make me melt

Ladybug has a toy that has five little animals across it, each hidden by a jack-in-the-box type door activated by a lever, button, etc. underneath it. She was sitting on the floor with the toy in her lap. Each time she correctly manipulated the switch and an animal popped up, her face lit up with a huge smile. Then she leaned over, kissed the animal and closed his door again.

Daddy was trying to get Butterfly into her pajamas but she was rather full of energy. She wiggled away and began to dance. She sang "jam jams, jam jams, jam jams!" as she pranced, twirled and skipped around the room. But the best part was when she stood with her back to us, put her fists on her hips and swayed them back and forth in rhythm to her song. Our laughing just encouraged her to continue. She included some ballet like extensions and slightly awkward gymnastic like rolls but always returned to her little bum-shaking favorite move.

Recently, I began playing piano for the first time in nearly a year. Sad, I know. But with two babies, both light sleepers, its pretty much impossible to find time to practice. And by "play" I really mean sort of pick at the keys to the few songs I know. I never really learned to read music (except to sing) so I can follow sheet music to figure out the treble clef but usually just pick out and make up the bass clef. When I hit a wrong note, instead of counting out the lines to figure out what note it should have been, I usually just close my eyes and adjust it by ear. Anyway. So I sat down on the bench and began to play. Before long, I had a little girl on each side of me, delicately playing the keys on either side of me. Sounded awful but sure was cute. Everyday since then, they both make their way into the office and begin to play, never banging on the keys but playing gently as if they truly desire to make beautiful music.

We like to take pictures. A lot of pictures. And Butterfly has become used to me taking her picture frequently and repeatedly. So when she received her own (toy) camera, she was pretty excited. But the very best part is when she "takes pictures" of her sister. Always holding the camera backwards, she holds it up to her eye and looks at Ladybug. Then she tries to get Ladybug's attention, apparently mimicking every method she's seen me do. She calls her name, chirps, whistles, makes monkey noises, everything.

Sometimes the girls fight over toys (no surprise there). Ladybug has found a way to avoid this. Sometimes when she wants to keep a toy to herself, or when she is feeling overwhelmed, she will disappear. She has a few favorite hiding spots where she can sit quietly and play by herself, such as the bottom of my closet, under the table or in an empty cabinet in the kitchen (kept empty for that purpose).

I tend to go through periods of great dedication and then drift into laziness when it comes to exercise. But having re-dedicated myself to it, I was doing a pilates DVD with the girls played around me. Butterfly caught on quickly and wanted to "dance" with me. She was adorable, imitating the stretches, deep breathing and movements. She lost her balance a few times and fell over, each time with a sheepish grin and a dramatic "whoops!". Ladybug mostly ignored us and played with toys. But when I laid on my stomach for some floor exercises, she promptly sat down on my back and refused to be distracted away. Instead she remained there, interfering with many movements but happy to be part of our activity. She would smile, pat my back and giggle when she occasionally rolled off.

But at the moment, Ladybug went down for a much needed nap, sleeping "stink bug" style, tangled in a pile of five blankets (as she always does) and Butterfly is curled up next to me on the couch, watching Toy Story and clutching a fistful of my long hair (as she always does).

:)