Happy Birthday Mom!

Today is my mom’s birthday. She has started teaching piano lessons in homes close to where we live, so she comes down once a week. It’s a perk for me and the kids, since they are guaranteed to see Grandma every Tuesday! Today my dad cam with her and hung out with me and the boys while my mom was teaching. He even took the kids to the park later in the afternoon, so I was able to get some things done at home.

Here are some fun facts about my mom on her birthday:

1. She has so many talents, I don’t think I could list them all. She’s creative and amazing with knitting, sewing, crocheting, bow making, baking, card making, etc.

2. She recently refinished a bunch of bookshelves that she and my dad picked up from a warehouse sale. I think it took a long time, but once she’s determined to do something, she’ll get it done and it will look perfect.

3. My mom used to get up early with me in the morning before school, and would blow dry/style my hair for me (even when I was in high school!!). I’d love it if Eli or Charlie could learn so I wouldn’t have to style it myself… I’m still in the “shower really fast, hurry and get dressed, and try to keep Charlie from crying while I’m drying my hair as quickly as possible” phase. Someday I’ll make more of an effort, but it’s not easy at this point.

Happy birthday Mom! My dad’s birthday is on Friday, so I’ll be back with some facts about him in a few days.

Eli came out with me to get the mail this afternoon, and we decided to hang out on the front stoop and wait for my parents to arrive and to say hi to our neighbors as they got home from school. Eli was so excited when he saw the kids walking down the sidewalk! Here he is with Oliver:

Mary and Sasha with Charlie, who looked a little dazed because he just woke up from his nap. He’s had his tongue like that a lot lately – I think he’s still getting used to the tooth!

Eli has a real love for letters, and often tells me words to write on a piece of paper. He can recognize the words Eli, Charlie, Mama, Dada, Gram, etc. so I started teaching him our neighbors’ names, and he thought that was a lot of fun.

Of course when they were outside today, Eli got shy and didn’t want to do it on the spot! It’s funny because Sasha then suggested other words to write down and see if he knew them, but Eli only knows certain words at this point :)