Did you know that Grace's hair is the color of fallen leaves?
Travelingjenny
Navigating the hilly terrain of motherhood
about
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The other morning, Maggie was resting quietly at the bottom of the stairs, and Tess decided to sit with her. She gave me a running commentary of what the dog was doing: "Eyes closed. Mah-my sleeping… Oh, eyes open now! Mah-my hungry!" So then Tess proceeded to prepare her a snack — three pieces of pizza and three drinks. Apparently, the sweet dog was really hungry. Lucky for us, she's really patient, too.
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"Do Not Enter Unless Letting Grace Know"That's right, people, this is Grace's world, and we are all just lucky to be guests here.
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Ta-da!! Upon returning home from our morning outing, Grace went to the coop to check for eggs. And much to her surprise, she actually found one. It was on the ground in front of the coop — not in the nest box, or even inside the coop — but I figure that's better than being laid under a bush or in the woods. We assume that Sally laid it, (don't ask why, chicken farmers just know these things), and in the photo below, you can see Grace congratulating her. It's a beautiful egg— nicely shaped, brown with a few little white spots — but it does have a puncture mark, like maybe someone pecked at it. But we don't care — it's OUR egg, from OUR own chicken, and now, besides just being fun to watch, those critters are finally starting to earn their keep!
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It is a now a tradition for us to get ice cream at Toots on the last day they are open each year (as well as on the first day!). So on Sunday, we donned our fleece jackets and headed out for a sweet treat, and said goodbye to our animal friends. This summer, Tess went from happily eating whatever I ordered for her, to always requesting her favorite flavor ("M&M" = chocolate chip) — and from being afraid of the pigs to finding them totally hilarious. She also now insists on visiting the "neigh-neigh." Grace become very adventurous, ordering — by herself — a different flavor each time (but always in a cone, with rainbow sprinkles). I will very much miss the fun we always have together at Toots, and I'll especially miss the late-afternoon distraction. I'll even miss the resulting sugar high, and the song-and-dance routines that invariably accompany it! The good news is, Toots will still be there next year, and you can bet we will be, too!
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The other day, Tess was quietly playing by herself — lining up dominoes in her typical, orderly fashion — when the hurricane known as Grace came swirling (literally) into the room…
As you can see, Tess remained unfazed by this distraction. Clearly, she is already developing the skills necessary to survive life with Grace. I think she'll be just fine. -
Every time Grace has come home from her friend Elyse's house lately, she has asked me why Elyse's bedroom is so much more fun than hers. Clearly it is because Elyse has a frilly, girly dress-up kit in her room, complete with fairy wings and magic wands. Of course, I would love for Grace and her friends to play quietly in her room for many minutes at a time without adult intervention — so I got her a fairy dress-up kit, too. Needless to say, she likes it.
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Princess Parsley. She is a sweet, 10-week-old "lionhead" bunny. We adopted Parsley this morning from the animal shelter in Kennebunk, where our friend Kerrie works. Parsley is Grace's very early birthday present — we fell in love with her photo online, so we had to adopt her before someone else did! Our little animal lover had been begging for a kitty for many months, but since Adam and I (and Maggie) are not cat people, we consistently turned her down. Recently she had the idea of getting a bunny (okay, maybe it wasn't all her idea) — a pet she can keep in her room, and take care of (mostly) herself. In other words, her very own pet. And visiting the animal shelter to adopt a homeless bunny made a big impression on this future animal rescuer. But not to worry, we won't be heading to the shelter again anytime soon — our menagerie is complete (for now, at least).
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All of our recent visitors were very interested in seeing the chickens. Of course, Grace was more than happy to show them off. The chickens seem to really like her, and they often approach her when she walks outside. They also willingly (at least sometimes) let her pick them up, and they are still and quiet while she holds them and talks to him. This kid really does seem to have a special bond with animals — I will not be at all surprised if she actually becomes an "animal rescuer," as she so firmly believes she will.
Travelingjenny 