Becoming a powerful, capable, beautiful big girl

She's clearly got superpowers.

She had a successful first trip to the dentist.

And Mommy finally held her still long enough to brush that fine mane (thanks to the distraction of the Harry Potter movie she was watching and the help of a little Johnson & Johnson "pwaduct" made just for this tangle-fighting occasion).

Someday soon I will need to trim off that amazing curl at the bottom of her hair, because it tends to get kind of messy & stringy when not brushed out every 5 minutes. But I can't bring myself to do it yet -- it's a vestige of her babyhood, where her head rubbed a bald spot and her hair grew back in a natural flip.

Pastatarians

We had fun with the extruder again...

Aleaha sifts the flour while Miri ensures y'all know what a Tablespoon looks like.

They each work on the final hand-kneading process.

Miri feeds in the dough balls while...

...Aleaha cuts the spirals to length. Good teamwork, girls! (and yummy dinner, too)

Blogworthy! Aleaha tries new things...

Aleaha is our picky eater. She likes lots of veggies, fortunately, but only done certain ways (what, not tempura'd?? Whose kid is this - who turns down deep fried anything?). She was recently begging to try "real artichokes." So we steamed a few and had them with lemon butter. At first, she refused the butter, because it appeared to be way to closely related to a sauce, and everyone in the world knows she hates sauces. Then she took a Brave Bite and it rocked her world....

Harry Potter and the Fire-Breathing Dragon-Horse

The girls have been watching the Harry Potter movies, and they love to put spells on each other with improvised magic wands: Wingardium Leviosa!

 

 And here's our very own smoke-snorting dragon. (OK, so maybe it's just Shorty getting his teeth floated on a very cold day. But it's fun to pretend, especially under the influence of the Harry Potter series.)

Napping Beauty

She still needs her daily nap, but sometimes it's a little challenging to make it happen, whether due to the day's logistics or her desire to keep going with all the fun things she's doing. Convincing on this particular day was'nt simple, but she got herself comfy in her fleece sheets, and we ended up having to wake her up before she slept the whole afternoon away.

Busy Girls

We had a frosty weekend morning recently, so they bundled up in their Abomidable Snowman Gear and made some fun (sans actual snow) in the yard. Rolling was the trick of the day. It was also fun to play in the ice, until they learned how it sticks to knit gloves. And it's cold!

  

Later, Mom finally made good on the promise to set up the little kitchen and other assorted toys in the Playroom (which was being saved for use as a bedroom....there's really a bed in there somewhere). Sheesh - there is just too much stuff!  But they sure had a good time reacquanting with toys, and they actually played together for a  long time.


Check out the phone in Miri's back pocket. All yoga pants should have pockets for such needs, eh??

Hodge-podge

Seems to be a glitch in the photo upload process recently, so I'm not sure this will post properly, but we're trying anyway....


Miri was watching the moon each morning as it changed phase after being full. She pointed up and said, "Mom! The moon! But hey, what happened to the other half of it?"


Mommy took a big doggie (OK, not a doggie) for a walk up the hill, just for a little time together. This roany pony blends in well, camoflauged with all that dirt.


This is a close-up of one of the graphics in the wallpaper in the shop bathroom. It's got car- and highway-themed elements on it. This one in particular grabbed my attention the first time I saw it, months ago. It was providence. Friends from Pendleton will surely see why.


Cuties playing in the bathtub.


JuicyBear found a cozy place to hang out while Daddy smarted with his phone.

Christmas Review 2012

We had a little snow, but it came a week early and didn't stay. The only picture taken was from inside the car at Miri's school. Check out the big flakes!

My brother-in-law, Mike, checking out what's in the bar. We had some nice eats and great visitin'! Not enough picture-taking, but we'll see what GrammaBon got on her (film) camera.

This is my hastily-snapped proof that all 6 cousins were together on Christmas Day.  (We know this was Christmas Day, because Santa brought Miri the requested Spider Girl costume).

Took advantage of a little daylight time together for a chilly walk up the hill.

Thank you to Holly & Jon for the crowns...

...and books!!

Made homemade pizza one night, customized to each person's delight.

Non-sequitur shot....Arby has a weird affiliation with Spiffy. Or vice versa. Seems that Spiffy is no longer the Alpha Dog.

Burning up energy on the bikes.

Mt. Jefferson, directly to the east of the house. An unusually clear day made for some nice views during a New Year's Day walk on the hill.

Three Sisters.