Daddy Time = Fun Time

Turns out I don't have a picture of the lego creativity going on - just the exhaustion from all that brain power being put to good use! :)

Matt's had a big task this summer - painting our house. Now normally this wouldn't be such a big deal...hire some college students and they'd have it done in a few days, right? Right! BUT, when you are painting an entire house yourself, and only on your free evenings and weekends, it turns into a pretty lengthy ordeal. Don't get me wrong, he's worked really hard on it and in the most sweltering conditions many days (Remember those heat advisories? Those don't stop him!). All his hard work has paid off because with a new coat (or one base coat and two top coats) of paint and a new roof (thank you for hail damage!) the house looks pretty spiffy!

Now, getting to the title of the blog. Since Matt has been basically done with the house the last couple of weeks, Claire has had more Daddy time! I hadn't realized how much he'd been outside working until we got him back with us. It really makes me thankful for the evenings he is at home spending time as a family, especially because I know not every family is fortunate in this way.

Claire is excited whenever Daddy gets home! I always ask her "Claire, do you know who's almost home?" and of course she knows and anticipates his arrival. Since painting has been done, Claire and Matt have had LOTS of fun playing together again in the evenings. Her favorite Daddy activity, I think, (well, his favorite too!) is building with Legos. Matt LOVED building anything growing up and still does enjoy building on a larger (or smaller H.O. scale) now. Legos are a pastime for him and now that he can share that with Claire it's very special to see. :) It's ridiculous how much more creative he is in building with Legos (giant toddler Legos) than I am. I can build a house whereas he's got a fancy house, car, garage, and landscaping. He's got a knack for it! Long story short, we love having Daddy around again! :)

(Pictures of house and Lego building to come!)

4 Word Sentences!! :)

"Vogel...poopoo...unser Auto. (Bird...poopoo...our car.)" Yes, I had pointed out earlier that a bird went poopoo on our car! I'd showed her a while ago, so I know she was creating this sentence herself instead of just repeating what I'd said.

And that's just the example I was thinking of when I decided to add it to the blog for record-keeping. Claire has been creating these long sentences a lot lately! She also creates plenty of long sentences and stories that we don't understand. I'm sure she's saying something, but I can't ALWAYS understand. Nonetheless, it's so fun to watch and help her develop. :)

Raindrops?

Funny story...I was carrying Claire after bathing her and thought I felt water on my foot (she was dried off at this point). I asked her "Claire, hast du Pipi gemacht? (Claire, did you go pee pee?)" to which she replied "no." "Hmmm...ich hab' gedacht, dass ich was auf meinen Fuss gefuehlt habe (Hmmm, I thought I felt something on my foot.)." She then told me "Regentropfen (raindrops)" and just when I was about to explain that we were inside and that only could have happened outside, she said "draussen (outside)." Guess I didn't need to explain after all! I thought it was great how she was making this connection and maybe even making a joke. :)

(Inquiring minds want to know, I guess...no, she hadn't pee'd.)