How does a parent entice or motivate a child to do something . . . anything. We are having to try some creative parenting sometimes to get the results we want, but tonight we lucked into one.

Our day was lovely and we postponed dinner to play at the park and take a walk together. Everyone was hungry and dinner seemed to be lingering. Julia was munching on goldfish after downing her pasta and Emily was eating her applesauce slowly. I suggested that Robby should go and start the bath water running for the girls.

Emily asked with much exuberance if she could take her bath first. Her animation was hilarious. I told her that she couldn’t get a bath until her applesauce was finished. She put her spoon to work and finished it right off. Julia was also listening. She had been signing ‘please’ after each goldfish so that she could get another. After the bath announcement she started, also with great exuberance, signing ‘all done’ followed with the sign for ‘bath’. Who knew dinner could be finished so quickly?

Now, two little sweet smelling girls are tucked in their beds sleeping soundly.

Sunny days are great for playdates. We had a picnic lunch and play time at a park with our friends. The kids are doing such sweet things with each other. Emily is making friends at the park with kids and doing things together on the equipment, they have cute moments of holding hands, Julia is wanting to follow Emily around, they all want to give each other a push on the swing, and they are happy together. This makes for some happy mommies.

I had to include a photo of the little one to join us soon. In just about a month, baby Loveday will join the fun playdates. It will be no time until a new one is toddling around the play equipment!

Emily was teaching Julia how best to inspect an egg. Some of the eggs had cereal that was perfect for Julia’s tastes. Emily ate every marshmallow that she could sneak into her mouth. The fact that Emily wouldn’t take a nap shouldn’t be a surprise given how much sugar she consumed on our hunt.

Easter this year was a wonderful time with friends and family. It is good to take time and reserve it for renewing of spirit. This year we enjoyed our renewal in worship this morning and then enjoyed an afternoon and evening of play and visiting.

Our egg hunt was slow and fun. Julia was tentative to walk around the yard to get to the eggs and then when she got the eggs she didn’t want to put them down and go to find a new one. Emily’s focus was on what was inside the eggs. It was like a treasure chest that she had to open and inspect. The hunt will be different in future years as they learn a competitive spirit, but it was fun just to watch their different personalities blossom.

Who wouldn’t want these two as your shopping helpers? To borrow my friend’s phrase – they were super cute! At one point they turned away from each other and were pushing against each other with their backs. Another time I looked down to see both heads popping out of the side window checking on what I was buying. There was plenty of “honk, honk” heard in our vicinity. The shoppers were happy and I got my shopping done which involved a decent amount of thinking and counting. As always they were rewarded with free cookies from the bakery when we were done shopping.

Emily is a girl and thus likes to shop – at least she likes to shop the local toy catalog. Her eagle eyes found the sales flyer on the counter and spent at least an hour pouring over it. I should save them when they come in the mail for car trips and times when I need her to be occupied. At the moment it is the best of the both worlds. She likes to look at the sales flyer, but doesn’t beg for the toys found inside. Actually the only requests I had from her about the flyer was to put it back together after Julia tore it apart.