First thing this morning Miss G desperately wanted to go out in the solarium to play with one of her sensory bins. It was chilly{ish} out and she was only wearing a onesie, so I told her that she had to put some clothes on first. She ran off, returning not a moment later wearing this:
I love this crazy little lady to bits.
♥
Admittedly, I am the very last person in the world to jump on the Instagram wagon. In my defense, I’ve actually had the app for a really long time, but just kind of randomly started using it the other day. I’ve been having so much fun with it that I’ve kind of put my real camera aside for the last couple of days, but I promise that’ll come to an end very soon. In the meantime, here is some of our day via Instagram…
steamed milk stop // making music
tunnel crawling // canadian girl
gracen to the rescue // frogs like to smell flowers too
clover // newly organized
apple store visit // soup for dinner
♥
P.S. Find me on Instagram at jkossowan.
Despite the weatherman’s prediction of a sunny day, in true Vancouver style, we woke up a healthy dose of liquid sunshine this morning. Instead of putting our plans on hold though, Gracen and I decided to throw on our gumboots, brave the rain, and head down to Granville Island for the Vancouver International Children’s Festival as planned. And I’m glad we did. Gracen really enjoyed the Twist & Toddle activity tent, as well as the shadow puppetry tent, face painting station, and the musical performances, and the rain really didn’t bother us in the least. I’m looking forward to attending again next year when more of the activities are age-appropriate for this little lady…
puzzle play // water table fun
firefighter Grae to the rescue // mama’s baby bird
colouring // shadow puppetry (Grae was the fish)
face painting pro // sweet cheeks
lunch in the rain // puddle jumping
♥
If you’re a Vancouver mama heading down to the festival to partake in the activity zones, be sure to bring cash, as that’s the only form of payment accepted. Also, something to be aware of is that everyone has to pay to enter the activity areas, including mamas supervising their little ones and the teeniest of infants, which is a little unusual.
Today was a work day for this mama… And although I really do like the the teaching part, I sure do miss my little lady while I’m away. Luckily, a classroom of 25 to 30 students keeps me more than busy for most of the day, but some days I just wish I could snap my fingers, avoid the {sometimes slow / stressful} commute, and arrive at home to soak up more moments like these…
mini cleanaholic // rolling machine
making cookies // chocolate play dough chocolates
bath time mohawk // bedtime stories with baby
♥
Without thinking, I put some apple slices and grapes on Gracen’s plate next to her hot cereal this morning. Harmless, right? Well, the moment I set it down in front of her, she started jamming the two together while announcing, “Apple – car! Apple – car! Apple – car, pleasche, Mamaaaaa!” I should’ve known… They are one of her all-time favourite snacks after all. So out came a piece of spaghetti, and in no time the little lady had a fleet of cars to zoom around her plate. Of course, she drove each one for a few seconds and then promptly disassembled them. Then it was on to feeding Num (a.k.a. a tiny Hello Kitty figurine that she carries around everywhere). Breakfast as usual with our little monkey.
Today’s play gym visit was all about Frog. Everything that Gracen did, Frog did. Come to think of it, Kermit probably had a better time than Grae because she used many of her turns to send him down the slide, help him jump on the trampoline, and push him on the plasma cars. 
Of course, when Grae went potty, so did Frog (ew…public washrooms and stuffed creatures – don’t worry – he didn’t touch a thing!) and when Gracen waved goodbye to play gym and all of the kids and toys, so did he. What a silly little doodle I have on my hands.
When Grandma Sue was in town last, Gracen got the sweetest little package filled with pretty purple tops, a belt, and a new pair of jeans (of course the sparkly purple kitty belt is her ULTIMATE favourite). So when we tried her jeans on for the first time this morning, I snapped a couple of quick photos to send to “manmaw”. Little did I know that we had a little model on our hands!
This afternoon we put the finishing touches on our garden beds… We’ve got zucchini, spaghetti squash, peas, beets, spinach, lettuce, beans, edamame, carrots, strawberries, dill, rosemary, chives, cilantro, basil, citronella, sunflowers, nasturtiums and a black thumb to man the show after Grandma Charlotte departs tomorrow morning (wish me luck). But the best part? This little outdoor-loving munchkin has her very own pumpkin patch along our fence. Today she planted the seeds and throughout the spring and summer, she’ll shower them with water and love in hopes of a bright orange pumpkin come Halloween…
If anyone can make it happen, it’s definitely this magical little girl. ♥
Cruisin’ through Home Depot…
Digging.
‘What should I do with this big rock?’
‘Meet Mama worm.’
‘Here’s the Papa!’
Miss G’s worm family.
Tired of yard work. Taking the Kia for a spin instead.
And tickled pink about it.
With the help of Grandma Charlotte and Uncle Brett, we got started on our garden this morning…
Gracen was designated the official worm collector of the team.
Of course Miss G wasn’t scared in the least. In fact, each was declared a ‘mama’, ‘papa’, or ‘bubba’ and she was quite distraught when we released them back into the soil.
Apparently routines are just as important for baby dolls as they are for our little baby doll.
First off, Bubba’s bath.
Then story time.
Next up: A pre-bedtime potty break.
And then into bed it is!
The funny part is that this was all Grae. I was in the bathroom getting drying my hair when she came in urgently saying, “Bubba!” and then signing ‘bath!’ on repeat. After Baby was squeaky clean, she then took it upon herself to make sure Bubba got a story and a pee in before I later found her in Grae’s crib, snuggled up with a blanket and all. I think we may have a little mommy on our hands…
Gracen’s latest outfit creation… I think we’re ready to head out for the day, don’t you?
Classic fruit and veggie shopping with Grae.
At last.
Today Gracen came out of her bedroom with her bathing suit around her neck saying, “Pool! Pool!” Perhaps she wants to go swimming?