A fine spring

  We have had such a lovely, full spring time. Weather has been perfect the last week but similar throughout, cool nights and mornings and warm during the day. We've been enjoying the outdoors so much and using every ounce of energy we've got from the time we wake until bed. 

  Emma finished her Little Bird preschool program last week with a sweet ceremony for the girls to share with their parents. We brought home a basket with some art from over the year, pictures, and a rolled beeswax candle which we made together. I'm so happy that she was a part of this program and with how much she has grown the last year. For us, the 2x mornings a week class was just right. Not too busy a week and just enough time apart. Emma is so much more interested in joining in games and activities with other kids or starting up new ones, and finding someone around her age to run around with at parks is easy and rewarding for her. She's also more focused, more verbal, amazingly bright. I believe all the reading aloud, discussing, and truly engaging is a huge part of it. Oh, I should add here, that after reading Charlotte's Web front to back between 15 and 20 times, we were able to go as a family to se a live performance of it at the Emelin theater in Mamaroneck. Patrick and I so enjoyed her enjoyment of the play! Bright eyes, big smile, and laughing out at the silly parts. Some times she couldn't contain her outbursts- she was really into it! She did notice some parts that differed from the novel, but still was totally engrossed by the performance. Also we've been reading aloud the Ingalls-Wilder series with Little House, and Laura and her families other adventures. We're on the 7th in the series and she has gained so much in inspiration for imaginary play and we've siezed so many opportunities to discuss different topics or vocabulary. It's so rewarding to us both. 

Anyway, Emma is looking forward to the week of camp she will be a part of next month, same place and time as her preschool and with some familiar faces.  I'm excited for her!

  Around the house it feels like I've got some free time, now that we've finished our kitchen renovation. Five months in the process but we can finally sit back and look at all the work we've done, no unpainted walls, uninstalled fixtures, or exposed wires staring us in the face. Emma and I spend a great deal in the kitchen between preparing meals and eating meals and cleaning up after meals,  or just having some quiet time at our new favorite table by the window. It's such a nice place to be. 

  And with that I'm being interrupted again, happily, by Emma who has completed her games with chalk and water and is ready for us to do something together. On a nice day like today we might get into one of our chapter books on the deck or just let imagination run free and see where it takes us. It's never dull!

Springing

My, it's been a while since I've posted. I think I've put it off again and again because I've gotten so far behind and have so much I'd like to add here but the idea of going back and sorting through the pictures, dealing with this awful blogging platform, recollecting events and getting it all arranged into a post is too daunting a task. 

I think it best I just move on!

So that brings us to the end of April. Leaves are beginning to coat the tree line in a green haze, our grass seed has put up tiny shoots, birds are frenzied in song every morning. We're lucky to sleep past 6 now that the sun rises earlier, though Emma still makes it to 630-7. We've been cleaning up and arranging inside the home but with the warm weather finally here I'm beginning to turn my gaze outdoors. We will (note: must!!) prepare the garden bed for planting in the next week and put the fencing back up. I'm looking forward to spending time there with Emma, my helper, watering, weeding, and just taking note on what is working and adjusting what isn't. 

  Emma is a few short months away from being Four. She's still as mild as ever; thoughtful, gentle, compassionate, and hardly ever starting an argument- even when I'm feeling she has the right to.  She's enjoying time at her preschool program, Little Bird, but I still get the feeling she thinks she'd rather be with me those mornings. It's good for both of us though. I've been working those mornings or getting some work done around the house without a whirlwind of toys and hugging and snack requests following behind me! Emma comes home with stories, art and crafts, or take home goodies to enjoy. Little Bird is exactly what I want in schooling for her at this age. 

On our days off we have been busy with errands and outings. We see our friends for plays and get togethers most weekdays most weeks, sometimes every day! We are so blessed to have a group of inspiring, motivated, and fun individuals to spend time with. Emma asks every day to play at a friends, have a friend over, what her friend is doing right now, or what they think about something. What a difference just a year has made in her social desires! She is just as happy to follow in play as she is to lead, often watching and asking questions about what others are doing.  Watching her and her friends play fills my cup.

And now for some recent pictures..

 Emma and her friends scaling the rockscapes in Depew. We go on a nature walk most Wednesdays with friends. 

Busy building.

At Little Bird working on her pinch pot.

Back on Alabama! Back in Feb.

PF Changs back in Feb.

Helping make the bed and fold laundry 😂

(Hopefully this gets the ball rolling again and we can move forward, Blog!)

Easy Mornings

I love our predictable mornings. Unchanging.

I love the light changing as we make and eat breakfast.

It beams into the room bright orange while Emma plays, and I wash the dishes.

Then I get changed upstairs while Emma jumps wildly on our bed... Then I help Emma get dressed downstairs.

After this we are ready for anything.

(But it is 10° right now so anything will have to be indoors until it warms up!)

Florida 12/16

From Tuesday to Tuesday we were in Florida visiting with my parents. We left with more than enough time before our flight, being all packed with no other plans I thought we may as well head to LGA early. Since we parked off the airport we had to take a shuttle to our terminal... Which was Emma's first "bus" ride!!

Unsure....

But excited!

Decent into Sarasota 

A visit to Siesta Beach the next morning

A bunch of this this visit :-)

Did some Christmas crafts while we were there. Christmas tree cutouts and decorating pine ones with CoCo.

Myakka River State Park trails 

Emma's first boat ride, an airboat on the Myakka River

The next day we spent some time with Jordan, and Emma got to meet...

Moose!! Emma couldn't get enough of this friendly little rat. 

So happy seeing my daughter and close friend bonding :-)

The morning after this was Tuesday, and nearly time for us to head home. 

A trip to our favorite park after breakfast, Emma and CoCo riding a creature. (Emma may have said it is something other than a Caterpillar but I don't remember) 

One last hug and tote for Pilot... What a good cat!

SRQ airport was a breeze to go through.. We had a lot of space waiting for our flight and got comfy once on board. As soon as the plane started moving, even before getting to the strip, Emma said "I'm just resting!" sitting straight with closed eyes. They stayed closed until landing!

Looking more comfy, and very tired after a very full visit.

Best day ever

The subject is misleading. These "best days" keep coming! Yesterday however was absolutely perfect. We took a trip to the Bear Mountain Zoo, called Trailside wildlife refuge. The sky was like a blue topaz gem above, sun shining on the golden leaves making them glow. 65° with a pleasant breeze. Had the zoo nearly to ourselves! Quiet enough to stop and chat with the keepers as they carried out the morning work. Saw red foxes, a porcupine, a opossum, birds of prey and many other native animals that are unable to be released into the wild.  Just when I thought "this is a good trip!" It got better: breathtaking view of the Hudson bathed in fall foliage, the sun flecking us through a lacy maple, the impressive bridge reaching across the river and the light like glitter on the water. I felt absolutely blissful standing there, taking it in. Emma eventually pulled me back to reality and we continued our walk through the zoo. She was a little confused by the huge collection of native bird and rodent taxidermy and I dodged the question, "are they real or pretend animals?" She was interested in the animals skulls and we could see the difference between a rodents teeth and that of a carnivore.  

After our visit we had leftover soup and bread sitting at the foot of a mountain with great dark clouds rolling in over the top and growing right before is. We finished lunch just as a ran shower started and made the drive home, both satisfied with our spontaneous outing. 

And the only pictures I got from the whole day, because my phone battery was completely used up by the time we arrived, were these from the scenic overlook off the side of the road. We stayed for about ten minutes watching cloud shadows ramble over the mountains, a cargo train sliding along, and a hard working tugboat pulling a barge. Stunning scenery. Way out in the distance I pointed out an eagle, thinking it was the white tail we were seeing as it flew along, and Emma and I jumped for joy! I didn't have the heart to tell her once I realized it was just a gull!

Eagle or not, it was a fantastic morning we shared. 

Growing Creativity

Emma has been rhyming a lot lately and singing songs... And usually they are songs that make sense and with real words! Occasionally she will fill in the end of a line with some repeating mumbles that happen to rhyme, but yesterday she impressed me with a full stanza relevant to what she was working on. 

Which was this lovely nest for her ducks:

"Daddy duck came in one night,

Laid in his bed and looked at the sight.

Mommy duck had a room beside 

his where a baby duck was lied."

So sweet!

And this morning Emma played with her food.. using plastic sticks from edible arrangement fruit to stick into a melon slice, turning it into 

-someone jumping through puddles 

-a plane, a running plane 

-a plane with a fanned out tail

She also said the plane has an extra wing so if one falls off and breaks it has a new one. A little knowledge of nature sneaking in there, I think- she's fascinated that spiders and crabs can grow new legs if they lose one. 

On the 16th we will be heading to Canada.. Can't wait to fly with this girl and explore airports again, then spend ten days with beloved family. Gotta take it all in and be present in the moments spent together. 

Winnipeg, September 2015

Queen of the sky

We had such a wondeful visit to Winnipeg Sept 16-26. Emma flew like she does it every day, loved watching plains and carts at the airport, and was patient and pleasant the whole trip up. 

We stayed with family and got to visit with nearly everyone I was hoping to see. We even got to see Uncle Sean and one of his bands play! 

Staying with my relatives, the Szymanskis was very comfortable for Emma and I. She enjoyed playing outside (especially making puddles!) or chatting with Misia. 

Flashback:

My dad and I brought Emma to Assiniboine park, breezed through the children's play area (highlight: tomato garden) also checked out the conservatory and walked through the English gardens. What a delight sharing that with my daughter and my dad 

Here is Emma and CoCo going on a ride in Kildonen Park. What a beautiful afternoon to be there! There's more to be done at Kildonen but Emma was wearing out. Next time.. maybe next time we will even visit the witches house. ^^

Emma couldn't get enough of this rock with a low area that held water just perfectly. So many opportunities for imaginative play! 

Cricket

...and Raven paw! Emma is still talking about these cats. 

Emma and Misia

Emma actually fell asleep on the flight from Toronto to LGA so it was a quiet time to reflect for me. It's so different every time in in Winnipeg. Different times in my life, as with my family and friends. People and places changing and growing. I love going and seeing what it is that's different; something on the outside, or is it something within me? Then, returning home, we fall back into our own rhythm.

(Not so effortlessly this time around but we're adjusted now!)