according to Natalie...

Here is our little dumplin' on the deck on a nice October afternoon. Moments earlier, she had just lost a fine pink balloon from Lowe's Foods. She took it pretty well. She played with it all the way home from the store, and it was tied securely around her wrist. But when we got out of the car, after bobbing it a couple of times, it got away from her. She turned to me and said, "help mommy! go get my balloon!" I could not give it much chase, because I was holding Olivia, my purse, and 2 gallons of milk, which were each about to sever one of my fingers. We watched the balloon go higher and higher, and she gave the following soliloquy all the way back to the house:
"if I do not have my balloon, then I cannot have it. If, when we are birds, then we will fly to my balloon and get it, when we are birds, mommy. If I cannot have my balloon, then I am so sad that I will not have it. If I cannot have it, then I cannot have it. Mommy, when we are birds, then we will have my balloon."

It was lovely, floating away into a blue October sky.

Jelly toast.

In other news, Natalie gave an interesting briefing on bible history yesterday. She is somewhat timid of fish lately, having read about Mr. Jeremy Fisher, who was swallowed by a trout (and then spit out), and also Jonah, who was swallowed by a big fish (also spat out later). Anyway, before bed last night, she revealed some concern about being swallowed by a fish. Here was our conversation:
"...I'm afraid of the fish--they might bite me"
"Where do fish live, Natalie?"
"In the water, in the big ocean!"
"That's right! There are no fish here, because they live in the water!"
"But if they come in through the door..."
"No, fish will not come in. They must live in the water, or else they will die"
"When the fish die on the cross--"
"No, fish do not die on the cross--"
"When I die on the cross--"
"No, you will never die on a cross. Only Jesus had to die on a cross"
"and the people of Ninevah"
"No, the people of Ninevah did not die on a cross"
"Because Noah saved them, in a big boat!"

...this took a little untangling...

finished

Fine cord jumpers for the girls to wear this fall/winter in plum. This one is Olivia's.

Here's Nat's.
I'm thinking of adding one or two big (quarter size) white buttons near the pleats or maybe on the breast. Can't decide. 'Twould be so in. But I like how a simple jumper can have different looks.
Finished seams. I overcasted the raw seams--which is like zigzag, except many short stitches make up the zigzag. I stitched bias tape over the zipper seam to conceal raw edges. Speaking of zippers--I put in invisible zippers, which I thought was going to be an enormous undertaking. It was a little tedious, but they went in very well, and they work quite nicely.

I'll get the girls to model soon.

Need to round up some blouses with little peter pan collars and ruffled sleeves.

i heard my child say...

Several quotes from today:

"my owie is getting better, I think I only have one boo-boo, praise the Lord!"

"Grandma Jean's a nice mommy, isn't she? She takes care of her little doggies, doesn't she?"

"good boy Daddy, I mean, good man, Daddy!"

...and, about 5 minutes away from home after a long car ride (almost 2 hours) she said, "you can do it mommy! I know we can make it!"

Yesterday, when we came over the hill in the car and saw the church in front of us, Natalie said, "TA-DAA!!"

We took a trip to Grandma Jean's today, to see John's cousin Dustin, and his sweet bride-to-be, Jessica. The wedding is to be in December, and the bridesmaid's dresses sound just dreamy (lovely gauzy, satiny fitted gowns in a pretty shade of apple). I don't think I've been to a December wedding before, so I'm looking forward to the twinkly lights and poinsettias, the smell of evergreen, the holly berries, and a handsome bride and groom. Well, I'm guessing on the decorations, but no matter--it should be a sight to behold. Most importantly, they're a sweet couple--it will be a happy celebration. The girls did great traveling, though they had the wiggles during the bridal shower (well, we were missing nap time). Olivia, especially had a good time getting pinched and hugged and held and adequately spoiled with cookies and crackers and small white puppy dogs. Natalie had her share of the same. Remember being a little child at your grandma's house? How nice to be always rejoiced over and indulged with yummy treats and the nooks and crannies of her cozy home: a special chair, the box of toys, a little corner to play in...and Grandma's warm, approving smile.

bookworms

I'm glad they like books so much. Usually after breakfast they toddle over to the shelf and drag out about 20 books. They "read" for about 30 minutes while they sit next to each other. Olivia flips pages with the book upside down and chatters jibberish. It's very cute. I think her favorite right now is a "pets" board books. She's partial to the fish and dogs.

Last night Natalie and I were making rice crispy treats. I asked Natalie if she would help me add the marshmallows. Her reply: "Yes, if you please'm, I'm an excellent clear starcher." She was quoting Mrs. Tiggy-winkle--a Beatrix Potter character. Mrs. Tiggy-winkle is a little washer-woman, who happens to be a hedgehog. Natalie also called me Mrs. Tiggy-winkle yesterday while I was folding laundry. I hope that's the only resemblence.

i have:

...this. A vinyl tablecloth. I would aspire to say "oilcloth"--but I got it in the dollar section of target, so I'm pretty sure it's vinyl. This is how it happens: slowly but surely your perfect nest starts to accumulate trinkets on the counter tops, pictures on the refrigerator 2 inches deep, and then this. One day you say, "what I need is a vinyl tablecloth." Well, underneath is a very nice oak table with grooves in it (crumb catchers). And we eat 3 meals a day here. That's a lot of wiping and crumb spillage (which requires a toothpick and about 15 minutes to adequately clean). So, for the sake of my table, and in the interest of time management, we are living with a big yellow vinyl tablecloth. It stood out like a sore thumb for about 2 weeks. Now I think it looks almost friendly.
Sometimes I get the urge to cross stitch ducks, hang up Williamsburg blue curtains, and cook with cream of mushroom soup. So far I've resisted. I go make some tea and have a peek at this:


...and I'm at peace.

how we love fall

We went on a little hunt the other day for mushrooms. There seem to be a million in the yard. There was a sweet little family of big white mushrooms--maybe 15 of them, all umbrella-ed out in Beatrix Potter fashion. But my neighbor plowed them up and pitched them in the woods before I could get a picture. They're growing all over the pastures on this road. I wonder if the horses know instinctively not to eat them?

this one was almost chartreuse

these two grew out of a stump, and lived forever

I was tempted to step on this one to see what would happen, but I let it live. Doesn't it look like it might burst into smoky spores?

and this little mushroom is popping up higher every day ( :

good friends

We spent Labor Day in the mountains with friends. Above is sweet Charlotte and Natalie sharing a rock, and a hug...
...a nice view of the valley from up here...
We had a really nice time. The porch was great, the temperatures even greater, and the fellowship was the best of all.

August was

..adrift in the sound on a lazy afternoon... all that is needed is a pink lemonade and a little umbrella
a sandy Olivia--is there anything cuter than a bikini on a chunky baby?
The littlest sailor
...and Natalie on the dock enjoying the sun.

Thanks Figgy and Poppy Bob, for another escape to the beach...

and for the sunset with my sweetie. Love you.

Fancy Pics

Here are my lovely flowers together. They did great at the studio.

These pictures are uncropped--the prints have been cropped and centered, and look a little neater.
Olivia's first portrait. Good job little O!

When we left the studio, we walked around and into the other stores and made a morning out of our outing. Several sweet ladies remarked on how pretty the girls were. "Let another's lips praise you, a stranger's and not your own." (Proverbs) Well, that might mean more than just looks... but certainly, they are cute.