Power struggles, tea parties, eagles and puddles

Power struggles
Oh, Lucas. I am crazy crazy crazy about Lucas. He is sooooo not the silent 3rd child, quite the opposite in fact. He's bright, articulate, talkative, highly imaginative, inquisitive, feisty, fiercely independent, stubborn, strong-willed, opinionated, super affectionate and snuggly, Elmo-loving, choo-choo-train loving, book-loving, music-loving and never one to be left out of anything EVER. The other day he told me he's the "hugest herbavore ever and is going to eat every leaf on my bush." I love every ounce of him.
But at 2 1/2, we have encountered a new round of power struggles; I thought these had subsided months ago, but they have resurfaced. I know it comes with the territory of establishing independence, but it can be challenging. And he can be SO STUBBORN. I'm thankful he's still in a crib, because timeouts have been a frequent occurence as of late. And then that side of him comes out. The one where I wonder where my darling lovebug has gone. But fortunately he always returns, after making certain his feelings have been made known.

Tea parties
Isabel wanted to invite her friend Kyla over one day last week for a tea party. It wasn't a formal affair, more of a playdate wherein they got to pour juice from a little teapot and eat a bunch of cookies. I agreed, and she and I baked sugar cookies with red, pink and white sprinkles, washed her tea set, and invited Kyla over. Fairly routine. But what I found amusing was how she planned for the afternoon. Turns out, she's a true party planner extraordinaire! She turned an old birthday card she found into a "list" wherein she "wrote" a list of events for the girls to do at the tea party; this included painting, dancing, singing, playing her Princess computer, eating cookies and juice, wearing jewels, prettiness (her term for putting on lotion and makeup), taking a nap (a 4-second rest where they each snuggled a Care Bear), and a movie. She literally consulted her list before moving on to each new activity and checked it off when it was done. And she had gathered up a bunch of her jewelry and had some set aside for herself, and some for Kyla. Miss Organization, if I do say so myself. I was telling my mom about her planning abilities, and my mom said that is EXACTLY what I used to do. Like mother like daughter, I guess!

Isabel deemed the tea party "exquisite" - she is really into big words, I had no idea she even knew that one. And during the party she asked me if I have any ladyfingers. What the heck? Where did she hear about ladyfingers? Had to tell her unfortunately I was fresh out of ladyfingers. Next time, I guess.

The party was an organized success, there was much giggling and almost everything got checked off the list. They were so delighted to be able to pour juice from the teapot, they must have had 5 or 6 teacups full each. It was entertainment at its finest. Isabel is my heart's delight.

Pictures for my parents, playing with the dollhouse they gave Isabel for Christmas-

Enjoying the treats-
Eagles
I have never seen bald eagles in the Colorado wild in the 10+ years I've lived in Colorado until today, when two large bald eagles landed and sat for a bit in the field right behind our house. It was so cool! I couldn't believe it when I first saw them; I got so excited and started yelling for Brian to come and see them. Isabel got to see them, but the boys were busy playing in the basement and by the time they came upstairs, the birds had flown away.

Puddles
What it is with kids and puddles? Whatever the appeal, puddles provided a nice way to burn some wet, splashy time and energy on a Saturday afternoon.