Easter 2011

Easter was a 2-day affair this year. On Saturday we decided to go to the zoo for their Egg-stravaganza event. We did not anticipate that the line to get in would be a mile long. See the building waaaaay up there? That's where you enter the zoo.

Luckily it went really fast and once inside, the crowds magically disappeared. Also, due to lack of organization, we were able to nab a pic with the Easter Bunny after only a couple kids. Topher wanted to sit on his lap, but once there he was obviously a little curious about it. He would not look at the camera but rather just kept looking up at the gigantic rabbit. This was the first time he has sat on any character's lap, ever, including Santa.

Then it was a trek through the jungle...

A peek at the big cats....

A pretend excursion into the wilds to rescue the cats from poachers...

A daring romp through the playground...

Followed by daddy...

And finally a look at hundreds of hungry koi.

The Easter egg hunt at the zoo was incredibly lame (sorry zoo, but you gotta step up your game a little.) There was an open field full of thousands of eggs. The kids got to run in and pick up 10 eggs. They were all empty. Then the kids dumped their eggs into "return" containers on their way out and got a stamp on their hand. That's it. Not even a piece of candy! I kept laughing at all the kids walking through the zoo with Easter baskets in hand. What were they going to carry out?

That night Sheila needed some attention and Topher begged her to come in the bath with him. We compromised by giving him the tail end to "wash."

Once everyone was dry, Topher got to hold her for real. He is fearless and always goes straight for her head.

The Easter bunny visited Saturday evening and brought Topher the movie Cars, some Cars toys, and some new Elmo swim trunks (he starts his Water Babies class with daddy on Tuesday!) Aside from church, he hasn't taken off his Elmo trunks in two days now. And we've watched Cars three? four? times already. Good job, Easter Bunny.

Sunday was church and I was proud when I asked Topher, "Who do we think about on Easter" and he answered, without pause, "Jesus." I am very grateful for a knowledge of Christ and for having a family that loves Him and follows Him. Easter is such a beautiful, beautiful holiday.

After church we went to TJ's parent's house, where Topher had an egg hunt.

And got a Curious George movie from the Easter Bunny.

Then daddy showed him how to ride down the big hill in the wagon. Topher is such a daredevil. He laughs the whole way down, even as he is on the verge of tipping right over.

Happy Easter to all!

--kc

The Story of the Puppy and the Kitty

I know this video is dark and a little long, but Topher is starting to create his own stories, and I just love seeing where his mind goes. I LOVE this age (minus the tantrums). It's so much fun to talk to my son and watch him draw and hear what he's thinking about. He's an amazing little man. --KC

Knitting This Week

Actually some of these projects were done awhile ago, but I never posted pictures of them. These slippers were my first attempt at felting (fulling) which is where you knit something in a wool yarn and then wash it in hot water until the fibers all shrink and fuse together, becoming felt. These slippers were so nerve-wracking to make. My heart was literally hammering as I finished the last row and tried to see how this thing was going to become something recognizable. Seriously, sometimes knitting could go on a cardio workout list. I ended up loving them so much I tried to make another pair, but I botched those. So instead, I cut them up and used them to make the little flowers for this pair. I made these for my mother-in-law's birthday. Then my friend wanted some slippers for her friend's daughter, who was turning one. I tried a new pattern and the slippers ended up huge, so I had to modify it to get them shrunk down to size, but it worked out in the end. Then I added a matching headband so it would be more of a gift set. The slippers got some non-slip tread sewn on and then they were finally toddler-ready. After that, I dove into my yarn stash and decided to use up a bunch of chunky blue yarn by making another baby blanket. I threw in some stripes for fun.

I also kept seeing this "ball-band" pattern online and I finally decided to try it out just to see if I could. I guess I can. Regina, I was thinking in cool colors this might make a fun throw pillow because it looks like little bricks.

After that, I tried my hand at a golf club cover.

Then because I know about 6 people who are about to have babies, I started making some gift sets. This is my first one consisting of a bib and booties.

And finally when I saw this bunny hat pattern, I knew I had to try it. Here it is with floppy ears...

And then with the ears knotted.

It's a newborn hat so we couldn't fit it on Topher's big melon, but this stuffed cat was happy to model for me.

That's it for now. If you come across something you'd like me to attempt, just give me shout. As always, happy knitting!

--KC

Band-Aid

Not a whole lot has gone on this week. The usual babysitting, knitting in my free time, reading in any free time I can find beyond that, and trying to keep Topher's endless energy expended.

We were able to go to the park several times this week. Topher always rides there in his wagon or stroller, but coming home is a different story. He must pull the wagon or push the stroller all by himself the entire way. It's at least half a mile home. Do not offer to help him. He's two. He's perfectly capable of this impossible task. And it only takes about an hour to get back, so just chill out, mom. And don't walk so close to him. He's not a baby, after all.

The other day we were all walking home like this (at a snail's pace) and Topher kept pushing the stroller ahead of himself and then running to catch up. And several times he would miss a step and land hard on his right knee. It was an awful thing, watching him fall over and over and land in exactly the same way each time. But to his credit, he didn't shed a single tear. He's a tough little boy. By the time we got home, his knee was minus a few layers of skin (in a few different places) and we decided to give him a band-aid. Besides vaccinations, we have never put a band-aid on this kid, can you believe that?

You should have seen the way he wrinkled his forehead and breathed heavily as though we were performing some major surgery. You should have seen the look of determination on his face that he was going to be brave about this whole situation. You should have seen him try to stand up and then walk as though he was maimed because this strange thing was on his knee. Well, true to 2-year-old form, he's now a little obsessed with his band-aid. He wants me to change it once a day and he wants to inspect his scab each time to make sure it's getting better.

I know as he gets bigger, I won't be able to slap a band-aid on everything and fix it all so easily. But for right now I can. And it's lovely.

--KC

At the farm...

My in-laws have a home and a lot of land out in the country and this past weekend we gathered there with TJ's family to celebrate his mom's birthday.

Over the weekend, Topher kept us highly entertained. First he found a Mickey Mouse hat that TJ got when he was a kid at Disney World, and he wouldn't take it off all morning:

Then he surprised me with how gentle he could be around his new cousin, Miles. He showed Miles the many features of his bouncy chair...

And even gave him a big-cousin kiss. My heart melted, of course.

Miles is getting so big! It was fun to hold him (and even more fun to hand him back to mom whenever he would cry because you know I can be a big baby-phobe.) Here's the handsome guy with TJ's mom. (How can grandmas always make babies fall asleep?? It's a gift I hope to possess one day.)

And when grandma got a new gardening hat for her birthday, Topher traded in Mickey and became Amish instead. I LOVE this picture.

Later, Miles got a kitchen-sink bath. He quickly covered himself when he saw me whip out my camera. Such a modest little fellow.

Meanwhile, in the shed, TJ gave Sassy a bath and Topher thought it was pretty funny to see her all wet like that. She has been smelling like oatmeal shampoo ever since and we all love to bury our noses in her thick, polar-bear coat. Then, because there are acres to run on, Topher did just that. I hear there was a Topher/Miles photo shoot that happened while TJ and I took a quick trip into town, but I haven't seen all the photos yet. I do know that Topher kept his arm around Miles the whole time, though. The weekend was fun, relaxed, and lovely. Happy birthday to an amazing mom, mother-in-law, and grandma! --KC