Work Day

This morning Daddy put the girls to work before they were even out of their pajamas or ate breakfast. It was for their room so they were excited to help. He put up an organizing system in their closet so Emily's clothes can be up high and Lily's clothes can be down low. Emily put in the hanging rods and Lily put in the clips to hold the shelves.

Then after breakfast, the six of us went to the shop just as we do most Saturdays. Instead of cleaning or working we went hiking in the woods behind the shop. Our total property equals 3.91 acres of beautiful woods that a creek borders on one side. Only a small portion is used for the business. We are planning to build a home on the property since we already own it we might as well go ahead and use it. It really is so beautiful that we are going to take our annual family portrait out there in two weeks.

In other news, Emily has just finished up a study on Japan. She was enjoying it so much that it saddens me to tell her that we are done. She was really into it. She checked out a Japaneese Folktales book at the library in addition to our regular curriculum. She also went to spend Tuesday morning with her Great-Grandma (like she usually does when I take the little ones to story time at the library) and Great-Grandma showed her all the things that Great-Grandpa brought back from Japan during WWII. I would love for Paul to take her to a Japanese restauraunt, although he would probably be the only one eating. I would probably keep going with Japan if I wasn't in such a hurry to finish up second grade before the baby is born. I'm glad she enjoys learning about different countries.

Goin' to the Dentist

Today was Nolan's first trip to the dentist. There were some tears, but he did pretty well considering he's not even two-years-old yet. He was excited to get out of the chair. All three kids had their check-ups today. Emily had a perfect report, but I was with the little two while she was getting checked. Lily and Nolan both have a fold in the inside part of their lip where it meets the gum. The dentist said that it will correct itself as they grow, but for now we are going to have to pull their top lip up when they brush because the skin covers the top part of their front teeth. It caused Nolan to have some plaque build-up, but Lily actually has a cavity on one of her front teeth that I didn't even notice. He said he can fix it without even having to use novicane so it's very minor. We just have to help her pull her lip away from her teeth from now on. Other than that, everthing went well.

Finger Paints!

Yesterday I made homemade finger paints for the little ones because Emily went to work with Daddy I wanted to do something special for the ones left behind. They really had a good time. Nolan also painted his feet and legs with all the colors so that they were a nice shade of brown. We went straight to the bathtub while the paintings were drying. I know that the fingerpaints you buy at the store are supposed to be non-toxic, but I don't trust them. Plus, these are cheaper since finger paints always get mixed together and turn brown after the first try. I didn't care for this recipe as much as the one I used to make when Adam was little, but I couldn't find that recipe. This one was basically flour, water and food coloring and as soon as it dried on the skin, it was pretty hard and itchy. If I find a good one, I'll share it.

Scottish Festival

This weekend was the Highland Games Scottish Festival. It's one of our favorite family things to go to. We got there late this time so we missed a lot of the events, but we still enjoyed a horse-drawn wagon ride, face painting, sheep and duck herding dogs, meat pies and fresh scones with strawberries. It was a beautiful day to relax and listen to the bagpipe bands.

Best Friends

Emily had her first sleepover last weekend. It just took me a few days to get the picture up because I forgot that my camera was in the diaper bag. There was only one guest to sleep over and it was her best friend. Emily and Madison have been best friends since right around their second birthdays. They don't ever remember not having each other. They had a great night of laughing and talking and just doing girly things. They both slept great after a few reminders to stop whispering and go to sleep.

Nolan colored a new continent onto our globe for us today. Luckily it was only with crayon and Magic Eraser will take it off, unless I was to leave it there for sentimental reasons.