Puddle Jumper

It was another Friday Fun Day over in California, and boy was it a wet one.

Bennett had an absolute blast playing in the gigantic puddle in the middle of the yard at school.  He poured bucked after bucket of water into the sandbox.

Eventually the rain started to pick up again and he decided to experiment with some very damp sand in the trucks.

"Tiny little dump truck" went for a drive on the tree, while Bennett gazed up at the rain clouds.

At this point it was pretty much pouring, and Bennett was downright soaked.

It wasn't until we got inside and changed his clothes that I realized his socks were so wet I could wring them out like a wet bathing suit.  Whoops!  It was so fun to see my little guy enjoying the rain, especially since Orelia now basically has no interest in puddle jumping or really anything to do with wet weather.  It's nice to have one kid to enjoy this quintessential childhood activity.

Bennett has been loving puzzles lately as well, and was especially interested in the transportation-themed puzzles out in class that day.  If it's a truck, a truck book, a truck puzzle, or a truck poster, Bennett is all over it.

Bennett found it absolutely hilarious to see the monkeys in the book at snack time.  We read this book every week, and I haven't the slightest idea what he finds so funny, but that's what makes it toddler magic.

It was a day full of simple pleasures at school, and it was a great one.

Friday Fun Day

 Fridays are fun and busy mornings for us.  Bennett and I drop Orelia off at school at 9:00 and then head over to the coffee shop to kill time.  Bennett really wanted a pouch, but they didn't have any, so he had to settle for a yogurt this week.  ("Peet's no have pouches.  Bennett ate a yo-yurt!")

Bennett's preschool starts at 9:30 so after our little snack we head over to class where we are inevitably one of the first people there.  

This Friday I brought my camera because the skies had parted and we had our first sunny Friday in awhile.

Bennett was happy to be reunited with all his favorite school trucks.  He calls this one "little tiny dump truck."

He loves the ball pipes and is thrilled every time he gets the tennis balls to come out the other end.

We had a good round with the stomp rockets, and Bennett dutifully collected all three rockets while simultaneously refusing the put the fire truck down.

 Drought-ridden California has had quite a bit of rain in the past two weeks, so a dry day at preschool is a lucky day.

 Bennett is usually eager for snack time, where he inevitably spills his water all over the table and refuses to eat most of the food offered.  Ha!

If Bennett is in the mood, he loves the books during snack time, and always chimes in when he has something to say.

When it was cleanup time, Bennett sneaked off when he got bored and hopped onto the zebra.

No toy is more exuberantly played with than a toy that is supposed to be off limits.

Our nanny picks up Bennett after school gets out, and I run to the grocery store to get Orelia some lunch for when her school gets out a half hour later.

 Some after school lunches are more fun than others, and this Friday's was great since the weather was sunny (a must for Orelia) and some friends were coming to the playground to have a play date with her.

Friday in the middle of class Orelia and Bennett spotted one another through the gate that separates their play yards.  Thankfully they were able to say "hi" and "bye" to one another with smiles on their faces (instead of tears).

Orelia was all about the giggles on this particular day because she has been playing "super kiss" with me where she gives me a kiss and then laughs right into my mouth.

When a four-year-old finds something funny, it is absolutely the funniest thing ever.

This is the face of someone about to attack me with a super kiss.  Run away!

It was a great day for both kids, which means it was a great day for me.  Being able to capture it on "film" was the icing on the cake for me.

Bit of a Challenge

Oh, Bennett.  My dear sweet Bennett.

He has turned into a bit of a monster challenge lately.  No more than the average two-year-old, but when the times are tough with him lately, they sure are tough.

Just a month ago he used to be so "safe" most of the time.  Safe in that he could be trusted to be pretty well behaved and not bothering other kids at school and not doing anything too dangerous.  He wasn't putting strange things in his mouth and would contently play by himself or near other kids.

Well now I have to follow him like a hawk.  He is going through an aggressive phase where he likes to push or nudge or headbutt, you know, whatever the situation calls for.

I know it's just a phase and this too shall pass, but in the meantime we have been having lots of talks on Mommy's lap about being kind, using gentle touches, and not headbutting.

Poor Harper and Orelia are feeling the brunt of Bennett's aggressive tendencies lately, and I'm sure they will agree with me in hoping that any day now Bennett will learn that his so-called "smash" game isn't as fun as he currently thinks it is.  Wish us luck!