Out & About

We are enjoying being back in FL...

Our fabulous farmer's market had a kid's day last time we were there:

We've been spending a lot of time with our friends too.

Even the wild ones!


Chillin' with the girls by the pool...

...and snuggling up before bed.

And, it's great being near family again as well ;)

Legos & Stars

We've been painting again...

Our nephew (who is starting 1st grade) moved into a new room to make room for his baby sister who will be joining us soon. I had painted a mural in his brother's room a few years ago, and I would be painting in the new nursery as well, so it was his turn for some artwork on the wall!

He chose LEGO people! LEGO video games, to be exact...

(btw, aren't those the cutest BabyLegs?! I love 'em... K's been wearing BL since she was an infant. Great way to keep little legs warm on your nekkid EC baby... and they grow with ya too!)

Anyway, this guy is from LEGO batman... two-face, maybe?

And, LEGO StarWars of course... complete with glow-in-the-dark paint on the Lightsabers!
And for his ARMY dad...

And here is the girly room... for the new niece who should arrive soon!

"Twinkle twinkle little star..."

I even added some real "twinkle" - gemstones and glitter paint!

Fun stuff!

Food, Inc.

J & I went to see a movie yesterday. He picked last time, so it was my turn this time!

We went to Burns Court which is the cute lil' theatre in town that plays all the artsy movies... and you can get a wine or beer with your popcorn!

We saw Food, Inc.

I had been wanting to see it, and this was the very last showing, so I was glad we made it!

(K had a fun playdate with my brother, sister, and her husband.)

It is such an eye-opening movie. It touches on everything that I'm reading about (ok, so I'm actually listening again... lovely books on tape!) in The Omnivore's Dilemma, again by Michael Pollan. I really hope everyone sees it and then "votes" for the food they want to be eating with the money they are spending. Speaking of which, I was just reminded today that my favorite local produce stand is opening back up today! It's a looong summer when I don't get my yummy, fresh, crispy, organic lettuce & greens from there!

Discovering the Garden

This was our first time back to The Children's Garden since K has been walking - a much different experience!

Of course she walked all around and through the Garden as if she'd been there a million times.

It's such a magical place...

It's like building blocks for the imagination.

I just read this great article on NPR that talked about all the benefits of "old-fashioned play" - before the commercialization of play - you know, the kind where you play for hours in the back yard or down the street, with that old-fashioned thing called make-believe. Not only is that stuff fun, but it actually does all sorts of good stuff for the brain, improving cognitive & emotional development, among other things.

Unfortunately, there aren't many places these days where children can run free and enjoy unstructured playtime. This is one of them!
I would LOVE for my back yard to be like this.

Honestly, I'd be happy with some trees and shade to make the summer sun a little more tolerable!

I think we will have to get a year pass here in the future. Luckily for now we have friends who have passes they are kind enough to share :)