Artist colony

Painting on the lawn. (L and E)


Elsa and her watercolors.


Elsa works in chalk, too. (or should I say pastels). You can see she takes it seriously.

We've been having fun with art projects. Paint, drawing and playdough can keep the girls very amused.

I can't believe how charmed I am by this age. The Nearly Three stage is so much fun. What I love best is all the chattering. Lily and Elsa are constantly talking from the moment they get up in the morning until they fall asleep. Even after they go to bed we hear them talking to each other. (In related cuteness, Lily has taken to calling Elsa "sis" and they've started walking around in public holding hands). There's still lots of tantrums and fighting. But it is much less mysterious then when they were babies because they narrate the entire time. "I'm sad/grumpy/hungry/frustrated. Sissy hurt my feelings." Today Elsa told me "Mommy, I'm feeling cranky today." They are getting really good at using their words. The one side effect of their good verbal skills is that they are very demanding. They are still learning that just because they can ask for a specific thing does not mean we will give it to them. So, we're working really hard on good manners.

Example from this morning:
Elsa~More pancakes!
Mom-What? I did not understand you. How do we ask nicely?
Elsa~ PLEASE!!! (more with a scream than a smile).
Mom~ Here you go. Now what do you say? (Hoping for a thank you).
Elsa~ Syrup!