We went into Once Upon a Child today....it's a store mostly full of gently used kids' clothes, but they also have used books, furniture, toys, shoes, Halloween costumes and the like. We were looking for Magic Tree House books....but they had none. They DID, however, have:

A talking Bob the Builder doll, for $3.50
A Fisher Price Discovery Village, with a car, 2 buses, about 8 people and a skateboard, for $6.50

Between Bob and the village, the kids were busy for hours. One game they made up involved running around and around the village...I would not recommend this to adults, especially if you have a tendency to get motion sick.

Sascha is VERY into Bob the Builder right now. She said she wishes he were real. He seems like a nice guy, responsible, environmentally aware, owns his own business. Even when mistakes are made, he remains cheerful and hard working. His wardrobe could use an overhaul, though. (And hello, Bob? Wendy is IN LOVE WITH YOU. Am I the only one who can see this????)

Um. Anyway.

So we've filled out all our homeschooling paperwork for the fall, in a fit of completely uncharacteristic preparedness. Our curriculum is based on the Vermont standards for kindergarten....85% of which Sascha has already met, so we should be okay.

The kids took a field trip to a local bakery (Gerard's...the bread is *incredible*)last week, and Sascha has been asking about visiting our bakery (Foothills, in Fairfax) to see how Amy makes her scones. We asked her about it today and of course she'd love to have Sascha observe...as long as S. doesn't mind showing up at 5:30 am. I don't think Sascha knows how early this really is. I explained that it would still be dark out, but that didn't phase her. So I guess we'll be getting up *really* early soon....

Zoe is Ms. Chatty. Sometimes she will not know a word, or know the answer to your question. Then she says "No me say!" or "No me choose!" And when she talks about things that are hers, they are "mine own" - so I am "mine own Mommy." It's really flippin' cute. She has stopped saying "how" for "big," though, and looked at me as if I were insane the last time I told her that she used to say "how." Oh well. It is still great to hear her say "Big hug, momma! Momma best friend me." Awww......

Sorry for no photos, I have been incredibly lax in not getting new batteries for the camera. To help you visualize the kids: Sascha's new tooth is coming in and Zoe needs a haircut, and they probably both need their faces wiped.