Today was a great day. Not only was it beautiful, but I was able to relax and spend lots of time outside with these two cute kids I know. Maya was the first one outside this morning, since Nikos was reluctant to change out of his PJs. It was actually nice, with just the two of us, since nobody fought over the Cozy Coupe (the "hot toy" around here, lately). Maya drove around to her heart's content, then decided that she wanted to pick fruit. She's had lots of experience doing this lately, so it was only natural that she'd see all the fruit in her yard and declare that she wanted to pick and eat it!
Still, none of the fruit is ripe yet, so I had to convince her not to do it. This was no easy feat, since she is quite a determined little girl! Instead, she grabbed a bucket and proceeded to pick up the apricots that had fallen off our tree (for whatever reason, our apricot tree barely produces fruit anymore and, when it does, it falls off the tree long before it's ripe. Bummer!!). It seemed harmless enough. The apricots weren't rotten or anything, and she had fun collecting them in her bucket. Until I turned away for a split second and she popped one into her mouth... BLECHHH!!!!! That was the end of that! I redirected her while I disposed of the apricots...
Right around that time, Nikos decided to join us! And since Maya had gotten plenty of Cozy Coupe time in advance, she didn't throw a fit when her brother wanted to drive it. It used to be that they could both fit in there pretty easily. Sadly, this is no longer the case! But they both enjoyed their driving time!
I got a bunch of pictures of them playing, but was getting frustrated that Nikos would NOT smile when I aimed the camera at him. So I asked him to show me his teeth instead. Maya also wanted to play along. The result? Two pictures with two cheesy, fake smiles. ha!
We eventually wandered back inside for lunch (brachiosaurus-shaped peanut butter sandwiches and blueberries), then played in the living room until nap time. Nikos had discovered the Jenga blocks in the game cupboard earlier in the morning, and had worked with Gus to construct a nifty garage for his cars! Please note that my failure to construct an IDENTICAL structure in his room at naptime resulted in a complete and total meltdown. Which then led to an AWESOME nap. A mixed blessing, really!
After naptime, we loaded up the car and drove to the same park we went to last weekend, which is currently at the top of Nikos' list of All-Time Favorite Places. Both kids went crazy again, exploring all the nooks and crannies, and we had to practically drag them home for dinner! Here are a few pics from our explorations. I really can't tell you how picturesque this park is! I shouldn't have brought my camera, because I took about 150 photos in the hour and a half we were there!
Anyway, we barbecued tonight, then dug deep and went for it. Yes, we cut Nikos' hair. And then his fingernails. Both things that he hates and resists with a PASSION! However, I am pleased to report that neither was very traumatic tonight! He cried throughout the haircut, but recovered quickly in his post-haircut shower. And he screamed when we were cutting his nails at first, but then Gus asked him a few questions about the show that was on TV, and he was fine. At one point, he even said, "Hey, I'm not crying anymore! It doesn't hurt!" Crazy kid. :) Anyhow, here is the newly-shorn boy in his jammies. Love it!
This week is it! The home stretch! It's going to be a little nuts, since Gus is going to be very busy at work, and will be home late every night through Thursday. Please say a little prayer for my sanity, haha! :)
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