'babies no pay with scissors'

People may never accept mashed potatoes again at our house, but the masher did make an excellent "mixer" to all Ailsa's colurs. (and yes, Fergus has the scissors....hence the title, which was Ailsa's pearl of wisdom) I have no idea why her cheeks have been that red today....

Doggy play dough photo op

Rain, rain GO AWAY!!!

Rainy days

Just when you are about to give up because the rain just won't stop, and the kids are going mental from being indoors, you remember more of the 'goodies' Auntie Erin brought in November!
Halloween Play-dough fun. The small containers are the best as everyone can have their set if colours and there is no screaming because someone won't share.
And Fergus was happy with a new toothbrush to chew on.
Thanks Erin! (this makes up for the 'Arthur has lice'\school nurse episode that freaks me out but Isla LOVES ;) and now considers herself an expert on 'nits'.....I was waiting for her teachers to tell me she'd been lecturing kids on not sharing hats or combs.

Ryder Cup

As you probably know, the Ryder Cup is being played at Gleneagles in 2014. (Sept 23-28). They have just opened up applications for volunteers. (successful volunteers will have to pay £75)....anyone? anyone?

Random 4 year old thoughts

While I was sewing tonight, Isla came up next to me and said "Mama, are you glad that when I grow up I won't have a beard?"......Baffled I said "what do you mean?" She said, "you know, I'm not a boy, I won't have a beard."........

Huh....one of those random things that kids say that you have no idea where they are going with that thought. It made me chuckle though....perhaps she shares Grammie Long's (and my) distain for facial hair :)

By the way, in case you were wondering, she has decided she'll go back to "Creation Station" next week....but only so we can get the free hour in the soft play...but she hopes the boy who was mean to her (even after she was nice to him!) isn't there again.

Ailsa has been in the yogurt again this afternoon...I found FOUR yogurts on the table, empty, so it wasn't a shock when she can running in showing me "poo" on her hands....and then Isla screamed it was on daddy's office chair....we did a sprint to the shower, and while she was "soaking" I had to go change Fergus, who also "surprised me" with a dirty nappy.....that's really sort of how my afternoon has gone....good thing me and my sewing machine and serger are still friends...I also spent some time trying to teach the girls to play the piano. Isla was AMAZED that piano keys use the alphabet too and she can now find "middle C"....we played some Disney tunes, but luckily mom turned around JUST in the nick of time to see Fergus reaching up to touch the woodstove and got to him before he burned himself....that ended our "music lesson" for the day.

It's cold, windy, and very rainy today so who knows what outdoor school will be like tomorrow. Isla has already announced she "hates school and isn't going".....ah, the joys....but luckily it's Tuesday and Tuesdays Laurie goes to Afterschool club, so that's always a great motivator :)

Mucky kids

Today it was especially muddy at isla's school and they made muffin pot bread ....water, flour and mud...what a combination!!!!

Ooohhhh!

Interest

Serious crafter

Creation station

Today we trekked up to Perth for a craft class. They finger painted and made Chinese new year dragons. Isla "is still thinking" whether she wants to go back next week. Ailsa seemed to enjoy it....fergus ate the finger paints (which the teacher assured me were water based and non-toxic.)

Fun at the arcade

Seeger fun!

I tried my new skills on my over locker with some flannel and fleece daddy had brought back from his trip....it is amazing how easy it is to make trousers....made three doggy pair and two monkey pair in an hour. Oh the fun of using tools that work and do away with silly stuff like hems and seams. So fun!!

Not so sneaky 2 year olds

Ailsa has discovered she likes cheese, and yogurt...Last week I kept finding the fridge open, with a pile of toilet paper rolls stacked in front of it. (her stairs)....then I'd find her if I followed the trail of shredded cheese or I'd find her under the kitchen table eating yogurts, like some sort of crack addict...Alisdair discovered this yesterday....I guess the "NEED" to have some sort of dairy dessert was so great, she couldn't even open the lid!

Sewing, sewing, sewing

I'd been having withdrawals, as I didn't get to sew much when Alisdair was away, so I've definitely made up for it this weekend. I finished this quilt last night. It's for Isla's friend Willow's brother (Lochlan). He turns 2 next week. I had lots of left over triangles so I found a great use for them in hexagon quilts (picture to follow when I get the solid colour to fill in the hexagons.) I'm off to a class on "English Paper Piecing" this week as well and I broke out my serger and made three pairs of fleece trousers and some flannel stuff too. The weather was horrible all day, so it was a nice day to sit and sew.

Lending moral support

...in his farmer fleece (complete with noise maker)

Bottles

Lambie Love

Petting baby lambs never seems to grow old!

And of course, there is always the fun of the lambies coming over to you when you go to the fences. All three now enjoy the fun.

Bedtime stories

This afternoon we went swimming. We drove home in a stonker of a snowstorm, and Ailsa fell asleep on the couch when we got home. Fergus fell asleep too (it was about 4:30). By 6pm neither one of them had woken up...so we had a very quiet dinner with just Isla and read her stories for bed. We're trying to stop the thumb sucking habit....(the blanket was made by cousin Jocelyn, Maui (the cat's) "sister). Isla loves it.

Someone got VERY upset when mum replaced the word "Little Miss Chatterbox" with Isla...:)

Poultry time

Warming up

After a busy morning outside feeding Mr Chicken and friends, they all came in for some time infront of the fire, playing with "Freya" (the patchwork dog), and Captain Pugwash.

Saturday Fun

Scottish lambs drink out of old Irun Bru bottles. We spent the morning at the farm, and Grannie fed the lambs before we left so the girls could "help."

My latest test of patience

I am looking forward to doing some simple kids' sized blankets after this one...but it was a good learning experience. The pattern said it was for a 'confident beginner.' Once I got into it, I sure felt much less confident!

Family

On cold, dark mornings it's not so bad to start the day all in mum's bed... They'd all slowly trickled in during the night...

Not so good ideas

Ailsa decided to build her snowman in the driveway...i think she is using all her available brain cells to focus on potty training, rather than logic.
And to round off 10 days of daddy being away, Isla has been sick (headache, body ache type thing) and Fergus has cut two molars.

Snow

It has been snowing since Friday, blizzard like since yesterday. We have about 6-8 inches but it is very wet. Daddy has been stranded jn Vegas as Heathrow is such a mess. Hopefully he will be home tonight! We have been outside shoveling and playing while Ferg napped.
I was alarmed when I came in to find a smokdering log in front if the fire, but didn't want to yell at isla if she was trying to help. When I confronted her, she yelled at me for 'ruining her charcoal" she was making for a craft! My whole house smells like a campfire now.

Happy lunch time

Ferg loves his new chair...so does Charlie

Comin thru the (not quite) rye

Sunset

Light till after 4 today! Slowly, slowly.....

Sunset in the reeds

We went on a different dog walk than usual today. Someone had fun playing on the frozen mud, ice and in the reeds (till one poked her in the eye).

Unhappy spiders

Very cold afternoon for a dog walk. I have a quiet monkey and a whiney spider.

Friday fun

Because some days, if you are 2, wearing a kilt and slippers in -2 degree weather and 'bird-calling' (if you call 'crazy-old-man-type-yelling at kids to get off his lawn' voice 'bird calling' to jack Dawes), while your sister looks out a picnic of bananas and juice boxes at 9:30am, a REALLY fun activity. Poor Cassie is so confused! Kiwi is just plotting to kill me in my sleep as she is tied up out in the cold, rather than lounging under the radiator on the heated floor...

Chores

During ferg's nap mum and Ailsa spread gravel...a lot of it...ailsa raked, filled puddles on the lane, filled her bucket to dump around and took great pride in jumping on frozen chunks to break them up....the promise of an Oreo cookie is a tremendous motivator foe that girl! She even helped drag the nearly empty (but still heavy) bags up the lane to dump in holes....she is great at encouragement...."dat good tinking mama!" "you wealy good."

Homemade overtrousers

The queen of arts and crafts decided to use carrier bags as homemade clothing and of course if one does it, the other one will follow.

Ailsa's lessons

Today was Ailsa's first swimming lesson. I thought she would hate it, but she loved it and asked for more. Too bad the pool is closing in a week for 6 months renovations!

Big boy

The Tripp Trapp is functional and he had joined us at the table.

The joy of sitting at the table

His first dinner at the table. No one's food was safe, but he loved it and ate a ton. Plus the cheeky grin, of him being so proud to be sitting with the girls was priceless.

Birthday magic!

A sign of the times

For Fergie's 1st he got his three favourite things...keys, a tv remote and an iPhone (toy ones). He is quite chuffed.

Part 2

This was sunset on Friday about 4pm, but what you don't realize is sunset was about 65-70 degrees west of sunrise! All just over the Ochil Hills....how kids ever learn the sun rises in the east and sets in the west during winter in this country, I will never know.

Northern hemisphere living

This was the sunrise on Friday over the Glen Devon road. It was stunning...about 9:30am

No Fear

Fergus thinks the sheep are great fun and has no fear of them, even as they come and try to nibble on clothing or mum's fingers. He got to wear his new tweed waistcoat and flatcap today for his birthday, but as it was snowing and cold, we put on the old Elmer Fudd hat for our walking of the dogs.

Entertainment

The farm is always entertaining. Today we forgot the girls' suits, so they didn't climb in the pens. (the sheep were probably just as pleased!)

Busy lady

Grannie's got 6 lambs that need bottle fed now. She's really good at multi-tasking and has put the old party chair in the pen to save her from having to sit on hay bales. This year she doesn't have any ones who follow her about though.

Home made cake

In Uruguay I discovered a fabulous chocolate cake recipe that uses boiling water. Hershey's has the same recipe on its site. We've made it twice and it never survives long! Today we made it for the birthday boys and it went down a treat. (the candles were HAPPY BIRTHDAY)

Birthday dinner

Venison, tatties, little trees and carrots. YUM!
For his birthday everyone chipped in and bought him a Tripp Trapp chair so he can join the family at the table now.....nothing will be safe! ;) The poor highchair has survived three kids and was sort of on its last leg. It did well.

Sunday walks

Swimming proess

Isla got a new swimming teacher and in one lesson swam the length of the pool, learned to dive and do the breaststroke kick!

Princesses at Play

We split chores yesterday and mum took Ailsa and Fergus grocery shopping while dad and Isla cleaned up Anne's garden. Tesco had princess pj's on sale and both girls got a set...so they thought trampolining in them was fantastic fun. The outfits came with cloth "crowns". Ailsa (in her linguistically talented way--the same way she's always called phones "hellos" and now all the kids refer to them that way), insisted that her crown was actually called a "me be queen." She kept asking us to put on her "me be queen"....she makes us laugh. You'll note the path of clothing they strip off on their way to the trampoline.