Tuesday, September 27, 2016

Annika Antics

I just wasted a full hour flipping through old blog posts looking for a pretzel recipe.  (Never even found it, but luckily google did.)  Truth to be told, that wasted hour was pretty awesome.  I was drawn back to a magical time when Eli was a bra-snatching babe, Talia was licking race fences, and Brooklyn was brimming with kindergarten confidence.

This time is pretty magical too.  Another five years down the line, and I'm sure I will look back with just as much longing for the days when my children were young.  Annika and I particularly have some fun hours while the bigger kids are all at school.  Messy, yes, but always fun.  Here she is planting a pear in the raised garden bed to the side of the house.  We may not have an actual sandbox, but she's created one all on her own.


Planting pears is messy work, but someone's gotta do it.


Our little brown-noser also enjoys climbing trees.

She got so tuckered out that she crashed before I could get her into the bathtub.

Usually I pluck Annika from the backyard and plop her into the utility sink for a quick rinse. 


One thing's for certain.  She's not allowed on the furniture until she's clean!  We had to buy a new couch when we couldn't fit our old striped one through the narrow front door.


All of the kids have loved playing in the front yard ever since we set up a rope swing.

Inside the house, she loves to dress up and build houses for her Little People out of MagnaTiles.  Do you have a building permit for that multi-family residence, little miss?

She also begs to put on her swimsuit, regardless of whether or not we have any plans of going to the pool.

Fortunately, the Northwest Rec Center has a lovely place for us both to swim after I've finished my workout.

Cutest little froggy around.

Next to this bumblebee, of course.

Oops!  How embarrassing!  At the beginning of summer, I pulled out the size 3 clothes for Annika to wear, figuring that it was time they got some use.  Well, she may be pushing four, but her little hiney still can't manage to keep those shorts up.  She kept stepping right out of them during our neighborhood walk.  I finally gave up and stripped her down to her swimsuit, which worked fine until she had to walk through some sprinklers.  When she started to cry, I asked what was wrong: "My swimsuit's all wet!"


Finally, here's Annika trying out her roller skates while wearing her favorite leotard.  This pink tutu gets lots of use during her private dance classes, held in our living room whenever she feels like jamming.

Whoa!  Skating is harder than it looks.


Messy or not, life is pretty idyllic.


I sometimes question why I still keep a blog when family blogs are kind of falling out of fashion.  I blog for my children, extended family, and a few faithful friends.  But most of all, I blog for me--because these are the days I want to remember.

4 comments:

Laurie said...

Don’t stop! I love reading you, and I’m sure your kids will love it too.

Anonymous said...

I'm SO VERY grateful for your family blog. It helps me remain a lot more connected than I would be otherwise. It is also wonderful that our highly active, free spirited, Annika arrived on the scene as your 4th child. You have some context and experience to draw upon as she does what she does. She is a delightful challenge, but I still think keeping up with her is a full-time job for any able bodied adult. Your patience with her "antics," and your loving guidance for her and her siblings, is most admirable. Although she is mostly a delightful challenge, Annika really is exploring her world, under the guidance of loving family members, and my prediction is that she will become a major force for good as an adult -- and an energetic one at that. The same can be said of her siblings. Keep smiling!

Susie said...

We are SO glad you do your blogs! They are wonderful, well written, and very touching. You will never regret having done them, especially since you have the annual book printing of them. Such precious pictures of Annika and her delightful personality!

Jason said...

Love that picture of Annie's dirty sleeping face... and the BEE!!!! Oh, to die for.