New Set of Wheels

We got our little coyote a new set of wheels this weekend. Wow! Is she really big enough already for a bicycle, even one with training wheels? Well, that's a resounding YES! She road at least a half mile this evening before dinner; over to the new house, and then part-way back. She's just too cool in her helmet, knee and elbow pads. The bike is purple with the Disney princesses on it, of course. I'm very excited to start going on family bike rides on the trail, and she's already asked if she can bring her bike when we go to grandma and grandpa's.

I love you!

Hey, look at me keeping this recent blog momentum going!

Our little coyote is in a real "I love you" phase these days. It's great! When the washing machine repair guy was over she just chatted him right up, and then tossed in "I love you", quite comfortably. She also said "I love you" to the appliance salesman, our lumberyard guy, and my art teacher, Betsy. It's really quite sweet. Of course, we've had several talks now about strangers, to be sure. Scary stuff, but she's actually a bit excited that there is a circumstance, even if only theoretical (hopefully!), in which it would be perfectly acceptable, and even preferred, that she bite. But as long as she's with a parent, she loves everyone. What a wonderful world!

She's also developing a real enjoyment for dressing up. If allowed, she will wear a dress every single day, preferably her fanciest dress... and then run, climb, and roll in the dirt in that dress. Not exactly a girly-girl, my little coyote. She's a little bit of everything, which is FABULOUS, in my opinion. Of course, I'm biased. And she is definitely exploring her own sense of style, as evidenced by her "Backpacking Cowgirl Princess" look she was sporting earlier this Spring...

Although, now that I think about it, she's been showing this penchant for costuming for quite some time. Last summer, her dad brought her to my karate class on a sparring night. She definitely thought that was cool. A few days later she said she wanted to spar. I told her we have to have gear on to spar. She came back a little later with her own improvised gear, including an easter basket for her head, fabric scraps for her hands, and dad's socks pulled up over her knees for shin guards. Brilliant!

The Baby Powder Incident

Well, the trouble makers really went all out today! Little M and her best friend Busy had a playdate today while we moms were painting Busy's family room. We should have known something was up when they were getting along so well and being quiet in Busy's room. The smell of baby powder in the stairway didn't bode well. The dense fog and triumphant giggles of something that sounded like "magic fairy dust!" cinched it. A few too many unsupervised minutes and a large container of baby powder can result in quite a mess. Combine two little girls, who happen to be running around completely naked and covered in white powder, with two exhausted moms who have been painting for two days, and this scene had the potential to go very bad very fast. Of course, we're both Super Moms, so we shut the door again while we briefly controlled our own fits of giggles. When we finally had our "serious" faces on again, we directed the girls in helping wipe off toys while we vacuumed and cleaned. I'm sure Busy's mom will still be dusting and vacuuming that stuff up for months. Both girls will have to give a dollar each of their own money to pay for the powder they've wasted, and they are restricted from playing with each other for a week, except at school. I'll also be helping Madison write an apology note. Excellent letter practice! Ooooooooh, Sneaky Mom!

Even with the extra diversion of The Baby Powder Incident, we finished up the family room, and even had time and paint left to hit the entry way. I have to credit that in great part to my husband, who got us off to a running start yesterday. Otherwise, we'd still have another day of work, I think. Now let's just keep our fingers crossed that it looks good tomorrow in daylight!

Random updates:

• I won talentships on both drawings I submitted to the student art show. Yay!
  
• The house is coming along, though it's looking like a June move-in is unlikely. Shall we hope for July?
  
• The Spring Break trip went VERY well. M is still talking about it. She got lots of quality time with Grandma.
• Looks like we're driving up to I.F. and Yellowstone and doing at least a week there with family stuff, instead of flying in for the weekend for the Eagle Store's 100th. Yay!