We've been doing a lots of crafts and activities around here, or at least more than we've ever done. Honestly, I have so many things to post about. It's awesome! I've enjoyed doing these things with Holly. Sometimes things can get a little out of hand and the activity is cut short, but overall it's been good and fun. It's nice to blog about it too since there's no one to give me a Momma raise or a pat on the back. Heck, somedays I'd happily take a gold star.

This activity is based on Montessori. I want to do more Montessori learning with my girls. There's stuff out there on the internet, books and a huge bonus to me, my sister-in-law, Allison, is a Montessori preschool teacher. She's given me a ton of tips and ideas. Our first activity was simple and when I first put it out for Holly I honestly questioned whether she'd like it or not because to me it seemed so simple. I'm happy to report that it was a huge hit! Holly played for 45 minutes straight and would've played longer, but we had to go someplace. The activity is moving beans from one bowl (left to right in prep for reading), with a spoon. That's it. I bet you have the supplies at home right now. Holly added her own little twist by getting a ladle. And Greta got in on the fun too. The girls have "played beans" a few times since and it definitely has not lost its sizzle. Repetition, repetition is key for toddlers. As always, let me know if you try any of these activities that I post about.

In our new apartment, there's no washer or dryer. But at the bottom of the stairs there's a small laundry room. And while I prefer having those appliances in my home, it's not been nearly as inconvenient as I thought it would be. In fact, it's not really inconvenient at all. And perhaps one perk is that because they're coin operated, I needed a coin purse. So I made one. And I love it.

You can find the tutorial for this self-zipping Tetrahedron coin purse here.

Holly has been begging for a bike for the past few months. She would ask for one every single day. This month, we finally got her one. It's been so fun to see her ride it! We have a great common-area porch right outside our door and we're the only ones who use it! Holly loves her bike, and she loves her "telmet." Also, her high socks kill me. Holly is so stinking cute.

Baby Henry is so handsome. I'm so glad he's finally here!

Shortly after we moved in to our newest place, I finally did something I've been meaning to do for ages, and that's lay a couple coats of chalkboard paint on the girls' table. It's an ikea kids' table, but we found it for $4 (+ a chair) at a thrift store back when we lived in Denver. Holly helped me with the first coat, which she loved and she's so proud of her little self. 

Then, when it had dried for long enough, the girls were each given a piece of chalk. And golly miss Molly! I could not handle the mess. They scribbled and then rubbed it with their hands. I was envisioning drawing map-like illustrations, you know roads and trees. But the girls just went wild. And all the sudden my cute, clever idea was much less cute and clever. And while chalk wipes up easily, my children don't seem to wash it off their hands and arms before they go and touch seemingly everything. So maybe we'll just look like cool and trendy parents and never hand our children chalk indoors.