A playtime story - by Robin

 I was very busy playing with toys.  I was trying to get the elephant to pop up.  That one is tricky. 

But then I had to stop. I had to poop. 

It was funny.  So I made pooping sounds. 

Developmental milestone #687

Self administered haircut. 

2 of 2 Erin Stories

In her words:

"Mama, I made some technology.  I tried to make a project.  I taked the hose, take a turkey baster I turned on the water and I taked the hose and connected it to the turkey baster.  So, what I did next is I taked some tape from the garage and then I taped the turkey baster to the hose.  I turned on the water next, and I wanted to see if there was any water coming out, so I could give medicine to Cuckaduh.  But it didn't work."




Apparently, this experiment was based on something she saw on Curious George.  Not entirely sure what the outcome was supposed to be, but she never quite got there.  Oh, and Cuckaduh is her imaginary friend.

1 of 2 Erin Stories

(Robin has plucked tomato leaves from the plant and is turning them into confetti.)

A: Sweetheart, no touch!  Those leaves are poisonous! They'll hurt us.  Let's not pick those ones.

E: mama, are tomato leaves poison?

A: Yes, sweetheart, but not the fruit.

E: So the tomatoes are OK to eat?

A: Yes, that's right.

E: So.... what's the chemistry of that?

Fashion Friday - Wanna be a Cowgirl

This outfit is *all* Erin.  It began with the shirt, then skirt, then pigtails, then by finding the cowboy boots in the garage.  But what really ties it together is the skull bracelet.  That's my little Cowgirl!

Angel Island Camping - August 2011

We did it!  We backpacked for 2 nights with an almost-4 year old and 18 month old.  Before the trip, I was questioning our sanity, but it was quite an easy introduction to non-car camping.

We took the ferry from Tiburon to Angel Island.  The grown-ups anticipated carrying the gear and having Erin in the Bob stroller, Robin in the Ergo in a front-carry.  It was MUCH easier, however, to cart all the gear in the stroller and hoist the kids.  Erin even figured a new way to ride in the stroller, atop the canopy, and imagined herself to ride a horse named "Lala" all weekend.

Our site was remote (heck, there's only 10 on the island), and was a bit windy, but we had incredible views of the East Bay.  The evening/morning fog kept temperatures kind, and pesky wildlife was limited to a few raccoons.

We hiked about the island, checking out this historical sites, including the West Coast's Ellis Island equivalent and an army base used throughout WWII.  It was sobering to have such crumbling monuments nearly next door to where we live. We ended the day with a hike to the top of the island, Mt. Livermore.  Perfectly clear weather permitted a spectacular 360 view of the bay area, complete with the picturesque San Francisco skyline, the Golden Gate, Richmond, Berkeley (we could see the UCB campanile!), Tiburon and more.

This was the 3rd summer camping trip so the girls were total camping pros.  But backpacking limited the gear (toys, books, etc) we could bring.  The girls did just fine, making up lots of fun games and being generally energetic and silly. Plus, they got to eat SPAM.  I think there will be more backpacking in the future!

Of course, there were TONS of pictures.  And movies.  But pictures for now:

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It started much earlier than I thought

Today Erin expressed displeasure at the wondrous red curls that grace her head. Curls that many people pay lots of good money for.  Curls that spontaneously happen, full of energy, élan and intensity.  So, like any good mother of an almost 4-year-old, I busted out the straightening iron. 

With questionable results.  Erin was happy with the "smooth" texture of her hair.  I won't speculate too much on her impetus behind the statement that she hated her curls and wanted to find a way to change it, although it may have a little to do with how ev.er.y.one. who sees her exclaims how wondrous her curls are. Or maybe it's that her BFF has straight hair.  Who knows.  I know that we all harbor things we'd like to change about ourselves.  I'm not gonna worry about hair.  I'll listen to that, and maybe she'll let me in on other things, as they arise.