Dying and Painting Eggs

We experimented with dying and painting eggs with food coloring today. The girls had lots of fun, especially after I let them each have their own set of "paints" once I recognized the incompatibility of their artistic styles. It was incredibly upsetting for Molly when Clara let the colors drip together, and Clara, try as she might, could not manage to keep the drips in place. Each painted egg came out beautifully - and very different.

Clara and the dyed eggs, showing off her un-dyed egg ready to eat

Clara and the dyed eggs

Clara and the dyed eggs

Clara and the dyed eggs, eating an un-dyed egg

Molly painting

Clara painting

Molly's painted egg

Clara painting

Clara's painted egg

Molly's painted egg

Clara's painted egg

Clara's paints

Molly's painted egg

Earth Day

All week Molly has been talking about wanting to do something for Earth Day. Her initial idea was that she wanted to work out in the yard "even if it's raining". I think she wanted to really work with the earth. But after school today she decided she wanted to do a neighborhood cleanup. So we grabbed a garbage bag and a recycling bag (I love how she labeled it "resiklin") and hit the street. The girls (mostly Molly, actually) collected gobs of garbage. It was really satisfying and I'm so impressed with Molly's initiative.

And to further boast about how cool she is - all during our cleanup she kept talking about how really every day is Earth Day - we should be honoring the earth all the time. Wise words, my dear, wise words.

In these photos she's showing her fierce faces and her sad face - I think she's trying to show how much she doesn't like all the trash we found.

Molly turned into a witch!

Molly got a fancy haircut and then turned into a witch! So far she's been a really nice witch.

Cockerille Ave

Tonight Nona & Opa are spending their last night in the house Nouri & I grew up in (and Mary & Dieter lived in since the 1970's). Tomorrow they will board a train to California.

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to go out and help them pack up the house and say goodbye. Fortunately, Nouri has been able to go down for the past three weekends and will help take them to the train station tomorrow, with our wonderful family friends Warren and Ann.

It's hard letting go of a childhood home that held so many memories. It's hard also to capture the uniqueness of this home. Suffice it to say that the real estate agent is excited to stage it in a "whimsical" manner.

I'm sad to say goodbye to that crazy, beautiful house, but excited about the adventures to come.

Clara's School Photos

There's something about posed photos that I find really silly. In a lovely way. Here's Clara from this year:

And, for reference, here's Molly as a Beluga:
http://tuchus.blogspot.com/2008/05/many-faces-of-molly.html

School Photos from yesteryear

Just for fun, here are school photos from past years.

Molly 2009, Lion Cub

Clara 2010, Beluga

Molly 2010, Dinosaur

Clara & Molly 2010, Beluga & Dinosaur

Carmel Valley (Dec 2010)

pictures from our trip to CV in December... hanging out at Carmel River Beach & at the Earthbound Farm Stand gardens.

More Jockey

Jockey the Hen continues to be an exceedingly accommodating hen.