Taste of Spring Pictures

We got a new toy in the beginning of the month.  We had been camera-less for 8 months. Our old camera went on the fritz right after Chloe was born, so all of her new born pics are taken with my phone, leaving much to be desired.

We had a freak warm up over the last few days (which Ava and I did not enjoy much because we were trapped in a hospital room). But yesterday when the girls asked to go outside I choked down the initial urge to say NO and headed out with them.  It wasn't as muddy as I expected and even though the yard is a mess and everywhere I looked, I saw work-work-work,  I just shut it all out of my mind and enjoyed the moment. It was easy to do when I paired my vision down behind the viewfinder of our new camera. 

Here are some of my favorite shots from yesterday--our first real outdoor play time of 2011:

These are straight from the camera. Some day I will learn all about fancy editing and what not. But I'm pretty happy with these and very happy to not be snapping shots with my smart phone. Chloe was napping and that's why she is obviously absent from the pictures. And of course, I was BEHIND the camera (which I don't mind because I was still in Pajamas--I had been cleaning and laundering up to the point the girls asked to go out)

I'm ready for spring! How about you?

Toyland

I have two large, black garbage bags full of odds and ends toys...broken, discarded, missing pieces, drawn on...I'm getting rid of them all and then some.  I tried to follow a cardinal rule of getting rid of things and consulted with the owners first--who got rid of many things (but not enough for my liking). I did let them win a few battles: You can keep the Wizards of Waverly Place Crystal Ball (this time), but I will not concede on getting rid of the gazillion Happy Meal toys hanging around.

The end result: They still have a LOT of toys...but we do have a half empty toy box, organized bookshelf, and a four tiered bin organizer with two EMPTY bins. I must confess, I did throw out a few things that they "wanted to keep" when they weren't looking and I bet they will not even miss them.  I see what they play with everyday and it was not these things that I tossed.

I feel like I just did a big toy purge in the beginning of the summer...so I am just AMAZED (and ashamed) of the amount we are getting rid of.  How did all of this stuff get here???  I guess with 4 girls we get a ton of the same types and kinds of things so maybe that makes it seem like there is a lot more.  As opposed to having half toys for boys and half toys for girls, we just have an explosion of dolls and dress up clothes and  Barbies etc.

It does feel good to clean up and clear out.  Even Ava said that I did a good job when she surveyed the 4 tier bin organizer..."You even found a place for the Barbie Cars!" I heard the hint of "I'm impressed" in her voice.  Can we keep it this way for awhile, Ava?  She assured me that we can...but as I type this Livi and Ava are playing with a mismatched combo of dollhouse, Ken and Barbie, and bangle bracelets and silly bands...Sigh. I hope it all gets put back in right bins!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ken You Dig It?

Want to know how to breath new life into a pile of matted-haired Barbies?  Add a Ken doll...Well, not just one Ken. We learned all too quickly in a house with 3 Barbie playing gals that fights happen when there is only one Ken to go around. (I'm sure HE enjoyed being the most sought after toy by plastic girls and real girls alike.) Last week, we added a few more Kens to the mix.  The fighting stopped and now the Barbie to Ken ratio has shrunk from 1:20 to about 1:5.  Not as bad.



"A Barbie Trip to the Movies"


We received a ton of our Barbies (and Moxie Girls/Liv Dolls/Disney Princesses--the OTHER Barbie-esque dolls in our collection) as gifts.  The number of Barbie/Barbie-esque dolls continued to multiply while our solitary Ken basked in the abundant amorous attention of all his new gal pals. This just wouldn't do, besides the CONSTANT fighting between the girls about who would get to play with Ken--headache inducing to say the least--I was just cringing at the dynamics of the "play" that was taking place: "Ken" snubs "Ariel" for a date with "Fashionista Barbie."  "Dog walker Barbie" prepares for her date with "Ken" while "Belle", "Tiana", "Gymnastics Barbie," "Merlia," and "Barbie Mariposa" sulk in a jealous pile nearby.  "Ken" lines up "Babysitter Barbie" "Snow White", and a bald "Liv Doll" and "can't decide" whom he would rather whisk to the beach in his pink convertible.  Enough already! 

Populating the Barbie pile with a few more Ken dolls seems to have done the trick. We are up to 4 "Kens" now: Beach Ken, African American Beach Ken (Whom the girls named "Rock" for some reason) and two "Fashionista Kens": One in skinny jeans who (Sorry, Bud) resembles my brother and another blond with a "Justin Bieber Do."  Pickings were slim at the K-mart.  I'm not a huge fan of the Kens with real hair--they just look ridiculous...but they have done the trick: Fighting eliminated. And less bachelor-rose-ceremony-drama-type playing with the Barbies. A win-win for everyone except our original "stud" Ken, I suppose.