

meal time!

grandma thinks this guys face if filling out and i wouldn't be surprised because he can eat!!!  meal time is never boring around here and certainly messy and entertaining!

tinkergarten week 3!

today was about baby animals!  they spent a lot of time talking about bunnies and even made one out of a sock and rice with lavender!  the kids got to scoop rice into the sock and play with the rice in big bins afterwards, you know bowie's love of sensory play and scooping/transferring, so this was fun for her!  poor ryder is teething and tired today, not to mention it was a chilly morning!

parallel play!

this is a term often used when young kids/babies play next to one another without playing "together."  that is not a formal definition, but you get the point.  bowie has outgrown this phase and would rather be social and interacting, but i love watching them both at "work" playing and exploring on their own yet sharing the same space!

i tell bowie that her "work" is to play!  i think it is so important for her to engage deeply in play.  she is getting better at independent play again, she was having a rough time for a while since she wanted to be where ryder and i were.  now she is able to do a lot of pretend play again and will do it even with him in the play room.  when he naps that is our time to set up a messy sensory activity or outdoor time for her.  we are finding a good play routine again and ryder is exploring a lot too!

making muddy puddles!

while playing in her mud kitchen, bowie discovered that she could pour the water onto the dirt and create her own muddy puddles to jump in.  she splished and splashed until she got good and dirty!

because i'm happy!

the moose is working on his dance moves so he can have a dance party with his big sis!