Daddy's Home!
Obviously, the entourage and Daddy and I are all thrilled to have him home, even if it's just for a few weeks. The entourage wore their TEAM DADDY t-shirts to pick him up at the airport, and he was greeted by a very energetic welcoming committee. The excess energy continued to expend itself in baggage claim, which garnered lots of smiles from the other travelers (imagine the entourage shrieking and giggling, running circles around Daddy and I). We've been fortunate that he's only had to work mornings, so we've all gotten in lots of Daddy time. According to her plan, Bug spent all of Sunday's worship service snuggled on his lap, and we were all excited to introduce Daddy to our new church. The girls were also eagerly anticipating roughhousing with Daddy upon his return, and this week has included a lot of wrestling and chasing. They got their weekly Daddy date, and happily returned to the usual playground to show off any skills acquired in his absense (Goose in particular is more nimble than when he left). We also made it to the neighborhood pool, where Monkey and Bug were happy to show off their ability to "swim all by themselves!" (with floaties of course). With Daddy present though, they were brave enough to venture into the pool with him without floaties, so progress is being made. We also discovered that Goose's old baby floaty is buoyant enough to keep even Daddy afloat. While Goose herself refused to get in it, Monkey and Bug had a blast--especially when they discovered they were capable of pushing Daddy off!

Goose and Daddy getting in some snuggle time

Riding the bumpy car again!

Birthday Party
In the afternoon before we picked up Daddy, we went to our friend N's birthday party. It was a nice low-key affair (a tray of fingerfoods, a homemade cake, a couple of balloons, and lots of time to play in the backyard). The best part though is that they got to witness someone turning four. Turning four is a really big deal for a preschooler. Monkey and Bug occasionally come up with things they just know they'll be able to do when they're four. (N's mom and I were discussing that we think it's because this is the first birthday at which they're actually aware of the concept of getting older.) Monkey and Bug marvelled that N was four, but he still looked three. I think they expected him to turn into a grown up when he blew out the candles. Their own birthday might have been a disappointment if they hadn't had the opportunity to celebrate this milestone with N first.

Finally!
Goose finally figured how to say her sisters' names! One comes out easier than the other, so they both get called that on occassion, but she's getting it straightened out. And, of course, they are still collectively "my sissies" more than anything else.

Library Day
It was a slightly smaller, quieter crowd at the library this week, which was a relief for everyone. The theme this week was fireflies, and all three girls could do the craft this time.

Construction paper with holes cut out + yellow tissue paper squares + chalk = Fireflies!

After the formal storytime we had our own reading session in a corner of the children's section. An almost 3-year-old boy, Q, couldn't resist the coziness and plopped himself into my lap after I finished a book, asking that I read his baseball book next. I obliged with no objections from the entourage, and he picked our next several choices. Everyone's favorite was a book he found about sharks. Monkey and Bug excitedly told him about the shark teeth bracelets Daddy brought them from his trip, and Q was full of tales of the man-eating shark that lives in his bathtub. Goose made friends with Q's little brother, and they had a grand time pulling out most of the books from the toddler bins. When it was time to go, all the siblings pitched in to help clean up. We came home with these books this week:
Mouse Paint
Are You Ready to Play Outside?
Mother Goose
Leo the Late Bloomer
The Bippolo Seed and Other Stories (Dr. Seuss stories published posthumously)

Really Big Girl Beds
Another bit of excitement this week was preparing for the coming of bunk beds for Monkey and Bug! We don't have the actual beds yet, but the entourage came with us to pick out new mattresses, comforters, and sheets. They loved hiding underneath the newly opened sheets and comforters with Daddy and popping out to surprise me. They are so excited! At some point I overheard Bug explaining to Monkey that they get new bunk beds because they are almost four and, therefore, almost grown ups.

Braids
The other milestone reached this week is that Monkey and Bug finally agreed to let me braid their hair and keep the braids in longer than 30 seconds! Monkey is particularly a fan of this look and has requested them several days. I am also a fan of this look since it keeps her beautiful long hair from getting completely unruly. (No photo yet available. For whatever reason they strongly object to photos of their pretty braids right now.)

Number Concepts
Monkey and Bug are slowly increasing their understanding of numbers. They've been practicing counting objects a lot and are getting much better at establishing a consistent one-to-one ratio (they no longer skip objects or double count them). Mostly they only count up to 12 since that's the number they can consistently and accurately count to. I noticed this week, too, that their idea of the almost inconceivable big number is growing. For the longest time they used the number 5 the way most people use the term "bazillion." That number slowly grew to 7, then to 12, but this week Monkey has been throwing the number 60 around. She can't count to it, but she knows it's out there and that it is indeed a big number.