Sunday, November 22, 2009

Church and George

George and Maya snuggling with Will after a hike in the woods.

Maya and George before church

Maya has been asking me to take her to the church where her preschool is located so today I did. We went to the service and Maya was intrigued for about 20 minutes or so, which isn't too bad. She was interested initially because when she leaves preschool she often hears music coming from the sanctuary and wants to listen and today the music is what captivated her the most. She was amazed when the choir sang its first song and it was a perfect introduction for her because it started with just singers and then the organ and other instruments were added in later. Her eyes got bigger with each sound she heard. I liked the church for many reasons, not the least of which is the fact that there are bags filled with paper, colored pencils, stamps, books and other things for kids to pick up before they enter the church. Maya did a pretty good job of staying busy during the service.

We've been babysitting this weekend, too. Maya's preschool has a stuffed monkey named George that gets passed around every weekend with different kids. This weekend was Maya's weekend to watch George so even though we have had a low key weekend, we've been trying to entertain George. He sat on airplane (as part of an event at Maya's school), went on a hike, met some of the other monkeys at our house, sold beans at the Alternative Gift Market, and went to church, of course. Tomorrow, he's headed to the library and maybe he'll help us make cookies to take with us for Thanksgiving.

George selling bean soup at the Alternative Gift Market at Maya's preschool.

Thursday, November 19, 2009

Maya Posts




Maya chased after a butterfly at Guillermo's school the other day. She didn't catch it and here is what she had to say about that:

"I try to catch butterflies but they are too fast, just like chickens. I try to catch chickens but the other kids do. Sometimes I do and sometimes I don't."

Monday, November 16, 2009

My Mom's Visit



Last week it rained and rained and rained. On Saturday, my mother, (who was visiting for the week) Maya and I went shopping and then my mother and I went to a baby shower so Sunday was the first nice day we were able to enjoy outside. We spent it on a hike at the North Carolina Botanical Garden.
On our hike, my mother learned how to play Star Wars. She was Chewbacca and I think she loved the game ;) The fall colors have mostly faded, but we did find some bright spots. Back in the garden, we played chess on the giant chess board, found fairies and watched the water fall from the fountain.

Today, she volunteered in Guillermo's class, helping some of the kids finish their family trees. Guillermo's family tree was already finished and he was at another center, but he was still pretty proud to have her at his school.

Oh, and this week, Guillermo learned to tie his shoelaces! Hooray.

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Bat Girl




The other afternoon, Maya and Guillermo and I were playing baseball in the front yard. Maya became bored after awhile but to convince her to stay with us I told her she could be the bat girl.

That did it. She was so excited. She had no idea what a bat girl was and she didn't care because she heard Batgirl. So for the rest of the day, she pretended she was Batgirl, helping Guillermo and me, known during our baseball game as the Cardinals and the Yankess, respectively.

"Does Batgirl do this?" she asked and then handed us the ball?
"Does Batgirl do this? she asked and then handed me the bat?
"Is Batgirl friends with the Cardinals?"
"Batgirl likes the Yankees, right?"

I love my Batgirl.


Sunday, November 1, 2009

Halloween

Bad Butterfly and Batman posing before the Halloween festivities

This Batman carries a sword

A Bad Butterfly with her scariest face.

Batman and the Bad Butterfly had a wonderful Halloween night. The activities started at a neighborhood party and culminated with our family of four sitting on folding chairs handing out candy to the neighborhood kids. In between, Batman and the Bad Butterfly did a lot of trick-or-treating.

Will took Guillermo and a friend out this year and I stayed with Maya. Last year I tried to take both of them by myself and it was horrible because when Guillermo ran to keep up with friends, I had to pull Maya along or pick her up and run. Maya and I had such a nice time this year. She talked nonstop about everything and was so happy to ring the doorbells of homes that weren't too spooky. The early evening sky was grey and cloudy and the moon was full and they both were perfect for Halloween. Maya wanted to collect as much candy as she could so the Great Pumpkin would leave her a great present and she must have. The Great Pumpkin took the candy and left Maya a Playdoh picnic bucket and Guillermo a blue Bionicle. They were entertained for hours this morning.

A family portrait (me missing!)