You Should've Known It Would Come to This...

You bet I did. And I'll do it again, probably until she's five. The little lady rocks the piggies!

Puppy Back - Pack

Here is a roughly thrown together version of a child-size mei tei carrier. I first saw child-size carriers HERE (of course!) and Lukka was always trying to get me to tie a blanket around him and his puppy. We are big into "child-sized" over here so I thought, hey, why not! About 10 minutes later it was complete. It is very unattractive and like I said, thrown together, I think once the holiday season is over I will work on making him a really nice one! He loves to carry his puppy like this.

Can't Get Between Em'

Nothing comes between the men and their dogs. Nothin'. In case you can't tell, they're watching The Fox and the Hound together. Ahh, boys!

Tub Time X2!

We love to get two things done at once and this is no exception. Kids + bubble bath + toys = 30 min of enjoyable play, not to mention, squeaky clean bodies!

Nanners

Louie!

Book Review: Louie! by Will Hillenbrand

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Louie! was a really sweet little story about a little boy pig who just wanted to draw & paint pictures. When we first saw this at the library, I said, "A book called Louie! We have to read it" and Lukka (often called Lu-ey) obliged with a "yaaaa!"
I'm so glad we read this cute little story, the illustrations are absolutely wonderful. Crazy and colorful and put together like a child's Picasso.
There's even a surprise ending when we find out whose Louie's life is actually based on.
Hint: "In an old house in Paris that was covered in vines...."
Such a cute story, go to the library and check it out!

Nanners Outside

Little LadyBug, more commonly known as "Nanny" or "Nanners" loves to be outside. Sometimes she likes the stroller, more commonly she is found in the backpack.

Here she is listening to Louie play some music at the Arbor Day Farm's Tree Adventure wooden xylophone.

Eating a snack of cheerioes while contemplating Louie's amazing composition. :)

Playing with the natural wooden blocks. She was there for a good hour!

Hippie Guitar Player

The little man has enjoyed playing with Grammie's guitar, lately. Here I caught him strumming away, and no joke, I did not dress him up like that, he came up with that on his own!

Telling someone in the audience (Arjax) to "please be quiet I'm trying to sing a song!"

"Ah!" Caught on camera by a groupie.

In Review: Baby Animals by Gyo Fujikawa

Let me be the first to admit I Love vintage childrens' books! (Check this site: LOVE!) Baby Animals by Gyo Fujikawa is a board book I was always checking out for Lukka at the library, and now for Anikka, too. It has the sweetest pictures of children with baby animals, and from horses to elephants to monkeys, what's not to love?
This is a tall board book, with such great illustrations that I have thought a lot about buying it just for the sake of looking at the pictures for embroidery purposes!
A sweet story of treating animals kindly, while still enjoying their unique characteristics, this is one of my favorite all time 'baby' books! If you have little ones at home, go check it out!

Memorial Day Weekend

I know...I'm a bit late with these, but I couldn't not post them, since they are some of my favorite pictures of the summer!

Lukka nearing a Canadian goose. Kinda' fitting, I guess :)

Babies on the picnic blanket.

She loves to be outside!

Stefan doing a bit of dog training.

Crazy Baby!!

Here's a sweet look at Anikka and Dad! One of my favs. Also notice the earrings!

Look at all that crazy baby curly hair!

This one cracks me up--as if I caught her in a scandal!

Lu's first horse ride!

My best friend Emily owns horses, and she works at a number of ranches, too, riding for boarders who can't make it out during the week, and giving lessons. Yesterday she let us come out and see the babies, and gave Lu his first horse ride! On the way out, he saw all the horses outside eating and couldn't contain himself, "Horsies, Mommy! Horsie Snack (eating)!"

He loved every minute of it once he got over the preliminary jitters. This was just after we had the horse trotting, which was very fast for Lukka! The X-Small helmet was obviously too small for even him, just being a bit over 2, but I think this boy is a natural!

Zoo Days

One of our favorite activities is to walk down to the Lincoln Zoo when we have nothing to do. We have a family (+ 1) pass, so we can always bring a friend. On days where we need to get out but also need our activity to be free, this is the perfect solution. It is about 9 blocks away, and we can stay as short or as long as we want, since we don't "have to stay and get our money's worth". We got the dual Zoo + Museum pass for Christmas from my mom and I will be asking for that every year. We easily make up for it within the first few months of the year. And where else can you play in not one, but two giant sandboxes with free toys laying at your feet?

Ani's Christmas Sweater

Just starting...barely making headway on her's since Lukka's was made on size 11 needles (her's are on 2's!). This is the yarn next to the picture of the pattern I will be making for her. So simple and cute, and pics of Lukka's sweater coming soon!

In Review: We're Going On A Bear Hunt

In Review: We're Going On A Bear Hunt by Michael Rosenphotocredit



The book We're Going On A Bear Hunt, first published in 1989, just recently made its way into our hands from our small local library. I have heard about this book from many people, but if you can believe it, I have never read it! It is a treasure, and although we picked up an English/Vietnamese copy (it has been translated into 17 languages, I believe), the pictures were perfect in their whimsical way, and my little Bug loved the repitition of the story. Through woods, snowstorm, and river a family travels to find a bear, and find one they do!

A sweet story to read before bed, and a very inspirational book to have on hand when thinking of making something for little ones. I think the illustrations of books are my favorite part, and these will somehow make it into my sketchbook for ideas for a later date.

Go read!

Sibling Games

Lately Lukka has taken to building things like 'house' (s) for his trucks;

a house for his duck,

and of course, he also enjoys reading to his sister.

Who doesn't look so pleased when she gets left in the middle of a story for a better looking toy. Tough break, kid.

Baby Girl is 6 Months Old!

Hello, Peanut Lady, you sure are cute!

You are quite the character, you always crack me up with your funny facial expressions and absolute joy at being held by anyone you know! Not to mention, you love it when you are given a book. Ah, be still my heart!

Hello, World! Are you ready for this spunky girl?
Stats and Updates
Weight: 15 lbs 9 oz

Length: 26 1/4 in.

Likes: books, her big brother, cuddling, sleeping on her side, and getting warm baths!
Dislikes: any baby cereal, being hot (I hear that little Lady!), and being on her tummy for too long

In Review: The Snow Day

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The Snow Day by Komako Sakai

This was a sweet, simple story about a little one staying inside for the day because of snow. Although the story is very minimalist, the artwork is lovely to look at. Sketchy and patchy with color, it reminds me a a lot of the artwork of Suzy Lee, artist of WAVE, which I reviewed awhile ago. The story is also good for either gender, as the story is about a bunny, and one could guess as to if a boy or girl. The clothing and speech of the little one could really pass for either or, making this a great gift for a boy or a girl starting school or for a winter present.
Very few lines, the story is mostly told through the pictures, and it is well done. A cute read from the library, for sure

Do siblings actually play together?

I don't know, maybe they just play around each other.

She certainly looks tired of playing with him, at any rate.

So he leaves her and makes up his own game, ever seen that one before?