Tuesday, June 30, 2015

Dear Kaity-girl is THREE ...

Yesterday was Kaity's third birthday. She is a dreamy little child … I could look at her forever, I think, and not grow tired of her little face. A few friends were invited over to her house to eat cake and celebrate last night, and I was very glad to be one of them! HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Kaity!
I took a few pictures of her opening the presents that I gave her, but wasn't happy enough with how they turned out to include them here. Toys R Us had a sale on Melissa & Doug toys, so I got Kaity some nice alphabet mini-wooden puzzles, lacing animals, a ballerina doll with magnetic clothes, and another cool puzzle with little doors that open up. Emma is going to keep these "valuables" on the top shelf of her closet upstairs so that when she is babysitting Kaity, they can play these together--Emma is very good at keeping track of toy parts so that they don't get lost. Well, at least that is our plan!
 Kaity and I took a little stroll around her nice yard all the way from her back steps to her front porch ...
 … and then she took off running … she is happiest while running … she practically flies ...
 … she is like a little pixie … or a faery … or a magical tiny princess … 
 … barefoot … she runs in the shadows … with her own shadow close by ...
 … I had a hard time keeping pace with her!

 Isn't she something?

 Kaity likes to pose for my camera ...

 … and always wants to see the pictures afterwards … ah, the digital age is good for something!
 She is a fairy of the woods … tiptoeing lightly, smiling, and happy ...
 And THEN she really got happy on her swings! I asked her if she knew how to swing on her tummy and she showed me just exactly how high she can fly when she does this!


 You are a sweetie-pie, Kaity-girl!

 The marks on her face are leftover chocolate birthday cake … it was really yummy too.


I love you sweet, Kaity. It was SO much fun playing with you tonight. I am thankful God has let me be your grandma!

Mostly zoo pictures ...

The John Ball Zoo is such a nice place to visit! Last Sunday, the grandkiddos and I decided to take a picnic of snacks and go play for a little while with the budgies and the stingrays--the two favorite sites for us at the zoo.
Emma is a natural with animals. She would like to be a veterinarian when she grows up. She is very gentle and patient with animals and they seem to know this about her. She was the best at getting the budgies on her feed stick. They came to her every time!


Matthew loves these birds too. I love the interaction all of the children get to experience in this huge cage.

Isn't it great to see these guys enjoying these birds?
Christopher too! He loves animals and he is very good with them.



I just love these pictures of everyone's happy faces.

It is a little more difficult to film them at the stingray pool--and it was overly crowded there Sunday. The weekends are always busy at the zoo. But it was still fun to see the rays and touch their soft skin.


Below is the "baby" ray that everyone dotes on. Isn't she lovely?
The boys are great at this pool. They are not afraid at all and really enjoy touching these cool creatures.




When we returned to my house, we played games, we ate a nice taco meal, we studied Moses and the Red Sea crossing (such a great story!), and we played magnets. I got a bunch of nice pictures of the kiddos all "sharing" the magnets.









I will try to do a better job on the narrative … at a later time. I am too tired tonight!