Science!!!!!!!!

With the weather being so nice this weekend, I thought it would be fun to go somewhere and do something since we've been cooped up sick most of the winter. I asked the girls if they'd like to go to the zoo. The answer was no. They'd rather hit up the science museum.

Of course we hadn't been since last June and I'd let our membership lapse, so we got there at the public opening time at 10. This was the first time the girls played with the Keva blocks, and I think they could have stayed there the whole time.

Here we are playing with the screen.

After taking lessons, climbing the wall in the preschool play area didn't seem that challenging.

Madeleine and Lily always try to get a butterfly to land on them in the butterfly house. This time one not only landed on Madeleine, but she got to hold one. It looks like a leaf folded up but was beautiful on the inside when it opened its wings. While trying to hand it back to the volunteer, she screamed as it flew off.

The other big hit was the origami display. Madeleine was easily able to make the paper cup and waited her turn in front of the computer for instructions to make the cicada and butterfly as well.

Happy Valentines Day

I'm kind of a dork. Since the girls were old enough to distribute valentines, we've always made them ourselves. The first year, when they were 2, I think we did just one valentine from the both of them. I made hearts and put their picture inside of them "coloring" their valentines. Then the next few years we did something similar.

This year their teacher at their new school asked that they create "blank" valentines with only their names on them to distribute on Monday so that things go quicker. It took a while for the girls to get this into their heads. Both Lily and Madeleine wanted to know who each one was for. Plus, with the number of kids in their class this year, we had to make 40.

So I bought some cardstock and used the Creative Memories tools to create some hearts. They raided my stickers and the glitter glue, and voila, two hours later we had some snazzy creations.

(Note the lack of glitter that will fall off - I still have at least a pound in the car from the last project)

Practice makes perfect

The girls were sitting like this in the bathtub tonight when I thought I just had to capture it. I didn't want to lose the moment, so I left the zoom lens in. I had to bump up the ISO higher than I would have liked, so I've learned my lesson. But look at those piggies!

The color's not off. The water is green.

And when everyone was done I broke out the speedlite for some practice. The pictures Lily wanted me to take for her "boyfriend" came out all over-exposed. Hopefully she'll get over it.

And another one bites the dust

Madeleine lost her second tooth on Monday, this time at daycare. She was apparently eating Beanie Weenies when it came out and was pretty distressed. Not so much because it hurt, but because she was worried about swallowing it. Her teachers gave her a certificate for "first tooth lost at school," and she felt much better about it.

I'd had plenty of warning. I've been watching how the new teeth coming in have been shifting her bottom teeth all around. This tooth had been loose a few weeks, but got considerably more loose after jumping around at Monkey Joes on Sunday.

Neighborhood parents will be happy to note that this time the tooth fairy left $1, and Lily was not too disappointed to find that the tooth fairy didn't bring her money this time as well. She's anxiously pulling at her bottom teeth and telling me they'll come out soon, but they're still in there pretty tight.