New drawing milestone

I was very excited a couple of weeks ago when Kitten suddenly started drawing arms and legs for her people, so I thought I'd share a couple of her drawings:

 That's Marfa, our Waldorf doll, with a small Cheburashka under her (I guess he is sitting in her lap)

 Marfa

The whole gang - Marfa on the left, big Cheburashka in the center and small Cheburashka under the big one (we have two brown ones now) - I don't know why but she is always drawing the three of them

Play Moments

A couple of my favorite moments from Kitten's play. I just love these little evidences of how her imagination grows and her play evolves. I enjoy cleaning up after she's gone to sleep because I get to find different play scenes, like little glimpses into what was going on in her mind.

Vacation!

Sorry for disappearing but we suddenly decided to go visit both sets of grandparents for a total of 4 weeks! So the past week of packing, cleaning, driving for 14 hours and arriving was pretty hectic. Kitten was sooo excited by the whole craziness of it all, she even packed her things as well! And yes, it took my husband a while to put everything back where it belonged (I think she even added more stuff after I took this picture). He inquired why I let her do it and my reply was "But it kept her occupied for at least an hour!" Seriously, she was dragging all her toys to where I was piling things, rearranging them, putting them in plastic bags and on and on. I just could not put a stop to it, it was so helpful to my packing!

Kitchen Play

Grandma gave Kitten a gorgeous wooden kitchen for her birthday and I supplemented with some pots and pans. I intentionally did not get her a lot of play food, as I wanted her to use her imagination in best Waldorf traditions. As a result, Kitten has been constantly playing a cook. I actually did not expect her to be so into it yet, she is only 2, but she loves it. Of course, she is not coming up with imaginary stories yet but she enjoys "washing" dishes (making an adorable "shhh" sound when she turns water on), using potholders, filling pots with dry pasta, stones and pinecones, transferring "food" to plates using a spoon, feeding us and dolls and so much more! The imitation period at its peak, this is perfect timing for her. I cook quite a lot, and she is so happy to be able to do same things, even though I let her help me whenever she asks to. All sorts of skills are developing while she plays: fine and gross motor, communication, observation, problem solving and, of course, most importantly, imagination.

Kitten's Name day

Last Wednesday was Kitten's Angel's day and of course there were presents involved. The girl loves presents after her birthday, she totally enjoys the concept of unwrapping packages with pleasant surprises inside. So she got very excited when after breakfast I announced that it is time to open some presents. 

I love this look of anticipation...

concentration...

 and joy!

She immediately announced that this is her, which was my idea as well when I bought the Ostheimer family of Mom, Dad and little girl.

Wonderful book In the Land of Elves by Daniela Drescher with beautiful illustrations.

 And Melissa & Doug Cutting Food Box, which was definitely the hit of the day!

Kitten immediately set to chopping and after a little practice was doing it like a pro, she even was throwing the already cut pieces off the board with her knife, like I do! The only downside is that for the rest of the day I was assigned to putting pieces back together, she kept saying "again, again" :) Thank you, Kitten's aunties for wonderful presents!

Birthday girl

My baby girl turned 2 yesterday! We had a very busy couple of days preparing for celebration and the day was wonderful, she totally enjoyed being the queen of the day, presents, cake with candles and games with her friends. That look of happiness on her face is so worth any efforts!

Child's play

I love looking at our playroom in the end of the day. It is like a glimpse into what Kitten did and had on her mind today. Little elves are sitting next to their color's stones (apparently Kitten recognizes all colors now), soon to return to their cozy home (the rainbow cave), deer are eating grass (I drew the green grass and she chose red for hers), pictures are drawn. Fun and learning happen each day.

P.S. And check out the completed table! Yes, it finally happened! We bought an unfinished hardwood table and chairs set and my husband finished it, making it a lovely warm color, perfect for a Waldorf playroom.

On a break

I will be taking a blogging break this week as Kitten's grandparents and aunt (my youngest sister, who is only 10 years old herself, she is Kitten's BFF) are visiting us! Kitten is so excited! We went to San Antonio Zoo today and when we were leaving I asked whether she liked the zoo. She said "yes". I then asked who she liked the most and she said her aunt, such a silly girl!

A thief

Look whom we spotted on our bird feeder lately! What acrobatic skills! And here I was wondering why our bird seed just disappears in a couple of days and which bird left teeth marks on little windows.

All snowed in in Texas

Look who got some snow last week! I know this is laughable for those of you up north, but for down here it is a pretty big deal, so much snow that, hold your breath, remained there for the whole day! :) We stomped all over that little patch, experiencing the sounds snow makes, drew in it with a stick and scooped (or scraped :) ) it into the bucket. It was pretty fun!

Grandfather Frost

Kitten was playing with playdough and I was cooking next to her when suddenly she said "Grandpa" (or rather a Russian equivalent of it - "Deda", that's what she calls my Dad or Grandfather Frost), I looked and she was holding a piece of playdough, pointing at it. And it really does look a little like a head of an old man :) Oh, the wonders of child's imagination…

New plate

I just wanted to show what a great plate my 10-year-old sister made for Kitten as a New Year present. She painted it all by herself thinking about Kitten all the time and carefully deciding which pictures to paint so that Kitten will like it. Isn't it the sweetest thing ever? I am very passionate about hand-made presents if you can't tell :) Plus it gives me a motivation to come up with several interesting things to put in different compartments and not just give her one thing. This was today's snack - blackberries, cookies (apparently in English they are called crisp bread rings but it sounds so unappetizing :) ) and apple slices with raisins.

Oh, and while I am on the topic of eating - Kitten is finally able to feed herself completely independently, not just use a spoon but hold a plate as well (except for soup, which I have to hold since it is liquid) and not make a huge mess. It is so exciting, finally I am able to have a normal meal and she is occupied!

Welcome!

OK, I better just write something quick and be over with the whole "the first post" thing or I will never get started :)) 

My name is Julie. Welcome to my blog! I am not much of a writer but I want to share my and my daughter's adventures in trying to lead a crafty, educational in a fun way, Waldorf inspired life. What I plan on posting about is mostly my crafting, hopefully some tutorials, and also what we do with my girl (I will be referring to her as Kitten for privacy reasons) for fun and development. She is only 17 months at the moment, so grow with us!