Toys not required

 I've realized that usually the most fun for these two comes from playing with non-toys,

especially since they have each other for a playmate.

One of Alice's favorite things to do is to stand at the sink and wash her hands. "Wash hayns, wash hayns?"

She'd be content wagging her little fingers under the faucet for an hour if we let her. Sometimes Everett wants to help.

A new favorite show around here is Handy Mandy, and it's really inspired Everett to finally get around to fixing things around the house. Climbing the ladder with his hammer and screwdriver with such purposeful intent and earnestness to "fix it" is the cutest thing. Once we even caught him tinkering around under the hood of his (toy) car.

When the rail fell of his bed, Everett was so excited for an opportunity to run and get his tools and fix it. Even when I said, "hmmm, I think we need Daddy," he replied "No, we need Everett! I go downstairs and get the tools. Be right back."

The backyard, despite its small size, is a great source of adventure. We water the plants, sweep (especially sweeping!), pick up felled leaves and flowers, throw balls, or just run in circles.

 On the rare moments when Wally is not in the teepee, hiding in it is great fun.

I can't get over how much Alice and Everett (still!) enjoys pretending they're invisible as we call "Where's Everett? Everett?! Where are you?!" at the top of our lungs while they giggle uncontrollably.

This is how they help us cook dinner, sitting up on the counter.

Everett's favorite thing to make these days is scrambled eggs and tell us when it's time to turn on the fan.

Alice likes to ask for Cheerios.

How cute is this? Usually a hug and kiss is really a psychological warfare tactic – a method to annoy the other to the point of torture, but this time it was actually sincere for both parties.

 An empty box?! What fun!! I think we kept this one around for an entire week before it got too crumpled and mangled to really use. Other than using it to hide in and pretending it's a rocket ship or a boat, it's useful as a container in which to dump every single known toy. Fun for the dump-er  not so fun for mommy, who is left having to sort and return each item to their appropriate spots, a job that takes a dizzying amount of time and energy. (And that's perhaps the real reason the box disappeared after a week.)

 Alice loves to play dress-up. Any old hat or scarf brings her so much delight! She even found a tank top of mine, draped an arm over her neck and walked over to me saying "pretty dress!" So this actual "costume" is a big favorite. She could spend all afternoon pretending to be a lion! 

 It's just so frustrating when the hood won't stay up.